Regular readers will know that we love our dividends at Simply Wall St, which is why it's exciting to see Atlantic Union Bankshares Corporation (NYSE:AUB) is about to trade ex-dividend in the next three days. The ex-dividend date is usually set to be one business day before the record date which is the cut-off date on which you must be present on the company's books as a shareholder in order to receive the dividend. It is important to be aware of the ex-dividend date because any trade on the stock needs to have been settled on or before the record date. In other words, investors can purchase Atlantic Union Bankshares' shares before the 10th of August in order to be eligible for the dividend, which will be paid on the 25th of August.

The company's next dividend payment will be US$0.30 per share. Last year, in total, the company distributed US$1.20 to shareholders. Based on the last year's worth of payments, Atlantic Union Bankshares has a trailing yield of 3.7% on the current stock price of $32.58. If you buy this business for its dividend, you should have an idea of whether Atlantic Union Bankshares's dividend is reliable and sustainable. That's why we should always check whether the dividend payments appear sustainable, and if the company is growing.

Check out our latest analysis for Atlantic Union Bankshares

If a company pays out more in dividends than it earned, then the dividend might become unsustainable - hardly an ideal situation. Atlantic Union Bankshares paid out a comfortable 43% of its profit last year.

When a company paid out less in dividends than it earned in profit, this generally suggests its dividend is affordable. The lower the % of its profit that it pays out, the greater the margin of safety for the dividend if the business enters a downturn.

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. Investors love dividends, so if earnings fall and the dividend is reduced, expect a stock to be sold off heavily at the same time. Fortunately for readers, Atlantic Union Bankshares's earnings per share have been growing at 11% a year 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. Since the start of our data, 10 years ago, Atlantic Union Bankshares has lifted its dividend by approximately 9.6% 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.

To Sum It Up

Has Atlantic Union Bankshares got what it takes to maintain its dividend payments? Typically, companies that are growing rapidly and paying out a low fraction of earnings are keeping the profits for reinvestment in the business. This is one of the most attractive investment combinations under this analysis, as it can create substantial value for investors over the long run. In summary, Atlantic Union Bankshares appears to have some promise as a dividend stock, and we'd suggest taking a closer look at it.

Wondering what the future holds for Atlantic Union Bankshares? See what the three analysts we track are forecasting, with this visualisation of its historical and future estimated earnings and cash flow

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.