Yahoo Finance B2Gold Corp. (TSE:BTO) Looks Interesting, And It's About To Pay A Dividend
B2Gold Corp. (TSE:BTO) is about to trade ex-dividend in the next 4 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 important because any transaction on a stock needs to have been settled before the record date in order to be eligible for a dividend. Accordingly, B2Gold investors that purchase the stock on or after the 7th of December will not receive the dividend, which will be paid on the 17th of December.
The company's next dividend payment will be US$0.04 per share, on the back of last year when the company paid a total of US$0.16 to shareholders. Based on the last year's worth of payments, B2Gold has a trailing yield of 4.2% on the current stock price of CA$4.83. If you buy this business for its dividend, you should have an idea of whether B2Gold's dividend is reliable and sustainable. As a result, readers should always check whether B2Gold has been able to grow its dividends, or if the dividend might be cut.
View our latest analysis for B2Gold
Dividends are typically paid out of company income, so if a company pays out more than it earned, its dividend is usually at a higher risk of being cut. That's why it's good to see B2Gold paying out a modest 37% of its earnings. Yet cash flow is typically more important than profit for assessing dividend sustainability, so we should always check if the company generated enough cash to afford its dividend. Fortunately, it paid out only 42% of its free cash flow in the past year.
It's positive to see that B2Gold's dividend is covered by both profits and cash flow, since this is generally a sign that the dividend is sustainable, and a lower payout ratio usually suggests a greater margin of safety before the dividend gets cut.
Click here to see the company's payout ratio, plus analyst estimates of its future dividends.
Have Earnings And Dividends Been Growing?
Businesses with strong growth prospects usually make the best dividend payers, because it's easier to grow dividends when earnings per share are improving. Investors love dividends, so if earnings fall and the dividend is reduced, expect a stock to be sold off heavily at the same time. It's encouraging to see B2Gold has grown its earnings rapidly, up 54% a year for the past five years. B2Gold is paying out less than half its earnings and cash flow, while simultaneously growing earnings per share at a rapid clip. Companies with growing earnings and low payout ratios are often the best long-term dividend stocks, as the company can both grow its earnings and increase the percentage of earnings that it pays out, essentially multiplying the dividend.
Another key way to measure a company's dividend prospects is by measuring its historical rate of dividend growth. In the last two years, B2Gold has lifted its dividend by approximately 100% a year on average. It's exciting to see that both earnings and dividends per share have grown rapidly over the past few years.
The Bottom Line
Is B2Gold an attractive dividend stock, or better left on the shelf? B2Gold has been growing earnings at a rapid rate, and has a conservatively low payout ratio, implying that it is reinvesting heavily in its business; a sterling combination. B2Gold looks solid on this analysis overall, and we'd definitely consider investigating it more closely.
So while B2Gold looks good from a dividend perspective, it's always worthwhile being up to date with the risks involved in this stock. To help with this, we've discovered 4 warning signs for B2Gold (1 is a bit concerning!) that you ought to be aware of before buying the shares.
A common investment mistake is buying the first interesting stock you see. Here you can find a list of promising dividend stocks with a greater than 2% yield and an upcoming dividend.
Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.
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.
