The board of TotalEnergies SE (EPA:TTE) has announced that it will pay a dividend on the 1st of April, with investors receiving $0.79 per share. The payment will take the dividend yield to 5.6%, which is in line with the average for the industry.
TotalEnergies' Future Dividend Projections Appear Well Covered By Earnings
Unless the payments are sustainable, the dividend yield doesn't mean too much. Based on the last payment, TotalEnergies was quite comfortably earning enough to cover the dividend. This means that a large portion of its earnings are being retained to grow the business.
Looking forward, earnings per share is forecast to rise by 22.8% over the next year. If the dividend continues on this path, the payout ratio could be 37% by next year, which we think can be pretty sustainable going forward.
See our latest analysis for TotalEnergies
Dividend Volatility
The company has a long dividend track record, but it doesn't look great with cuts in the past. Since 2015, the dividend has gone from $3.26 total annually to $3.5. Dividend payments have been growing, but very slowly over the period. It's encouraging to see some dividend growth, but the dividend has been cut at least once, and the size of the cut would eliminate most of the growth anyway, which makes this less attractive as an income investment.
The Dividend Looks Likely To Grow
Growing earnings per share could be a mitigating factor when considering the past fluctuations in the dividend. We are encouraged to see that TotalEnergies has grown earnings per share at 10% per year over the past five years. Earnings are on the uptrend, and it is only paying a small portion of those earnings to shareholders.
We Really Like TotalEnergies' Dividend
Overall, we think this could be an attractive income stock, and it is only getting better by paying a higher dividend this year. The company is easily earning enough to cover its dividend payments and it is great to see that these earnings are being translated into cash flow. All of these factors considered, we think this has solid potential as a dividend stock.
Market movements attest to how highly valued a consistent dividend policy is compared to one which is more unpredictable. Still, investors need to consider a host of other factors, apart from dividend payments, when analysing a company. For instance, we've picked out 1 warning sign for TotalEnergies that investors should take into consideration. Looking for more high-yielding dividend ideas? Try our collection of strong dividend payers.
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About ENXTPA:TTE
TotalEnergies
A multi-energy company, produces and markets oil and biofuels, natural gas, green gases, renewables, and electricity in France, rest of Europe, North America, Africa, and internationally.
Flawless balance sheet, undervalued and pays a dividend.