Perfect Medical Health Management Limited's (HKG:1830) dividend is being reduced from last year's payment covering the same period to HK$0.053 on the 5th of September. This means the annual payment is 9.7% of the current stock price, which is above the average for the industry.

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Perfect Medical Health Management's Payment Could Potentially Have Solid Earnings Coverage

Impressive dividend yields are good, but this doesn't matter much if the payments can't be sustained. Prior to this announcement, the company was paying out 100% of what it was earning, however the dividend was quite comfortably covered by free cash flows at a cash payout ratio of only . Healthy cash flows are always a positive sign, especially when they quite easily cover the dividend.

Looking forward, earnings per share is forecast to rise by 57.9% over the next year. If the dividend continues along recent trends, we estimate the payout ratio will be 69%, which would make us comfortable with the sustainability of the dividend, despite the levels currently being quite high.

Check out our latest analysis for Perfect Medical Health Management

Dividend Volatility

The company's dividend history has been marked by instability, with at least one cut in the last 10 years. Since 2015, the annual payment back then was HK$0.096, compared to the most recent full-year payment of HK$0.166. This implies that the company grew its distributions at a yearly rate of about 5.6% over that duration. We like to see dividends have grown at a reasonable rate, but with at least one substantial cut in the payments, we're not certain this dividend stock would be ideal for someone intending to live on the income.

The Dividend Has Limited Growth Potential

Given that the dividend has been cut in the past, we need to check if earnings are growing and if that might lead to stronger dividends in the future. Perfect Medical Health Management's EPS has fallen by approximately 13% per year during the past five years. A sharp decline in earnings per share is not great from from a dividend perspective. Even conservative payout ratios can come under pressure if earnings fall far enough. Over the next year, however, earnings are actually predicted to rise, but we would still be cautious until a track record of earnings growth can be built.

The Dividend Could Prove To Be Unreliable

Overall, it's not great to see that the dividend has been cut, but this might be explained by the payments being a bit high previously. The company is generating plenty of cash, which could maintain the dividend for a while, but the track record hasn't been great. This company is not in the top tier of income providing stocks.

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. Taking the debate a bit further, we've identified 1 warning sign for Perfect Medical Health Management that investors need to be conscious of moving forward. Looking for more high-yielding dividend ideas? Try our collection of strong dividend payers.

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