Dividends play a key role in compounding returns over time and can form a large part of our portfolio return. Historically, Wah Ha Realty Company Limited (HKG:278) has been paying a dividend to shareholders. Today it yields 4.1%. Does Wah Ha Realty tick all the boxes of a great dividend stock? Below, I’ll take you through my analysis.
View our latest analysis for Wah Ha Realty
5 checks you should use to assess a dividend stock
When researching a dividend stock, I always follow the following screening criteria:
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Is its annual yield among the top 25% of dividend-paying companies?
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Has its dividend been stable over the past (i.e. no missed payments or significant payout cuts)?
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Has dividend per share risen in the past couple of years?
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Is its earnings sufficient to payout dividend at the current rate?
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Will the company be able to keep paying dividend based on the future earnings growth?
How well does Wah Ha Realty fit our criteria?
The company currently pays out 10% of its earnings as a dividend, according to its trailing twelve-month data, which means that the dividend is covered by earnings. Furthermore, analysts have not forecasted a dividends per share for the future, which makes it hard to determine the yield shareholders should expect, and whether the current payout is sustainable, moving forward.
When assessing the forecast sustainability of a dividend it is also worth considering the cash flow of the business. Companies with strong cash flow can sustain a higher payout ratio, while companies with weaker cash flow generally cannot.
If there is one thing that you want to be reliable in your life, it’s dividend stocks and their constant income stream. Whilst its per-share payments have increased during the past 10 years, there has been some hiccups. Investors have seen reductions in the dividend per share in the past, although, it has picked up again.
Relative to peers, Wah Ha Realty generates a yield of 4.1%, which is high for Real Estate stocks but still below the market’s top dividend payers.
Next Steps:
If Wah Ha Realty is in your portfolio for cash-generating reasons, there may be better alternatives out there. But if you are not exclusively a dividend investor, the stock could still be an interesting investment opportunity. Given that this is purely a dividend analysis, you should always research extensively before deciding whether or not a stock is an appropriate investment for you. I always recommend analysing the company’s fundamentals and underlying business before making an investment decision. I’ve put together three important aspects you should further examine: