Caplin Point Laboratories Limited (NSE:CAPLIPOINT) Looks Like A Good Stock, And It's Going Ex-Dividend Soon

Some investors rely on dividends for growing their wealth, and if you're one of those dividend sleuths, you might be intrigued to know that Caplin Point Laboratories Limited (NSE:CAPLIPOINT) is about to go ex-dividend in just three days. The ex-dividend date is two business days before a company's record date in most cases, which is the date on which the company determines which shareholders are entitled to receive a dividend. The ex-dividend date is important as the process of settlement involves at least two full business days. So if you miss that date, you would not show up on the company's books on the record date. Therefore, if you purchase Caplin Point Laboratories' shares on or after the 29th of May, you won't be eligible to receive the dividend, when it is paid on the 13th of June.

The company's next dividend payment will be ₹4.00 per share, on the back of last year when the company paid a total of ₹8.00 to shareholders. Looking at the last 12 months of distributions, Caplin Point Laboratories has a trailing yield of approximately 0.4% on its current stock price of ₹2028.00. We love seeing companies pay a dividend, but it's also important to be sure that laying the golden eggs isn't going to kill our golden goose! We need to see whether the dividend is covered by earnings and if it's growing.

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Dividends are typically paid from company earnings. If a company pays more in dividends than it earned in profit, then the dividend could be unsustainable. Caplin Point Laboratories is paying out just 8.7% of its profit after tax, which is comfortably low and leaves plenty of breathing room in the case of adverse events. Yet cash flows are even more important than profits for assessing a dividend, so we need to see if the company generated enough cash to pay its distribution. What's good is that dividends were well covered by free cash flow, with the company paying out 17% of its cash flow last year.

It's encouraging to see that the dividend is covered by both profit and cash flow. This generally suggests the dividend is sustainable, as long as earnings don't drop precipitously.

Check out our latest analysis for Caplin Point Laboratories

Click here to see the company's payout ratio, plus analyst estimates of its future dividends.

Have Earnings And Dividends Been Growing?

Companies with consistently growing earnings per share generally make the best dividend stocks, as they usually find it easier to grow dividends per share. Investors love dividends, so if earnings fall and the dividend is reduced, expect a stock to be sold off heavily at the same time. It's encouraging to see Caplin Point Laboratories has grown its earnings rapidly, up 21% a year for the past five years. With earnings per share growing rapidly and the company sensibly reinvesting almost all of its profits within the business, Caplin Point Laboratories looks like a promising growth company.

Another key way to measure a company's dividend prospects is by measuring its historical rate of dividend growth. In the last 10 years, Caplin Point Laboratories has lifted its dividend by approximately 23% a year on average. It's great to see earnings per share growing rapidly over several years, and dividends per share growing right along with it.

Final Takeaway

From a dividend perspective, should investors buy or avoid Caplin Point Laboratories? Caplin Point Laboratories has been growing earnings at a rapid rate, and has a conservatively low payout ratio, implying that it is reinvesting heavily in its business; a sterling combination. Overall we think this is an attractive combination and worthy of further research.

Curious what other investors think of Caplin Point Laboratories? See what analysts are forecasting, with this visualisation of its historical and future estimated earnings and cash flow.

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This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.