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 First Foundation Inc. (NASDAQ:FFWM) is about to go ex-dividend in just three days. The ex-dividend date is usually set to be one business day before the record date which is the cut-off date on which you must be present on the company's books as a shareholder in order to receive the 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. Therefore, if you purchase First Foundation's shares on or after the 4th of August, you won't be eligible to receive the dividend, when it is paid on the 16th of August.

The company's next dividend payment will be US$0.11 per share. Last year, in total, the company distributed US$0.44 to shareholders. Looking at the last 12 months of distributions, First Foundation has a trailing yield of approximately 2.1% on its current stock price of $20.82. Dividends are an important source of income to many shareholders, but the health of the business is crucial to maintaining those dividends. So we need to check whether the dividend payments are covered, and if earnings are growing.

See our latest analysis for First Foundation

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. First Foundation paid out just 16% of its profit last year, which we think is conservatively low and leaves plenty of margin for unexpected circumstances.

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 business enters a downturn and the dividend is cut, the company could see its value fall precipitously. It's encouraging to see First Foundation has grown its earnings rapidly, up 25% a year for the past five years.

Many investors will assess a company's dividend performance by evaluating how much the dividend payments have changed over time. First Foundation has delivered an average of 22% per year annual increase in its dividend, based on the past four years of dividend payments. Both per-share earnings and dividends have both been growing rapidly in recent times, which is great to see.