Warren Buffett has been one of the greatest investors the world has ever seen as he (and Charlie Munger) built Berkshire Hathaway into an incredible, globally recognised company. Though, he didn't accomplish that by investing in S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) shares because he's American.

Buffett famously wanted to stay inside his 'circle of competence'. In other words, he only wanted to stick to industries that he understands.

That meant he avoided some sectors like technology, even if that meant missing out on some of the returns.

When looking at the list of businesses that Berkshire Hathaway has invested in and owned over the years, there are a few industries that stick out, with one being furniture. In my view, one of the ASX 200 shares that Warren Buffett would consider if he were Australian is Nick Scali Ltd (ASX: NCK).

Numerous positives about Nick Scali shares

Nick Scali is one of the larger furniture businesses in Australia, with its Nick Scali and Plush brands. It also has a small Nick Scali UK division which was originally called Fabb Furniture when it was first acquired.

There are a number of things that I'm sure Warren Buffett would want to see.

Growth in the gross profit margin is a pleasing factor because it shows that increasing scale (or another positive factor) is helping. In the FY26 half-year result, the gross profit margin increased from 62.3% last year to 65.4%.

Other profit margins improving are also a great positive. HY26 revenue rose 7.2% to $269.3 million, the operating profit (EBITDA) grew 18.1% to $96.6 million and net profit rose 23.1% to $41 million. As you can see, EBITDA and net profit both increased a lot faster than revenue.

As a bonus, the business is generous when it comes to the passive income. In HY26, the business hiked its interim dividend by 30%.

I think the ASX 200 share would be particularly compelling to Warren Buffett because of how much room for growth the business still has. It could add dozens of stores in Australia (and New Zealand), as well as the UK.

Increased scale could play a significant part in the company's profitability in the coming years.

The valuation numbers are also appealing. According to the projection on Commsec, the Nick Scali share price is valued at 16x FY26's estimated earnings, at the time of writing.

Passive income is expected to increase year-over-year in the 2026 financial year. According to the projection on Commsec, the business is forecast to pay an annual dividend per share of 78.1 cents.

That estimate on Commsec implies a potential grossed-up dividend yield of 7.1%, including franking credits, at the time of writing.

The post Would Warren Buffett buy this ASX 200 share? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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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 recommended Nick Scali. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

The ASX-listed exchange-traded fund (ETF) VanEck Morningstar Wide Moat ETF (ASX: MOAT) has been a great investment to own for the long-term and there are still plenty of reasons to believe it can deliver good returns from here.

For starters, I should mention that the fund is invested in US-listed businesses. So, for Australian investors who have little exposure to overseas share markets, I think this is a good option to consider for international diversification purposes.

Its portfolio – which is regularly shifting its holdings – has delivered an average return per year of 14.7% over the last decade.

I reckon many Aussie investors would be happy if their portfolio delivered an average return per year of more than 14% over the prior decade.

There are a couple of aspects that help this ASX ETF deliver such strong returns.

Strong economic moats

The fund says it focuses on quality US companies that Morningstar (an investment research outfit) believes possess sustainable competitive advantages, or wide economic moats.

Competitive advantages can come in a variety of different forms such as cost advantages, intangible assets (patents, brands or regulatory licenses) that keep competitors at bay, switching costs, network effects, efficient scale and so on.

It's good to have a competitive advantage because that may be what wins a customer.

But, the ASX ETF wants to find businesses that have sustainable competitive advantages. In other words, it wants to see that these advantages will endure for a long time rather than having an economic moat they may not last that long.

VanEck and Morningstar explain how a business can claim to have a wide economic moat:

For a company to earn a wide economic moat, excess normalised returns must, with near certainty, be positive 10 years from now. In addition, excess normalised returns must, more likely than not, be positive 20 years from now.

In other words, these businesses could generate good profits and margins for many years to come.

Great value

The MOAT ETF only invests in these great businesses when they're at a good price.

It targets companies that are trading at attractive prices compared to what Morningstar's estimate of fair value.

At the moment, the ASX ETF's biggest positions currently include Constellation Brands, Brown-Forman, Airbnb, Nvidia and Bristol-Myers Squibb.

That combination of buying great businesses at good prices is a winning formula and it has clearly generated good returns over the long-term as it picks great ideas from a variety of sectors.

The post This ASX ETF has generated returns of almost 15% per year! appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Tristan Harrison has positions in VanEck Morningstar Wide Moat ETF. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended Airbnb, Bristol Myers Squibb, and Nvidia. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has recommended Constellation Brands. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Airbnb, Nvidia, and VanEck Morningstar Wide Moat ETF. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

ASX shares are a wonderful tool to unlock a significant dividend yield because of a combination of a generous dividend payout ratio and an attractive valuation.

Investors wanting to grow wealth relatively quickly may not necessarily want high levels of passive income because that could mean paying more of the return to the Australian Taxation Office. Capital gains aren't taxed until an asset is sold.

However, for investors in retirement or who have a low tax rate, ASX dividend shares with a large dividend yield could be a rewarding pick.

Hearts and Minds Investments Ltd (ASX: HM1)

This is one of the high-yield ASX shares that I've added to my own portfolio because of the investment exposure and high levels of passive income.

It's a listed investment company (LIC), meaning it doesn't sell products or services. Instead, the business has an investment portfolio that it aims to make investment returns with.

Dividends are paid from the positive investment returns, which allows it to pay steadily growing passive income. The company is aiming to increase its payout every six months by 0.5 cents per share.

The next two dividends to be declared should come to a total of 20.5 cents per share, which would translate into a grossed-up dividend yield of 10.3%, including franking credits.

Hearts & Minds donates 1.5% of its portfolio to medical research, it's able to do that because all of the investment picks are contributed for free by investment experts.

Some of the portfolio is decided by a core group of portfolio managers, while the rest is contributed at an annual investment conference, where some experts pick their best stock idea.

This process results in a largely global portfolio and the recent volatility could mean it's a compelling time to invest.

Shaver Shop Group Ltd (ASX: SSG)

Shaver Shop is a leading ASX retail share that sells a variety of hair removal products. Considering how important hair removal is for many Australians, I think the business has relatively defensive earnings for a retailer.

The business has benefited from the steady growth of its store network, as well as the expansion of its own brand called Transform-U. Building its own brand can come with higher gross profit margin and stronger control of what products it sells.

But, the ASX dividend share also has a number of exclusive products from quality shaving brands, giving it a unique selling point (USP) for customers.

Pleasingly, the business has grown or maintained its dividend every year since 2017, so we're almost at a decade of dividend reliability.

The last two half-year dividends come to a grossed-up dividend yield of close to 11%, including franking credits.

The post 2 ASX shares with dividend yields above 8% appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Tristan Harrison has positions in Hearts And Minds Investments. 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 recommended Shaver Shop Group. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP) shares are usually a solid choice for passive income and I expect that to continue to be the case. However, it's not one of the ASX dividend shares that I'd choose to buy today if I were picking a handful.

Part of the reasoning for that caution about the ASX mining share is that, at the time of writing, it has risen more than 50% in the last year. Normally, I like to consider investing in ASX mining shares when there's weakness surrounding resource demand. That's not looking like the case with the BHP share price today.

Instead, there are other ASX dividend shares that could be a more consistent and potentially provide more passive income.

L1 Long Short Fund Ltd (ASX: LSF)

This business is a listed investment company (LIC) which usually invests in businesses that have relatively low price/earnings (P/E) ratios. Of all the sectors it has generated returns from, mining shares has been the sector that has generated the most return for the strategy, of around 200%. Industrials and communication services are the other two areas that have generated a return of more than 100%.

The ASX dividend share also has the ability to short-sell shares that it thinks are overvalued, so it can outperform the market even if a lot of shares are going down.

The LIC has a goal to deliver regular dividend growth for shareholders and it pays a dividend each quarter.

At the rate it's increasing its dividend, it seems likely that the FY26 annual dividend will be approximately 14.6 cents per share, which translates into a grossed-up dividend yield of around 5% at the time of writing, including franking credits.

I think the LIC is more likely than BHP to deliver regular dividend growth each year, compared to the cyclical nature of resource prices.

APA Group (ASX: APA)

APA is a large energy infrastructure business that has a number of compelling assets including a huge national gas pipeline network that supplies half of the country's gas usage.

The business also owns gas storage, gas processing, gas-powered energy generation, solar farms, wind farms and electricity transmission.

By having a diversified portfolio, it can search for the best opportunities in the energy sector to generate the strongest returns.

The ASX dividend share pays for its distribution from the cash flow of its energy portfolio, with underlying earnings steadily growing over the long-term.

APA has increased its annual distribution every year for the past 20 years, making it one of the most reliable ASX dividend shares around.

With how the business is regularly expanding its portfolio, I think the business still has plenty of growth years of ahead. Energy is an important aspect of Australian life, of course.

It's expecting to hike its FY26 annual distribution to 58 cents per security, translating into a distribution yield of 5.8%, at the time of writing.

The post Forget BHP shares! Buy these ASX dividend shares instead for passive income appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Tristan Harrison has positions in L1 Long Short Fund. 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 Australia has recommended BHP Group. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

I believe one of the best investment strategies when it comes to ASX share investing is to buy and hold, and then let the magic of compounding run its course.

Compounding is powerful because it means the numbers can deliver growth on growth as the years go by. After several years, the business could be generating dramatically bigger revenue and earnings.

The two ASX share below have significant growth plans, and I'm excited by what they could achieve.

L1 Group Ltd (ASX: L1G)

L1 Group describes itself as an alternative investment manager that is "committed to providing best-in-class investment products that deliver exceptional risk-adjusted returns" for investors.

Two of its most well-known investment products are listed investment companies (LICs) which provide L1 Group with locked-in funds under management (FUM). Those LICs are L1 Long Short Fund Ltd (ASX: LSF) and L1 Global Long Short Fund Ltd (ASX: GLS).

I'm expecting the ASX share to generate revenue growth due to attracting new FUM into existing strategies, launching new funds and delivering investment growth with its existing funds.

Fund managers can be very scalable because it doesn't take 10% more staff and a 10% bigger office to manage 10% more FUM. Therefore, I'm expecting profit margins to increase.

L1 notes that its client base is extremely diversified, with 91% of revenue coming from non-institutional clients, which I think makes it less vulnerable if short-term fund performance were disappointing.

The fund manager has also talked about launching joint ventures and acquiring existing investment managers, which add further growth potential.

According to the projection on Commsec, the L1 Group share price is valued at 20x FY27's estimated earnings.

Sigma Healthcare Ltd (ASX: SIG)

Sigma is best known as the owner of pharmacy giant Chemist Warehouse, which is growing rapidly and has international ambitions.

In the FY26 first-half, Australian Chemist Warehouse-branded store sales grew 17.2%, with like-for-like sales growth of 15%. This shows that the business is delivering excellent levels of organic growth considering it's a physical store retailer.

Chemist Warehouse is growing its own brands (including Wagner) and expanding its Australian store network, which are pleasing tailwinds for the business in its core markets, which could help it deliver profit improvement for many years ahead.

Internationally, the ASX share is expanding in New Zealand and Ireland at a fast pace. In the first half of FY26, it opened 12 new stores and expects to open another 11 in the second half of FY26. In HY26, Ireland sales rose 49.6% and New Zealand sales increased 22.4%.

I'm not sure what its local and global store network will look like in 10 years from now, but I'm optimistic it will be significantly larger.

According to the projection on Commsec, the Sigma share price is valued at 33x FY28's estimated earnings.

The post 2 top ASX shares to buy and hold for the next decade appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Tristan Harrison has positions in L1 Long Short Fund. 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 no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

Owning Wesfarmers Ltd (ASX: WES) shares could be a smart buy for passive income because of their resilience and regular dividend growth.

Its businesses include Bunnings, Kmart, Officeworks and Priceline, which are all trying to provide good value products for customers and gain market share. Its chemicals, energy and fertiliser (WesCEF) business gives it pleasing avenues for earnings diversification.

One of Wesfarmers' goals is to increase its dividend alongside the level of profit growth that it achieves, so its regular profit growth is helpful for pushing the payouts higher.

Let's take a look at what the passive income potential of the business is and what it would take to create $1,000 of annual passive income.

Projected dividend payout

We can't know for sure what the upcoming dividend payment from the business will be. Even Wesfarmers' board of directors may not know what they're going to do because there's a lot of uncertainty surrounding inflation and interest rates, due to the uncertainty in the Middle East and fuel costs/availability.

According to the projection on Commsec, Wesfarmers is forecast to pay an annual dividend per share of $2.16 in FY26.

At the time of writing, that translates into a dividend yield of 3% excluding franking credits and 4.2% including franking credits.

While that's not the biggest yield or fastest dividend growth, I think both aspects of the expected dividend payment are pleasing for investors seeking passive income.

Generating $1,000 of annual passive income

Share prices are rapidly changing amid the Middle East volatility, which is changing what dividend yield investors may get.

But, at the time of writing, an investor would need to buy 462 Wesfarmers shares to receive that level of income (if we're not including the franking credits as part of the annual passive income goal). This would require an investment of approximately $33,650.

Is this a good time to buy Wesfarmers shares?

I think Wesfarmers shares are one of the best options for blue-chip investing on the ASX with the incredible strength of Kmart and Bunnings and its efforts to expand the business portfolio into new areas (like healthcare and lithium mining).

According to CMC Invest, of eight recent ratings on the business, only one was a buy, with four holds and three sells. The average price target is $78.51, which suggests a possible rise of around 8% over the next 12 months.

So, it doesn't seem cheap, but it could still produce good returns. However, there may be better value investments elsewhere.

The post How many Wesfarmers shares do I need to buy for $1,000 of annual passive income? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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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 positions in and has recommended Wesfarmers. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Wesfarmers. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

The Coles Group Ltd (ASX: COL) share price has bounced from the Iran conflict low, as the chart below shows. However, the supermarket business is also lower by 6% from September 2025. Considering there's a lot of potential inflation on the cards due to the Middle East conflict, it may be a smart one to think about.

A few years ago, the business was able to pass on the elevated inflation to customers to offset the rise in costs. I think it would be largely be able to do so again, if there were another bout of extended inflation in food prices.

Time will tell how much inflation occurs as a result of the jump in fuel and fertiliser costs.

Is the Coles share price an opportunity?

I think the company's FY26 half-year result reflected the ongoing performance of the business.

HY26 supermarket sales increased by 3.6% to $21.4 billion, while total revenue rose 2.5% to $23.6 billion. Supermarket operating profit (EBIT) climbed by 14.6% to $1.2 billion and group EBIT rose 10.2% to $1.2 billion. The liquor EBIT and 'other' EBIT loss essentially cancelled each other out in HY26.

Underlying net profit after tax climbed by 12.5% to $676 million. This is a key driver of the Coles share price.

The fact that EBIT grew faster than revenue and that net profit rose faster than EBIT demonstrated the company's ability to generate operating leverage. In other words, improving profitability throughout the business.

Part of the recent success of the business can be put down to its new distribution and logistics facilities. It has built new automated distribution centres (ADCs) and customer fulfillment centres (CFCs). This can help with better stock availability, better efficiencies on costs and improved product freshness.

The CFCs can also help the company provide a strong online shopping offering. During the HY26 period, e-commerce sales grew by 27%, with online sales representing 13.1% of total supermarket sales. As time goes on, its online capabilities will be increasingly important, in my view.

If the business can continue growing its sales, slowly improve its profit margins and hike its dividend, it could be a solid, dependable pick.

In terms of the dividend, the business has increased its annual dividend per share each year since 2019. It currently has a grossed-up dividend yield of 4.6%, including franking credits, at the time of writing.

When you put all of that together, I think the Coles share price is appealing for the long-term, though it's not the cheapest it has been.

The post Is the Coles share price an opportunity too good to pass up? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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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 no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

Share prices are always changing on the ASX share market, giving investors the opportunity to find undervalued ideas.

Analysts have tried to make the investment job easier by calling out undervalued stocks that could be good buys.

We're going to look at two ASX shares that have received multiple positive ratings.

AMP Ltd (ASX: AMP)

AMP is a diversified financial business that has various offerings including financial advice and banking (such as loans and savings accounts).

The ASX financial share recently announced how it performed in the first three months of 2026, being the first quarter of FY26. There were a number of pleasing elements to the update.

Platforms' net cash flows increased 45% to $1.1 billion, and superannuation and investments net cash outflows improved 26% to $80 million. Wealth management net cash flows in New Zealand were a positive $41 million.

China Life Pension Company (CLPC) saw assets under management (AUM) improved 17% to around $515 billion.

AMP Bank's loan book remained steady at $24.1 billion as it balanced its margins and market share. It also reported that its AMP Bank GO deposits grew by $632 million quarter on quarter to $942 million. FY26 AMP Bank GO deposits are now expected to exceed $1.5 billion.

According to CMC Invest, there have been eight ratings on the ASX share recently, with all eight of those being a buy.

The average price target of those ratings was $1.72. That implies a possible rise of around 20% within the next year from where it is at the time of writing.

According to the forecast on CMC Invest, the AMP share price is valued at 13x FY16's estimated earnings.

Qantas Airways Ltd (ASX: QAN)

Qantas is Australia's largest airline and it's currently dealing with significant uncertainty amid events in the Middle East.

The airline recently said to that ASX that while it has hedged most of its exposure to crude oil, it is largely exposed to the movement in jet refining margins, which have increased from US$20 per barrel to a peak of around US$120 per barrel.

But, it says that it has confidence in fuel supply for the rest of April and well into May.

Thankfully, the airline is still seeing strong demand for international travel to Europe as customers look for alternative routes, so the ASX share has redeployed planes from the US and its domestic network.

The ASX share has decided to reduce domestic capacity in the fourth quarter of FY26 by around five percentage points to compensate.

The airline said it expects its unit revenue (RASK) to increase by 5% in the second half of FY26. In other words, airfares should help offset some of the fuel pain.

According to CMC Invest, there have been 10 recent ratings on the airline, with all of them being a buy. The average price target is $11.10, suggesting a possible rise of around 20% from where it is at the time of writing.

According to the profit projection on CMC Invest, it's valued at around 10x FY26's estimated earnings.

The post 2 ASX shares highly recommended to buy: Experts appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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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 no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

The ASX dividend stock Dexus Industria REIT (ASX: DXI) could be one of the most underrated businesses for passive income that Australians can buy, in my view.

As the name suggests, this business is a real estate investment trust (REIT) that owns a portfolio of industrial properties/warehouses across major Australian cities. It aims to provide sustainable income and longer-term capital growth.

Its portfolio includes 88 properties that were valued at $1.4 billion at 31 December 2025. Let's get into what makes it an appealing option for passive income.

Compelling ASX dividend stock

The business regularly tells investors what passive income it expects to pay to investors.

For the 2026 financial year, it expects to deliver an annual distribution of 16.6 cents per security, representing a forecast distribution payout ratio of 95.4% of its net rental profit (funds from operations – FFO). This translates into a distribution yield of 6.9% at the time of writing.

The payout ratio being under 100% shows the business has a sustainable level of passive income and it's maintaining a bit of profit that can be used to improve the business.

Why this is a good investment for the long-term

The business has evolved its portfolio into a focused Australian industrial REIT following the divestment of the Brisbane Technology Park. It has re-weighted its portfolio (including acquisitions) towards high-quality, well-located, growth-oriented industrial assets.

The REIT notes that vacancy rates remain low across core industrial markets, with high land and construction costs putting pressure on the supply pipeline. It suggested that the sector will be supported by a growing population and limited available supply of more properties.

Most (87%) of the ASX dividend stock's property portfolio has fixed rental increases, which helps the business deliver rising overall rental income – a key input for growing rental profit and higher distributions.

Its portfolio is almost entirely leased, with an occupancy rate of 99.7%, assuring it's maximising the rental income it can deliver. During the FY26 half-year period, it delivered an underlying like-for-like increase of 5.6%, supported by contracted rental escalations, strong re-leasing spreads (new rental contracts) and higher average occupancy throughout the period.

The business looks undervalued partly because it has seen its unit price fall by approximately 20% since September 2025.

It reported its net tangible assets (NTA) were $3.39 per unit as at 31 December 2025. That essentially tells investors what the property portfolio is worth, on a per-unit basis, minus the loans and including all other tangible assets and liabilities.

The latest Dexus Industria REIT unit price is valued at a 29% discount to its NTA. That's a big and attractive discount!

The post 1 ASX dividend stock down 20% I'd buy right now appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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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 no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

AGL Energy Ltd (ASX: AGL) shares are an intriguing choice for passive income, given how big the dividends are expected to be in the next few years.

AGL supplies around 4.7 million customers, with Australia's largest private electricity generation portfolio within the National Electricity Market, including coal and gas-powered generation, renewable energy sources such as wind, hydro and solar, as well as batteries, and other firming and storage technology.

The business has seen earnings volatility in the last few years amid the rapidly changing operating environment.

But, the business saw profit stabilise in the FY26 first-half, which allowed for a slight dividend increase to 24 cents per security. Following that, let's look at where analysts think the dividend will go for owners of AGL shares.

FY26

In its FY26 half-year result, the business reported that its underlying operating profit (EBITDA) was flat year over year at $1.09 billion and underlying net profit after tax (NPAT) declined 6% to $353 million.

Total AGL customer services increased by 108,000 to 4.7 million, while total generation volume declined 2.8% to 15.4 TWh. AGL also reported that its development pipeline increased to 11.3GW.

Kaluza – the software business that AGL is invested in – signed an agreement with ENGIE to deploy its energy intelligence platform.

The business also announced that construction has started on the 500MW Tomago battery and the first 250 MW of the Liddell battery is targeted for the third quarter of FY26, while the entire 500MW is targeted for the fourth quarter of FY26.

AGL also narrowed its profit guidance range for FY26. Underlying operating profit (EBITDA) is guided to be between $2 billion and $2.18 billion, while underlying net profit after tax is expected to be between $500 million to $700 million, which is quite a large range.

The company is targeting $50 million of sustainable net operating cost reductions in FY27.

The projection on Commsec suggests the business could pay an annual dividend per AGL share of 49 cents. That would translate into a grossed-up dividend yield of 7.3%, including franking credits at the time of writing.

FY27

The business could deliver investors a very small increase in the dividend per AGL share in the 2027 financial year.

AGL could deliver an annual dividend per share of 49.2 cents per share in the 2027 financial year, which would be virtually the same yield as FY26, but would represent a dividend increase nonetheless.

FY28

The final year of these projections could see a significant increase of the payout (as well as the profit).

The forecast on Commsec suggests the business could increase its annual payout per AGL share to 55.1 cents in the 2028 financial year.

If the business does deliver that forecast amount, it would translate into a grossed-up dividend yield of 8.3%, including franking credits, at the time of writing.

The post Here's the dividend forecast out to 2028 for AGL shares appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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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 no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

The ASX dividend share space gives investors interested in passive income various avenues to find investments that tick the boxes.

For me, a big dividend yield is not one of the first things that I look for. Instead, I want to see that the business is regularly increasing its payout. That's a good sign that the business is headed in the right direction and growing its underlying earnings/value.

Plus, having your investment income regularly grow is a good defence against inflation. So, I'm going to mention three businesses that have regularly increased their payouts, though none of them has increased their payouts for as many years in a row as Washington H. Soul Pattinson and Co. Ltd (ASX: SOL).

Wesfarmers Ltd (ASX: WES)

Wesfarmers is one of the leading retail businesses in Australia, with a number of brands under its wings including Bunnings, Kmart, Officeworks and Priceline. It also has a compelling chemicals, energy and fertiliser business called WesCEF.

The ASX dividend share has increased its dividend each year since the onset of COVID-19, following the divestment of the Coles Group Ltd (ASX: COL) business several years ago. It grew its payout in FY21 and hasn't stopped hiking the dividend.

Wesfarmers has benefited from the expansion of both the store network and product ranges at Kmart and Bunnings, which has helped improve its profitability and increase the return on capital (ROC).

According to CMC Invest, it's expected to grow its annual payout to $2.206 per share in FY26, translating into a grossed-up dividend yield of 4.3%, including franking credits, at the time of writing.

Universal Store Holdings Ltd (ASX: UNI)

Universal Store is the owner of a number of premium youth apparel businesses, including Universal Store and Perfect Stranger.

Its success has been driven by solid like-for-like growth at its existing store network and regular expansion of its store network. Perfect Stranger is delivering excellent total sales growth, I'm expecting it to drive the company's overall success in the coming years.

The ASX dividend share has increased its annual dividend per share each year since it first started paying a dividend in FY21.

The projection on CMC Invest suggests the business could pay an annual dividend per share of 42.5 cents in FY26. That translates into a grossed-up dividend yield of 8.1%, including franking credits, at the time of writing.

APA Group (ASX: APA)

APA has one of the longest records when it comes to passive income growth.

This ASX dividend share owns various energy infrastructure, including a huge gas pipeline network, gas-powered energy generation and other gas infrastructure, renewable energy generation and electricity transmission assets.

With most of its revenue linked to inflation and steady expansion of its asset portfolio, the business has been able to generate more cash flow and fund higher distributions.

The business is expecting to increase its annual payout to 58 cents per security in FY26, which translates into a distribution yield of 5.8%.

The post 3 ASX dividend shares raising dividends like clockwork appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Tristan Harrison has positions in 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 Company Limited and Wesfarmers. The Motley Fool Australia has positions in and has recommended Apa Group and Washington H. Soul Pattinson and Company Limited. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Universal Store and Wesfarmers. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

There are various ASX dividend stocks that I'd be comfortable buying during a bear market because of the appealing longer-term dividend yields that can be available during that period.

But, I wouldn't choose to buy an ASX discretionary retail share when the economy is booming. Economic conditions are likely to change at some point.

There are a few names, particularly listed investment companies (LICs), that I've highlighted as opportunities in the past that could be good buys in any market.

But, I also want to highlight a business in the real estate investment trust (REIT) sector which has strong, ongoing rental demand – it's not cyclical. I'd be willing to invest in it in any market, particularly right now.

Centuria Industrial REIT (ASX: CIP)

This ASX dividend stock is focused on owning a portfolio of industrial properties across Australia. Those properties are in a few different areas including distribution centres (42% of the portfolio), manufacturing and production (24%), transport logistics (14%) and data centres (12%).

The ASX dividend stock has a number of high-quality tenants, with 92% of those being listed, multinational or national tenant customers. Some of its largest tenants by rental income include Telstra Group Ltd (ASX: TLS), Woolworths Group Ltd (ASX: WOW), Arnott's, AWH, Visy and Fantastic Furniture.

Pleasingly, its income is locked in for a long time – in the FY26 half-year result, it reported a weighted average lease expiry (WALE) of around seven years. That income visibility and security give me confidence that this is a good business to own for the long term.

There are a number of tailwinds that are helping sustain and grow the rental potential and underlying value of the properties.

Those tailwinds include a growing Australian population, increasing e-commerce adoption, fresh food and pharmaceutical demand (for refrigerated space), increasing data centre, a high cost (and limited supply) of building additional industrial properties, and onshoring of supply chains.

The ongoing growth of demand is helping push up its rental earnings. In the HY26 period, it saw 5.1% like-for-like net operating income (NOI) growth, which I'd describe as very compelling growth for a REIT.

Great time to buy in the ASX dividend stock

The ASX dividend stock is expecting to grow its distribution per unit by 3% in FY26 to 16.8 cents, which translates into a distribution yield of 5.7% at the time of writing.

If the interest rate decreases and the REIT unit price increases, I think it would be just as compelling to buy, because a lower yield would still seem attractive to me (with growth potential) compared to what we could get from a bank account.

It's currently trading at a discount of around 25% to the net tangible assets (NTA) of $3.95 as at 31 December 2025. This looks like a great time to invest, in my view.

The post I'd buy this ASX dividend stock in any market appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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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 Telstra Group and Woolworths Group. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

The ASX passive income stock Shaver Shop Group Ltd (ASX: SSG) may not be one of the most popular options for dividends. But, in some ways, it's one of the leading options to consider.

Shaver Shop describes itself as an Australian and New Zealand specialty retailer of male and female grooming products. It aspires to be the market leader in 'all things related to hair removal'. It sells items like electric shavers, clippers, trimmers, wet shave items, oral care, hair care, massage, air treatment and beauty categories.

At the end of the FY26 half-year period, it had 126 Shaver Shop stores across Australia and New Zealand, while also having online marketplaces. It sells a wide range of brands, with some exclusive products with suppliers.

Now that you know what it does, let's take a look at why it's so compelling.

Excellent ASX passive income stock credentials

The business has one of the highest dividend yields on the ASX.

Its last two declared half-year dividends come to 10.3 cents per share. At the time of writing, this represents a grossed-up dividend yield of 10.7%, including franking credits. That's huge! It also looks like a 'real' yield to me.

Some businesses have very large dividend yields because the share price has dropped and the market is expecting a decrease of earnings (and the dividend).

Shaver Shop has paid a dividend each year since 2017. It increased its dividend every year in that time aside from FY24 when it maintained the dividend.

I think it's very likely that the business can continue to maintain its dividend at this level and possibly grow it in the longer-term. In the FY26 half-year result it maintained its interim dividend at 4.8 cents share amid 1.5% growth of net profit to $12.2 million.

Its FY25 dividend payout ratio was 89.6% of net profit, which is fairly high but sustainable because it was under 100%. It kept some of the generated profit to improve the business.

Why I think this is a great time to invest

There are a few reasons why this looks like a great time to invest.

First, at the time of writing, the Shaver Shop share price has dropped 11% since the end of February 2026, which has had a big, positive effect on the dividend yield on offer from the ASX passive income stock.

Second, the business is looking to grow its earnings through store growth, expanding its own brand (Transform-U), unlocking more exclusive products and hopefully benefit from increased scale.

Third, it's trading on a very low price/earnings (P/E) ratio. According to the forecast on CMC Markets, the business is projected to generate earnings per share (EPS) of 11.6 cents. That means it's valued at 12x FY26 estimated earnings.

The post With a 10.7% yield, could this be the ASX's best passive income stock? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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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 recommended Shaver Shop Group. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

The ASX-listed exchange-traded fund (ETF) VanEck MSCI International Quality ETF (ASX: QUAL) is a top-quality investment for investors who are searching for long-term returns.

Plenty of Australians may be lacking exposure to the global share market. That's a shame because there are a lot of great businesses out there listed beyond the ASX.

We don't necessarily need to leave the ASX to make investments in those great businesses – ASX ETFs can give us that exposure.

However, we don't necessarily need to own all (or most) of the international businesses. I'd rather just invest in the best ones.

The QUAL ETF has a very effective investment strategy to do that selective investing, which attracted me to it.

High-quality portfolio

The best reason to like this fund is the high-quality nature of the businesses and how the portfolio is put together.

There are three things businesses must have to be considered for this portfolio.

First, they must have a high return on equity (ROE). In other words, they make a high level of profit for the amount of shareholder money retained within the business. As shareholders, we want to see those businesses making a good level of profit, considering they're keeping that money rather than paying it as a dividend to investors.

The businesses in the portfolio are generating some of the highest ROEs in the world.

Second, these businesses have a high level of earnings stability. It's pleasing when the company's profit doesn't go backwards. But that also suggests that profit is nearly always rising, which is a great tailwind for long-term share price growth. 

Thirdly, the QUAL ETF businesses must have low financial leverage. A healthy balance sheet is a good thing for the company's long-term growth plans and for navigating difficult economic periods.

There are more reasons to like this ASX ETF beyond the great businesses, but the fund has delivered an average annual return of 14.5% over the past decade, thanks to the quality of its holdings.

Strong diversification

The fund owns approximately 300 companies from different sectors and countries.

There's no specific number of businesses that makes a portfolio diversified or not. I'd say 300 holdings provides ample diversification. Even 100 holdings would be more than enough, in my book.

The biggest positions in the portfolio are many of the strongest and most recognisable businesses in the world. These are names like Meta Platforms, Nvidia, Apple, Microsoft, Alphabet, ASML, Eli Lilly, and Visa.

It's important to note this is not essentially a US tech fund – less than 30% of the ASX ETF is invested in IT shares.

On top of that, the portfolio has a position of at least 0.5% in a number of countries, providing strong geographic diversification. Those places with a noticeable allocation include the US, Switzerland, the UK, Japan, the Netherlands, Germany, Canada, Denmark, Sweden, and France.

This impressive ASX ETF has an annual management fee of 0.4%, which I view as attractive given the quality of the portfolio and the work that has gone into creating the fund's global portfolio.

The post Why this ASX ETF is one of the best buys for Australians appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Tristan Harrison has positions in VanEck Msci International Quality ETF. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended ASML, Alphabet, Apple, Meta Platforms, Microsoft, Nvidia, and Visa and is short shares of Apple. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended ASML, Alphabet, Apple, Meta Platforms, Microsoft, Nvidia, and Visa. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

The ASX dividend share Charter Hall Long WALE REIT (ASX: CLW) is a great one to consider for most of the retiree community (and other investors wanting passive income).

I think the real estate investment trust (REIT) sector is a good one to consider amid rising interest rates because of the better value and distribution yield on offer.

Rather than having to go and individually buy all of these commercial properties, an REIT enables investors to buy a small slice of a property portfolio in a single investment.

Diversified portfolio

The REIT is invested in more than 500 properties across several key defensive industries that are more resilient to economic shocks than other areas.

It's invested in sectors like government-tenanted properties (such as the Australian Border Force, Geosciences Australia and Department of Defence), pubs and hotels, grocery and distribution, data centres, telecommunication exchanges, service stations, food manufacturing, waste and recycling management, Bunnings properties and so on.

This property portfolio is spread across Australia, including NSW, Victoria, Queensland, WA, ACT, South Australia, Northern Territory and Tasmania. It also has a small exposure to New Zealand.

The one thing that all of these properties have in common is that the Charter Hall Long WALE REIT aims to have them signed on for long-term leases.

The REIT's WALE is currently around nine years, which means a lot of rental income is already contracted from high-quality tenants like the Australian government, Endeavour Group Ltd (ASX: EDV), Telstra Group Ltd (ASX: TLS), BP, Coles Group Ltd (ASX: COL) and Metcash Ltd (ASX: MTS).

The ASX dividend share's yield

I'm sure many retirees and passive income investors want to know about the distribution yield on offer, so let's look at that.

The business is expecting to grow its FY26 annual distribution by 2% to 25.5 cents per unit, which translates into a forward distribution yield of 7.3%.

That yield is based on an expected distribution payout ratio of 100% of its operating rental earnings.

Why is the yield so high? It's because the business is trading at 26% discount to its net tangible assets (NTA) at 31 December 2025.

It's delivering underlying growth

It's important to remember not to invest in something just because of the yield. I believe there should be underlying growth, otherwise there's a high risk of the valuation (and passive income payment) going backwards over the longer-term.

Some of the ASX dividend share's property portfolio has fixed annual rental increases, while the rest has increases linked to inflation. This helped the FY26 half-year net property income (NPI) increase by 3% on a like-for-like. That's not a lot of growth, but it's positive and makes me comfortable to invest in a high-yielding business like this.

The post Why this ASX dividend share is a retiree's dream appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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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 Telstra Group. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

The Qantas Airways Ltd (ASX: QAN) share price has seen plenty of pain since February, as the below chart shows. Is this time to be greedy or fearful?

The impacts of the Middle East conflict have been wide-reaching, with fuel costs being the most obvious effect.

Qantas is a major fuel user, and it's understandable why the market is feeling cautious on the airline. Let's get into the positives and negatives I'm seeing.

Negatives

Let's get the bad news out of the way first.

It's hard to say how long the events in the Middle East will affect fuel costs. Even with a complete truce, it could still take some time for fuel access and availability to return to 'normal', whatever the new normal looks like.

There's also a question in my mind of how travel demand will hold up during this period, which is a key element of keeping Qantas planes (fairly) full at the prices it's charging.

The uncertainty appears to have led the leadership to at least delay the $150 million share buyback, which means a delay to shareholders receiving that benefit.

The final negative I'll point out is that inflation could become more widespread than just fuel, which could increase the airline's other costs.

Positives

For investors considering an investment in Qantas, the value is materially more attractive. At the time of writing, it's 8% cheaper than it was at the end of February 2026. It's not as cheap as it was in March, but that's still a sizeable discount.

I'd rather invest in Qantas shares when they're cheaper rather than when the share price is higher.

Another positive is that the business said it has hedged approximately 90% of its FY26 second-half exposure to crude oil, though it is still exposed to movements in the jet refining margin.

Qantas said that it's still seeing strong demand for international travel to Europe, so it has redeployed capacity from the US and its domestic network to increase flights to Paris and Rome.

It has also reduced its domestic capacity in the fourth quarter of FY26 by around 5 percentage points.

The airline is also expecting its domestic and international revenue per available seat kilometre (RASK) to grow by approximately 5% in the second half of FY26, which should help offset the cost growth, assuming travel demand remains strong.

According to the projection on CMC Markets, the business is currently forecast to generate earnings per share (EPS) of 93 cents, which puts the Qantas share price at around 10x FY26's estimated earnings.

I do think this is a good time to invest, the valuation is lower and travel demand is strong, but if it fell further, I'd say it's an even better buy.

The post The pros and cons of buying Qantas shares this month appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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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 no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

One of the best things that Australians can do for their finances is to spend less than they earn, also known as saving. That's key to improving our net worth. But, for those aspiring to build $1 million of wealth, simply saving cash in a bank account isn't likely to be as effective as investing in ASX shares.

I do think everyone should have some cash in the bank. There's power in having an emergency fund. Saving for a house deposit is also a great way to use a savings account.

In terms of just building wealth, cash is not very powerful for compounding.

At the moment, savers may be able to get a savings product that offers a 5% interest rate. That's quite high compared to most of the last decade.

Let's assume someone can save $1,500 per month. If that money earned a 5% interest rate it would take around 27 years to reach $1 million.

Investing in ASX shares makes a lot more sense to me.

The power of investing in ASX shares over just saving

One of the most popular ways to invest in ASX shares is with the Vanguard Australian Shares Index ETF (ASX: VAS), an exchange-traded fund (ETF) that tracks the S&P/ASX 300 Index (ASX: XKO) – that's 300 of the largest businesses on the ASX.

Over the decade to 31 March 2026, the VAS ETF has returned an average of 9.35% per year. That's a solid return and close to double what return savings accounts are offering right now.

It's important to remember that interest income on offer doesn't include the negative of tax while the VAS ETF returns don't include tax or the positive of franking credits as part of the distribution income that is sent to investors. Plus, distributions from an ETF can benefit from capital gains tax discounts (which interest income doesn't).

So, it's hard to exactly compare apples to apples. But, I'll use the return quoted by Vanguard.

If someone invested $1,500 per month and it returned 9.35% per year, that would turn into $1 million in less than 20 years!

In other words, that's shaving around seven years off the time that it takes to get to a $1 million net worth.  

But the VAS ETF is not the only way to invest in ASX shares, of course.

Plenty of content on this site is about finding ASX growth shares with significant potential to deliver returns.

There are also international-focused ASX ETFs that could provide both pleasing diversification and good returns such as Vanguard MSCI Index International Shares ETF (ASX: VGS) and VanEck MSCI International Quality ETF (ASX: QUAL) which have both returned an average of more than 13% in the past decade. That level of return – which is not guaranteed – would turn $1,500 per month into $1 million in less than 17 years!

The post Stop 'saving', start investing! How to target a $1 million ASX share portfolio appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Tristan Harrison has positions in VanEck Msci International Quality ETF. 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 recommended Vanguard Msci Index International Shares ETF. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

One of the best things about the Australian retirement system is the Age Pension because of how it can help households in retirement when they don't have enough financial assets to support themselves. But, there's an ASX dividend star that I'd prefer to receive income from.

The Age Pension isn't large enough to provide retirees with a luxurious life. But, receiving $1,100 per fortnight for a single person (the maximum basic rate) is a decent amount and it's certainly more generous than what many other countries pay.

But, if you gave me a choice of receiving $28,600 of annual income from the Age Pension or $28,600 from the ASX dividend star Washington H. Soul Pattison and Co. Ltd (ASX: SOL), I'd personally choose the ASX share for a few different reasons.

Before I get to those reasons, it's important to acknowledge that I wouldn't put my entire portfolio into one name. Diversification is a powerful tool and it's a good idea to spread a portfolio across a number of businesses, whether that's directly or indirectly.

But, if I did need to choose one S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) share for reliable retirement income, Soul Patts would be the one for me.

Great dividend growth record

The ASX dividend star has increased its regular dividend every year since 1998. That's almost 30 years of continuous dividend growth!

While the Age Pension is rising over time, the Soul Patts dividend is rising at a much faster pace. In the FY26 half-year result, it grew its interim dividend by 9.1% year-over-year to 48 cents per share. Over the past five years, its dividend has grown at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 11.9% per year.

If the FY26 annual dividend per share is increased by around 9% to approximately $1.12 per share, its annual payout would be 3.7% grossed-up dividend yield, including franking credits.

Diversification

Soul Patts operates as an investment house, meaning its asset base is spread across a wide range of industries. It has paid for its rising dividend overall over these years thanks to the investment cash flow that its portfolio produces.

I like the diversification because it reduces the risk of relying on any particular sector too much. It also means the business can look across a wide array of areas for the next investment opportunity.

Some of its larger investments come from sectors like resources, telecommunications, energy, financial services, swimming schools, agriculture water entitlements, electrification and plenty more.

By investing in so many defensive sectors that generate good cash flow, the ASX dividend star has strong support for maintaining and growing its dividend payout each year.

As time goes on, I think Soul Patts is focusing its portfolio more on assets that will be able to help the company deliver long-term growth.

How many shares to generate $28,600 of income?

I view franking credits as an important part of the company's overall passive income picture, so I'm going to include them in the calculation I'm about to do.

If someone owned 17,875 Soul Patts shares during FY26, then they could receive the same level of passive income as the Age Pension. But, I'm expecting significantly stronger income growth from the ASX dividend star than the Age Pension in the next few years.

There's a lot to like about Soul Patts shares, which is why it's my largest position, complementing other ASX dividend shares in my portfolio.

The post 17,875 shares of this ASX dividend star pays an income equal to the Age Pension appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Tristan Harrison has positions in 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 Company Limited. The Motley Fool Australia has positions in and has recommended 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.

Tuas Ltd (ASX: TUA) is one of Australia's top shares, in my view. It may have its operations in Singapore, but it's registered in Australia and listed on the ASX.

Its core business is providing telecommunications operations in Singapore. It's not common for an ASX share to have its main revenue generation outside of Australia, New Zealand, or the US.

The business is not a blue chip (yet), but it has rapidly become a multi-billion-dollar business that still has enormous growth potential.

Growing market share

One of the things that makes this one of Australia's top shares is the fact that the business has managed to build such a sizeable position in the country in a relatively short amount of time (in this decade).

It more than doubled its mobile subscriber count in Singapore over three years, from 691,000 in the first half of FY23 to 1.41 million in the first half of FY26. The HY26 growth was 21.7% year over year.

Additionally, the company is starting to gain some traction in the broadband space. Its HY26 broadband subscribers increased by around 32,000 to 46,000. I believe its broadband position will continue to grow, particularly once it finalises the acquisition of Singapore competitor M1.

The business is expecting Simba (its consumer-facing brand) to continue to strengthen its mobile and fibre broadband segments over the rest of FY26.

Operating leverage

One of the best advantages of subscriber growth is that not only does it mean revenue growth, but it also leads to an increase in profit margins, allowing the bottom line to rise at a faster pace than revenue. It's the bottom line that investors ultimately value a company on.

The business reported revenue growth of 26% year over year, while underlying operating profit (EBITDA) rose 27% to $42.1 million. Pleasingly, underlying net profit jumped by $15.7 million to $18.7 million (which excludes acquisition costs). Statutory net profit improved $5.2 million to $8.2 million.

Why I think this top Australia share has a long way to grow

The business is still growing its subscriber base (and revenue) at a strong rate, which is good for compounding.

I'm optimistic the business can continue diversifying its earnings, particularly once its M1 acquisition goes through, because it will grow its non-mobile earnings. I also believe the business can successfully expand into other nearby countries, such as Malaysia or Indonesia, which would significantly improve its growth runway.

Businesses that are growing quickly are well worth paying attention to. Tuas has already demonstrated its ability to win customers, and I think it can continue this success under the leadership of David Teoh.

The post A rare buying opportunity in 1 of Australia's top shares? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Tristan Harrison has positions in Tuas. 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 no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

I like to regularly invest in ASX dividend shares to grow my portfolio in names I believe offer growth and passive income.

Superannuation is great for retirement investing, but I'm investing significantly outside of super to build up a flow of dividends to add to my near-term income.

The recent ASX share market volatility has led to share prices falling, dividend yields rising and more attractive opportunities. That's what attracted me to the following businesses with a $2,000 investment earlier this week.

MFF Capital Investments Ltd (ASX: MFF)

MFF is best-known for its listed investment company (LIC) activities because it runs a multi-billion dollar portfolio that is mostly invested in high-quality international shares that have above-average earnings growth prospects and good competitive advantages.  

It's invested in a number of leading global blue-chips, which has helped it to produce strong investment returns with the portfolio, leading to good capital growth (and dividend payments) in the past decade.

Recent investments include alternative investment/private equity managers, as well as ASX-listed investments L1 Group Ltd (ASX: L1G) and Montaka Global Fund (ASX: MOGL).

One of MFF's goals is to increase the dividend, which it has delivered over the past several years. I like how rapidly the business is growing the dividend – the guided FY26 annual payout is expected to grow by 23% year-over-year to 21 cents per share.

At the time of writing, that translates into a FY26 grossed-up dividend yield of 6.4%, including franking credits, from the ASX dividend share.

WCM Global Growth Ltd (ASX: WQG)

The other investment I made was another LIC, which also has a goal of regularly growing the dividend.

It's run by fund manager WCM which is based in Laguna Beach, California. That's a far cry from Wall Street, which allows the fund manager to invest somewhat differently to the market.

The fund manager invests in in businesses with growing economic moats (competitive advantages) and a corporate culture that supports the improvement of the economic moat.

WCM Global Growth's portfolio has returned an average of 14.7% per year since inception in June 2017, outperforming the global share market by an average of more than 2% per year.

It's increasing its quarterly dividend every quarter, which is a pleasing record to see during a time of higher inflation.

The ASX dividend share is expected to pay a quarterly dividend per share of 2.45 cents in March 2026, which would be an annualised grossed-up dividend yield of 8%, including franking credits.

The post 2 top ASX dividend shares I just bought for my portfolio with $2,000 appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Tristan Harrison has positions in Mff Capital Investments and Wcm Global Growth. 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 recommended Mff Capital Investments. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.