Arko Corp. (NASDAQ:ARKO) stock is about to trade ex-dividend in 3 days. The ex-dividend date occurs one day before the record date, which is the day on which shareholders need to be on the company's books in order to receive a dividend. The ex-dividend date is important as the process of settlement involves a full business day. So if you miss that date, you would not show up on the company's books on the record date. This means that investors who purchase Arko's shares on or after the 10th of March will not receive the dividend, which will be paid on the 21st of March.

The company's next dividend payment will be US$0.03 per share, and in the last 12 months, the company paid a total of US$0.12 per share. Calculating the last year's worth of payments shows that Arko has a trailing yield of 2.8% on the current share price of US$4.25. We love seeing companies pay a dividend, but it's also important to be sure that laying the golden eggs isn't going to kill our golden goose! We need to see whether the dividend is covered by earnings and if it's growing.

Check out our latest analysis for Arko

Dividends are usually paid out of company profits, so if a company pays out more than it earned then its dividend is usually at greater risk of being cut. Last year Arko paid out 92% of its profits as dividends to shareholders, suggesting the dividend is not well covered by earnings. That said, even highly profitable companies sometimes might not generate enough cash to pay the dividend, which is why we should always check if the dividend is covered by cash flow. What's good is that dividends were well covered by free cash flow, with the company paying out 18% of its cash flow last year.

It's good to see that while Arko's dividends were not well covered by profits, at least they are affordable from a cash perspective. Still, if the company continues paying out such a high percentage of its profits, the dividend could be at risk if business turns sour.

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. That's why it's comforting to see Arko's earnings have been skyrocketing, up 33% per annum for the past five years.

Many investors will assess a company's dividend performance by evaluating how much the dividend payments have changed over time. Arko has delivered 14% dividend growth per year on average over the past three years. It's great to see earnings per share growing rapidly over several years, and dividends per share growing right along with it.

The Bottom Line

From a dividend perspective, should investors buy or avoid Arko? It's good to see earnings per share growing and low cashflow payout ratio, although we're uncomfortable with Arko's paying out such a high percentage of its profit. In summary, it's hard to get excited about Arko from a dividend perspective.

So while Arko looks good from a dividend perspective, it's always worthwhile being up to date with the risks involved in this stock. Our analysis shows 5 warning signs for Arko and you should be aware of them before buying any 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.