Melexis' (EBR:MELE) Dividend Will Be €0.91

The board of Melexis NV (EBR:MELE) has announced that it will pay a dividend of €0.91 per share on the 20th of October. This means the annual payment is 3.4% of the current stock price, which is above the average for the industry.

See our latest analysis for Melexis

Melexis' Payment Has Solid Earnings Coverage

A big dividend yield for a few years doesn't mean much if it can't be sustained. Prior to this announcement, Melexis was quite comfortably covering its dividend with earnings and it was paying more than 75% of its free cash flow to shareholders. The business is earning enough to make the dividend feasible, but the cash payout ratio of 84% indicates it is more focused on returning cash to shareholders than growing the business.

The next year is set to see EPS grow by 27.0%. If the dividend continues on this path, the payout ratio could be 36% by next year, which we think can be pretty sustainable going forward.

Dividend Volatility

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 €0.60 in 2012, and the most recent fiscal year payment was €2.60. This implies that the company grew its distributions at a yearly rate of about 16% over that duration. Melexis has grown distributions at a rapid rate despite cutting the dividend at least once in the past. Companies that cut once often cut again, so we would be cautious about buying this stock solely for the dividend income.

We Could See Melexis' Dividend Growing

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. Melexis has seen EPS rising for the last five years, at 9.3% per annum. Since earnings per share is growing at an acceptable rate, and the payout policy is balanced, we think the company is positioning itself well to grow earnings and dividends in the future.

In Summary

In summary, while it's good to see that the dividend hasn't been cut, we are a bit cautious about Melexis' payments, as there could be some issues with sustaining them into the future. The low payout ratio is a redeeming feature, but generally we are not too happy with the payments Melexis has been making. We would be a touch cautious of relying on this stock primarily for the dividend income.

Investors generally tend to favour companies with a consistent, stable dividend policy as opposed to those operating an irregular one. Still, investors need to consider a host of other factors, apart from dividend payments, when analysing a company. Taking the debate a bit further, we've identified 1 warning sign for Melexis that investors need to be conscious of moving forward. Looking for more high-yielding dividend ideas? Try our collection of strong dividend payers.

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