Allegion plc (NYSE:ALLE) stock is about to trade ex-dividend in three days. Typically, the ex-dividend date is one business day before the record date which is the date on which a company determines the shareholders eligible 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 Allegion's shares before the 15th of September to receive the dividend, which will be paid on the 30th of September.

The company's next dividend payment will be US$0.41 per share, on the back of last year when the company paid a total of US$1.64 to shareholders. Based on the last year's worth of payments, Allegion stock has a trailing yield of around 1.6% on the current share price of $99.63. Dividends are an important source of income to many shareholders, but the health of the business is crucial to maintaining those dividends. As a result, readers should always check whether Allegion has been able to grow its dividends, or if the dividend might be cut.

See our latest analysis for Allegion

If a company pays out more in dividends than it earned, then the dividend might become unsustainable - hardly an ideal situation. Allegion paid out a comfortable 29% of its profit last year. 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 49% of its free cash flow as dividends, a comfortable payout level for most companies.

It's positive to see that Allegion'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 the company's payout ratio, plus analyst estimates of its future dividends.

Have Earnings And Dividends Been Growing?

Companies with consistently growing earnings per share generally make the best dividend stocks, as they usually find it easier to grow dividends per share. If earnings decline and the company is forced to cut its dividend, investors could watch the value of their investment go up in smoke. For this reason, we're glad to see Allegion's earnings per share have risen 17% per annum over the last five years. The company has managed to grow earnings at a rapid rate, while reinvesting most of the profits 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.

The main way most investors will assess a company's dividend prospects is by checking the historical rate of dividend growth. Since the start of our data, nine years ago, Allegion has lifted its dividend by approximately 20% a year on average. It's exciting to see that both earnings and dividends per share have grown rapidly over the past few years.

To Sum It Up

Has Allegion got what it takes to maintain its dividend payments? We love that Allegion is growing earnings per share while simultaneously paying out a low percentage of both its earnings and cash flow. These characteristics suggest the company is reinvesting in growing its business, while the conservative payout ratio also implies a reduced risk of the dividend being cut in the future. Allegion looks solid on this analysis overall, and we'd definitely consider investigating it more closely.

In light of that, while Allegion has an appealing dividend, it's worth knowing the risks involved with this stock. To help with this, we've discovered 2 warning signs for Allegion (1 shouldn't be ignored!) that you ought to be aware of before buying the shares.

A common investing mistake is buying the first interesting stock you see. Here you can find a full list of high-yield 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.

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