Readers hoping to buy Chesswood Group Limited (TSE:CHW) for its dividend will need to make their move shortly, as the stock is about to trade ex-dividend. If you purchase the stock on or after the 29th of April, you won’t be eligible to receive this dividend, when it is paid on the 17th of May.

Chesswood Group’s next dividend payment will be CA$0.02 per share. Last year, in total, the company distributed CA$0.24 to shareholders. Calculating the last year’s worth of payments shows that Chesswood Group has a trailing yield of 1.9% on the current share price of CA$12.43. Dividends are a major contributor to investment returns for long term holders, but only if the dividend continues to be paid. That’s why we should always check whether the dividend payments appear sustainable, and if the company is growing.

Dividends are typically paid from company earnings. If a company pays more in dividends than it earned in profit, then the dividend could be unsustainable. Chesswood Group reported a loss after tax last year, which means it’s paying a dividend despite being unprofitable. While this might be a one-off event, this is unlikely to be sustainable in the long term.

Have Earnings And Dividends Been Growing?

Companies with falling earnings are riskier for dividend shareholders. If earnings fall far enough, the company could be forced to cut its dividend. Chesswood Group was unprofitable last year and, unfortunately, the general trend suggests its earnings have been in decline over the last five years, making us wonder if the dividend is sustainable at all.

The main way most investors will assess a company’s dividend prospects is by checking the historical rate of dividend growth. Chesswood Group has seen its dividend decline 4.5% per annum on average over the past 10 years, which is not great to see. While it’s not great that earnings and dividends per share have fallen in recent years, we’re encouraged by the fact that management has trimmed the dividend rather than risk over-committing the company in a risky attempt to maintain yields to shareholders.

To Sum It Up

Should investors buy Chesswood Group for the upcoming dividend? It’s definitely not great to see that it paid a dividend despite reporting a loss last year. Worse, the general trend in its earnings looks negative in recent times. These characteristics don’t generally lead to outstanding dividend performance, and investors may not be happy with the results of owning this stock for its dividend.