Autobacs Seven Co., Ltd. (TSE:9832) will pay a dividend of ¥30.00 on the 25th of November. The dividend yield will be 4.1% based on this payment which is still above the industry average.
Autobacs Seven's Future Dividend Projections Appear Well Covered By Earnings
A big dividend yield for a few years doesn't mean much if it can't be sustained. 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 year is set to see EPS grow by 4.9%. If the dividend continues along recent trends, we estimate the payout ratio will be 55%, which would make us comfortable with the sustainability of the dividend, despite the levels currently being quite high.
See our latest analysis for Autobacs Seven
Autobacs Seven Has A Solid Track Record
Even over a long history of paying dividends, the company's distributions have been remarkably stable. The last annual payment of ¥60.00 was flat on the annual payment from10 years ago. While the consistency in the dividend payments is impressive, we think the relatively slow rate of growth is less attractive.
Dividend Growth Could Be Constrained
Investors could be attracted to the stock based on the quality of its payment history. Autobacs Seven has seen EPS rising for the last five years, at 17% per annum. However, the company isn't reinvesting a lot back into the business, so we would expect the growth rate to slow down somewhat in the future.
Autobacs Seven's Dividend Doesn't Look Sustainable
Overall, we don't think this company makes a great dividend stock, even though the dividend wasn't cut this year. We can't deny that the payments have been very stable, but we are a little bit worried about the very high payout ratio. 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. For instance, we've picked out 1 warning sign for Autobacs Seven that investors should take into consideration. Looking for more high-yielding dividend ideas? Try our collection of strong dividend payers.
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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.
About TSE:9832
Autobacs Seven
Operates a chain of retail stores for automotive goods and services in Japan and internationally.
Solid track record with adequate balance sheet and pays a dividend.
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