ATON (KOSDAQ:158430) Has Affirmed Its Dividend Of ₩50.00

ATON Inc. (KOSDAQ:158430) will pay a dividend of ₩50.00 on the 13th of April. This means the annual payment will be 0.8% of the current stock price, which is lower than the industry average.

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ATON's Payment Could Potentially Have Solid Earnings Coverage

Even a low dividend yield can be attractive if it is sustained for years on end. Before making this announcement, ATON was easily earning enough to cover the dividend. As a result, a large proportion of what it earned was being reinvested back into the business.

Over the next year, EPS could expand by 47.8% if recent trends continue. Assuming the dividend continues along recent trends, we think the payout ratio could be 9.3% by next year, which is in a pretty sustainable range.

See our latest analysis for ATON

ATON Is Still Building Its Track Record

The dividend hasn't seen any major cuts in the past, but the company has only been paying a dividend for 3 years, which isn't that long in the grand scheme of things. The annual payment during the last 3 years was ₩20.00 in 2022, and the most recent fiscal year payment was ₩50.00. This means that it has been growing its distributions at 36% per annum over that time. We're not overly excited about the relatively short history of dividend payments, however the dividend is growing at a nice rate and we might take a closer look.

The Dividend Looks Likely To Grow

Investors could be attracted to the stock based on the quality of its payment history. It's encouraging to see that ATON has been growing its earnings per share at 48% a year over the past five years. Earnings have been growing rapidly, and with a low payout ratio we think that the company could turn out to be a great dividend stock.

We should note that ATON has issued stock equal to 11% of shares outstanding. Regularly doing this can be detrimental - it's hard to grow dividends per share when new shares are regularly being created.

ATON Looks Like A Great Dividend Stock

Overall, we like to see the dividend staying consistent, and we think ATON might even raise payments in the future. Earnings are easily covering distributions, and the company is generating plenty of cash. All of these factors considered, we think this has solid potential as a dividend stock.

It's important to note that companies having a consistent dividend policy will generate greater investor confidence than those having an erratic one. Meanwhile, despite the importance of dividend payments, they are not the only factors our readers should know when assessing a company. For example, we've picked out 2 warning signs for ATON that investors should know about before committing capital to this stock. 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.