Territorial Bancorp (NASDAQ:TBNK) Is Due To Pay A Dividend Of US$0.23
The board of Territorial Bancorp Inc. (NASDAQ:TBNK) has announced that it will pay a dividend on the 24th of November, with investors receiving US$0.23 per share. Based on this payment, the dividend yield on the company's stock will be 4.0%, which is an attractive boost to shareholder returns.
See our latest analysis for Territorial Bancorp
Territorial Bancorp's Payment Has Solid Earnings Coverage
We like to see robust dividend yields, but that doesn't matter if the payment isn't sustainable. The last dividend was quite easily covered by Territorial Bancorp's earnings. This indicates that a lot of the earnings are being reinvested into the business, with the aim of fueling growth.
EPS is set to fall by 14.5% over the next 12 months. If the dividend continues along recent trends, we estimate the payout ratio could be 61%, which we consider to be quite comfortable, with most of the company's earnings left over to grow the business in the future.
Dividend Volatility
The company's dividend history has been marked by instability, with at least 1 cut in the last 10 years. Since 2011, the first annual payment was US$0.28, compared to the most recent full-year payment of US$0.92. This implies that the company grew its distributions at a yearly rate of about 13% over that duration. Dividends have grown rapidly over this time, but with cuts in the past we are not certain that this stock will be a reliable source of income in the future.
The Dividend's Growth Prospects Are Limited
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. However, Territorial Bancorp has only grown its earnings per share at 3.9% per annum over the past five years. Territorial Bancorp is struggling to find viable investments, so it is returning more to shareholders. This isn't necessarily bad, but we wouldn't expect rapid dividend growth in the future.
In Summary
Overall, we think Territorial Bancorp is a solid choice as a dividend stock, even though the dividend wasn't raised this year. The dividend has been at reasonable levels historically, but that hasn't translated into a consistent payment. The dividend looks okay, but there have been some issues in the past, so we would be a little bit cautious.
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. For example, we've identified 2 warning signs for Territorial Bancorp (1 makes us a bit uncomfortable!) that you should be aware of before investing. Looking for more high-yielding dividend ideas? Try our curated list of strong dividend payers.
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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