JTEKT (TSE:6473) Has Announced A Dividend Of ¥25.00

JTEKT Corporation's (TSE:6473) investors are due to receive a payment of ¥25.00 per share on 26th of May. This will take the dividend yield to an attractive 4.1%, providing a nice boost to shareholder returns.

See our latest analysis for JTEKT

JTEKT's Future Dividend Projections Appear Well Covered By Earnings

While it is great to have a strong dividend yield, we should also consider whether the payment is sustainable. Based on the last dividend, JTEKT is earning enough to cover the payment, but then it makes up 464% of cash flows. The company might be more focused on returning cash to shareholders, but paying out this much of its cash flow could expose the dividend to being cut in the future.

Looking forward, earnings per share is forecast to rise by 35.7% over the next year. Assuming the dividend continues along recent trends, we think the payout ratio could be 53% by next year, which is in a pretty sustainable range.

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 ¥20.00 in 2015, and the most recent fiscal year payment was ¥50.00. This means that it has been growing its distributions at 9.6% per annum over that time. We like to see dividends have grown at a reasonable rate, but with at least one substantial cut in the payments, we're not certain this dividend stock would be ideal for someone intending to live on the income.

The Dividend Looks Likely To Grow

With a relatively unstable dividend, it's even more important to see if earnings per share is growing. It's encouraging to see that JTEKT has been growing its earnings per share at 18% a year over the past five years. The company is paying out a lot of its cash as a dividend, but it looks okay based on the payout ratio.

In Summary

In summary, while it's always good to see the dividend being raised, we don't think JTEKT's payments are rock solid. While the low payout ratio is a redeeming feature, this is offset by the minimal cash to cover the payments. We would probably look elsewhere for an income investment.

Investors generally tend to favour companies with a consistent, stable dividend policy as opposed to those operating an irregular one. Meanwhile, despite the importance of dividend payments, they are not the only factors our readers should know when assessing a company. Taking the debate a bit further, we've identified 3 warning signs for JTEKT that investors need to be conscious of moving forward. Is JTEKT not quite the opportunity you were looking for? Why not check out our selection of top dividend stocks.

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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.