3 Hold-Rated Dividend Stocks: NAUH, WPT, CMRE
TheStreet Ratings' stock model projects a stock's total return potential over a 12-month period including both price appreciation and dividends. Our Buy, Hold or Sell ratings designate how we expect these stocks to perform against a general benchmark of the equities market and interest rates.
While plenty of high-yield opportunities exist, investors must always consider the safety of their dividend and the total return potential of their investment. It is not uncommon for a struggling company to suspend high-yielding dividends which could subsequently result in precipitous share price declines.
TheStreet Ratings' stock rating model views dividends favorably, but not so much that other factors are disregarded. Our model gauges the relationship between risk and reward in several ways, including: the pricing drawdown as compared to potential profit volatility, i.e. how much one is willing to risk in order to earn profits?; the level of acceptable volatility for highly performing stocks; the current valuation as compared to projected earnings growth; and the financial strength of the underlying company as compared to its stock's valuation as compared to its stock's performance.
These and many more derived observations are then combined, ranked, weighted, and scenario-tested to create a more complete analysis. The result is a systematic and disciplined method of selecting stocks. As always, stock ratings should not be treated as gospel — rather, use them as a starting point for your own research.
The following pages contain our analysis of 3 stocks with substantial yields, that ultimately, we have rated "Hold."
National American University Holdings
Dividend Yield: 7.30%
National American University Holdings
(NASDAQ:
) shares currently have a dividend yield of 7.30%.
National American University Holdings, Inc. owns and operates National American University (NAU) that provides postsecondary education services primarily for working adults and other non-traditional students in the United States. The company operates through two segments, NAU and Other. The company has a P/E ratio of 19.00.
The average volume for National American University Holdings has been 11,800 shares per day over the past 30 days. National American University Holdings has a market cap of $62.2 million and is part of the diversified services industry. Shares are down 8.5% year-to-date as of the close of trading on Friday.
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TheStreet Ratings rates
National American University Holdings
as a
. The company's strengths can be seen in multiple areas, such as its largely solid financial position with reasonable debt levels by most measures, reasonable valuation levels and expanding profit margins. However, as a counter to these strengths, we also find weaknesses including disappointing return on equity, weak operating cash flow and a generally disappointing performance in the stock itself.
Highlights from the ratings report include:
- NAUH's debt-to-equity ratio is very low at 0.24 and is currently below that of the industry average, implying that there has been very successful management of debt levels. Along with this, the company maintains a quick ratio of 3.65, which clearly demonstrates the ability to cover short-term cash needs.
- The gross profit margin for NATIONAL AMERN UNIV HLDG INC is currently very high, coming in at 75.09%. Regardless of NAUH's high profit margin, it has managed to decrease from the same period last year.
- Net operating cash flow has decreased to $8.32 million or 47.26% when compared to the same quarter last year. Despite a decrease in cash flow of 47.26%, NATIONAL AMERN UNIV HLDG INC is still significantly exceeding the industry average of -352.26%.
- The company's current return on equity has slightly decreased from the same quarter one year prior. This implies a minor weakness in the organization. When compared to other companies in the Diversified Consumer Services industry and the overall market, NATIONAL AMERN UNIV HLDG INC's return on equity is below that of both the industry average and the S&P 500.
- You can view the full National American University Holdings Ratings Report.
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Dividend Yield: 9.40%
(NYSE:
) shares currently have a dividend yield of 9.40%.
World Point Terminals, LP owns, operates, develops, and acquires terminals and other assets for the storage of light refined products, heavy refined products, and crude oil in the East Coast, Gulf Coast, and Midwest regions of the United States. The company has a P/E ratio of 13.36.
The average volume for World Point Terminals has been 28,400 shares per day over the past 30 days. World Point Terminals has a market cap of $235.8 million and is part of the energy industry. Shares are down 35.6% year-to-date as of the close of trading on Monday.
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TheStreet Ratings rates
World Point Terminals
as a
. The company's strengths can be seen in multiple areas, such as its revenue growth, largely solid financial position with reasonable debt levels by most measures and good cash flow from operations. However, as a counter to these strengths, we find that the stock has had a generally disappointing performance in the past year.
Highlights from the ratings report include:
- The revenue growth greatly exceeded the industry average of 37.2%. Since the same quarter one year prior, revenues slightly increased by 9.0%. This growth in revenue does not appear to have trickled down to the company's bottom line, displayed by a decline in earnings per share.
- WPT has no debt to speak of therefore resulting in a debt-to-equity ratio of zero, which we consider to be a relatively favorable sign. Along with this, the company maintains a quick ratio of 3.03, which clearly demonstrates the ability to cover short-term cash needs.
- WORLD POINT TERMINALS's earnings per share declined by 7.4% in the most recent quarter compared to the same quarter a year ago. This company has reported somewhat volatile earnings recently. But, we feel it is poised for EPS growth in the coming year. During the past fiscal year, WORLD POINT TERMINALS increased its bottom line by earning $0.98 versus $0.76 in the prior year. This year, the market expects an improvement in earnings ($1.00 versus $0.98).
- The company's current return on equity has slightly decreased from the same quarter one year prior. This implies a minor weakness in the organization. Compared to other companies in the Oil, Gas & Consumable Fuels industry and the overall market, WORLD POINT TERMINALS's return on equity exceeds that of both the industry average and the S&P 500.
- Looking at the price performance of WPT's shares over the past 12 months, there is not much good news to report: the stock is down 32.42%, and it has underformed the S&P 500 Index. In addition, the company's earnings per share are lower today than the year-earlier quarter. Naturally, the overall market trend is bound to be a significant factor. However, in one sense, the stock's sharp decline last year is a positive for future investors, making it cheaper (in proportion to its earnings over the past year) than most other stocks in its industry. But due to other concerns, we feel the stock is still not a good buy right now.
- You can view the full World Point Terminals Ratings Report.
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Dividend Yield: 8.40%
(NYSE:
) shares currently have a dividend yield of 8.40%.
COSTAMARE INC. owns and charters containerships to liner companies worldwide. The company has a P/E ratio of 8.61.
The average volume for Costamare has been 157,700 shares per day over the past 30 days. Costamare has a market cap of $1.0 billion and is part of the transportation industry. Shares are down 22.8% year-to-date as of the close of trading on Monday.
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TheStreet Ratings rates
Costamare
as a
. The company's strengths can be seen in multiple areas, such as its notable return on equity and expanding profit margins. However, as a counter to these strengths, we also find weaknesses including generally higher debt management risk, weak operating cash flow and a generally disappointing performance in the stock itself.
Highlights from the ratings report include:
- The return on equity has improved slightly when compared to the same quarter one year prior. This can be construed as a modest strength in the organization. Compared to other companies in the Marine industry and the overall market, COSTAMARE INC's return on equity exceeds that of both the industry average and the S&P 500.
- The gross profit margin for COSTAMARE INC is currently very high, coming in at 72.84%. It has increased from the same quarter the previous year. Along with this, the net profit margin of 28.07% significantly outperformed against the industry average.
- Despite the weak revenue results, CMRE has outperformed against the industry average of 16.2%. Since the same quarter one year prior, revenues slightly dropped by 0.6%. The declining revenue appears to have seeped down to the company's bottom line, decreasing earnings per share.
- Net operating cash flow has significantly decreased to -$60.92 million or 192.63% when compared to the same quarter last year. In addition, when comparing to the industry average, the firm's growth rate is much lower.
- Currently the debt-to-equity ratio of 1.72 is quite high overall and when compared to the industry average, suggesting that the current management of debt levels should be re-evaluated. To add to this, CMRE has a quick ratio of 0.55, this demonstrates the lack of ability of the company to cover short-term liquidity needs.
- You can view the full Costamare Ratings Report.
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Other helpful dividend tools from TheStreet:
- Our dividend calendar.