It looks like Aumann AG (ETR:AAG) is about to go ex-dividend in the next 3 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. The ex-dividend date is important as the process of settlement involves two full business days. So if you miss that date, you would not show up on the company's books on the record date. Thus, you can purchase Aumann's shares before the 19th of June in order to receive the dividend, which the company will pay on the 21st of June.

The company's next dividend payment will be €0.20 per share. Last year, in total, the company distributed €0.20 to shareholders. Calculating the last year's worth of payments shows that Aumann has a trailing yield of 1.2% on the current share price of €17.00. 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! So we need to investigate whether Aumann can afford its dividend, and if the dividend could grow.

Check out our latest analysis for Aumann

If a company pays out more in dividends than it earned, then the dividend might become unsustainable - hardly an ideal situation. Aumann is paying out just 24% of its profit after tax, which is comfortably low and leaves plenty of breathing room in the case of adverse events. Yet cash flows are even more important than profits for assessing a dividend, so we need to see if the company generated enough cash to pay its distribution. It paid out 2.6% of its free cash flow as dividends last year, which is conservatively low.

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.

Click here to see the company's payout ratio, plus analyst estimates of its future dividends.

Have Earnings And Dividends Been Growing?

Companies with falling earnings are riskier for dividend shareholders. If earnings decline and the company is forced to cut its dividend, investors could watch the value of their investment go up in smoke. Readers will understand then, why we're concerned to see Aumann's earnings per share have dropped 6.8% a year over the past five years. Such a sharp decline casts doubt on the future sustainability of the dividend.

Many investors will assess a company's dividend performance by evaluating how much the dividend payments have changed over time. Aumann's dividend payments are broadly unchanged compared to where they were six years ago. If a company's dividend stays flat while earnings are in decline, this is typically a sign that it is paying out a larger percentage of its earnings. This can become unsustainable if earnings fall far enough.