Regular readers will know that we love our dividends at Simply Wall St, which is why it's exciting to see Kyungin Electronics Co., Ltd (KRX:009140) is about to trade ex-dividend in the next four days. Typically, the ex-dividend date is two business days before the record date, which is the date on which a company determines the shareholders eligible to receive a dividend. The ex-dividend date is important as the process of settlement involves at least two full business days. So if you miss that date, you would not show up on the company's books on the record date. Therefore, if you purchase Kyungin Electronics' shares on or after the 29th of December, you won't be eligible to receive the dividend, when it is paid on the 8th of April.
The company's next dividend payment will be ₩350.00 per share, on the back of last year when the company paid a total of ₩350 to shareholders. Last year's total dividend payments show that Kyungin Electronics has a trailing yield of 1.6% on the current share price of ₩21300.00. Dividends are an important source of income to many shareholders, but the health of the business is crucial to maintaining those dividends. We need to see whether the dividend is covered by earnings and if it's growing.
Dividends are typically paid from company earnings. If a company pays more in dividends than it earned in profit, then the dividend could be unsustainable. Kyungin Electronics is paying out just 10% of its profit after tax, which is comfortably low and leaves plenty of breathing room in the case of adverse events. That said, even highly profitable companies sometimes might not generate enough cash to pay the dividend, which is why we should always check if the dividend is covered by cash flow. The good news is it paid out just 16% of its free cash flow in the last year.
It's positive to see that Kyungin Electronics's dividend is covered by both profits and cash flow, since this is generally a sign that the dividend is sustainable, and a lower payout ratio usually suggests a greater margin of safety before the dividend gets cut.
See our latest analysis for Kyungin Electronics
Click here to see how much of its profit Kyungin Electronics paid out over the last 12 months.
Businesses with strong growth prospects usually make the best dividend payers, because it's easier to grow dividends when earnings per share are improving. If earnings fall far enough, the company could be forced to cut its dividend. That's why it's comforting to see Kyungin Electronics's earnings have been skyrocketing, up 79% per annum for the past five years. With earnings per share growing rapidly and the company sensibly reinvesting almost all of its profits within the business, Kyungin Electronics looks like a promising growth company.
The main way most investors will assess a company's dividend prospects is by checking the historical rate of dividend growth. In the last six years, Kyungin Electronics has lifted its dividend by approximately 5.8% a year on average. It's good to see both earnings and the dividend have improved - although the former has been rising much quicker than the latter, possibly due to the company reinvesting more of its profits in growth.
From a dividend perspective, should investors buy or avoid Kyungin Electronics? We love that Kyungin Electronics is growing earnings per share while simultaneously paying out a low percentage of both its earnings and cash flow. These characteristics suggest the company is reinvesting in growing its business, while the conservative payout ratio also implies a reduced risk of the dividend being cut in the future. There's a lot to like about Kyungin Electronics, and we would prioritise taking a closer look at it.
In light of that, while Kyungin Electronics has an appealing dividend, it's worth knowing the risks involved with this stock. To help with this, we've discovered 3 warning signs for Kyungin Electronics that you should be aware of before investing in their shares.
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.