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Income Investors Should Know That Casablanca Group Limited (HKG:2223) Goes Ex-Dividend Soon

Some investors rely on dividends for growing their wealth, and if you're one of those dividend sleuths, you might be intrigued to know that Casablanca Group Limited (HKG:2223) is about to go ex-dividend in just 3 days. This means that investors who purchase shares on or after the 28th of May will not receive the dividend, which will be paid on the 17th of June.

Casablanca Group's next dividend payment will be HK$0.03 per share, on the back of last year when the company paid a total of HK$0.06 to shareholders. Based on the last year's worth of payments, Casablanca Group has a trailing yield of 9.8% on the current stock price of HK$0.61. Dividends are an important source of income to many shareholders, but the health of the business is crucial to maintaining those dividends. We need to see whether the dividend is covered by earnings and if it's growing.

Check out our latest analysis for Casablanca Group

If a company pays out more in dividends than it earned, then the dividend might become unsustainable - hardly an ideal situation. Casablanca Group paid out more than half (70%) of its earnings last year, which is a regular payout ratio for most companies. 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. Luckily it paid out just 24% of its free cash flow last year.

It's encouraging to see that the dividend is covered by both profit and cash flow. This generally suggests the dividend is sustainable, as long as earnings don't drop precipitously.

Click here to see how much of its profit Casablanca Group paid out over the last 12 months.

SEHK:2223 Historical Dividend Yield May 24th 2020
SEHK:2223 Historical Dividend Yield May 24th 2020

Have Earnings And Dividends Been Growing?

Companies with consistently growing earnings per share generally make the best dividend stocks, as they usually find it easier to grow dividends per share. If earnings decline and the company is forced to cut its dividend, investors could watch the value of their investment go up in smoke. With that in mind, we're encouraged by the steady growth at Casablanca Group, with earnings per share up 2.4% on average over the last five years. Earnings growth has been slim and the company is paying out more than half of its earnings. While there is some room to both increase the payout ratio and reinvest in the business, generally the higher a payout ratio goes, the lower a company's prospects for future growth.

Given that Casablanca Group has only been paying a dividend for a year, there's not much of a past history to draw insight from.

The Bottom Line

Is Casablanca Group an attractive dividend stock, or better left on the shelf? While earnings per share growth has been modest, Casablanca Group's dividend payouts are around an average level; without a sharp change in earnings we feel that the dividend is likely somewhat sustainable. Pleasingly the company paid out a conservatively low percentage of its free cash flow. It might be worth researching if the company is reinvesting in growth projects that could grow earnings and dividends in the future, but for now we're not all that optimistic on its dividend prospects.

With that in mind, a critical part of thorough stock research is being aware of any risks that stock currently faces. In terms of investment risks, we've identified 2 warning signs with Casablanca Group and understanding them should be part of your investment process.

If you're in the market for dividend stocks, we recommend checking our list of top dividend stocks with a greater than 2% yield and an upcoming dividend.

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This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. 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. Thank you for reading.