Here's Why We're Wary Of Buying Hup Seng Industries Berhad's (KLSE:HUPSENG) For Its Upcoming Dividend

Hup Seng Industries Berhad (KLSE:HUPSENG) stock is about to trade ex-dividend in 3 days. The ex-dividend date is one business day before a company's record date, which is the date on which the company determines which shareholders are entitled to receive a dividend. The ex-dividend date is of consequence because whenever a stock is bought or sold, the trade takes at least two business day to settle. Accordingly, Hup Seng Industries Berhad investors that purchase the stock on or after the 9th of December will not receive the dividend, which will be paid on the 29th of December.

The company's next dividend payment will be RM0.01 per share, and in the last 12 months, the company paid a total of RM0.02 per share. Looking at the last 12 months of distributions, Hup Seng Industries Berhad has a trailing yield of approximately 4.2% on its current stock price of MYR0.71. We love seeing companies pay a dividend, but it's also important to be sure that laying the golden eggs isn't going to kill our golden goose! As a result, readers should always check whether Hup Seng Industries Berhad has been able to grow its dividends, or if the dividend might be cut.

View our latest analysis for Hup Seng Industries Berhad

If a company pays out more in dividends than it earned, then the dividend might become unsustainable - hardly an ideal situation. Last year Hup Seng Industries Berhad paid out 103% of its profits as dividends to shareholders, suggesting the dividend is not well covered by earnings. Yet cash flow is typically more important than profit for assessing dividend sustainability, so we should always check if the company generated enough cash to afford its dividend. Hup Seng Industries Berhad paid out more free cash flow than it generated - 153%, to be precise - last year, which we think is concerningly high. We're curious about why the company paid out more cash than it generated last year, since this can be one of the early signs that a dividend may be unsustainable.

Hup Seng Industries Berhad does have a large net cash position on the balance sheet, which could fund large dividends for a time, if the company so chose. Still, smart investors know that it is better to assess dividends relative to the cash and profit generated by the business. Paying dividends out of cash on the balance sheet is not long-term sustainable.

Cash is slightly more important than profit from a dividend perspective, but given Hup Seng Industries Berhad's payments were not well covered by either earnings or cash flow, we are concerned about the sustainability of this dividend.

Click here to see the company's payout ratio, plus analyst estimates of its future dividends.

Have Earnings And Dividends Been Growing?

Companies with falling earnings are riskier for dividend shareholders. Investors love dividends, so if earnings fall and the dividend is reduced, expect a stock to be sold off heavily at the same time. With that in mind, we're discomforted by Hup Seng Industries Berhad's 14% per annum decline in earnings in the past five years. Ultimately, when earnings per share decline, the size of the pie from which dividends can be paid, shrinks.

Many investors will assess a company's dividend performance by evaluating how much the dividend payments have changed over time. Hup Seng Industries Berhad has delivered 2.9% dividend growth per year on average over the past 10 years. That's intriguing, but the combination of growing dividends despite declining earnings can typically only be achieved by paying out a larger percentage of profits. Hup Seng Industries Berhad is already paying out 103% of its profits, and with shrinking earnings we think it's unlikely that this dividend will grow quickly in the future.

To Sum It Up

Should investors buy Hup Seng Industries Berhad for the upcoming dividend? Not only are earnings per share declining, but Hup Seng Industries Berhad is paying out an uncomfortably high percentage of both its earnings and cashflow to shareholders as dividends. Unless there are grounds to believe a turnaround is imminent, this is one of the least attractive dividend stocks under this analysis. It's not an attractive combination from a dividend perspective, and we're inclined to pass on this one for the time being.

So if you're still interested in Hup Seng Industries Berhad despite it's poor dividend qualities, you should be well informed on some of the risks facing this stock. For example, we've found 1 warning sign for Hup Seng Industries Berhad that we recommend you consider before investing in the business.

A common investing mistake is buying the first interesting stock you see. Here you can find a full list of high-yield 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.

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