Consider This Before Buying JLT Mobile Computers AB (publ) (STO:JLT) For The 5.0% Dividend

Dividend paying stocks like JLT Mobile Computers AB (publ) (STO:JLT) tend to be popular with investors, and for good reason - some research suggests a significant amount of all stock market returns come from reinvested dividends. Yet sometimes, investors buy a stock for its dividend and lose money because the share price falls by more than they earned in dividend payments.

With a goodly-sized dividend yield despite a relatively short payment history, investors might be wondering if JLT Mobile Computers is a new dividend aristocrat in the making. It sure looks interesting on these metrics - but there's always more to the story. When buying stocks for their dividends, you should always run through the checks below, to see if the dividend looks sustainable.

Explore this interactive chart for our latest analysis on JLT Mobile Computers!

Payout ratios

Dividends are usually paid out of company earnings. If a company is paying more than it earns, then the dividend might become unsustainable - hardly an ideal situation. As a result, we should always investigate whether a company can afford its dividend, measured as a percentage of a company's net income after tax. In the last year, JLT Mobile Computers paid out 514% of its profit as dividends. A payout ratio above 100% is definitely an item of concern, unless there are some other circumstances that would justify it.

With a strong net cash balance, JLT Mobile Computers investors may not have much to worry about in the near term from a dividend perspective.

Remember, you can always get a snapshot of JLT Mobile Computers' latest financial position, by checking our visualisation of its financial health.

Dividend Volatility

Before buying a stock for its income, we want to see if the dividends have been stable in the past, and if the company has a track record of maintaining its dividend. Looking at the data, we can see that JLT Mobile Computers has been paying a dividend for the past seven years. Although it has been paying a dividend for several years now, the dividend has been cut at least once, and we're cautious about the consistency of its dividend across a full economic cycle. During the past seven-year period, the first annual payment was kr0.05 in 2014, compared to kr0.3 last year. This works out to be a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of approximately 27% a year over that time. JLT Mobile Computers' dividend payments have fluctuated, so it hasn't grown 27% every year, but the CAGR is a useful rule of thumb for approximating the historical growth.

JLT Mobile Computers has grown distributions at a rapid rate despite cutting the dividend at least once in the past. Companies that cut once often cut again, but it might be worth considering if the business has turned a corner.

Dividend Growth Potential

With a relatively unstable dividend, it's even more important to see if earnings per share (EPS) are growing. Why take the risk of a dividend getting cut, unless there's a good chance of bigger dividends in future? It's not great to see that JLT Mobile Computers' have fallen at approximately 5.7% over the past five years. If earnings continue to decline, the dividend may come under pressure. Every investor should make an assessment of whether the company is taking steps to stabilise the situation.

Conclusion

Dividend investors should always want to know if a) a company's dividends are affordable, b) if there is a track record of consistent payments, and c) if the dividend is capable of growing. We're a bit uncomfortable with its high payout ratio. Earnings per share are down, and JLT Mobile Computers' dividend has been cut at least once in the past, which is disappointing. To conclude, we've spotted a couple of potential concerns with JLT Mobile Computers that may make it less than ideal candidate for dividend investors.

Investors generally tend to favour companies with a consistent, stable dividend policy as opposed to those operating an irregular one. At the same time, there are other factors our readers should be conscious of before pouring capital into a stock. For example, we've identified 3 warning signs for JLT Mobile Computers (1 can't be ignored!) that you should be aware of before investing.

Looking for more high-yielding dividend ideas? Try our curated list of dividend stocks with a yield above 3%.

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This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. 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.
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