If you’re looking for an easy way to invest, then exchange traded funds (ETFs) could be the answer.

But which ETFs might be top options right now?

Named below are three quality ETFs that could be worth considering right now:

BetaShares Asia Technology Tigers ETF (ASX: ASIA)

The first ETF to look at is the BetaShares Asia Technology Tigers ETF.

With China reopening from the pandemic, it could be a quality option for investors. That’s because it provides investors exposure to many of the best tech stocks in the Asian region.

This means you’ll be buying well-known companies such as ecommerce giant Alibaba, search engine company Baidu, and WeChat owner Tencent.

VanEck Vectors Morningstar Wide Moat ETF (ASX: MOAT)

Another ETF to consider is the VanEck Vectors Morningstar Wide Moat ETF. It could be a quality option for anyone that is keen to follow in the footsteps of legendary investor Warren Buffett.

This ETF tracks an index which has been designed to replicate the type of investments that Buffett makes. These are companies with fair valuations and sustainable competitive advantages or moats. And given the Oracle of Omaha’s incredible track record, it’s hard to argue against this strategy.

The ETF changes its constituents regularly to reflect valuation changes, but generally comprises approximately 50 companies with the aforementioned qualities. At present, these include the likes of Alphabet, Boeing, Kellogg Co, Meta Platforms, and Walt Disney.

Vanguard MSCI Index International Shares ETF (ASX: VGS)

A final ETF to look at is the Vanguard MSCI Index International Shares ETF. This could be a good option if you’re looking to diversify your portfolio.

That’s because this popular ETF gives investors access to approximately 1,500 of the world’s largest listed companies.

This also allows investors to take part in the long term growth potential of international economies. Among the shares that you’ll be owning are giants including Amazon, Apple, Nestle, Procter & Gamble, Tesla, and Visa.

The post 3 fantastic ETFs for ASX investors to buy this month appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

(function() {
function setButtonColorDefaults(param, property, defaultValue) {
if( !param || !param.includes(‘#’)) {
var button = document.getElementsByClassName(“pitch-snippet”)[0].getElementsByClassName(“pitch-button”)[0];
button.style[property] = defaultValue;
}
}

setButtonColorDefaults(“#0095C8”, ‘background’, ‘#5FA85D’);
setButtonColorDefaults(“#0095C8”, ‘border-color’, ‘#43A24A’);
setButtonColorDefaults(“#fff”, ‘color’, ‘#fff’);
})()

More reading

• With almost no investments at 30, can ASX shares still make me rich?
• I think these two ASX ETFs are great buys as inflation cools
• 3 of the best ASX ETFs for investors to buy in January
• 2022 wasn’t kind to the Vanguard MSCI Index International Shares ETF (VGS). What now?
• How I’d invest $300 a month in ASX dividend shares to target a $30,000 annual second income

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro 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 Vanguard Msci Index International Shares ETF. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Betashares Capital – Asia Technology Tigers Etf, VanEck Morningstar Wide Moat ETF, and 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.

from The Motley Fool Australia https://ift.tt/YluCi7P

The Xero Limited (ASX: XRO) share price descended 39% in the last year, but could it bounce back in the future?

Xero shares fell 2.27% today to close at $72.62. For perspective, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) fell 0.03% today.

Let’s take a look at the outlook for the Xero share price.

What’s ahead in the future?

Xero is a global cloud technology company with a presence in Australia, the United States, New Zealand and the United Kingdom.

Analysts at Morgans tip Xero’s earnings per share to explode 185% from 10.6 cents per share in FY23 to 30.2 cents per share in FY24.

Investment adviser Jabin Hallihan, commenting on The Bull, said:

Selective exposure to technology stocks is likely to deliver value due to their ability to grow earnings faster than GDP, regardless of interest rate movements. 

We prefer high quality technology companies with net cash balance sheets and pricing power.

Xero reported a $9.2 million increase in free cash flow in the half year ended 30 September 2022. The company had $1.1 billion in total available liquid resources at this time.

Morgans is recommending shareholders buy Xero. The broker has placed a $77 price target on the company’s share price. This implies a 6% upside based on the current share price.

Meanwhile, Goldman Sachs is also recommending investors buy the Xero share price. Goldman sees Xero as a “compelling global growth story”. Analysts said:

We see Xero as very well placed to take advantage of the digitisation of SMBs globally, driven by compelling efficiency benefits and regulatory tailwinds, with >100mn SMBs worldwide representing a >NZ$76bn TAM.

Following the recent underperformance (absolute/relative), we see an attractive entry point into a compelling global growth story and our preferred large-cap technology name in ANZ, and are buy rated.

Xero share price snapshot

The Xero share price has climbed more than 3% in the year to date but has fallen 1% in the last month.

For perspective, the benchmark ASX 200 index has slid 0.42% in the last year.

Xero has a market capitalisation of about $10.9 billion based on the current share price.

The post Xero earnings per share forecast to surge 180% in FY24: Morgans appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

(function() {
function setButtonColorDefaults(param, property, defaultValue) {
if( !param || !param.includes(‘#’)) {
var button = document.getElementsByClassName(“pitch-snippet”)[0].getElementsByClassName(“pitch-button”)[0];
button.style[property] = defaultValue;
}
}

setButtonColorDefaults(“#0095C8”, ‘background’, ‘#5FA85D’);
setButtonColorDefaults(“#0095C8”, ‘border-color’, ‘#43A24A’);
setButtonColorDefaults(“#fff”, ‘color’, ‘#fff’);
})()

More reading

• Tech turnaround: Expert picks 2 ASX shares to buy for a 2023 revival
• Here are the top 10 ASX 200 shares today
• Waiting for ASX shares to bottom? Why you could miss out on a stock market rally
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Monday
• Analysts say these ASX growth shares can generate huge returns for investors

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

from The Motley Fool Australia https://ift.tt/AKlTQG4

If you are looking to bolster your portfolio with some ASX 200 blue chip shares, you may want to look at the two listed below that Goldman Sachs rates highly.

Here’s why its analysts think they are in the buy zone now:

Cochlear Limited (ASX: COH)

The first ASX 200 blue chip share that Goldman has named as a buy is this leading hearing solutions companies.

Thanks to its portfolio of world class products in an industry with high barriers of entry, Cochlear has been growing at a strong rate for well over a decade. And with the industry now benefiting from favourable tailwinds such as ageing populations, it appears well-placed to continue this trend long into the future.

Goldman Sachs currently has a buy rating and $247.00 price target on its shares. The broker feels that Cochlear is well-placed to hit the top end of its guidance in FY 2023. It said:

In our view, the backdrop for this year appears relatively more favourable, and we see clear scope for COH to deliver at the upper-end of another solid guidance (+8-13% to $290-305m, with further accretion possible from the Oticon Medical transaction, which is yet to close).

REA Group Limited (ASX: REA)

Another ASX 200 blue chip share to Goldman rates highly is property listings company REA Group.

It is the company behind the realestate.com.au website, which is dominating the ANZ market with an average of well over 100 million monthly visits. This is over three times greater than its nearest competitor.

It is thanks to this dominant market position, together with acquisitions and new revenue streams, that REA Group has been tipped to deliver the goods again in FY 2023 despite the housing market downturn.

Goldman Sachs has a buy rating and $158.00 price target on its shares. It said:

We remain confident that REA can continue deliver > 10% yield growth in FY23, despite the challenging backdrop, supported by ongoing increases in Premiere All attachment, Price rises, and Premiere Plus attachment (contributes GSe +4%/+3% yield driver in FY23/24).

The post Goldman Sachs says these ASX 200 blue chip shares are buys appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

(function() {
function setButtonColorDefaults(param, property, defaultValue) {
if( !param || !param.includes(‘#’)) {
var button = document.getElementsByClassName(“pitch-snippet”)[0].getElementsByClassName(“pitch-button”)[0];
button.style[property] = defaultValue;
}
}

setButtonColorDefaults(“#43B02A”, ‘background’, ‘#5FA85D’);
setButtonColorDefaults(“#43B02A”, ‘border-color’, ‘#43A24A’);
setButtonColorDefaults(“#fff”, ‘color’, ‘#fff’);
})()

More reading

• 3 ASX 200 shares with highly-scalable business models
• Here are the top 10 ASX 200 shares today
• How I’d invest my very first $500 in ASX shares in 2023
• Here are the top 10 ASX 200 shares today
• My top predictions for ASX 200 shares in 2023

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro 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 Cochlear. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Cochlear and REA Group. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

from The Motley Fool Australia https://ift.tt/kBXeImj

The 2023 hunt for income is already underway and the current landscape might position ASX dividend shares as the frontrunner this year.

Last week, Australians were informed that inflation had rebounded to a 7.3% year-on-year increase. Yet, returns on cash in the bank with the big four are sitting between 3.25% to 3.75%. In other words, cash is producing a negative real return.

Even if the Reserve Bank of Australia lifts rates again next month, cash won’t yield a positive real return until inflation is near the target range. That’s why I would much rather invest my money in fantastic businesses that are creating value for shareholders.

The total dividend yield of the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is expected to be 4.4% before franking credits this year, according to Don Hamson of Plato Investment Management. That means an investment in an indexed-based exchange-traded fund (ETF) alone could provide better returns than cash in 2023.

However, there are two ASX dividend shares that I believe could deal out even better dividend yields.

Cash cow to keep mooing

If I was looking to supercharge my passive income this year, it would be hard to pass on Queensland coal producer New Hope Corporation Limited (ASX: NHC). The company is currently trading a monstrous dividend yield of 13.4%.

The exceptionally high yield could be due to an unwillingness among investors to push the share price of this ASX 200 company higher in fear of falling coal prices. Since May last year, the commodity has floated sideways.

I personally find it hard to believe that the energy squeeze will be solved this year. Sanctions on Russian oil will remain in place while the Ukraine invasion persists; new sources of energy supply take time to reach production; and market interventions could amplify the issues.

Additionally, even if coal prices weaken throughout 2023, New Hope holds around $625 million in net cash that it could dip into to fund its payments.

Another ASX 200 dividend share I’d set my sights on

The other individual stock I’d be picking for beefing up my income stream is Smartgroup Corporation Ltd (ASX: SIQ). The provider of various employment packaging solutions has had a rough trot over the past year — shares are down 25%.

Many investors have parted ways with Smartgroup shares after a takeover failed to materialise in 2022 and the company lost one of its top 20 customers. In turn, the dividend yield has been inflated to a tall 12%.

Being realistic, I believe Smartgroup will reduce its dividends this year. My forecast is for dividends per share to decrease by 40% to 60% compared to last year. However, this could still beat the 4.4% yield of the ASX 200.

The attractive proposition in Smartgroup is the potential capital appreciation alongside a respectable income. At the current price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 11 times earnings, I’d estimate the potential for 25% growth in the Smartgroup share price to trade more in line with its peers.

The post ASX 200 to yield 4.4% in 2023. These 2 dividend shares pay more than twice that appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

(function() {
function setButtonColorDefaults(param, property, defaultValue) {
if( !param || !param.includes(‘#’)) {
var button = document.getElementsByClassName(“pitch-snippet”)[0].getElementsByClassName(“pitch-button”)[0];
button.style[property] = defaultValue;
}
}

setButtonColorDefaults(“#0095C8”, ‘background’, ‘#5FA85D’);
setButtonColorDefaults(“#0095C8”, ‘border-color’, ‘#43A24A’);
setButtonColorDefaults(“#fff”, ‘color’, ‘#fff’);
})()

More reading

• Here are the top 10 ASX 200 shares today
• Attention income investors! These 7 ASX 200 dividend shares are projecting yields of 7%+ in FY24
• Burning hot: The outlook for ASX 200 energy shares in 2023
• Here are the top 10 ASX 200 shares today
• 6 ASX mining shares just upgraded by brokers

Motley Fool contributor Mitchell Lawler has positions in Smartgroup. 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 Smartgroup. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

from The Motley Fool Australia https://ift.tt/xnykbge