Cochlear Ltd (ASX: COH) shares are falling on Tuesday morning after the hearing implant giant gave investors another issue to digest.

The Cochlear share price is currently down 2.12% to $142.05 after the company confirmed it has been hit with a shareholder class action.

It’s another setback in what has already been a difficult year, with Cochlear shares down around 50% over the past 12 months.

The stock has recovered from its April low of $88.74, but remains well below the $296.50 reached over the past year.

So, what exactly is the class action about?

Why are Cochlear shares falling?

In its latest ASX announcement, Cochlear revealed that it has been hit with a class action in the Supreme Court of Victoria.

The claim involves investors who bought Cochlear shares between 15 August 2025 and 21 April 2026, when the company was providing its FY26 profit guidance.

Cochlear didn’t say too much about the case this morning, other than confirming it denies the allegations and plans to defend itself.

However, litigation firm Echo Law has provided a bit more detail.

It claims Cochlear engaged in misleading or deceptive conduct and failed to meet its continuous disclosure obligations.

Basically, the case centres on what Cochlear told investors about its FY26 profit outlook, and whether enough information was provided along the way.

And the dates are worth keeping in mind.

The period ends on 21 April, just one day before Cochlear slashed its profit guidance and its shares crashed more than 40%.

What happened in April?

The class action comes after a brutal few months for Cochlear shareholders.

On 22 April, the company cut its FY26 underlying net profit guidance to between $290 million and $330 million.

That was a big drop from its original forecast of between $435 million and $460 million.

Investors didn’t take the news well, with Cochlear shares tanking over 40% on the day to close at $99.58.

At the time, Cochlear blamed weaker implant demand, hospital capacity constraints, and fewer patient referrals across developed and emerging markets.

Uncertainty in the Middle East also weighed on sales, while lower production volumes and currency movements added to the pressure.

It wasn’t the first warning either.

Back in February, Cochlear had already told investors that FY26 profit was likely to come in at the lower end of its original guidance range.

Where does Cochlear go from here?

Despite the problems earlier this year, Cochlear has managed to recover a decent chunk of its April losses.

The company eventually reported FY26 underlying net profit of $322.4 million, down 22% from the previous year.

Looking ahead, Cochlear expects underlying net profit of between $330 million and $350 million in FY27, representing growth of around 2% to 9%.

There are some positives heading into the new financial year as well.

The Nucleus Nexa implant represented more than 95% of developed market implant sales by June, while Cochlear expects further product launches during FY27.

The post Cochlear shares fall as investors face another setback appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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

BHP vs Coles shares

If you’re eyeing ASX shares for reliable passive income, you’ve probably pondered BHP and Coles. Both pay fully franked dividends and are ASX heavyweights, yet they hail from very different sectors and show some striking contrasts. Here’s how they stack up for dividend-focused portfolios.

The case for BHP

BHP is Australia’s mining giant, exporting iron ore, copper, coal, and other resources worldwide. It’s a true blue-chip, not just in size but in its role as a key supplier in global commodity markets. The company’s fortunes are tied closely to demand and pricing for industrial metals—so while the share price can swing with the cycle, BHP has a long track record of strong profits and rewarding shareholders along the way.

Some highlights from the data:

• Market cap: $308.71 billion, dwarfing most other ASX names
• Dividend yield: 3.98%, fully franked, which is tasty for income hunters
• P/E ratio: 22.11
• Dividend history: BHP’s record shows not only continuous payments, but regularly climbing payouts for over a decade—including some bumper years and special dividends
• 2026 full-year dividends: Interim $1.04 and final $1.38, both 100% franked
• YTD return: 38.8%, showing robust momentum in the current year

There’s some volatility given its sector, but the strength of BHP’s dividends (together with generous franking) has long been a drawcard for passive income.

The case for Coles

Coles is about as “core Aussie” as it gets—a household name in supermarkets, liquor, and retail staples. Spun off from Wesfarmers in 2018, Coles now operates a national store network and is seen as an anchor stock for defensive income portfolios.

Here’s what pops in the numbers:

• Market cap: $31.15 billion—a fraction of BHP’s, but still a major ASX player
• Dividend yield: 3.36%, fully franked, with a pattern of reliable semi-annual payouts
• P/E ratio: 28.56, higher than BHP’s, perhaps reflecting sector defensiveness
• Recent dividend history: Consistent fully franked dividends (final 2026: $0.37, interim: $0.41) and a stable payout trajectory since relisting post-2018
• YTD return: 11.8%—steady, if not spectacular, reflecting the market’s regard for Coles as a “safe haven” in uncertain times

For investors prioritising reliability over big yield swings, Coles is an attractive option, offering predictable income from the supermarket aisles to your portfolio.

Valuation comparison

Here’s how the major passive income metrics line up:

	BHP	Coles
Market Cap	$308.71 billion	$31.15 billion
P/E Ratio	22.11	28.56
Dividend Yield	3.98% (100% franked)	3.36% (100% franked)
Dividend per Share (most recent year)	$2.42	$0.74

Both offer fully franked dividends, but BHP edges ahead on yield. Coles commands a higher P/E ratio, which may reflect the supermarket sector’s perceived stability and lower earnings volatility.

Recent share price performance

Comparing recent share price activity up to 25 September 2026:

• BHP closed at $60.72, down 0.5% for the day. The stock is up 38.8% year to date, suggesting robust performance for 2026.
• Coles closed at $23.19, up 1.3% for the day. Year-to-date, Coles shares have delivered an 11.8% return, reflecting more modest but steady progress.

Which is the better buy?

If I’m aiming for passive income, my pick would be BHP. Its higher yield (3.98% vs 3.36%) sets the pace here, supported by a long history of fully franked, sometimes generous, payouts and recent share price momentum. Volatility is a risk with any mining stock and commodity cycles can knock earnings around, but the dividend stream has stayed robust even through some tough years.

Coles offers stability and predictability, backed by defensive, non-cyclical earnings. But for genuine income-seeking investors, the slightly lower yield and less adventurous growth means it struggles to match BHP’s overall proposition on the numbers supplied.

Of course, if I was after absolute rock-solid steadiness and could accept a somewhat lower yield, Coles would still sit very comfortably in my core portfolio. But for now, I’d lean toward BHP as the income choice—with the bonus of some capital gain upside in a strong year.

The post BHP vs Coles: Which ASX share is better for passive income? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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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 recommended BHP Group. 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 draft. 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 share WAM Microcap Ltd (ASX: WMI) is the stock in my portfolio with the highest dividend yield. But I like the business for more than just the passive income it offers.

WAM Microcap is a listed investment company (LIC) that aims to invest in the most exciting undervalued growth opportunities in the microcap end of the ASX share market.

It has been in my portfolio for a long time and I still own it for a few compelling factors.

Small-cap exposure

There are hundreds and hundreds of businesses on the ASX of a variety of sizes. We’re familiar with the large businesses within the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO), but there are a lot of other stocks with smaller market capitalisations.

A lot of ASX shares can produce good returns, particularly the smaller ones because they may be underrated by the market and they could have a lot of growth ahead of them.

I think those smaller stocks are worth getting exposure to with their return potential, but I’m using the WAM Microcap investment team to pick those stocks at the small end of the ASX share market.

In my view, the smaller you go down the market capitalisation list, the more important it is to fully understand the business, the balance sheet and so on.

Despite difficult investing conditions, the WAM Microcap portfolio has performed very well over the long term. Since June 2017, it has delivered an average annual return of 13.5%, before fees, expenses, and taxes. That’s close to double the return of its benchmark.

Diversification

The portfolio is not just a few small-cap names, but dozens of small ASX shares with good return potential. It really adds to my diversification with the various names in the portfolio.

I like how its portfolio is spread across a number of sectors – more than 9% of its portfolio is invested in industrials, consumer discretionary, financials, IT, healthcare and materials.

It’s a pleasing addition to my portfolio, and only after considering the two elements above am I happy to enjoy the business’s passive income.

Big dividend income

As a listed investment company, WAM Microcap has the ability to turn investment returns into dividend cash payments for shareholders.

It’s helpful for the LIC to pay huge dividend income to ensure the LIC stays small – that’s important when it comes to small-cap investing, otherwise the LIC would become too big.

WAM Microcap has grown its annual dividend every year since FY18, except for FY24, when it maintained the dividend. That’s a great record of stability.

In FY26, it grew its annual dividend per share by 1% to 10.7 cents per share. That translates into a grossed-up dividend yield of more than 11.6%, at the time of writing. It has a profit reserve of 49.8 cents per share as of August 2026, so it already has enough accounting funding to pay dividends for close to five years.

It’s a great ASX share for dividend income.

The post Why I own this ASX share with a dividend yield of 11.5% appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Tristan Harrison has positions in Wam Microcap. 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.