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 Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX) is about to go ex-dividend in just 4 days. Typically, the ex-dividend date is one business day before the record date which is the date on which a company determines the shareholders eligible to receive a dividend. It is important to be aware of the ex-dividend date because any trade on the stock needs to have been settled on or before the record date. This means that investors who purchase Blackstone's shares on or after the 29th of July will not receive the dividend, which will be paid on the 5th of August.

The company's upcoming dividend is US$0.82 a share, following on from the last 12 months, when the company distributed a total of US$3.35 per share to shareholders. Based on the last year's worth of payments, Blackstone stock has a trailing yield of around 2.3% on the current share price of US$143.62. If you buy this business for its dividend, you should have an idea of whether Blackstone's dividend is reliable and sustainable. So we need to investigate whether Blackstone can afford its dividend, and if the dividend could grow.

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. Blackstone distributed an unsustainably high 131% of its profit as dividends to shareholders last year. Without more sustainable payment behaviour, the dividend looks precarious.

When the dividend payout ratio is high, as it is in this case, the dividend is usually at greater risk of being cut in the future.

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. Investors love dividends, so if earnings fall and the dividend is reduced, expect a stock to be sold off heavily at the same time. With that in mind, we're encouraged by the steady growth at Blackstone, with earnings per share up 2.7% on average over the last five years.

Many investors will assess a company's dividend performance by evaluating how much the dividend payments have changed over time. In the past 10 years, Blackstone has increased its dividend at approximately 9.6% a year on average. We're glad to see dividends rising alongside earnings over a number of years, which may be a sign the company intends to share the growth with shareholders.

To Sum It Up

Is Blackstone an attractive dividend stock, or better left on the shelf? While we like that its earnings are growing somewhat, we're not enamored that it's paying out 131% of last year's earnings. This is not an overtly appealing combination of characteristics, and we're just not that interested in this company's dividend.

So if you're still interested in Blackstone despite it's poor dividend qualities, you should be well informed on some of the risks facing this stock. To that end, you should learn about the 2 warning signs we've spotted with Blackstone (including 1 which is potentially serious).

Generally, we wouldn't recommend just buying the first dividend stock you see. Here's a curated list of interesting stocks that are strong dividend payers.

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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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