NL Industries, Inc. (NYSE:NL) is about to trade ex-dividend in the next three days. The ex-dividend date occurs one day before the record date which is the day on which shareholders need to be on the company's books in order 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. Meaning, you will need to purchase NL Industries' shares before the 10th of June to receive the dividend, which will be paid on the 25th of June.

The company's next dividend payment will be US$0.08 per share, on the back of last year when the company paid a total of US$0.32 to shareholders. Last year's total dividend payments show that NL Industries has a trailing yield of 4.4% on the current share price of US$7.29. Dividends are a major contributor to investment returns for long term holders, but only if the dividend continues to be paid. So we need to investigate whether NL Industries can afford its dividend, and if the dividend could grow.

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. NL Industries paid out 126% of profit in the past year, which we think is typically not sustainable unless there are mitigating characteristics such as unusually strong cash flow or a large cash balance. 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. It distributed 40% of its free cash flow as dividends, a comfortable payout level for most companies.

It's disappointing to see that the dividend was not covered by profits, but cash is more important from a dividend sustainability perspective, and NL Industries fortunately did generate enough cash to fund its dividend. Still, if the company repeatedly paid a dividend greater than its profits, we'd be concerned. Very few companies are able to sustainably pay dividends larger than their reported earnings.

Click here to see how much of its profit NL Industries paid out over the last 12 months.

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. With that in mind, we're encouraged by the steady growth at NL Industries, with earnings per share up 4.7% 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. NL Industries's dividend payments per share have declined at 4.4% per year on average over the past 10 years, which is uninspiring. NL Industries is a rare case where dividends have been decreasing at the same time as earnings per share have been improving. It's unusual to see, and could point to unstable conditions in the core business, or more rarely an intensified focus on reinvesting profits.

Final Takeaway

Has NL Industries got what it takes to maintain its dividend payments? Earnings per share have grown modestly, and last year NL Industries paid out a low percentage of its cash flow. However, its dividend payments were not well covered by profits. In summary, while it has some positive characteristics, we're not inclined to race out and buy NL Industries today.

If you want to look further into NL Industries, it's worth knowing the risks this business faces. In terms of investment risks, we've identified 2 warning signs with NL Industries and understanding them should be part of your investment process.

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.