Signify (AMS:LIGHT) Has Announced That It Will Be Increasing Its Dividend To €1.55

The board of Signify N.V. (AMS:LIGHT) has announced that it will be paying its dividend of €1.55 on the 3rd of June, an increased payment from last year's comparable dividend. This will take the dividend yield to an attractive 5.4%, providing a nice boost to shareholder returns.

See our latest analysis for Signify

Signify's Earnings Easily Cover The Distributions

While it is great to have a strong dividend yield, we should also consider whether the payment is sustainable. Prior to this announcement, the company was paying out 96% of what it was earning, however the dividend was quite comfortably covered by free cash flows at a cash payout ratio of only 34%. Given that the dividend is a cash outflow, we think that cash is more important than accounting measures of profit when assessing the dividend, so this is a mitigating factor.

Over the next year, EPS is forecast to expand by 87.7%. Assuming the dividend continues along the course it has been charting recently, our estimates show the payout ratio being 54% which brings it into quite a comfortable range.

historic-dividend

Signify's Dividend Has Lacked Consistency

Signify has been paying dividends for a while, but the track record isn't stellar. This makes us cautious about the consistency of the dividend over a full economic cycle. The dividend has gone from an annual total of €1.10 in 2017 to the most recent total annual payment of €1.55. This works out to be a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of approximately 5.0% a year over that time. We have seen cuts in the past, so while the growth looks promising we would be a little bit cautious about its track record.

Signify May Find It Hard To Grow The Dividend

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. In the last five years, Signify's earnings per share has shrunk at approximately 3.9% per annum. Declining earnings will inevitably lead to the company paying a lower dividend in line with lower profits. Earnings are predicted to grow over the next year, but we would remain cautious until a track record of earnings growth is established.

The Dividend Could Prove To Be Unreliable

In summary, while it's always good to see the dividend being raised, we don't think Signify's payments are rock solid. In the past, the payments have been unstable, but over the short term the dividend could be reliable, with the company generating enough cash to cover it. We would probably look elsewhere for an income investment.

Companies possessing a stable dividend policy will likely enjoy greater investor interest than those suffering from a more inconsistent approach. Still, investors need to consider a host of other factors, apart from dividend payments, when analysing a company. For example, we've picked out 3 warning signs for Signify that investors should know about before committing capital to this stock. Looking for more high-yielding dividend ideas? Try our collection of strong dividend payers.

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