The good news for income investors is that there are plenty of ASX dividend stocks for them to choose from on the Australian share market.
For those that are looking for buy and hold options, the two dividend shares listed below could be top picks.
Here's what analysts at Bell Potter are saying about these shares right now:
Accent Group Ltd (ASX: AX1)
The first ASX dividend stock to consider as a buy and hold investment is Accent Group. It is a leading retailer in Australian leisure footwear through its large portfolio of store brands. This includes HypeDC, Platypus, The Athlete's Foot, Style Runner, and Sneaker Lab.
In addition, Accent is making strategic moves into the youth fashion market with brands such as Glue Store and Nude Lucy.
The team at Bell Potter is very positive on the company,. It highlights the company's market leadership and expansion potential. The broker stated:
We continue to view AX1 as a key pick in our retail sector coverage given their scale as Australia's market leader, growth adjacencies in both footwear/apparel from exclusive partnerships & TAF channel conversion, and growing vertical brand strategy led by Nude Lucy.
As for income, Bell Potter has pencilled in fully franked payouts of 13.7 cents per share in FY 2025 and 15.6 cents per share in FY 2026. Based on its latest share price of $1.86, this equates to dividend yields of 7.4% and 8.4%, respectively.
The broker has a buy rating and $2.75 price target on Accent's shares.
Elders Ltd (ASX: ELD)
Another ASX dividend stock that could be a top buy and hold option is Elders.
It is a leading agribusiness company that provides the agricultural sector with a range of products and services.
Bell Potter is also very bullish on Elders. It highlights the company's attractive valuation and recent acquisition as reasons to be positive. The broker 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 its current share price of $7.13, this equates to dividend yields of 5.75% and 6%, respectively.
The broker has a buy rating and price target of $9.45 on Elders' shares.
