In This Article:
CNA Financial Corporation (NYSE:CNA) is about to trade ex-dividend in the next four days. Ex-dividend means that investors that purchase the stock on or after the 19th of February will not receive this dividend, which will be paid on the 11th of March.
CNA Financial's next dividend payment will be US$1.13 per share. Last year, in total, the company distributed US$2.27 to shareholders. Looking at the last 12 months of distributions, CNA Financial has a trailing yield of approximately 5.3% on its current stock price of $43.22. Dividends are a major contributor to investment returns for long term holders, but only if the dividend continues to be paid. So we need to investigate whether CNA Financial can afford its dividend, and if the dividend could grow.
View our latest analysis for CNA Financial
Dividends are usually paid out of company profits, so if a company pays out more than it earned then its dividend is usually at greater risk of being cut. CNA Financial paid out 58% of its earnings to investors last year, a normal payout level for most businesses.
Generally speaking, the lower a company's payout ratios, the more resilient its dividend usually is.
Click here to see the company's payout ratio, plus analyst estimates of its future dividends.
Have Earnings And Dividends Been Growing?
Stocks in companies that generate sustainable earnings growth often make the best dividend prospects, as it is easier to lift the dividend when earnings are rising. If earnings fall far enough, the company could be forced to cut its dividend. With that in mind, we're encouraged by the steady growth at CNA Financial, with earnings per share up 7.5% on average over the last five years.
The main way most investors will assess a company's dividend prospects is by checking the historical rate of dividend growth. In the last 10 years, CNA Financial has lifted its dividend by approximately 19% a year on average. It's encouraging to see the company lifting dividends while earnings are growing, suggesting at least some corporate interest in rewarding shareholders.
Final Takeaway
Is CNA Financial an attractive dividend stock, or better left on the shelf? Earnings per share have been growing at a reasonable rate, and the company is paying out a bit over half its earnings as dividends. We think there are likely better opportunities out there.
With that being said, if dividends aren't your biggest concern with CNA Financial, you should know about the other risks facing this business. Every company has risks, and we've spotted 2 warning signs for CNA Financial you should know about.