Yahoo Finance Don't Race Out To Buy Sabra Health Care REIT, Inc. (NASDAQ:SBRA) Just Because It's Going Ex-Dividend
It looks like Sabra Health Care REIT, Inc. (NASDAQ:SBRA) is about to go ex-dividend in the next 4 days. Ex-dividend means that investors that purchase the stock on or after the 19th of August will not receive this dividend, which will be paid on the 30th of August.
Sabra Health Care REIT's upcoming dividend is US$0.45 a share, following on from the last 12 months, when the company distributed a total of US$1.80 per share to shareholders. Last year's total dividend payments show that Sabra Health Care REIT has a trailing yield of 8.5% on the current share price of $21.08. Dividends are an important source of income to many shareholders, but the health of the business is crucial to maintaining those dividends. We need to see whether the dividend is covered by earnings and if it's growing.
View our latest analysis for Sabra Health Care REIT
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. Its dividend payout ratio is 91% of profit, which means the company is paying out a majority of its earnings. The relatively limited profit reinvestment could slow the rate of future earnings growth It could become a concern if earnings started to decline. While Sabra Health Care REIT seems to be paying out a very high percentage of its income, REITs have different dividend payment behaviour and so, while we don't think this is great, we also don't think it is unusual. That said, even highly profitable companies sometimes might not generate enough cash to pay the dividend, which is why we should always check if the dividend is covered by cash flow. Over the last year, it paid out more than three-quarters (95%) of its free cash flow generated, which is fairly high and may be starting to limit reinvestment in the business.
It's positive to see that Sabra Health Care REIT'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?
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 Sabra Health Care REIT's earnings per share have dropped 29% 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.
Sabra Health Care REIT also issued more than 5% of its market cap in new stock during the past year, which we feel is likely to hurt its dividend prospects in the long run. It's hard to grow dividends per share when a company keeps creating new shares.
Another key way to measure a company's dividend prospects is by measuring its historical rate of dividend growth. Sabra Health Care REIT has delivered 4.4% dividend growth per year on average over the past 8 years. That's intriguing, but the combination of growing dividends despite declining earnings can typically only be achieved by paying out a larger percentage of profits. Sabra Health Care REIT is already paying out a high percentage of its income, so without earnings growth, we're doubtful of whether this dividend will grow much in the future.
Final Takeaway
Is Sabra Health Care REIT worth buying for its dividend? It's never good to see earnings per share shrinking, but at least the dividend payout ratios appear reasonable. We're aware though that if earnings continue to decline, the dividend could be at risk. It's not an attractive combination from a dividend perspective, and we're inclined to pass on this one for the time being.
Ever wonder what the future holds for Sabra Health Care REIT? See what the two analysts we track are forecasting, with this visualisation of its historical and future estimated earnings and cash flow
We wouldn't recommend just buying the first dividend stock you see, though. Here's a list of interesting dividend stocks with a greater than 2% yield and an upcoming dividend.
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If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
