Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA) shares are well known for the dividend payments. But, there are a few ASX dividend stalwart shares that look a lot more appealing to me.
CBA may have grown its dividend significantly over the last three decades, but its payout has not always been reliable, nor has growth been strong recently
Commonwealth Bank cut its dividend in 2020 due to the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, so it has only grown its annual dividend consecutively over the last few years. Meanwhile, the FY25 payout increased by only 4% to $4.85 per share, meaning the current grossed-up dividend yield is 4.2%, including franking credits.
On top of that, CBA faces a lot of competition in its industry from the likes of Macquarie Group Ltd (ASX: MQG), ANZ Group Holdings Ltd (ASX: ANZ), Westpac Banking Corp (ASX: WBC), and National Australia Bank Ltd (ASX: NAB) that would love to take market share from the bank.
Normally, I'd mention that a business like Washington H. Soul Pattinson and Co. Ltd (ASX: SOL) is a stock that could provide more meaningful returns when it comes to dividend investing. But there are a few others I want to tell you about. In this article, I want to highlight Duxton Water Ltd (ASX: D2O).
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Impressive ASX dividend stalwart share
Duxton Water owns a portfolio of water entitlements that can be utilised by irrigators for short-term or long-term needs. The company can benefit from a mixture of lease income from the water and potential capital gains from the value of the entitlements.
The company has increased its annual dividend per share every year since it first started paying a dividend in 2017. It has a longer dividend growth streak than CBA shares.
Its dividend yield is also much more appealing. At the time of writing, its latest two dividend payments come to a grossed-up dividend yield of 7%. In other words, the business offers a dividend yield that's almost three whole percentage points better than what's on offer from Commonwealth Bank.
Another reason I like Duxton Water is that it offers compelling diversification compared to owning the ASX bank share. Commonwealth Bank is heavily linked to the performance of the economy, whereas the performance of water entitlements is largely uncorrelated to the Australian economy. I view it as an appealing way to gain exposure to the agricultural sector without direct exposure to the cyclical nature of farming.
Duxton Water is trading at an appealing valuation – at the time of writing, it's trading at a discount of around 10% to its post-tax net asset value (NAV) as of September 2025, while CBA shares are regularly described as expensive.
Finally, I'm optimistic about the future of the company thanks to a growing volume of crops with higher water demand, such as almonds, which could enable higher water prices in the coming years.
Overall, I think this is a great time to invest in the ASX dividend stalwart share for the long term.
