Brokers have been busy running the rule over a number of ASX 200 dividend stocks in recent weeks.
Two that have emerged with buy ratings are listed below.
Let's see why brokers think they could be top options for income investors:
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Elders Ltd (ASX: ELD)
Bell Potter thinks that Elders could be an ASX 200 dividend stock to buy.
It is a leading Australian agribusiness company. Elders offers tailored advice and specialist knowledge across a range of products and services, including farm supplies, agronomy, livestock, wool, grain, finance, insurance, and real estate.
Bell Potter is a fan of the company and believes that a recent deal to acquire Delta Agribusiness is a good one. It said:
Our Buy rating is unchanged. The acquisition of Delta looks a relatively low-risk stepout with upside to the synergy target based on the 15% ROIC target (i.e ~$70m EBIT vs. 3yr target of ~$55m) largely through increased backward integration in crop protection. Trading at ~7.4x PF25e EBITDA, ELD trades at a reasonable discount to its through-the-cycle EBITDA multiple of 8.5x.
In respect to dividends, Bell Potter is forecasting fully franked dividends of 41 cents per share in FY 2025 and then 43 cents per share in FY 2026. Based on the current Elders share price of $6.97, this will mean dividend yields of 5.9% and 6.15%, respectively.
Bell Potter has a buy rating and $9.45 price target on its shares.
Rio Tinto Ltd (ASX: RIO)
Goldman Sachs thinks that Rio Tinto could be an ASX 200 dividend stock to buy.
Rio Tinto is of course one of the world's largest miners with a collection of high-quality operations spanning several commodities. This includes copper (Cu), which is partly why Goldman is so bullish on the company. It recently said:
RIO is a FCF and production growth story in our view, with forecast CuEq production growth of ~4-7% in 2025E & 2026E driven mostly by the ramp-up of the Oyu Tolgoi UG copper mine & a recovery at Escondida, higher Pilbara Fe shipments with the ramp-up of new mines, and a rebound in aluminium production and improving product mix.
Goldman Sachs expects this to underpin fully franked dividends of US$4.14 (A$6.68) per share in FY 2025 and then US$4.17 (A$6.73) per share in FY 2026. Based on the current Rio Tinto share price of $116.45, this would mean yields of 5.7% and 5.8%, respectively.
The broker currently has a buy rating and $147.80 price target on the miner's shares.
