Abéo's (EPA:ABEO) Dividend Is Being Reduced To €0.20

Abéo SA's (EPA:ABEO) dividend is being reduced from last year's payment covering the same period to €0.20 on the 31st of July. Based on this payment, the dividend yield will be 2.0%, which is lower than the average for the industry.

See our latest analysis for Abéo

Abéo's Payment Has Solid Earnings Coverage

It would be nice for the yield to be higher, but we should also check if higher levels of dividend payment would be sustainable. Based on the last payment, Abéo was quite comfortably earning enough to cover the dividend. This indicates that a lot of the earnings are being reinvested into the business, with the aim of fueling growth.

EPS is set to fall by 18.5% over the next 12 months if recent trends continue. Assuming the dividend continues along recent trends, we believe the payout ratio could be 73%, which we are pretty comfortable with and we think is feasible on an earnings basis.

Abéo's Dividend Has Lacked Consistency

Abéo has been paying dividends for a while, but the track record isn't stellar. This suggests that the dividend might not be the most reliable. Since 2017, the annual payment back then was €0.48, compared to the most recent full-year payment of €0.20. Dividend payments have fallen sharply, down 58% over that time. Declining dividends isn't generally what we look for as they can indicate that the company is running into some challenges.

The Dividend Has Limited Growth Potential

Dividends have been going in the wrong direction, so we definitely want to see a different trend in the earnings per share. Earnings per share has been sinking by 19% over the last five years. Such rapid declines definitely have the potential to constrain dividend payments if the trend continues into the future.

Our Thoughts On Abéo's Dividend

Overall, it's not great to see that the dividend has been cut, but this might be explained by the payments being a bit high previously. In the past, the payments have been unstable, but over the short term the dividend could be reliable, with the company generating enough cash to cover it. We would probably look elsewhere for an income investment.

Market movements attest to how highly valued a consistent dividend policy is compared to one which is more unpredictable. Meanwhile, despite the importance of dividend payments, they are not the only factors our readers should know when assessing a company. As an example, we've identified 5 warning signs for Abéo that you should be aware of before investing. Looking for more high-yielding dividend ideas? Try our collection of strong dividend payers.

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