CropEnergies AG's (ETR:CE2) dividend will be increasing from last year's payment of the same period to €0.60 on 14th of July. This makes the dividend yield 6.0%, which is above the industry average.
Check out our latest analysis for CropEnergies
CropEnergies Is Paying Out More Than It Is Earning
If the payments aren't sustainable, a high yield for a few years won't matter that much. However, prior to this announcement, CropEnergies' dividend was comfortably covered by both cash flow and earnings. As a result, a large proportion of what it earned was being reinvested back into the business.
Over the next year, EPS is forecast to fall by 71.6%. If the dividend continues along recent trends, we estimate the payout ratio could reach 104%, which could put the dividend in jeopardy if the company's earnings don't improve.
Dividend Volatility
The company's dividend history has been marked by instability, with at least one cut in the last 10 years. Since 2013, the dividend has gone from €0.20 total annually to €0.60. This works out to be a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of approximately 12% a year over that time. It is great to see strong growth in the dividend payments, but cuts are concerning as it may indicate the payout policy is too ambitious.
The Dividend Looks Likely To Grow
With a relatively unstable dividend, it's even more important to evaluate if earnings per share is growing, which could point to a growing dividend in the future. CropEnergies has impressed us by growing EPS at 31% per year over the past five years. Earnings have been growing rapidly, and with a low payout ratio we think that the company could turn out to be a great dividend stock.
CropEnergies Looks Like A Great Dividend Stock
Overall, a dividend increase is always good, and we think that CropEnergies is a strong income stock thanks to its track record and growing earnings. The company is generating plenty of cash, and the earnings also quite easily cover the distributions. However, it is worth noting that the earnings are expected to fall over the next year, which may not change the long term outlook, but could affect the dividend payment in the next 12 months. Taking this all into consideration, this looks like it could be a good dividend opportunity.
Market movements attest to how highly valued a consistent dividend policy is compared to one which is more unpredictable. At the same time, there are other factors our readers should be conscious of before pouring capital into a stock. Just as an example, we've come across 2 warning signs for CropEnergies you should be aware of, and 1 of them can't be ignored. Is CropEnergies not quite the opportunity you were looking for? Why not check out our selection of top dividend stocks.