Some investors rely on dividends for growing their wealth, and if you’re one of those dividend sleuths, you might be intrigued to know that Asseco Poland S.A. (WSE:ACP) is about to go ex-dividend in just three days. The ex-dividend date is two business days before a company’s record date in most cases, which is the date on which the company determines which shareholders are entitled to receive a dividend. The ex-dividend date is important because any transaction on a stock needs to have been settled before the record date in order to be eligible for a dividend. Thus, you can purchase Asseco Poland’s shares before the 13th of May in order to receive the dividend, which the company will pay on the 22nd of May.
The company’s next dividend payment will be zł13.05 per share, and in the last 12 months, the company paid a total of zł3.94 per share. Based on the last year’s worth of payments, Asseco Poland has a trailing yield of 2.0% on the current stock price of zł192.45. Dividends are an important source of income to many shareholders, but the health of the business is crucial to maintaining those dividends. So we need to check whether the dividend payments are covered, and if earnings are 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. Fortunately Asseco Poland’s payout ratio is modest, at just 44% of profit. 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. The good news is it paid out just 10% of its free cash flow in the last year.
It’s encouraging to see that the dividend is covered by both profit and cash flow. This generally suggests the dividend is sustainable, as long as earnings don’t drop precipitously.
View our latest analysis for Asseco Poland
Click here to see the company’s payout ratio, plus analyst estimates of its future dividends.
WSE:ACP Historic Dividend May 9th 2026 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 business enters a downturn and the dividend is cut, the company could see its value fall precipitously. This is why it’s a relief to see Asseco Poland earnings per share are up 9.7% per annum over the last five years. The company is retaining more than half of its earnings within the business, and it has been growing earnings at a decent rate. We think this is generally an attractive combination, as dividends can grow through a combination of earnings growth and or a higher payout ratio over time.
Asseco Poland also issued more than 5% of its market cap in new stock during the past year, which we feel is likely to hurt its dividend prospects in the long run. Trying to grow the dividend while issuing large amounts of new shares reminds us of the ancient Greek tale of Sisyphus – perpetually pushing a boulder uphill.
The main way most investors will assess a company’s dividend prospects is by checking the historical rate of dividend growth. In the past 10 years, Asseco Poland has increased its dividend at approximately 3.1% a year on average. We’re glad to see dividends rising alongside earnings over a number of years, which may be a sign the company intends to share the growth with shareholders.
The Bottom Line
From a dividend perspective, should investors buy or avoid Asseco Poland? Earnings per share have been growing moderately, and Asseco Poland is paying out less than half its earnings and cash flow as dividends, which is an attractive combination as it suggests the company is investing in growth. It might be nice to see earnings growing faster, but Asseco Poland is being conservative with its dividend payouts and could still perform reasonably over the long run. Asseco Poland looks solid on this analysis overall, and we’d definitely consider investigating it more closely.
While it’s tempting to invest in Asseco Poland for the dividends alone, you should always be mindful of the risks involved. To help with this, we’ve discovered 1 warning sign for Asseco Poland that you should be aware of before investing in their shares.
Generally, we wouldn’t recommend just buying the first dividend stock you see. Here’s a curated list of interesting stocks that are strong dividend payers.
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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.