The board of Nihonwasou Holdings, Inc. (TSE:2499) has announced that it will be increasing its dividend by 40% on the 13th of March to ¥7.00, up from last year's comparable payment of ¥5.00. This will take the annual payment to 3.8% of the stock price, which is above what most companies in the industry pay.
While it is great to have a strong dividend yield, we should also consider whether the payment is sustainable. However, prior to this announcement, Nihonwasou Holdings' dividend was comfortably covered by both cash flow and earnings. This means that most of what the business earns is being used to help it grow.
Looking forward, earnings per share could rise by 6.4% over the next year if the trend from the last few years continues. Assuming the dividend continues along recent trends, we think the payout ratio could be 62% by next year, which is in a pretty sustainable range.
View our latest analysis for Nihonwasou Holdings
The company's dividend history has been marked by instability, with at least one cut in the last 10 years. Since 2015, the dividend has gone from ¥6.00 total annually to ¥14.00. This works out to be a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of approximately 8.8% a year over that time. We have seen cuts in the past, so while the growth looks promising we would be a little bit cautious about its track record.
With a relatively unstable dividend, it's even more important to evaluate if earnings per share is growing, which could point to a growing dividend in the future. We are encouraged to see that Nihonwasou Holdings has grown earnings per share at 6.4% per year over the past five years. A low payout ratio and decent growth suggests that the company is reinvesting well, and it also has plenty of room to increase the dividend over time.
Overall, it's great to see the dividend being raised and that it is still in a sustainable range. The dividend has been at reasonable levels historically, but that hasn't translated into a consistent payment. Taking all of this into consideration, the dividend looks viable moving forward, but investors should be mindful that the company has pushed the boundaries of sustainability in the past and may do so again.
Companies possessing a stable dividend policy will likely enjoy greater investor interest than those suffering from a more inconsistent approach. Still, investors need to consider a host of other factors, apart from dividend payments, when analysing a company. Just as an example, we've come across 3 warning signs for Nihonwasou Holdings you should be aware of, and 1 of them shouldn't be ignored. Is Nihonwasou Holdings not quite the opportunity you were looking for? Why not check out our selection of top dividend stocks.
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