Kinder Morgan, Inc.'s (NYSE:KMI) dividend will be increasing from last year's payment of the same period to $0.2775 on 15th of August. This makes the dividend yield 6.3%, which is above the industry average.

See our latest analysis for Kinder Morgan

Kinder Morgan's Payment Has Solid Earnings Coverage

While it is great to have a strong dividend yield, we should also consider whether the payment is sustainable. Based on the last payment, the company wasn't making enough to cover what it was paying to shareholders. This situation certainly isn't ideal, and could place significant strain on the balance sheet if it continues.

Over the next year, EPS is forecast to expand by 20.8%. If recent patterns in the dividend continues, the payout ratio in 12 months could be 87% which is a bit high but can definitely be sustainable.

Dividend Volatility

While the company has been paying a dividend for a long time, it has cut the dividend at least once in the last 10 years. The dividend has gone from an annual total of $1.20 in 2012 to the most recent total annual payment of $1.11. Dividend payments have shrunk at a rate of less than 1% per annum over this time frame. Generally, we don't like to see a dividend that has been declining over time as this can degrade shareholders' returns and indicate that the company may be running into problems.

Kinder Morgan Might Find It Hard To Grow Its Dividend

Given that the dividend has been cut in the past, we need to check if earnings are growing and if that might lead to stronger dividends in the future. It's encouraging to see that Kinder Morgan has been growing its earnings per share at 29% a year over the past five years. Although earnings per share is up nicely Kinder Morgan is paying out 103% of its earnings as dividends, which we feel is borderline unsustainable without extenuating circumstances.

Kinder Morgan's Dividend Doesn't Look Sustainable

In summary, while it's always good to see the dividend being raised, we don't think Kinder Morgan's payments are rock solid. Strong earnings growth means Kinder Morgan has the potential to be a good dividend stock in the future, despite the current payments being at elevated levels. We would probably look elsewhere for an income investment.

It's important to note that companies having a consistent dividend policy will generate greater investor confidence than those having an erratic one. However, there are other things to consider for investors when analysing stock performance. Case in point: We've spotted 3 warning signs for Kinder Morgan (of which 2 make us uncomfortable!) you should know about. If you are a dividend investor, you might also want to look at our curated list of high yield dividend stocks.