Just Four Days Till Oriental Explorer Holdings Limited (HKG:430) Will Be Trading Ex-Dividend

Oriental Explorer Holdings Limited (HKG:430) is about to trade ex-dividend in the next 4 days. The ex-dividend date is one business day before a company's record date, which is the date on which the company determines which shareholders are entitled to receive a dividend. The ex-dividend date is of consequence because whenever a stock is bought or sold, the trade takes at least two business day to settle. Accordingly, Oriental Explorer Holdings investors that purchase the stock on or after the 3rd of June will not receive the dividend, which will be paid on the 25th of June.

The company's next dividend payment will be HK$0.012 per share, and in the last 12 months, the company paid a total of HK$0.02 per share. Based on the last year's worth of payments, Oriental Explorer Holdings has a trailing yield of 6.8% on the current stock price of HK$0.295. 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.

See our latest analysis for Oriental Explorer Holdings

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. Oriental Explorer Holdings reported a loss last year, so it's not great to see that it has continued paying a dividend.

Click here to see how much of its profit Oriental Explorer Holdings paid out over the last 12 months.

Have Earnings And Dividends Been Growing?

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 decline and the company is forced to cut its dividend, investors could watch the value of their investment go up in smoke. Oriental Explorer Holdings reported a loss last year, but at least the general trend suggests its income has been improving over the past five years. Even so, an unprofitable company whose business does not quickly recover is usually not a good candidate for dividend investors.

The main way most investors will assess a company's dividend prospects is by checking the historical rate of dividend growth. Oriental Explorer Holdings's dividend payments are effectively flat on where they were three years ago.

Remember, you can always get a snapshot of Oriental Explorer Holdings's financial health, by checking our visualisation of its financial health, here.

The Bottom Line

Is Oriental Explorer Holdings an attractive dividend stock, or better left on the shelf? It's hard to get used to Oriental Explorer Holdings paying a dividend despite reporting a loss over the past year. At best we would put it on a watch-list to see if business conditions improve, as it doesn't look like a clear opportunity right now.

So if you want to do more digging on Oriental Explorer Holdings, you'll find it worthwhile knowing the risks that this stock faces. In terms of investment risks, we've identified 3 warning signs with Oriental Explorer Holdings and understanding them should be part of your investment process.

If you're in the market for strong dividend payers, we recommend checking our selection of top dividend stocks.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.

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.