Kyushu Electric Power Company, Incorporated (TSE:9508) has announced that it will pay a dividend of ¥25.00 per share on the 29th of June. Based on this payment, the dividend yield will be 3.1%, which is fairly typical for the industry.
We aren't too impressed by dividend yields unless they can be sustained over time. However, prior to this announcement, Kyushu Electric Power Company's dividend was comfortably covered by both cash flow and earnings. As a result, a large proportion of what it earned was being reinvested back into the business.
Over the next year, EPS is forecast to fall by 7.0%. Assuming the dividend continues along recent trends, we believe the payout ratio could be 16%, which we are pretty comfortable with and we think is feasible on an earnings basis.
See our latest analysis for Kyushu Electric Power Company
Although the company has a long dividend history, it has been cut at least once in the last 10 years. The annual payment during the last 10 years was ¥5.00 in 2015, and the most recent fiscal year payment was ¥50.00. This implies that the company grew its distributions at a yearly rate of about 26% over that duration. Dividends have grown rapidly over this time, but with cuts in the past we are not certain that this stock will be a reliable source of income in the future.
With a relatively unstable dividend, it's even more important to see if earnings per share is growing. It's encouraging to see that Kyushu Electric Power Company has been growing its earnings per share at 27% a year over the past five years. Rapid earnings growth and a low payout ratio suggest this company has been effectively reinvesting in its business. Should that continue, this company could have a bright future.
In summary, it is good to see that the dividend is staying consistent, and we don't think there is any reason to suspect this might change over the medium term. The earnings easily cover the company's distributions, and the company is generating plenty of cash. However, it is worth noting that the earnings are expected to fall over the next year, which may not change the long term outlook, but could affect the dividend payment in the next 12 months. All in all, this checks a lot of the boxes we look for when choosing an income stock.
Investors generally tend to favour companies with a consistent, stable dividend policy as opposed to those operating an irregular one. At the same time, there are other factors our readers should be conscious of before pouring capital into a stock. Just as an example, we've come across 3 warning signs for Kyushu Electric Power Company you should be aware of, and 2 of them are concerning. Is Kyushu Electric Power Company 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.