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Regular readers will know that we love our dividends at Simply Wall St, which is why it's exciting to see MVB Financial Corp. (NASDAQ:MVBF) is about to trade ex-dividend in the next four days. The ex-dividend date is one business day before a company's record date, which is the date on which the company determines which shareholders are entitled to receive a dividend. The ex-dividend date is an important date to be aware of as any purchase of the stock made on or after this date might mean a late settlement that doesn't show on the record date. Thus, you can purchase MVB Financial's shares before the 28th of February in order to receive the dividend, which the company will pay on the 15th of March.
The company's next dividend payment will be US$0.17 per share. Last year, in total, the company distributed US$0.68 to shareholders. Looking at the last 12 months of distributions, MVB Financial has a trailing yield of approximately 3.6% on its current stock price of US$19.01. 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.
See our latest analysis for MVB 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. MVB Financial paid out a comfortable 44% of its profit last year.
Companies that pay out less in dividends than they earn in profits generally have more sustainable dividends. The lower the payout ratio, the more wiggle room the business has before it could be forced to cut the dividend.
Click here to see the company's payout ratio, plus analyst estimates of its future dividends.
Have Earnings And Dividends Been Growing?
Companies with falling earnings are riskier for dividend shareholders. If business enters a downturn and the dividend is cut, the company could see its value fall precipitously. Readers will understand then, why we're concerned to see MVB Financial's earnings per share have dropped 7.0% a year over the past five years. Ultimately, when earnings per share decline, the size of the pie from which dividends can be paid, shrinks.
Many investors will assess a company's dividend performance by evaluating how much the dividend payments have changed over time. MVB Financial has delivered 24% dividend growth per year on average over the past 10 years.
The Bottom Line
Should investors buy MVB Financial for the upcoming dividend? Earnings per share have shrunk noticeably in recent years, although we like that the company has a low payout ratio. This could suggest a cut to the dividend may not be a major risk in the near future. It might be worth researching if the company is reinvesting in growth projects that could grow earnings and dividends in the future, but for now we're on the fence about its dividend prospects.