Telecom Plus (LON:TEP) Has Affirmed Its Dividend Of UK£0.30
Telecom Plus Plc's (LON:TEP) investors are due to receive a payment of UK£0.30 per share on 5th of August. Including this payment, the dividend yield on the stock will be 2.9%, which is a modest boost for shareholders' returns.
While the dividend yield is important for income investors, it is also important to consider any large share price moves, as this will generally outweigh any gains from distributions. Investors will be pleased to see that Telecom Plus' stock price has increased by 30% in the last 3 months, which is good for shareholders and can also explain a decrease in the dividend yield.
Check out our latest analysis for Telecom Plus
Telecom Plus Doesn't Earn Enough To Cover Its Payments
It would be nice for the yield to be higher, but we should also check if higher levels of dividend payment would be sustainable. Based on the last payment, the company wasn't making enough to cover what it was paying to shareholders. This situation certainly isn't ideal, and could place significant strain on the balance sheet if it continues.
Earnings per share is forecast to rise by 35.0% over the next year. Assuming the dividend continues along recent trends, we think the payout ratio could reach 98%, which probably can't continue putting some pressure on the balance sheet.
Telecom Plus Has A Solid Track Record
The company has been paying a dividend for a long time, and it has been quite stable which gives us confidence in the future dividend potential. Since 2012, the dividend has gone from UK£0.22 to UK£0.57. This works out to be a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of approximately 10.0% a year over that time. Dividends have grown at a reasonable rate over this period, and without any major cuts in the payment over time, we think this is an attractive combination as it provides a nice boost to shareholder returns.
Dividend Growth May Be Hard To Achieve
Some investors will be chomping at the bit to buy some of the company's stock based on its dividend history. Earnings has been rising at 3.4% per annum over the last five years, which admittedly is a bit slow. The company is paying out a lot of its profits, even though it is growing those profits pretty slowly. This gives limited room for the company to raise the dividend in the future.
Telecom Plus' Dividend Doesn't Look Sustainable
Overall, it's nice to see a consistent dividend payment, but we think that longer term, the current level of payment might be unsustainable. We can't deny that the payments have been very stable, but we are a little bit worried about the very high payout ratio. Overall, we don't think this company has the makings of a good income stock.
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. For example, we've picked out 1 warning sign for Telecom Plus that investors should know about before committing capital to this stock. Is Telecom Plus not quite the opportunity you were looking for? Why not check out our selection of top 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.
