If you’re looking for a passive income then exchange traded funds (ETFs) could be used to achieve this goal.

For example, the two ASX-listed ETFs named below could be top candidates as they have been designed to provide investors with above-average dividend yields.

Here’s what you need to know about them:

BetaShares S&P 500 Yield Maximiser (ASX: UMAX)

The first ETF for income investors to look at is the BetaShares S&P 500 Yield Maximiser.

It aims to provide income investors with attractive quarterly income and low volatility via an equity income investment strategy over a portfolio of shares comprising the S&P 500 Index on Wall Street.

Among the shares listed on the S&P 500 index are dividend-paying giants such as Apple, Bank of America, Exxon Mobil, Home Depot, and Walmart.

However, true to its name, this clever strategy allows the ETF to maximise the yields on offer with the stocks to create a yield that is greater than you would normally receive from the index.

For example, at present, the BetaShares S&P 500 Yield Maximiser’s units were offering investors a 7.9% distribution yield.

Based on the above, a $100,000 investment in this ETF would generate $7,900 of passive income.

Vanguard Australian Shares High Yield ETF (ASX: VHY)

Another ETF that could give you a passive income boost is the Vanguard Australian Shares High Yield ETF.

This ETF provides investors with exposure to a diverse group of ASX shares that have higher forecast dividend yields relative to the rest of the market.

At present there are 74 ASX shares included in the portfolio. These include giants such as BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP), Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA), Rio Tinto Ltd (ASX: RIO), Telstra Corporation Ltd (ASX: TLS), and Wesfarmers Ltd (ASX: WES).

The Vanguard Australian Shares High Yield ETF currently trades with an estimated forward dividend yield of 5.6%.

This means that a $100,000 investment could generate $5,600 of passive income for investors.

The post These ETFs could give ASX investors a passive income 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

• Buy these ETFs for passive income and growth
• Is the Vanguard Australian Shares High Yield ETF (VHY) a good buy for passive income?
• Growth and income: 2 excellent ETFs for ASX investors to buy this month
• Buy these ASX ETFs for retirement 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 no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has positions in and has recommended BetaShares S&P500 Yield Maximiser, Telstra Corporation Limited, and Wesfarmers Limited. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Vanguard Australian Shares High Yield 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/fv32z0U

It was a good day on the share market so far this Thursday… until it wasn’t. After falls on both Monday and yesterday, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) has been back in the green for most of the day but has sunk back into red territory as it currently stands, if only just.

At the time of writing, the ASX 200 has lost an anaemic 0.01%, putting the index at just over 7,250 points.

Let’s hope it gets back to the gains. But in the meantime, let’s now dig deeper into the market’s tentative gains by taking a look at the ASX 200 shares that are at the peak of the share market’s trading volume charts at present, according to investing.com.

The 3 most traded ASX 200 shares by volume this Thursday

AMP Ltd (ASX: AMP)

Our first share worth a gander at today is the ASX 200 financial services stalwart AMP. So far this Thursday, a notable 19.51 million AMP shares have charged across the ASX boards. There’s been little news out from the company so far today though, save for a share buyback notice.

This could in itself be driving trading volumes. But AMP’s share price performance is probably contributing to these high volumes as well. AMP has had a cracking day so far, rising by a healthy 1.14% at present to $1.07 a share. That comes after AMP shot up as high as $1.10 a share this morning.

Sayona Mining Ltd (ASX: SYA)

Next, we have ASX 200 lithium stock Sayona Mining. So far this session, a sizeable 22.03 million Sayona shares have swapped hands. There’s been no news out of Sayona at all as of yet. So again, let’s look at this lithium stock’s share price for an explanation.

And Sayona has indeed seen a fair bit of volatility. Right now, this share is down a nasty 2.1% at 24 cents each. But Sayona has bounced between 23 cents and 24 cents all day. That might not sound like much, but it’s worth a move of more than 4%. This is what seems to be driving volumes here.

Pilbara Minerals Ltd (ASX: PLS)

Last but certainly not least in terms of trading volume this Thursday, we have another ASX 200 lithium share in Pilbara Minerals. Pilbara has seen an unusually large 193 million of its shares fly around the ASX so far today.

Pilbara has traded ex-dividend today, which explains why its shares are presently deep in the red. But this volume is also possibly the result of rumours of a major sale of Pilbara shares from a large investor. It’s not too often you see a $4 share with close to 200 million shares trade in one day.

The post Here are the 3 most heavily traded ASX 200 shares on Thursday 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

• ‘Now your total return in stock markets is going to come much more from dividends’: Wall Street fundie
• Why Brainchip, Coles, Karoon Energy, and Pilbara Minerals shares are tumbling
• Someone in China has just sold $600 million of Pilbara Minerals shares. Here’s what we know
• Why is the Woolworths share price sliding lower today?
• Why is the Pilbara Minerals share price falling in a hole Thursday morning?

Motley Fool contributor Sebastian Bowen 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.

from The Motley Fool Australia https://ift.tt/SmFBEx4

The AGL Energy Limited (ASX: AGL) share price was a poor performer in February.

Over the period, the energy company’s shares sank almost 10%.

What happened to the AGL share price?

Investors were quick to hit the sell button last month after AGL released its half-year results.

For the six months ended 31 December, AGL reported underlying net profit after tax of $87 million, which was a 55% decline on the prior corresponding period.

On a statutory basis, things were even worse. AGL reported a statutory loss after tax of $1.1 billion. This figure includes $706 million of impairment charges from the company’s accelerated decarbonisation plans.

This poor half unsurprisingly led to AGL slashing its dividend by half to just 8 cents per share.

What’s next?

One leading broker isn’t confident that the AGL share price will rebound in March.

According to a note out of Morgans, its analysts believe investors should wait for a better entry point. In response to its results, the broker said:

Underlying net profit was down 55% on pcp, 60% on our forecast and 45% on Visible Alpha consensus. The key driver was a net $123m impact on the wholesale trading business from the tight winter conditions earlier in the half. This also drove a big miss on DPS with an interim dividend of only 8cps.

We anticipate increasing dividends as earnings begin to recover in the next 12 months however we think the market will want to see clear evidence of this before it regains confidence in the company and the sector.

Morgans has a hold rating and $6.89 price target on its shares. This compares to the latest AGL share price of $6.85.

The post The AGL share price sank 10% in February. What’s next? 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

• Don’t be deceived by ASX dividends
• 6 ASX 200 directors buying up their company shares in the past week
• 6 asset-rich ASX 200 shares to buy for their takeover potential: expert
• Here’s why the AGL share price is dipping on Wednesday
• Hoping to bag the next AGL dividend? You’d better be quick

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 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.

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

The All Ordinaries Index (ASX: XAO) is down 5% over the past month.

But you can’t point the finger at this ASX All Ords share.

The Weebit Nano Ltd (ASX: WBT) share price has been on a tear over the last month, up 59%.

In earlier trading today, shares in the memory and semiconductor technology company were up 5%, marking a fresh multi-year high.

In fact, you’d have to go back to 2012 to find the All Ords share trading at a higher valuation.

The Weebit Nano share price has slid in intraday trading since notching that new milestone. Shares are currently down 3.8%, changing hands for $7.86 apiece.

At the current share price, the company has a market cap of $1.4 billion.

What’s piquing investor interest in the ASX All Ords share?

A lot has gone right for Weebit this month.

On Monday, 27 February, the ASX All Ords share reported on its United States roadshow presentation. The company profiled its embedded resistive random-access memory (ReRAM) – next-generation non-volatile memory (NVM) technology.

(Quite a mouthful, I know!)

Noting that geopolitics is driving countries to invest tens of billions of dollars locally into developing their own semiconductors, Weebit highlighted that memory comprises more than a third of the spending.

The ASX All Ords share closed up 10.3% on the day.

And February commenced well for Weebit.

Its shares were placed in a trading halt on 27 January following an administrative error. But Weebit returned to the ASX boards after seeking court orders from the Supreme Court of New South Wales.

The stock closed 5.5% higher on the day.

Weebit Nano share price snapshot

As you can see in the chart below, the Weebit Nano share price is up an eye-popping 141% so far in 2023.

Over the past 12 months, the ASX All Ords share has gained 182%.

The post Up 59% in a month, guess which ASX All Ords share just hit another multi-year high 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

• Why Kogan, Praemium, TPG, and Weebit Nano shares are racing higher
• 3 ASX All Ords shares making moves today following earnings, one up 16%
• ASX tech share Weebit Nano has surged 90% in 2023. What’s going on?
• Love all around: 2 ASX All Ords stocks smashing new 52-week highs on Valentine’s Day
• 3 ASX All Ords shares rocketing 10% or more today

Motley Fool contributor Bernd Struben 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.

from The Motley Fool Australia https://ift.tt/2LpdaAM