dividend cover
(noun)
The ratio of total earnings to total dividend payments.
Examples of dividend cover in the following topics:
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Value of a Low Dividend
- Furthermore, capital gains are taxed at lower rates than dividends.
- However, under dividend irrelevance theory, the actual value of a dividend is inconsequential to investors.
- The conflicting theories on dividend policy complicate interpretations of low dividends in real life.
- This instability can be seen in calculating the dividend cover, which is calculated as DC = EPS/DPS.
- Conversely, a low dividend yield can be considered evidence that the firm is experiencing rapid growth or that future dividends might be higher.
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Accounting for Preferred Stock
- Stock preferred as to dividends means that the preferred stockholders receive a specified dividend per share before common stockholders receive any dividends.
- Companies must pay unpaid cumulative preferred dividends before paying any dividends on the common stock.
- It has paid no dividends for two years.
- Dividends in arrears are cumulative unpaid dividends, including the quarterly dividends not declared for the current year.
- A corporation's cumulative preferred dividends in arrears at liquidation are payable even if there are not enough accumulated earnings to cover the dividends.
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Value of a High Dividend
- A high dividend yield indicates undervaluation of the stock because the stock's dividend is high relative to the stock price.
- If a company is not earning enough profit to cover their dividend payments, the current dividend is unsustainable.
- Therefore, if an investor buys these risky high-dividend stocks and the dividend is decreased because the company is suffering losses, the investor will have the problem of both less dividend income and portfolio of stocks with declining values.
- There may be investors, such as retirees, who prefer current income from high dividends to low dividends and growth in stock value.
- Discuss the advantages of owning stock that has a high dividend
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Dividend Yield Ratio
- The dividend-price ratio is a company's annual dividend payments divided by market capitalization, or dividend per share divided by the price per share.
- The dividend yield or the dividend-price ratio of a share is the company's total annual dividend payments divided by its market capitalization, or the dividend per share, divided by the price per share.
- There is no guarantee that future dividends will match past dividends or even be paid at all.
- Others try to estimate the next year's dividend and use it to derive a prospective dividend yield.
- Current dividend yield = Most recent Full-Year Dividend / Current Share Price
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Investor Preferences
- The significance of investors' dividend preferences is a contested topic in finance that has serious implications for dividend policy.
- Assuming dividend relevance, coming up with a dividend policy is challenging for the directors and financial manager of a company because different investors have different views on present cash dividends and future capital gains.
- Investor preferences are first split between choosing dividend payments now, or future capital gains in lieu of dividends.
- Further elements of the dividend policy also include:1.
- Stable versus irregular dividends, and 3.
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Residual Dividend Model
- The Residual Dividend Model first uses earnings to finance new projects, then distributes the remainder as dividends.
- The Residual Dividend Model is a method a company uses to determine the dividend it will pay to its shareholders.
- The Residual Dividend Model is an outgrowth of The Modigliani and Miller Theory that posits that dividends are irrelevant to investors.
- It goes on to say that dividend policy does not determine market value of a stock.
- The Residual Model dividend policy is a passive one and, in theory, does not influence market price because the same wealth is created for the investor regardless of the dividend.
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Components of the Cash Budget
- The cash flow budget helps the business determine when its income will be sufficient to cover its expenses and when the company will need to seek outside financing.
- Dividends received: Dividends are payments made by a corporation to its shareholder members.
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Dividend Payments and Earnings Retention
- Dividends are payments made by a corporation to its shareholder members.
- A dividend is allocated as a fixed amount per share.
- Public companies usually pay dividends on a fixed schedule, but may declare a dividend at any time, sometimes called a "special dividend" to distinguish it from the fixed schedule dividends.
- Dividend payout ratio is the fraction of net income a firm pays to its stockholders in dividends:
- The dividend payout ratio is equal to dividend payments divided by net income for the same period.
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Defining Dividends
- A dividend is allocated as a fixed amount per share.
- When it is time to make dividend payments, corporations always pay preferred stock owners first, and then common stock dividends are allocated after all preferred dividends are paid in full.
- Dividends may be allocated in different forms of payment, outlined below:Cash dividends are the most common.
- In-dividend date is the last day, which is one trading day before the ex-dividend date, where the stock is said to be cum dividend ('with [including] dividend').
- After this date the stock becomes ex-dividend.
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Impact of Dividend Policy on Clientele
- Change in a firm's dividend policy may cause loss of old clientele and gain of new clientele, based on their different dividend preferences.
- Suppose Firm A had been in a growth stage and did not offer dividends to its shareholders, but their policy changed to paying low cash dividends.
- These investors are known as dividend clientele.
- Of those who prefer dividends over capital gains, there are further subsets of clientele; for example, investors might prefer a stock that pays a high dividend, while another subset might look for a balance between dividend payout and reinvestment in the company.
- On the other hand, the firm may attract a new clientele group if its new dividend policy appeals to the group's dividend preferences.