Covered, compounding — yield is small, growth is the point. A 0.83% yield will not fund income today, but it is covered many times over: $0.91 a quarter on a 14.5% payout, raised 10.3% from $0.825 in late 2025. Roper returns most capital through buybacks — about 4.7% buyback yield reported alongside the dividend — so the dividend is the smaller, steadily growing half of its shareholder return.
Key risk: Acquisition dependence — Roper's model leans on buying niche software and technology businesses at disciplined prices; overpaying or a failed integration would hit the cash flow behind both buybacks and dividend growth.
Changes if: The payout climbs toward 40% without earnings growth, or dividend growth drops from the recent ~10% pace.
- ✓Payout-coverage check: 14.5% of trailing earnings — $3.64 indicated. Very wide cushion.
- ✓Yield check: 0.83% indicated — $0.91/qtr × 4 at the $438.14 close on Oct. 23, 2026. Small but real and earned.
- ✓Dividend growth check: Quarterly dividend raised 10.3% in late 2025, from $0.825 to $0.91, continuing a long annual-raise run; the streak length is not stated on the card because it was not verified from company filings.
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.