With a 6% dividend yield, are ANZ shares a buy for income?

Can investors bank on good returns with this business?

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Key points

  • ANZ offers a substantial dividend yield, making it attractive to income-focused investors, especially in a low cash rate environment.
  • Forecasts on Commsec indicate a 5% dividend yield rising to 6.4% with franking credits. 
  • Following recent price gains, potential investors should weigh ANZ's relatively high dividend yield against other opportunities. 

The ASX bank share ANZ Group Holdings Ltd (ASX: ANZ) is one of the biggest companies in Australia and it has also delivered significant dividend income to investors. The bank is still known for providing a large dividend yield.

At a time when the RBA has cut the cash rate three times, businesses offering sizeable dividend income could seem more attractive.

Investors wanting income may find that ANZ shares offer better income than what someone could get from an ANZ savings product, though shares obviously come with higher risks too.

Let's take a look at how large the ANZ dividend yield could be, and then we'll think about whether it's a buy.

Larger ANZ dividend yield

ANZ's dividend is largely dependent on how much profit the board of directors want to send to shareholders each year.

Pleasingly, the ASX bank share usually has a fairly generous dividend payout ratio, which is a strong support for a good ANZ dividend yield.

On top of that, ASX bank shares typically trade on a fairly low price-earnings (P/E) ratio, which is another key factor that decides what the ANZ dividend yield is. Based on the earnings forecast on Commsec, the ANZ share price is valued at 14x FY25's estimated earnings.

The forecast on Commsec suggests the bank could pay an annual dividend per share of $1.68 in FY26, which would be 1.2% higher than the predicted figure for FY25.

At the time of writing, that translates into a dividend yield of 5% excluding franking credits and 6.4% including franking credits.

That's a solid starting dividend yield, and if it can continue rising beyond FY26, then the passive income would be commendable.

Is this a good time to invest?

For me, the most important factor to see is whether earnings are increasing. In the 2026 financial year, the numbers on Commsec suggest ANZ's earnings per share (EPS) could rise by 5.7%. That's a pleasing rise over one year.

There are a few positive tailwinds for the ASX bank share right now following the rate cuts by the RBA. For example, the cuts have decreased some of the pressure on borrowers (and ANZ's bad debts). Plus, the rate cuts may help increase demand for credit.

Plus, the RBA interest rate remains high enough that the ASX bank share can still earn strong returns from zero-interest-rate accounts such as transaction accounts.

However, following a quick jump of over 10% in the last two months, ANZ seems less appealing than it was before. For a high, resilient, and growing dividend yield, the energy infrastructure business APA Group (ASX: APA) is more appealing (with a 6.5% yield), along with a few other passive income shares.

Motley Fool contributor Tristan Harrison has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia's parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has positions in and has recommended Apa Group. 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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