Balfour Beatty plc (LON:BBY) has announced that it will be increasing its dividend from last year's comparable payment on the 3rd of July to £0.08. The payment will take the dividend yield to 3.2%, which is in line with the average for the industry.

Check out our latest analysis for Balfour Beatty

Balfour Beatty's Payment Has Solid Earnings Coverage

Solid dividend yields are great, but they only really help us if the payment is sustainable. However, prior to this announcement, Balfour Beatty's dividend was comfortably covered by both cash flow and earnings. This means that most of its earnings are being retained to grow the business.

The next year is set to see EPS grow by 21.8%. Assuming the dividend continues along recent trends, we think the payout ratio could be 25% by next year, which is in a pretty sustainable range. historic-dividend

Dividend Volatility

The company has a long dividend track record, but it doesn't look great with cuts in the past. The annual payment during the last 10 years was £0.141 in 2014, and the most recent fiscal year payment was £0.115. The dividend has shrunk at around 2.0% a year during that period. Declining dividends isn't generally what we look for as they can indicate that the company is running into some challenges.

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 Balfour Beatty has grown earnings per share at 14% per year over the past five years. A low payout ratio and decent growth suggests that the company is reinvesting well, and it also has plenty of room to increase the dividend over time.

Balfour Beatty Looks Like A Great Dividend Stock

Overall, we think this could be an attractive income stock, and it is only getting better by paying a higher dividend this year. Earnings are easily covering distributions, and the company is generating plenty of cash. Taking this all into consideration, this looks like it could be a good dividend opportunity.

Companies possessing a stable dividend policy will likely enjoy greater investor interest than those suffering from a more inconsistent approach. Meanwhile, despite the importance of dividend payments, they are not the only factors our readers should know when assessing a company. For instance, we've picked out 2 warning signs for Balfour Beatty that investors should take into consideration. Looking for more high-yielding dividend ideas? Try our collection of 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.