The board of Columbus McKinnon Corporation (NASDAQ:CMCO) has announced that it will pay a dividend of $0.07 per share on the 18th of November. The dividend yield is 0.9% based on this payment, which is a little bit low compared to the other companies in the industry.

View our latest analysis for Columbus McKinnon

Columbus McKinnon's Payment Could Potentially Have Solid Earnings Coverage

While yield is important, another factor to consider about a company's dividend is whether the current payout levels are feasible. Before making this announcement, Columbus McKinnon was easily earning enough to cover the dividend. This means that most of what the business earns is being used to help it grow.

Over the next year, EPS is forecast to expand by 28.5%. If the dividend continues on this path, the payout ratio could be 15% by next year, which we think can be pretty sustainable going forward.

Columbus McKinnon Has A Solid Track Record

Even over a long history of paying dividends, the company's distributions have been remarkably stable. Since 2014, the dividend has gone from $0.16 total annually to $0.28. This works out to be a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of approximately 5.8% a year over that time. Dividends have grown at a reasonable rate over this period, and without any major cuts in the payment over time, we think this is an attractive combination as it provides a nice boost to shareholder returns.

Dividend Growth May Be Hard To Come By

Investors who have held shares in the company for the past few years will be happy with the dividend income they have received. Let's not jump to conclusions as things might not be as good as they appear on the surface. Columbus McKinnon has seen earnings per share falling at 7.0% per year over the last five years. Declining earnings will inevitably lead to the company paying a lower dividend in line with lower profits. Earnings are predicted to grow over the next year, but we would remain cautious until a track record of earnings growth is established.

Our Thoughts On Columbus McKinnon's Dividend

Overall, a consistent dividend is a good thing, and we think that Columbus McKinnon has the ability to continue this into the future. The earnings coverage is acceptable for now, but with earnings on the decline we would definitely keep an eye on the payout ratio. This looks like it could be a good dividend stock going forward, but we would note that the payout ratio has been at higher levels in the past so it could happen again.

Market movements attest to how highly valued a consistent dividend policy is compared to one which is more unpredictable. Meanwhile, despite the importance of dividend payments, they are not the only factors our readers should know when assessing a company. For example, we've picked out 1 warning sign for Columbus McKinnon that investors should know about before committing capital to this stock. Is Columbus McKinnon not quite the opportunity you were looking for? Why not check out our selection of top dividend stocks.

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