Progressive (NYSE:PGR) Will Pay A Dividend Of US$0.10

The Progressive Corporation (NYSE:PGR) will pay a dividend of US$0.10 on the 15th of October. Based on this payment, the dividend yield on the company's stock will be 5.3%, which is an attractive boost to shareholder returns.

See our latest analysis for Progressive

Progressive Doesn't Earn Enough To Cover Its Payments

Impressive dividend yields are good, but this doesn't matter much if the payments can't be sustained. Based on the last payment, Progressive was quite comfortably earning enough to cover the dividend. This indicates that a lot of the earnings are being reinvested into the business, with the aim of fueling growth.

EPS is set to fall by 40.5% over the next 12 months. If the dividend continues along recent trends, we estimate the payout ratio could reach 117%, which could put the dividend in jeopardy if the company's earnings don't improve.

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Dividend Volatility

The company's dividend history has been marked by instability, with at least 1 cut in the last 10 years. The first annual payment during the last 10 years was US$0.40 in 2011, and the most recent fiscal year payment was US$4.90. This works out to be a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of approximately 29% a year over that time. Dividends have grown rapidly over this time, but with cuts in the past we are not certain that this stock will be a reliable source of income in the future.

The Dividend Looks Likely To Grow

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. We are encouraged to see that Progressive has grown earnings per share at 39% per year over the past five years. Progressive is clearly able to grow rapidly while still returning cash to shareholders, positioning it to become a strong dividend payer in the future.

Progressive Looks Like A Great Dividend Stock

Overall, we like to see the dividend staying consistent, and we think Progressive might even raise payments in the future. The company is generating plenty of cash, and the earnings also quite easily cover the distributions. We should point out that the earnings are expected to fall over the next 12 months, which won't be a problem if this doesn't become a trend, but could cause some turbulence in the next year. All of these factors considered, we think this has solid potential as a dividend stock.

Companies possessing a stable dividend policy will likely enjoy greater investor interest than those suffering from a more inconsistent approach. At the same time, there are other factors our readers should be conscious of before pouring capital into a stock. For example, we've picked out 2 warning signs for Progressive that investors should know about before committing capital to this stock. If you are a dividend investor, you might also want to look at our curated list of high performing dividend stock.

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.

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