The Australian Foundation Investment Co Ltd (ASX: AFI) is a leading ASX dividend stock that I'd call a leading opportunity right now because it's down around 25% from its peak in 2022 and down around 15% from July 2025, as the below chart shows.
It's the largest and one of the oldest listed investment companies (LICs) around, but it's the dividend record and valuation that I'm particularly attracted to, rather than its size or age.
In terms of a good time to buy AFIC, this is arguably close to the best time to invest in the business.
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Great valuation
I've already highlighted that the business has fallen materially from its 52-week high and all-time high.
But, even more importantly (in my view), is where the AFIC share price is sitting compared to its underlying value – the net tangible assets (NTA). That's how much the company's portfolio (and other assets and liabilities) is worth.
At 30 April 2026, it had pre-tax NTA of $7.69. The AFIC share price is trading at close to a 15% discount to that valuation. That's around the biggest discount it's traded at for the last decade, which makes this great to buy today.
Compelling payouts from the ASX dividend stock
The business aims to provide shareholders with attractive investment returns through access to a "growing stream of fully franked dividends and enhancement of capital invested over the medium to long term".
Excluding special dividends, the last two half-year ordinary dividends have amounted to 26.5 cents per share. At the current valuation (at the time of writing), the ASX dividend has a grossed-up dividend yield of 5.8%, including franking credits.
Its regular dividend (excluding special dividends) has been extremely reliable this century, and it has been regularly increasing its payout this decade. For many investors, consistency is a very powerful tool.
Diversified portfolio
Unlike many ASX dividend stocks, instead of relying on one business for dividends, AFIC owns a portfolio of resilient ASX blue-chip shares.
It owns dozens of holdings spread across a number of sectors, including BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP), Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA), Macquarie Group Ltd (ASX: MQG), Westpac Banking Corp (ASX: WBC) and National Australia Bank Ltd (ASX: NAB).
I think this business looks attractively priced for an investment today, offering a combination of dividends, resilience and great value.
