Medibank Private Ltd (ASX: MPL) shares are arguably often overlooked by dividend investors on the ASX. The ASX is home to many famous passive income payers, including BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP), Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA) and Telstra Group Ltd (ASX: TLS). But Medibank is not normally a name you hear when investors are discussing their favourite ASX dividend shares.
But could this be a mistake? After all, Medibank shares actually have quite an impressive history when it comes to paying out dividends to their investors.
This ASX 200 healthcare share has been a consistent income stock
This private health insurance giant made its first dividend payments to investors soon after listing on the ASX following its privatisation back in late 2014.
In 2015, Medibank made its first dividend payment, a dividend of 5.3 cents per share. The company then spent the next four years increasing its annual dividend every year. 2016 saw it fund 11 cents per share in dividends, which increased to 12 cents in 2017, 12.7 cents in 2018 and then 15.6 cents in 2019.
The pandemic stopped this growth run in its tracks, with Medibank only forking out 12 cents per share that year. But the increases soon started back up again. 2021 had Medibank fund 12.7 cents per share again, which was lifted to a total of 13.4 cents last year in 2022.
2023's interim dividend that shareholders saw in March was another positive sign for income investors. This payment came to a fully-franked 6.3 cents per share, which was a pleasing rise over 2022's corresponding dividend of 6.1 cents.
So this 6.3 cents per share payment combines with Medibank's final dividend from September last year of 7.3 cents to give the Medibank share price a fully-franked trailing yield of 3.78% right now. That's going off Medibank's present (at market close on Tuesday) share price of $3.60.
But how does this yield compare to other ASX dividend shares? Is Medibank worth chasing for dividends when it is competing with the likes of BHP, CBA and Telstra?
How do Medibank shares' dividends measure up?
Well, Medibank can't quite keep up with the big banks, that's for sure. Three of the big for currently offer fully-franked yields over 6% right now. The only exception is CBA, which currently has a comparable, but still higher, dividend yield of around 4.2% today.
Medibank can't hold a light up to BHP either, with its current yield of 8.38%. It does get close to Telstra shares' yield of 3.9% today though. And Medibank still does a lot better than many other ASX blue chips in terms of yield.
It runs rings around Woolworths Group Ltd (ASX: WOW) and its dividend yield of 2.48% today. It also edges out another dividend favourite in Wesfarmers Ltd (ASX: WES), which has 3.77% on the table right now. Coles Group Ltd (ASX: COL) also falls victim to Medibank, with its offering of 3.57%.
More importantly, Medibank is a leading income share when it comes to other ASX healthcare shares. Its rival NIB Holdings Ltd (ASX: NHF) only offers investors a yield of 2.73% at present.
Ramsay Health Care Ltd (ASX: RHC) is an even bigger laggard when it comes to income, with its yield of 1.69% right now. And CSL Ltd (ASX: CLS), ASX's largest healthcare share, barely warrants a mention in this context with its 1.02% yield.
So Medibank certainly has something to show to income investors today, especially those who might want a little diversification away from the BHPs and the CBAs of the ASX. It doesn't have the largest yield on offer. But it does offer relative consistency of income, exposure to the healthcare sector, and full franking credits.
