After surging a remarkable 30.5% from 18 May to close at $92.96 apiece on 20 July, Wesfarmers Ltd (ASX: WES) shares have come under heavy selling pressure.

On Wednesday afternoon, shares in the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) conglomerate – whose retail subsidiaries include Bunnings Warehouse, Kmart Australia, Officeworks and Priceline – were changing hands for $72.60 each.

That sees the Wesfarmers share price down 21.9% in four months.

Most of that selling looks to be driven by concerns over the impacts of high inflation and potential further interest rate hikes on consumer sentiment, as well as Wesfarmers’ own cost of doing business.

But with shares having come back to earth from their July highs, is the ASX 200 stock now a good buy for passive income?

What kind of dividend yield does Wesfarmers stock offer?

Wesfarmers paid a fully franked interim dividend of $1.02 a share on 31 March,

The ASX 200 stock will payout the final fully franked dividend of $1.20 a share on 7 October. It’s a bit too late to bank that passive income payout, as Wesfarmers shares traded ex-dividend on 1 September. That payout will go to investors who held the stock at market close on 31 August.

As for the dividend yield, at the recent share price of $72.60, Wesfarmers trades on a fully franked trailing dividend yield of 3.1%.

Which brings us back to our headline question.

Should I buy Wesfarmers shares for passive income?

Shaw and Partners’ James Bills recently analysed the outlook for the ASX 200 stock (courtesy of The Bull).

Wesfarmers remains one of Australia’s premier diversified companies,” he said. “It’s supported by market leading businesses, including Bunnings, Kmart and Officeworks.

Bills added:

The company’s strong balance sheet, disciplined capital allocation and resilient earnings profile continue to underpin shareholder value. While growth opportunities remain available across several divisions, recent share price levels appear to reflect much of this quality.

Connecting the dots, Bills issued a hold recommendation on Wesfarmers shares:

Holding Wesfarmers remains appropriate given the company’s strong market position, dependable cash generation and proven ability to create value over the long term.

What’s the latest from the ASX 200 conglomerate?

Wesfarmers released its FY 2026 results on 27 August.

Highlights included a 3.4% year-on-year increase in revenue to $47.25 billion, excluding significant items.

On the bottom line, Wesfarmers achieved a statutory NPAT of $2.87 billion, up 8.3% from FY 2025.

And with profits up, so too was the passive income on offer.

Wesfarmers managing director Rob Scott commented:

As a result of the increase in underlying profit, the Wesfarmers Board has determined to pay a fully-franked final dividend of $1.20 per share, bringing total fully franked ordinary dividends for the year to $2.22 per share, an increase of 7.8 per cent.

Wesfarmers shares closed down 4.6% on the day of the results release.

The post Down 22%: Are Wesfarmers shares now a good buy for passive income? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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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 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 Contact Energy Ltd (ASX: CEN) share price is in focus today after the company reported mass market electricity and gas sales of 550GWh, up from 454GWh in August 2025, and a stable mass market netback of $148.57/MWh.

What did Contact Energy report?

• Mass market electricity and gas sales: 550GWh (August 2025: 454GWh)
• Mass market netback: $148.57/MWh (August 2025: $148.36/MWh)
• Wholesale contracted electricity sales: 1,087GWh (August 2025: 1,090GWh)
• Electricity and steam net revenue: $164.59/MWh (August 2025: $164.24/MWh)
• Unit generation cost: $40.90/MWh (August 2025: $57.52/MWh)
• Geothermal generation: 457GWh; Hydro generation: 539GWh

What else do investors need to know?

Contact Energy continues to progress several renewable development projects, including Te Mihi Stage 2 geothermal (expected online Q3 CY27, $712m), Glenbrook-Ohurua Battery 2 (Q1 CY28, $235m), and Glorit Solar (Q4 CY28, $316m). The company reports strong controlled hydro storage, with the South Island at 166% and North Island at 84% of mean.

Electricity demand in New Zealand for August 2026 was down 0.3% compared to August 2025, but up 5.3% on August 2024. The average temperature across the country hit 9.7ºC, continuing a warmer-than-normal trend.

What’s next for Contact Energy?

Looking ahead, Contact Energy is focused on delivering its renewable development pipeline, aiming to bring more geothermal, battery, and solar capacity online over the coming years. The company’s next 12 months are supported by contracted gas volumes of 8.2PJ and an ongoing commitment to strong operational performance.

Contact’s ESG initiatives, including reduced greenhouse gas emissions intensity and increased community support, remain a key part of its long-term strategy, providing further confidence for socially responsible investors.

Contact Energy share price snapshot

Over the past 12 months, Contact Energy shares have declined 15%, trailing the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO), which has declined 1% over the same period.

View Original Announcement

The post Contact Energy reports higher sales and renewable project progress in August appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• These ASX 200 shares could generate $10,000 per year in passive income

Motley Fool contributor Laura Stewart 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. This article was prepared with the assistance of Large Language Model (LLM) tools for the initial summary of the company announcement. Any content assisted by AI is subject to our robust human-in-the-loop quality control framework, involving thorough review, substantial editing, and fact-checking by our experienced writers and editors holding appropriate credentials. The Motley Fool Australia stands behind the work of our editorial team and takes ultimate responsibility for the content published by The Motley Fool Australia.

The ASX dividend stock Washington H. Soul Pattinson and Co. Ltd (ASX: SOL) could be the most appealing way for retirees to receive income. I’d rank it above receiving the Age Pension.

The business is one of the oldest on the ASX, it has already displayed excellent longevity characteristics to succeed through world wars, global pandemics, global recessions and so on.

It started life as a pharmacy business and has evolved into a diversified investment house, which is one of the reasons why I think it’s such an effective choice for dividend income. Let’s get into the reasons why it’s so compelling, in my view.

Regularly growing dividend income

I think one of the main reasons to prefer Soul Patts shares over the Age Pension is that its dividend income has been very reliable and grown faster than inflation.

The business has increased its regular annual dividend per share every year since 1998. This shows it has been incredibly reliable for shareholders over the last three decades.

Over the last five years, the ASX dividend stock has increased its payout at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 11.9%. The company increased its FY27 interim dividend by 9.1% to 48 cents per share.

Dividend growth isn’t guaranteed, of course, but the business has a strong track record of rising payouts, and it’s one of its key goals.

The current forecast on Commsec suggests the business could increase its FY26 annual payout by more than 11% to approximately $1.15. If that happens, the grossed-up dividend yield would be 3.7%, including franking credits, at the time of writing.

Impressively diversified portfolio

The investment house has spread its money across a variety of areas including listed companies, ’emerging companies’, credit, private companies and ‘real’ assets (such as real estate, agriculture and data centres).

By spreading investments across a range of areas, the company can lower its risk and give investors exposure to a portfolio of compelling assets, rather than just one or two sectors like many S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) shares.

This diversification strategy also allows the business to look across industries and geographic markets for the best opportunities. I think the flexible mandate helps generate the best returns over the long-term.

Capital growth

Another reason to prefer owning Soul Patts shares is that its portfolio has steadily increased in value over time as its existing investments have grown and it has made additional purchases.

This reflects growth in the net asset value (NAV), which is also strongly correlated with growth in the Soul Patts share price.

Over the last four years, Soul Patts’ share price has risen by roughly 70% (at the time of writing). I’m not expecting the same performance over the next four years, but it shows the kind of return Soul Patts can deliver.

Match the Age Pension

The Age Pension will soon increase, but at the time of writing, the maximum a single Australian can receive is approximately $31,200 per year on an annualised basis.

If the business does pay $1.15 per Soul Patts share in FY26, that would require 27,131 shares based on the FY26 payout. However, I expect the FY27 payout will be larger, so we won’t need as many shares in FY27 to achieve $31,200 in annual dividends.

The post 27,131 shares of this ASX dividend stock pays an income equal to the Age Pension appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• Soul Patts vs PM Capital Global Opportunities Fund: Which is better?
• How much is needed in superannuation to target a $6,500 monthly passive income?
• $2,000 buys 45 shares in an impressively reliable ASX dividend stock
• How much is needed in superannuation to target a $70,000 annual passive income?
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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.