Three Days Left To Buy Liaoning Port Co., Ltd. (HKG:2880) Before The Ex-Dividend Date

Liaoning Port Co., Ltd. (HKG:2880) stock is about to trade ex-dividend in 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 of consequence because whenever a stock is bought or sold, the trade can take two business days or more to settle. Meaning, you will need to purchase Liaoning Port's shares before the 2nd of July to receive the dividend, which will be paid on the 1st of September.

The company's next dividend payment will be CN¥0.0286 per share, and in the last 12 months, the company paid a total of CN¥0.029 per share. Calculating the last year's worth of payments shows that Liaoning Port has a trailing yield of 4.6% on the current share price of HK$0.72. Dividends are an important source of income to many shareholders, but the health of the business is crucial to maintaining those dividends. That's why we should always check whether the dividend payments appear sustainable, and if the company is 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. That's why it's good to see Liaoning Port paying out a modest 46% of its earnings. 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. Luckily it paid out just 18% of its free 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.

See our latest analysis for Liaoning Port

Click here to see how much of its profit Liaoning Port paid out over the last 12 months.

Have Earnings And Dividends Been Growing?

Companies with falling earnings are riskier for dividend shareholders. If earnings fall far enough, the company could be forced to cut its dividend. With that in mind, we're discomforted by Liaoning Port's 7.3% per annum decline in earnings in the past five years. Such a sharp decline casts doubt on the future sustainability of the dividend.

Another key way to measure a company's dividend prospects is by measuring its historical rate of dividend growth. In the past 10 years, Liaoning Port has increased its dividend at approximately 5.1% a year on average.

To Sum It Up

Should investors buy Liaoning Port for the upcoming dividend? Earnings per share are down meaningfully, although at least the company is paying out a low and conservative percentage of both its earnings and cash flow. It's definitely not great to see earnings falling, but at least there may be some buffer before the dividend needs to be cut. While it does have some good things going for it, we're a bit ambivalent and it would take more to convince us of Liaoning Port's dividend merits.

So while Liaoning Port looks good from a dividend perspective, it's always worthwhile being up to date with the risks involved in this stock. Be aware that Liaoning Port is showing 2 warning signs in our investment analysis, and 1 of those doesn't sit too well with us...

Generally, we wouldn't recommend just buying the first dividend stock you see. Here's a curated list of interesting stocks that are strong dividend payers.

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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.