ITV plc's (LON:ITV) investors are due to receive a payment of £0.017 per share on 26th of November. This means the annual payment is 6.3% of the current stock price, which is above the average for the industry.

Check out our latest analysis for ITV

ITV's Projected Earnings Seem Likely To Cover Future Distributions

If the payments aren't sustainable, a high yield for a few years won't matter that much. ITV was earning enough to cover the previous dividend, but it was paying out quite a large proportion of its free cash flows. By paying out so much of its cash flows, this could indicate that the company has limited opportunities for investment and growth.

EPS is set to fall by 21.5% over the next 12 months. Assuming the dividend continues along recent trends, we believe the payout ratio could be 56%, which we are pretty comfortable with and we think is feasible on an earnings basis.

Dividend Volatility

Although the company has a long dividend history, it has been cut at least once in the last 10 years. The dividend has gone from an annual total of £0.075 in 2014 to the most recent total annual payment of £0.05. Doing the maths, this is a decline of about 4.0% per year. Declining dividends isn't generally what we look for as they can indicate that the company is running into some challenges.

ITV May Find It Hard To Grow The Dividend

With a relatively unstable dividend, it's even more important to see if earnings per share is growing. ITV hasn't seen much change in its earnings per share over the last five years. The company has been growing at a pretty soft 0.05% per annum, and is paying out quite a lot of its earnings to shareholders. While this isn't necessarily a negative, it definitely signals that dividend growth could be constrained in the future unless earnings start to pick up again.

In Summary

Overall, it's nice to see a consistent dividend payment, but we think that longer term, the current level of payment might be unsustainable. The low payout ratio is a redeeming feature, but generally we are not too happy with the payments ITV has been making. This company is not in the top tier of income providing stocks.

It's important to note that companies having a consistent dividend policy will generate greater investor confidence than those having an erratic one. Still, investors need to consider a host of other factors, apart from dividend payments, when analysing a company. For example, we've identified 3 warning signs for ITV (1 is significant!) that you should be aware of before investing. Is ITV not quite the opportunity you were looking for? Why not check out our selection of top 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.