Something To Consider Before Buying Jilin Jiutai Rural Commercial Bank Corporation Limited (HKG:6122) For The 6.4% Dividend
Is Jilin Jiutai Rural Commercial Bank Corporation Limited (HKG:6122) a good dividend stock? How can we tell? Dividend paying companies with growing earnings can be highly rewarding in the long term. If you are hoping to live on your dividends, it's important to be more stringent with your investments than the average punter. Regular readers know we like to apply the same approach to each dividend stock, and we hope you'll find our analysis useful.
Jilin Jiutai Rural Commercial Bank pays a 6.4% dividend yield, and has been paying dividends for the past three years. It's certainly an attractive yield, but readers are likely curious about its staying power. Some simple research can reduce the risk of buying Jilin Jiutai Rural Commercial Bank for its dividend - read on to learn more.
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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. Comparing dividend payments to a company's net profit after tax is a simple way of reality-checking whether a dividend is sustainable. In the last year, Jilin Jiutai Rural Commercial Bank paid out 69% of its profit as dividends. This is a healthy payout ratio, and while it does limit the amount of earnings that can be reinvested in the business, there is also some room to lift the payout ratio over time.
Remember, you can always get a snapshot of Jilin Jiutai Rural Commercial Bank's 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. This company's dividend has been unstable, and with a relatively short history, we think it's a little soon to draw strong conclusions about its long term dividend potential. During the past three-year period, the first annual payment was CN¥0.29 in 2017, compared to CN¥0.17 last year. The dividend has fallen 40% over that period.
A shrinking dividend over a three-year period is not ideal, and we'd be concerned about investing in a dividend stock that lacks a solid record of growing dividends per share.
Dividend Growth Potential
With a relatively unstable dividend, and a poor history of shrinking dividends, it's even more important to see if EPS are growing. In the last five years, Jilin Jiutai Rural Commercial Bank's earnings per share have shrunk at approximately 4.0% per annum. 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. First, we think Jilin Jiutai Rural Commercial Bank has an acceptable payout ratio. Earnings per share are down, and Jilin Jiutai Rural Commercial Bank's dividend has been cut at least once in the past, which is disappointing. To conclude, we've spotted a couple of potential concerns with Jilin Jiutai Rural Commercial Bank that may make it less than ideal candidate for dividend investors.
You can also discover whether shareholders are aligned with insider interests by checking our visualisation of insider shareholdings and trades in Jilin Jiutai Rural Commercial Bank stock.
We have also put together a list of global stocks with a market capitalisation above $1bn and yielding more 3%.
If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. 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. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned.
We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Thank you for reading.
