Thankfully for income investors, there are plenty of dividend stocks to choose from on the ASX 200 index.
But two that could be standout picks for investors right now are listed below. Here's why analysts rate these big-name dividend stocks as buys:
Telstra Group Ltd (ASX: TLS)
Analysts at Morgans believe that Telstra is an ASX 200 dividend stock to buy right now. The broker has an add rating and $4.70 price target on the telco giant's shares.
Morgans believes that the company's outlook is the best it has been in years. It highlights that "[t]elco has the strongest tailwinds in a decade with an increasingly rational market, price rises across the majors and the criticality of telco increasingly recognised." In addition, it notes that there is "the potential for InfraCo value release following the legal restructure."
All in all, the broker is expecting this to allow Telstra to pay 17 cents per share fully franked dividends in both FY 2023 and FY 2024. Based on the current Telstra share price of $4.37, this will mean yields of 3.9% for income investors.
Westpac Banking Corp (ASX: WBC)
Over at Goldman Sachs, its analysts say that Westpac is an ASX 200 dividend stock to buy right now. Its analysts currently have the banking giant on their conviction list with a buy rating and $24.67 price target.
Although the broker was disappointed to see Westpac walk away from its cost cutting targets recently, its analysts still expect Australia's oldest bank to deliver broadly flat costs in the coming years. Which will still be a good outcome in the current environment.
It is for this reason that Goldman expects to "see WBC outperform peers in this relatively difficult inflationary environment."
Overall, the broker expects this to lead to fully franked dividends of 140 cents per share in both FY 2023 and FY 2024. Based on the current Westpac share price of $21.23, this equates to yields of 6.6% in both years.
