The board of Kainos Group plc (LON:KNOS) has announced that it will be paying its dividend of ￡0.191 on the 25th of October, an increased payment from last year's comparable dividend. Based on this payment, the dividend yield for the company will be 2.5%, which is fairly typical for the industry.

View our latest analysis for Kainos Group

Kainos Group's Dividend Is Well Covered By Earnings

Solid dividend yields are great, but they only really help us if the payment is sustainable. Prior to this announcement, Kainos Group's dividend was comfortably covered by both cash flow and earnings. This indicates that quite a large proportion of earnings is being invested back into the business.

Looking forward, earnings per share is forecast to rise by 42.2% over the next year. If the dividend continues along recent trends, we estimate the payout ratio will be 36%, which is in the range that makes us comfortable with the sustainability of the dividend.

Kainos Group's Dividend Has Lacked Consistency

Even in its relatively short history, the company has reduced the dividend at least once. Due to this, we are a little bit cautious about the dividend consistency over a full economic cycle. Since 2015, the annual payment back then was ￡0.036, compared to the most recent full-year payment of ￡0.273. This works out to be a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of approximately 25% a year over that time. Kainos Group has grown distributions at a rapid rate despite cutting the dividend at least once in the past. Companies that cut once often cut again, so we would be cautious about buying this stock solely for the dividend income.

The Dividend Looks Likely To Grow

With a relatively unstable dividend, it's even more important to see if earnings per share is growing. Kainos Group has impressed us by growing EPS at 22% per year over the past five years. The company's earnings per share has grown rapidly in recent years, and it has a good balance between reinvesting and paying dividends to shareholders, so we think that Kainos Group could prove to be a strong dividend payer.

Kainos Group 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. Distributions are quite easily covered by earnings, which are also being converted to cash flows. All in all, this checks a lot of the boxes we look for when choosing an income stock.

It's important to note that companies having a consistent dividend policy will generate greater investor confidence than those having an erratic one. Meanwhile, despite the importance of dividend payments, they are not the only factors our readers should know when assessing a company. Taking the debate a bit further, we've identified 1 warning sign for Kainos Group that investors need to be conscious of moving forward. Is Kainos Group not quite the opportunity you were looking for? Why not check out our selection of top dividend stocks.

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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.