Yahoo Finance Halfords Group's (LON:HFD) Shareholders Will Receive A Bigger Dividend Than Last Year
Halfords Group plc (LON:HFD) will increase its dividend from last year's comparable payment on the 16th of September to £0.06. This takes the dividend yield to 5.4%, which shareholders will be pleased with.
See our latest analysis for Halfords Group
Halfords Group's Dividend Is Well Covered By Earnings
If the payments aren't sustainable, a high yield for a few years won't matter that much. However, Halfords Group's earnings easily cover the dividend. As a result, a large proportion of what it earned was being reinvested back into the business.
EPS is set to fall by 17.3% over the next 12 months. If the dividend continues along the path it has been on recently, we estimate the payout ratio could be 25%, which is comfortable for the company to continue in the future.
Dividend Volatility
The company's dividend history has been marked by instability, with at least one cut in the last 10 years. The dividend has gone from an annual total of £0.22 in 2012 to the most recent total annual payment of £0.09. The dividend has shrunk at around 8.6% a year during that period. A company that decreases its dividend over time generally isn't what we are looking for.
Halfords Group May Find It Hard To Grow The Dividend
Given that the track record hasn't been stellar, we really want to see earnings per share growing over time. Earnings has been rising at 4.5% per annum over the last five years, which admittedly is a bit slow. Earnings growth is slow, but on the plus side, the dividend payout ratio is low and dividends could grow faster than earnings, if the company decides to increase its payout ratio.
An additional note is that the company has been raising capital by issuing stock equal to 10% of shares outstanding in the last 12 months. Trying to grow the dividend when issuing new shares reminds us of the ancient Greek tale of Sisyphus - perpetually pushing a boulder uphill. Companies that consistently issue new shares are often suboptimal from a dividend perspective.
Our Thoughts On Halfords Group's Dividend
In summary, it's great to see that the company can raise the dividend and keep it in a sustainable range. The payout ratio looks good, but unfortunately the company's dividend track record isn't stellar. The payment isn't stellar, but it could make a decent addition to a dividend portfolio.
Investors generally tend to favour companies with a consistent, stable dividend policy as opposed to those operating an irregular one. At the same time, there are other factors our readers should be conscious of before pouring capital into a stock. To that end, Halfords Group has 4 warning signs (and 1 which can't be ignored) we think you should know about. Looking for more high-yielding dividend ideas? Try our collection of strong dividend payers.
Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.
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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