Income mainstay — thin cushion. A 4.36% yield from a dividend raised 4% in 2026 — its 54th straight annual increase — is real income, and trailing core earnings cover it. But at 70.4% of trailing core EPS ($8.41) the payout is high: the streak is being earned, with less room left over than the yield suggests.
Key risk: The high payout leaves little retained cash — North America volume and input-cost pressure, or another charge-heavy year like reported 2025 (EPS $6.00 vs. $8.14 core), is what would squeeze the room to keep raising the dividend.
Changes if: Trailing core EPS falls toward the $5.92 annualized dividend, or free-cash-flow coverage drops below 1×. At a 70.4% core payout, a core earnings decline — not a disaster — would do it.
- !Payout-coverage check: 70.4% of TTM core EPS — covered, but high; dividends paid also took ~73% of TTM free cash flow.
- ✓Yield check: 4.36% at the Oct 23, 2026 close of $135.77, from a raised dividend — passes the income test for a single stock.
- ✓Dividend growth check: 54th straight annual increase in 2026, +4% to $5.92 annualized; core EPS rose 5% year-to-date in Q3 2026 — growth continues, at a slower pace.
What this grade doesn't say: It screens the dividend only — covered, real, compounding. It says nothing about valuation or price: a well-covered payer can still be overpriced, and its price can still fall.