Comture (TSE:3844) Will Pay A Dividend Of ¥11.50

Comture Corporation (TSE:3844) has announced that it will pay a dividend of ¥11.50 per share on the 26th of June. This takes the dividend yield to 2.4%, which shareholders will be pleased with.

See our latest analysis for Comture

Comture's Payment Has Solid Earnings Coverage

If the payments aren't sustainable, a high yield for a few years won't matter that much. Based on the last payment, Comture was quite comfortably earning enough to cover the dividend. This indicates that a lot of the earnings are being reinvested into the business, with the aim of fueling growth.

Looking forward, earnings per share is forecast to rise by 44.1% over the next year. Assuming the dividend continues along recent trends, we think the payout ratio could be 42% by next year, which is in a pretty sustainable range.

Dividend Volatility

The company's dividend history has been marked by instability, with at least one cut in the last 10 years. The annual payment during the last 10 years was ¥5.33 in 2014, and the most recent fiscal year payment was ¥46.00. This works out to be a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of approximately 24% a year over that time. Despite the rapid growth in the dividend over the past number of years, we have seen the payments go down the past as well, so that makes us cautious.

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 Comture has been growing its earnings per share at 10% a year over the past five years. Since earnings per share is growing at an acceptable rate, and the payout policy is balanced, we think the company is positioning itself well to grow earnings and dividends in the future.

Comture Looks Like A Great Dividend Stock

Overall, a dividend increase is always good, and we think that Comture is a strong income stock thanks to its track record and growing earnings. Earnings are easily covering distributions, and the company is generating plenty of cash. All in all, this checks a lot of the boxes we look for when choosing an income stock.

Investors generally tend to favour companies with a consistent, stable dividend policy as opposed to those operating an irregular one. However, there are other things to consider for investors when analysing stock performance. Taking the debate a bit further, we've identified 1 warning sign for Comture that investors need to be conscious of moving forward. Is Comture 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.