Challenger Technologies (SGX:573) Is Reducing Its Dividend To SGD0.0125

Challenger Technologies Limited (SGX:573) has announced that on 18th of May, it will be paying a dividend ofSGD0.0125, which a reduction from last year's comparable dividend. This means that the dividend yield is 2.5%, which is a bit low when comparing to other companies in the industry.

Check out our latest analysis for Challenger Technologies

Challenger Technologies' Payment Has Solid Earnings Coverage

The dividend yield is a little bit low, but sustainability of the payments is also an important part of evaluating an income stock. Based on the last payment, Challenger Technologies 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.

Unless the company can turn things around, EPS could fall by 11.9% over the next year. Assuming the dividend continues along recent trends, we believe the payout ratio could be 55%, which we are pretty comfortable with and we think is feasible on an earnings basis.

Dividend Volatility

Although the company has a long dividend history, it has been cut at least once in the last 10 years. The annual payment during the last 10 years was SGD0.0225 in 2013, and the most recent fiscal year payment was SGD0.0125. This works out to be a decline of approximately 5.7% per year over that time. Generally, we don't like to see a dividend that has been declining over time as this can degrade shareholders' returns and indicate that the company may be running into problems.

Dividend Growth Potential Is Shaky

Given that the track record hasn't been stellar, we really want to see earnings per share growing over time. Challenger Technologies' EPS has fallen by approximately 12% per year during the past five years. Such rapid declines definitely have the potential to constrain dividend payments if the trend continues into the future.

In Summary

Overall, the dividend looks like it may have been a bit high, which explains why it has now been cut. The company is generating plenty of cash, which could maintain the dividend for a while, but the track record hasn't been great. This company is not in the top tier of income providing stocks.

Companies possessing a stable dividend policy will likely enjoy greater investor interest than those suffering from a more inconsistent approach. 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 Challenger Technologies (1 is potentially serious!) that you should be aware of before investing. 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.