Oji Holdings (TSE:3861) Will Pay A Larger Dividend Than Last Year At ¥18.00

Oji Holdings Corporation's (TSE:3861) dividend will be increasing from last year's payment of the same period to ¥18.00 on 2nd of December. This takes the dividend yield to 4.3%, which shareholders will be pleased with.

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Oji Holdings' Future Dividends May Potentially Be At Risk

If the payments aren't sustainable, a high yield for a few years won't matter that much. Based on the last payment, earnings were actually smaller than the dividend, and the company was actually spending more cash than it was making. Paying out such a large dividend compared to earnings while also not generating any free cash flow would definitely be difficult to keep up.

The next 12 months is set to see EPS grow by 25.4%. If the dividend continues on its recent course, the payout ratio in 12 months could be 101%, which is a bit high and could start applying pressure to the balance sheet.

View our latest analysis for Oji Holdings

Oji Holdings Has A Solid Track Record

The company has been paying a dividend for a long time, and it has been quite stable which gives us confidence in the future dividend potential. The dividend has gone from an annual total of ¥10.00 in 2015 to the most recent total annual payment of ¥36.00. This means that it has been growing its distributions at 14% per annum over that time. Rapidly growing dividends for a long time is a very valuable feature for an income stock.

The Dividend Has Limited Growth Potential

Investors who have held shares in the company for the past few years will be happy with the dividend income they have received. Unfortunately things aren't as good as they seem. Over the past five years, it looks as though Oji Holdings' EPS has declined at around 12% a year. A sharp decline in earnings per share is not great from from a dividend perspective. Even conservative payout ratios can come under pressure if earnings fall far enough. 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.

Oji Holdings' Dividend Doesn't Look Sustainable

Overall, we always like to see the dividend being raised, but we don't think Oji Holdings will make a great income stock. In the past the payments have been stable, but we think the company is paying out too much for this to continue for the long term. We would be a touch cautious of relying on this stock primarily for the dividend income.

Investors generally tend to favour companies with a consistent, stable dividend policy as opposed to those operating an irregular one. Still, investors need to consider a host of other factors, apart from dividend payments, when analysing a company. To that end, Oji Holdings has 4 warning signs (and 2 which are a bit unpleasant) we think you should know about. If you are a dividend investor, you might also want to look at our curated list of high yield 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.