China Yongda Automobiles Services Holdings (HKG:3669) Is Reducing Its Dividend To CN¥0.0571

China Yongda Automobiles Services Holdings Limited (HKG:3669) is reducing its dividend from last year's comparable payment to CN¥0.0571 on the 28th of June. This means the annual payment is 8.9% of the current stock price, which is above the average for the industry.

View our latest analysis for China Yongda Automobiles Services Holdings

China Yongda Automobiles Services Holdings' Payment Has Solid Earnings Coverage

A big dividend yield for a few years doesn't mean much if it can't be sustained. Based on the last payment, China Yongda Automobiles Services Holdings 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.

The next year is set to see EPS grow by 46.3%. If the dividend continues on this path, the payout ratio could be 45% by next year, which we think can be pretty sustainable going forward.

Dividend Volatility

While the company has been paying a dividend for a long time, it has cut the dividend at least once in the last 10 years. The annual payment during the last 10 years was CN¥0.12 in 2014, and the most recent fiscal year payment was CN¥0.157. This implies that the company grew its distributions at a yearly rate of about 2.7% over that duration. Modest growth in the dividend is good to see, but we think this is offset by historical cuts to the payments. It is hard to live on a dividend income if the company's earnings are not consistent.

The Dividend Has Limited Growth Potential

With a relatively unstable dividend, it's even more important to see if earnings per share is growing. Earnings per share has been sinking by 15% over the last five years. Dividend payments are likely to come under some pressure unless EPS can pull out of the nosedive it is in. Over the next year, however, earnings are actually predicted to rise, but we would still be cautious until a track record of earnings growth can be built.

In Summary

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. The company is generating plenty of cash, which could maintain the dividend for a while, but the track record hasn't been great. We would be a touch cautious of relying on this stock primarily for the dividend income.

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. For instance, we've picked out 2 warning signs for China Yongda Automobiles Services Holdings that investors should take into consideration. Is China Yongda Automobiles Services Holdings not quite the opportunity you were looking for? Why not check out our selection of top dividend stocks.

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