I think it is fair to say that the last 12 months have been reasonably disappointing for many of Australia's most popular dividend shares.
But I wouldn't let this put you off dividend shares entirely, especially in this low interest environment.
Here are three top dividend shares that I think could be in the buy zone today:
National Australia Bank Ltd (ASX: NAB)
Shares in the Australian banking sector have come under a lot of selling pressure over the last 12 months due partly to the negative news flow emanating from the Royal Commission and a cooling housing market. I think these concerns have been priced into bank shares now, meaning it could be worth revisiting them. One option for income investors could be National Australia Bank and its trailing fully franked 7% dividend.
National Storage REIT (ASX: NSR)
But if you already have meaningful exposure to the banks then this storage giant could be a great alternative. Not only do its shares provide an above-average yield of 5.5%, I believe this dividend could grow at a decent rate over the coming years thanks to its growth initiatives. It recently announced that it has completed the acquisition of eight quality self-storage assets in Australia and New Zealand, bringing its total network to 130 facilities. In addition to this, the company is expanding existing sites.
Super Retail Group Ltd (ASX: SUL)
This retail conglomerate could be another good option for investors in search of income. While its performance has been a little mixed over the last couple of years, this has largely been down to its underperforming Leisure segment. Pleasingly, management believes that its recent acquisition of the growing Macpac brand will turn the segment around. If this is a success then Super Retail could be positioned for solid earnings and dividend growth in the medium term. At present its shares offer investors a trailing fully franked 5.2% dividend.
