Yahoo Finance Safety Insurance Group (NASDAQ:SAFT) Will Pay A Dividend Of $0.90
The board of Safety Insurance Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:SAFT) has announced that it will pay a dividend of $0.90 per share on the 15th of September. This means the annual payment is 4.0% of the current stock price, which is above the average for the industry.
See our latest analysis for Safety Insurance Group
Safety Insurance Group's Payment Has Solid Earnings Coverage
While it is great to have a strong dividend yield, we should also consider whether the payment is sustainable. Prior to this announcement, Safety Insurance Group's dividend made up quite a large proportion of earnings but only 49% of free cash flows. In general, cash flows are more important than earnings, so we are comfortable that the dividend will be sustainable going forward, especially with so much cash left over for reinvestment.
Looking forward, earnings per share could rise by 3.3% over the next year if the trend from the last few years continues. Assuming the dividend continues along recent trends, we think the payout ratio could be 74% by next year, which is in a pretty sustainable range.
Safety Insurance Group Has A Solid Track Record
Even over a long history of paying dividends, the company's distributions have been remarkably stable. The annual payment during the last 10 years was $2.00 in 2012, and the most recent fiscal year payment was $3.60. This works out to be a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of approximately 6.1% a year over that time. Dividends have grown at a reasonable rate over this period, and without any major cuts in the payment over time, we think this is an attractive combination as it provides a nice boost to shareholder returns.
Dividend Growth May Be Hard To Achieve
The company's investors will be pleased to have been receiving dividend income for some time. Earnings have grown at around 3.3% a year for the past five years, which isn't massive but still better than seeing them shrink. Earnings are not growing quickly at all, and the company is paying out most of its profit as dividends. When the rate of return on reinvestment opportunities falls below a certain minimum level, companies often elect to pay a larger dividend instead. This is why many mature companies often have larger dividend yields.
Safety Insurance Group Looks Like A Great Dividend Stock
Overall, we like to see the dividend staying consistent, and we think Safety Insurance Group might even raise payments in the future. Distributions are quite easily covered by earnings, which are also being converted to cash flows. All of these factors considered, we think this has solid potential as a dividend stock.
Investors generally tend to favour companies with a consistent, stable dividend policy as opposed to those operating an irregular one. Meanwhile, despite the importance of dividend payments, they are not the only factors our readers should know when assessing a company. Taking the debate a bit further, we've identified 2 warning signs for Safety Insurance Group 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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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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