Where I'd invest $5,000 in ASX dividend stocks for October

These businesses look like excellent buys right now.

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Key points

  • ASX dividend stocks are becoming attractive buys post-RBA rate cuts, with notable options offering appealing valuations for passive income.
  • Rural Funds Group benefits from rate cuts by increasing property values and reducing interest costs, leading to a promising forward distribution yield.
  • GQG Partners, Rural Funds and Washington H. Soul Pattinson offer pleasing dividend yields, with GQG focused on fund management and Soul Pattinson boasting a long record of steady dividend growth.

ASX dividend stocks look like appealing buys after multiple RBA rate cuts this year. The ones I'll highlight below have appealing valuations.

If I had $5,000 to invest today, there are a few businesses that really stand out to me as passive income opportunities.

While dividends aren't guaranteed, they can be more predictable than share price movements. I'm focused on the pleasing dividend outlook for the following three businesses.

Rural Funds Group (ASX: RFF)

Rate cuts can be particularly helpful for asset-owning businesses like Rural Funds because of the multiple benefits that cuts provide. Rural Funds is a real estate investment trust (REIT) that owns a portfolio of farms across Australia, including almonds, macadamias, vineyards, cropping and cattle.  

The first benefit of lower interest rates is that they can increase the value of properties, which would be very beneficial for the underlying value of the business, as measured by the adjusted net asset value (NAV).

A second key benefit is the reduction of interest costs. Finance expenditure is typically the key expense for a REIT. Lower debt costs could mean higher rental profit and bigger distributions in the coming years.

The guided distribution for FY26 by the ASX dividend stock translates into a forward distribution yield of approximately 6%. The Rural Funds unit price is currently trading at a large double-digit discount in percentage terms compared to the adjusted NAV of $3.08 at 30 June 2025, making this look like a great time to buy.

GQG Partners Inc (ASX: GQG)

GQG is a fund manager headquartered in the US but with a growing geographical presence in places like Europe, Canada and Australia. It offers funds across a number of strategies such as US shares, global shares, international (excluding US) shares and emerging market shares.

As the below chart shows, the GQG share price has fallen significantly in the last several weeks. However, the company's funds under management (FUM) has not declined heavily.

Recently, GQG has taken a more cautious stance following the exceptional performance of the global share market, the fund manager says that some businesses are overvalued. It's a prudent move, in my view. This has meant relative underperformance recently because of strong share market performance.

What happens next with the ASX dividend stock? If GQG is right, then it could deliver outperformance from here, reigniting investor confidence.

As I've mentioned, I believe the GQG share price's decline has been far too strong. This has put the ASX dividend stock's dividend yield at more than 9%. If FUM net outflows stabilise soon, the business could be significantly undervalued.

Washington H. Soul Pattinson and Co. Ltd (ASX: SOL)

The third ASX dividend stock I want to highlight is this large and growing investment business which is commonly called Soul Patts.

I think it's one of the most effective investments for dividends because of the diversified portfolio and its steady dividend growth.

Impressively, it has grown its annual dividend per share every year since 1998, which is the longest-running dividend growth record on the ASX. That's some serious stability.

It's invested in an array of assets and industries including telecommunications, industrial property, building products, resources, swimming schools, agriculture, credit, financial services and plenty more.

By having a diversified portfolio, it receives cash flow from a largely uncorrelated group of businesses, allowing it to perform in most economic conditions.

As you can see on the chart below, the ASX dividend stock has dipped recently and this makes me believe it's a good time to invest.

At the time of writing, it has a grossed-up dividend yield of roughly 4%.

Motley Fool contributor Tristan Harrison has positions in Rural Funds Group and Washington H. Soul Pattinson and Company Limited. The Motley Fool Australia's parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended Washington H. Soul Pattinson And. The Motley Fool Australia has positions in and has recommended Rural Funds Group and Washington H. Soul Pattinson And. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Gqg Partners and Washington H. Soul Pattinson and Company Limited. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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