If you want to construct a balanced portfolio, having a few blue chip ASX shares in there would be a smart move.
But with so many to choose from, it can be hard to decide which ones to buy.
To narrow things down for you, I have highlighted two ASX blue chip shares that come highly rated:
BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP)
The first blue chip ASX share to look at is BHP. The Big Australian is one of the world's largest miners and owns a diverse portfolio of world class and low cost operations across the globe.
BHP has exposure to a wide range of commodities, but chief among them is iron ore. Which certainly is a good thing right now with iron ore prices at such sky high levels. It is thanks largely to this that the company is being tipped to deliver a bumper profit result in FY 2021.
Ord Minnett is very positive on the mining giant and recently put a buy rating and $52.00 price target on its shares.
Its analysts believe the company is well-placed to outperform in the post-COVID environment. It expects this to lead to generous dividend payments.
Sonic Healthcare Limited (ASX: SHL)
Another blue chip to look at is Sonic Healthcare. It is a leading medical diagnostics company with operations across the world.
Sonic has been a very impressive performer in FY 2021. In October it released its first quarter update and revealed a 29% increase in revenue to $2,144 million and a massive 71% lift in EBITDA to $580 million.
This growth has been driven largely by strong demand for COVID-19 testing services. But also by positive performances across the rest of the business.
Credit Suisse is a fan of the company. Earlier this month, the broker put an outperform rating and $39.00 price target on Sonic's shares. It believes the company will outperform consensus estimates in FY 2021, especially if COVID-19 cases remain high globally and the strong demand for testing continues.
