Yahoo Finance EnerSys (NYSE:ENS) Will Pay A Dividend Of $0.175
EnerSys (NYSE:ENS) has announced that it will pay a dividend of $0.175 per share on the 30th of September. This means the annual payment will be 1.0% of the current stock price, which is lower than the industry average.
View our latest analysis for EnerSys
EnerSys' Dividend Is Well Covered By Earnings
Even a low dividend yield can be attractive if it is sustained for years on end. Prior to this announcement, EnerSys' earnings easily covered the dividend, but free cash flows were negative. We think that cash flows should take priority over earnings, so this is definitely a worry for the dividend going forward.
Looking forward, earnings per share is forecast to rise by 34.6% over the next year. If the dividend continues along recent trends, we estimate the payout ratio will be 16%, which is in the range that makes us comfortable with the sustainability of the dividend.
EnerSys Is Still Building Its Track Record
EnerSys' dividend has been pretty stable for a little while now, but we will continue to be cautious until it has been demonstrated for a few more years. The dividend has gone from an annual total of $0.50 in 2013 to the most recent total annual payment of $0.70. This works out to be a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of approximately 3.8% a year over that time. We like that the dividend hasn't been shrinking. However we're conscious that the company hasn't got an overly long track record of dividend payments yet, which makes us wary of relying on its dividend income.
EnerSys May Find It Hard To Grow The Dividend
The company's investors will be pleased to have been receiving dividend income for some time. However, things aren't all that rosy. In the last five years, EnerSys' earnings per share has shrunk at approximately 3.1% per annum. If earnings continue declining, the company may have to make the difficult choice of reducing the dividend or even stopping it completely - the opposite of dividend growth. It's not all bad news though, as the earnings are predicted to rise over the next 12 months - we would just be a bit cautious until this can turn into a longer term trend.
EnerSys' Dividend Doesn't Look Sustainable
Overall, we don't think this company makes a great dividend stock, even though the dividend wasn't cut this year. While EnerSys is earning enough to cover the payments, the cash flows are lacking. Overall, we don't think this company has the makings of a good income stock.
Investors generally tend to favour companies with a consistent, stable dividend policy as opposed to those operating an irregular one. Still, investors need to consider a host of other factors, apart from dividend payments, when analysing a company. For example, we've picked out 1 warning sign for EnerSys that investors should know about before committing capital to this stock. 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.
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