Yahoo Finance Here's Why We're Wary Of Buying Monadelphous Group Limited's (ASX:MND) For Its Upcoming Dividend
Readers hoping to buy Monadelphous Group Limited (ASX:MND) for its dividend will need to make their move shortly, as the stock is about to trade ex-dividend. You will need to purchase shares before the 5th of March to receive the dividend, which will be paid on the 27th of March.
Monadelphous Group's next dividend payment will be AU$0.22 per share, on the back of last year when the company paid a total of AU$0.44 to shareholders. Last year's total dividend payments show that Monadelphous Group has a trailing yield of 3.1% on the current share price of A$14.42. If you buy this business for its dividend, you should have an idea of whether Monadelphous Group's dividend is reliable and sustainable. So we need to investigate whether Monadelphous Group can afford its dividend, and if the dividend could grow.
Check out our latest analysis for Monadelphous Group
Dividends are typically paid out of company income, so if a company pays out more than it earned, its dividend is usually at a higher risk of being cut. It paid out 88% of its earnings as dividends last year, which is not unreasonable, but limits reinvestment in the business and leaves the dividend vulnerable to a business downturn. We'd be worried about the risk of a drop in earnings. Yet cash flow is typically more important than profit for assessing dividend sustainability, so we should always check if the company generated enough cash to afford its dividend. It paid out an unsustainably high 247% of its free cash flow as dividends over the past 12 months, which is worrying. Unless there were something in the business we're not grasping, this could signal a risk that the dividend may have to be cut in the future.
Monadelphous Group does have a large net cash position on the balance sheet, which could fund large dividends for a time, if the company so chose. Still, smart investors know that it is better to assess dividends relative to the cash and profit generated by the business. Paying dividends out of cash on the balance sheet is not long-term sustainable.
Monadelphous Group paid out less in dividends than it reported in profits, but unfortunately it didn't generate enough cash to cover the dividend. Were this to happen repeatedly, this would be a risk to Monadelphous Group's ability to maintain its dividend.
Click here to see the company's payout ratio, plus analyst estimates of its future dividends.
Have Earnings And Dividends Been Growing?
Businesses with shrinking earnings are tricky from a dividend perspective. If business enters a downturn and the dividend is cut, the company could see its value fall precipitously. With that in mind, we're discomforted by Monadelphous Group's 20% per annum decline in earnings in the past five years. When earnings per share fall, the maximum amount of dividends that can be paid also falls.
Another key way to measure a company's dividend prospects is by measuring its historical rate of dividend growth. Monadelphous Group's dividend payments per share have declined at 5.1% per year on average over the past ten years, which is uninspiring. It's never nice to see earnings and dividends falling, but at least management has cut the dividend rather than potentially risk the company's health in an attempt to maintain it.
Final Takeaway
Is Monadelphous Group an attractive dividend stock, or better left on the shelf? Monadelphous Group had an average payout ratio, but its free cash flow was lower and earnings per share have been declining. Overall it doesn't look like the most suitable dividend stock for a long-term buy and hold investor.
Wondering what the future holds for Monadelphous Group? See what the 12 analysts we track are forecasting, with this visualisation of its historical and future estimated earnings and cash flow
We wouldn't recommend just buying the first dividend stock you see, though. Here's a list of interesting dividend stocks with a greater than 2% yield and an upcoming dividend.
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.
