GuocoLand (Malaysia) Berhad (KLSE:GUOCO) is about to trade ex-dividend in the next 4 days. The ex-dividend date is one business day before the record date, which is the cut-off date for shareholders to be present on the company's books to be eligible for a dividend payment. The ex-dividend date is an important date to be aware of as any purchase of the stock made on or after this date might mean a late settlement that doesn't show on the record date. Therefore, if you purchase GuocoLand (Malaysia) Berhad's shares on or after the 30th of October, you won't be eligible to receive the dividend, when it is paid on the 15th of November.

The company's next dividend payment will be RM0.02 per share, and in the last 12 months, the company paid a total of RM0.02 per share. Based on the last year's worth of payments, GuocoLand (Malaysia) Berhad stock has a trailing yield of around 2.8% on the current share price of MYR0.715. If you buy this business for its dividend, you should have an idea of whether GuocoLand (Malaysia) Berhad's dividend is reliable and sustainable. As a result, readers should always check whether GuocoLand (Malaysia) Berhad has been able to grow its dividends, or if the dividend might be cut.

Check out our latest analysis for GuocoLand (Malaysia) Berhad

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. That's why it's good to see GuocoLand (Malaysia) Berhad paying out a modest 39% of its earnings. A useful secondary check can be to evaluate whether GuocoLand (Malaysia) Berhad generated enough free cash flow to afford its dividend. What's good is that dividends were well covered by free cash flow, with the company paying out 6.6% of its cash flow last year.

It's positive to see that GuocoLand (Malaysia) Berhad's dividend is covered by both profits and cash flow, since this is generally a sign that the dividend is sustainable, and a lower payout ratio usually suggests a greater margin of safety before the dividend gets cut.

Click here to see how much of its profit GuocoLand (Malaysia) Berhad paid out over the last 12 months.

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. If business enters a downturn and the dividend is cut, the company could see its value fall precipitously. For this reason, we're glad to see GuocoLand (Malaysia) Berhad's earnings per share have risen 10% per annum over the last five years. Earnings per share have been growing rapidly and the company is retaining a majority of its earnings within the business. This will make it easier to fund future growth efforts and we think this is an attractive combination - plus the dividend can always be increased later.