Earlier this week I suggested to you three ASX shares that you could invest $500 into right now with a long-term horizon.

I did that to dispel the misconception that many Australians have that only wealthy people get to make money from stocks.

There are no more brokers chain-smoking in front of the telephone, nor traders yelling at each other on the floor of the stock exchange. 

Investing in shares has become “democratised” with low fees and almost no barriers to entry.

In that spirit, here are two more top Australian shares to grab now for $500 each, to put away in the bottom drawer:

Resources exposure with a technology bent

RPMGlobal Holdings Ltd (ASX: RUL) is a technology and tech services provider for clients in the mining industry.

I like this stock because it provides exposure to the resources sector without the vomit-inducing volatility that can come with directly owning shares for mines.

Even though the share price has already rocketed more than 66% in the past 12 months, the analysts at Elvest certainly think the outlook is still bright.

“RPMGlobal indicated that demand for its software was increasing across multiple geographies, which, alongside flattening research and development spend, should drive strong earnings growth in coming periods.”

As well as Elvest, the small cap is a strong buy for the teams at Veritas Securities and Moelis Australia.

I think that there is an excellent chance that, in a few years’ time, the RPM share price will be much higher than where it is now.

Top Australian shares for online shopping and AI

It’s not controversial these days to say that e-commerce and artificial intelligence are boom areas set for years of growth to come.

Industrial real estate manager Goodman Group (ASX: GMG) has been, and could continue to be, a major beneficiary from those themes.

The business develops and leases out massive warehouse facilities, which fancy e-commerce clients like Amazon.com Inc (NASDAQ: AMZN) call “fulfilment centres”.

In addition, Goodman has recently identified real estate suitable to host data centres as a huge money spinner, with cloud computing and AI taking off at the moment.

Considering these tailwinds, I am confident that in 2029 the Goodman share price will be well above where it is trading now.

The post Got $500? 2 top Australian shares to buy and hold appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• Why Arafura Rare Earths, Core Lithium, Goodman, and Superloop shares are falling today
• Why bond yields are bruising ASX property shares on Monday
• Top brokers name 3 ASX shares to buy next week
• $20,000 invested in these ASX 200 shares 10 years ago is worth how much?
• 2 powerful blue chip ASX 200 shares to buy for your portfolio

John Mackey, former CEO of Whole Foods Market, an Amazon subsidiary, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors. Motley Fool contributor Tony Yoo 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 Amazon, Goodman Group, and RPMGlobal. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Amazon, Goodman Group, and RPMGlobal. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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AI shares have boomed in the last 12 months as investors have identified which businesses are going to benefit from selling the new technology to the world. There are a few ASX-listed exchange-traded funds (ETFs) that can give us exposure to that world.

An ETF gives us exposure to a whole range of businesses in just one investment, which is handy considering we can’t say for certain which AI-related business will be the big winner of the future, though NVIDIA Corp (NASDAQ: NVDA) is certainly doing its best to claim the AI title.

Having said that, let’s look at three ASX ETFs that could be good candidates to own if AI exposure is the goal of an investor.

Global X Fang+ ETF (ASX: FANG)

This ETF aims to just invest in the largest businesses in the US. They are involved in a number of investment themes including technological advancements, changing demographics and consumer preferences.

The big technology businesses are among the most influential globally in the AI space. The FANG ETF gives good exposure – around 10% of the portfolio – to names like Nvidia, Microsoft, Tesla and Alphabet. It only owns 10 names though, which isn’t a lot of diversification.

It has an annual management fee of just 0.35%, which is cheaper than other ASX ETFs that give sizeable exposure to large tech names. For example, the Betashares Nasdaq 100 ETF (ASX: NDQ) has an annual management fee of 0.48%.

BetaShares Global Robotics and Artificial Intelligence ETF (ASX: RBTZ)

The idea of this fund is that it invests in global companies involved in areas like industrial robotics and automation, non-industrial robots, artificial intelligence and unmanned vehicles and drones.

It is currently invested in 42 names, so there’s more diversification with this option than the FANG ETF.

The RBTZ ETF has an annual management fee of 0.57%, which isn’t bad.

There are four industries within the portfolio with a weighting of at least 10%, including industrial machinery and supplies (24.3%), semiconductors (21.3%), healthcare equipment (12%) and electronic equipment and instruments (11.2%).

In terms of the biggest individual positions, there are five names with a weighting of more than 7.5%: Nvidia (8.9%), Abb (8%), Intuitive Surgical (7.9%), Keyence (7.9%) and SMC (7.7%).

Global X Robo Global Robotics & Automation ETF (ASX: ROBO)

This is another fund involved in robotics, automation and so on.

Global X explains that the average cost of an industrial robot declined from US$46,000 in 2010 to just US$27,000 in 2017. It’s forecast to fall below US$11,000 by 2025 as technology improves and scales. The fund provider suggests robotics and automation have “wide-reaching applications, extending far beyond industrial activity.”

The ROBO ETF comes with an annual management cost of 0.69%, so it’s the most expensive of the three ASX ETFs in this article.

The ROBO ETF currently has 77 holdings in the portfolio, with the biggest position accounting for less than 2% of the portfolio and most of the weightings being between 1% and 2%.

At the time of writing, the biggest three positions are Kardex, Intuitive Surgical and Autostore.

The post 3 ASX ETFs to buy for exposure to the booming international AI sector appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• Can you buy Nvidia shares on the ASX?
• Are these record-breaking ASX ETFs now too expensive to buy?
• The pros and cons of buying the Global X Fang+ ETF (FANG) right now
• How to invest in the magnificent seven stocks on the ASX

Suzanne Frey, an executive at Alphabet, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors. 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 Alphabet, BetaShares Nasdaq 100 ETF, Intuitive Surgical, Microsoft, Nvidia, and Tesla. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has recommended the following options: long January 2026 $395 calls on Microsoft and short January 2026 $405 calls on Microsoft. The Motley Fool Australia has positions in and has recommended BetaShares Nasdaq 100 ETF. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Alphabet and Nvidia. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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Many people would argue that there is no such thing as intrinsic value for a company or an ASX stock.

The idea is that shares are worth whatever investors are willing to pay for them. Full stop.

Take Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA), for example.

The stock has doubled since COVID-19 and has rocketed 21% since late October.

Even after all that the stock pays out a respectable 3.9% dividend yield, which is fully franked no less.

The “no intrinsic value” camp would say that if the bank’s business outlook is fine, then it’s still not too late to buy now.

I would argue otherwise.

Expensive compared to peers

Even though CBA does have the largest revenue and customer base, you wouldn’t get many arguments from any expert that the major four banks are very similar.

And the price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio would suggest Commonwealth has the highest valuation out of them all plus Macquarie Group Ltd (ASX: MQG).

Bank	PE ratio
Commonwealth Bank	20.4
Macquarie Group	18
National Australia Bank Ltd (ASX: NAB)	14.8
Westpac Banking Corp (ASX: WBC)	13.6
ANZ Group Holdings Ltd (ASX: ANZ)	12.7

The local banking sector is as static as it gets. 

There isn’t a massive group of Australians who are not in the banking system, so growing the industry as a whole is nigh on impossible.

Ever since the government decided that it would not allow further rationalisation of the industry further than four big banks, the market share of each has not changed a great deal.

So if the valuation is already higher than the others, I am reluctant to buy CBA shares right now.

That’s not to say I wouldn’t buy it in the future, but I would need a significant discount to current levels.

Professional investors unanimously agree with this assessment. According to broking platform CMC Invest, none of the 17 analysts who study Commonwealth Bank rate the stock as a buy at the moment.

The post I wouldn’t touch CBA shares with a 10-foot bargepole! appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• 2 top ASX 200 shares to buy now for $1,000 a month in passive income
• If I’d put $5,000 in CBA shares at the start of 2024, here’s what I’d have now
• Why are ASX investors so obsessed with dividends?
• What’s going so wrong for ASX 200 shares on Friday?
• If you’d put $1m into shares vs property at the start of COVID, how much would you have now?

Motley Fool contributor Tony Yoo has positions in Macquarie Group. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended Macquarie Group. The Motley Fool Australia has positions in and has recommended Macquarie Group. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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Investing in ASX shares for dividends is one of the best ways, in my view at least, of starting a stream of passive income.

The dividends and franking credits that ASX dividend shares payout can provide a stable, inflation-resistant and future-proof second income for any Australian.

But investing in ASX dividend shares is of course not without risk. This includes dividend investing. Many would-be dividend investors have bought what looks like high-yield shares, only to get burned when those shares end up being dividend traps that cut their shareholder payouts down the road.

So how would one invest $20,000 into ASX dividend shares in order to secure $1,400 per year in reliable dividend income?

No ASX shares can be thought of as truly safe, for income investors or otherwise. Saying that, I think using these five income payers gives any investor a good shot at a reliable stream of passive income for the foreseeable future.

5 ASX dividend shares I would buy for $1,400 in annual passive income

I would start with Coles Group Ltd (ASX: COL). Coles is a supermarket operator we would all be fairly familiar with. Since listing on the ASX in 2018, Coles has built up a strong dividend track record, increasing its annual payout most years since then. That includes over the pandemic. As well as the high inflation years of 2022 and 2023.

Today, Coles shares offer a trailing dividend yield of 4%, which comes fully franked too.

Next up, there’s Transurban Group (ASX: TCL). If you live in one of Australia’s major cities, in particular Sydney, you would be intimately familiar with the toll roads that Transurban operates. This company has been remarkably successful in negotiating inflation-proof quarterly toll rises for most of its roads.

This gives the dividend income Transurban forks out notable resilience and stability. Right now, Transurban shares are trading on a dividend yield of 4.78%.

BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP) is our next divided stock worth discussing. BHP is one of the largest miners in the world and has extensive operations in iron ore, copper and other industrial commodities. As a mining company, BHP has a far more volatile track record when it comes to paying dividends.

However, they are usually substantial, regardless of the pricing cycle the company happens to be in. Today, BHP is sitting on a trailing (and fully franked) dividend yield of 5.97%.

A bank and a telco for passive income

It would be hard to build a robust ASX dividend portfolio without at least one ASX bank share. So ANZ Group Holdings Ltd (ASX: ANZ) makes the cut too. Like its ASX banking stablemates, ANZ has been forking out generous and fully franked dividends for decades. 2023 was a bumper year for this bank, with ANZ forking out the highest annual dividend since 2015 at $1.75 per share.

Despite a recent share price surge, ANZ is still trading on a dividend yield of 6.10%.

Finally, I would include ASX telco Telstra Group Ltd (ASX: TLS). Like the banks, Telstra is another famous passive income payer. Investors have been treated to a rising dividend from this company for the past two years after a long period of income stagnation. Telstra offers similar traits to that of Coles or Transurban in my view.

Its business is extraordinarily resilient to economic maladies and should enable Telstra investors to feel relatively comfortable in receiving regular dividend income going forward. Right now, Telstra shares are offering up a dividend yield of 4.51%. That’s replete with full franking credits.

What’s next?

The more mathematically minded readers might notice that these five shares aren’t enough to bank $1,400 in annual dividend income from a $20,000 investment. Let’s assume an investor puts $4,000 into each of these five shares. At their stated dividend yields, this would only get us approximately $995.60 in annual dividend income today. Obviously well off our target of $1,400.

Well, I think that’s unfortunately unavoidable from a $20,000 investment. In order to get an immediate $1,000 in dividend income from a $20,000 investment, we would need to invest in a basket of ASX shares that are all currently yielding above 7%.

Most shares currently trading on yields of this magnitude arguably don’t qualify as reliable income payers. At least for our purposes. However, I do believe that if an investor holds these five shares for a number of years, the dividend income will eventually grow to $1,400 per annum and beyond.

The post How I’d invest $20k to target $1,400 a year from ASX dividend shares appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• Are these ASX dividend stocks quality buys this week?
• Why are ASX 200 mining shares smashing the benchmark on Wednesday?
• Why these excellent ASX dividend shares have been named as buys
• Down 5% in 2 years, does the Transurban share price reflect the 2024-26 dividend forecast?
• How are these ASX investors earning an almost 7% dividend yield on their Telstra shares?

Motley Fool contributor Sebastian Bowen has positions in Telstra Group. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended Transurban Group. The Motley Fool Australia has positions in and has recommended Coles Group and Telstra Group. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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If you have room in your portfolio for some new ASX 200 growth shares this month, then it could be worth checking out the two listed below.

That’s because they have recently been named as buys and tipped to rise meaningfully from current levels.

Here’s what you need to know about these growth shares:

Flight Centre Travel Group Ltd (ASX: FLT)

Morgans continues to feel bullish about Flight Centre and believes it could be an ASX 200 growth share to buy.

The broker has previous stated that the “benefits of FLT’s transformed business model” mean that the company is “well placed over coming years.”

This certainly was the case in the first half of FY 2024. Flight Centre reported a 15% jump in total transaction value to $11.3 billion even as discretionary spending dropped across the economy.

This went down well with Morgans, which reiterated its add rating and lifted its price target to $27.27. This implies potential upside of 29% for investors from current levels.

The broker also highlights that it believes Flight Centre is well-positioned to deliver on its earnings guidance in FY 2024.

TechnologyOne Ltd (ASX: TNE)

The team at Bell Potter thinks that enterprise software provider TechnologyOne could be an ASX 200 growth share to buy this month.

Earlier this week, the broker upgraded its shares on the belief that a strong half-year result is coming in May.

It also notes that if TechnologyOne does deliver the goods, it could set the scene for a re-rating of its shares. It commented that if its net revenue retention (NRR) metric remains 115%+, it “suggests the outlook remains positive and the company can double revenue every five years or so via organic growth alone.”

Bell Potter has a buy rating and $18.50 price target on Technology One’s shares. This implies 10% upside for investors from current levels.

The post Here’s why analysts love these buy-rated ASX 200 growth shares appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• Why these ASX 200 growth shares could be top buys now
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• Guess which ASX 200 tech stock has just been upgraded
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Monday

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 Technology One. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Flight Centre Travel Group and Technology One. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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If you want to add to your income portfolio this month with some new ASX dividend stocks, then it could be worth looking at the three companies named below.

Here’s what brokers are forecasting from them:

Charter Hall Retail REIT (ASX: CQR)

The team at Citi think that Charter Hall Retail REIT could be a good option for income investors.

It is a supermarket anchored neighbourhood and sub-regional shopping centre markets-focused property company.

Citi currently has a buy rating and $4.00 price target on its shares.

As for income, the broker is forecasting dividends of 28 cents per share in both FY 2024 and FY 2025. Based on the current Charter Hall Retail REIT share price of $3.59, this will mean massive yields of 7.8%.

Super Retail Group Ltd (ASX: SUL)

Another ASX dividend stock that has been rated as a buy is Super Retail. It is the retail conglomerate behind the popular BCF, Macpac, Rebel, and Super Cheap Auto brands.

Goldman Sachs is very positive on the retailer and has a $17.80 price target on its shares.

Its analysts were impressed with the company’s performance in the first half. They commented that “we believe the 1H24 result was high quality and the strategic growth plan is intact. Specifically, core to our Buy thesis.”

As for dividends, the broker is forecasting fully franked dividends per share of 67 cents in FY 2024 and then 73 cents in FY 2025. Based on the latest Super Retail share price of $15.30, this will mean good yields of 4.4% and 4.8%, respectively.

Transurban Group (ASX: TCL)

A final ASX dividend stock that has been named as a buy is Transurban. It operates 22 toll roads in Australia and North America, including CityLink, Cross City Tunnel, and the East Distributor.

Citi is also a fan of the company and sees it as a top option right now. It has a buy rating and $15.60 price target on its shares.

The team at Citi expects this to underpin the payments of dividends per share of 63 cents in FY 2024 and 65 cents in FY 2025. Based on the current Transurban share price of $12.85, this will mean yields of 4.8% and 5%, respectively.

The post Are these ASX dividend stocks quality buys this week? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• Down 5% in 2 years, does the Transurban share price reflect the 2024-26 dividend forecast?
• Shares vs. property: Which Australian states and ASX stocks are delivering the best passive income?
• Buy these ASX 300 dividend shares for 10% gains and 5% yields
• 3 highly-rated ASX dividend shares for income investors to buy next week
• How about buying these ASX dividend shares?

Citigroup is an advertising partner of The Ascent, a Motley Fool company. 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 Goldman Sachs Group and Transurban Group. The Motley Fool Australia has positions in and has recommended Super Retail Group. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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Life360 Inc (ASX: 360) shares are having another strong session on Wednesday.

In afternoon trade, the ASX tech stock is up 2.5% to $12.93.

This means that the company’s shares have now risen an incredible 59% since the start of March.

To put that into context, if you had invested $10,000 in Life360 shares on 29 February, your holding would now be worth almost $16,000.

Why is this ASX tech stock on fire?

Investors have been scrambling to buy the company’s shares this month following the release of its FY 2023 results.

In case you missed it, Life360 reported a 33% increase in revenue to US$305 million for the 12 months ended 31 December. This was driven by a 52% year on year increase in core Life360 subscription revenue to US$200 million, which was ahead of its guidance.

Global monthly active users (MAU) grew nearly 13 million or 26% to 61.4 million in FY 2023.

Things were just as good for its adjusted EBITDA, which came in at US$20.6 million for the year. This was comfortably ahead of its guidance range of US$12 million to US$16 million.

Another item that got investors and analysts very excited was news that the ASX tech stock is looking to monetise its massive user base by launching an advertising business.

Life360’s co-founder and CEO, Chris Hulls, commented:

[W]e are excited to announce the creation of a new advertising revenue stream that offers partners unparalleled reach to Life360’s enormous free user base, and more than 20 million daily active users (DAU) connecting with their families and friends. We have consistently spoken of the potential that our investment in the core user experience, and the scaling of our MAU base, would provide for the future. We are encouraged by the success of early testing and see the opportunity to deliver an attractive platform to advertisers, while continuing to provide a great user experience.

Is it too late to invest?

The good news is that a number of analysts still believe this ASX tech stock can rise further from here despite its incredible gains in March.

For example, Goldman Sachs has a buy rating and $14.20 price target on its shares. This suggests further upside of 10% for investors.

Elsewhere, Bell Potter and Morgan Stanley (as covered here) have the equivalent of buy ratings on its shares with $14.50 and $14.40 price targets, respectively. This implies potential upside of 12% and 11% for investors from current levels.

The post This ASX tech stock has turned a $10k investment into almost $16,000 in March! appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• Top brokers name 3 ASX shares to buy today
• My top 3 ASX shares to consider buying before April
• Why these ASX 200 growth shares could be top buys now
• Here are the top 10 ASX 200 shares today
• Got $3,000? 3 ASX tech shares to buy and hold for the long term

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has positions in Life360. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended Goldman Sachs Group and Life360. 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.

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Many of Australia’s top brokers have been busy adjusting their financial models again, leading to the release of a number of broker notes this week.

Three ASX shares brokers have named as buys this week are listed below. Here’s why they are bullish on them:

Boss Energy Ltd (ASX: BOE)

According to a note out of Macquarie, its analysts have retained their outperform rating and $6.00 price target on this uranium developer’s shares. This follows the release of an update which revealed the highest grade drill results to date at the Alta Mesa Project. Macquarie was pleased with the update and believes it points to better than expected resource estimates. In addition, the broker was pleased that production remains on track to commence later this year, giving the company exposure to strong spot uranium prices. The Boss Energy share price is trading at $4.83 this afternoon.

Life360 Inc (ASX: 360)

A note out of Morgan Stanley reveals that its analysts have retained their overweight rating and $14.40 price target on this location technology provider’s shares. The broker highlights that the company’s plan to sell advertisers access to its user base implies improved monetisation of its existing base and faster monetisation of new users. Morgan Stanley believes that this will lead to improved operating leverage or potentially accelerated growth in active users if it decides to step up its investment in sales and marketing. Another positive is that not only is the Life360 app a high-frequency app, but it also has highly affluent users to advertise to. The Life360 share price is fetching $12.85 today.

Woolworths Group Ltd (ASX: WOW)

Analysts at Goldman Sachs have retained their conviction buy rating and $40.40 price target on this supermarket giant’s shares. The broker highlights that Woolworths’ shares have fallen heavily amid concerns over inquiries into price gouging and anti-competitive behaviour claims. It believes this has been an overreaction, noting that the 2008 ACCC inquiry concluded that the supermarkets industry was “workably competitive” and recommended industry changes that did not result in a material impact to its earnings. The Woolworths share price is trading at $31.80 on Wednesday.

The post Top brokers name 3 ASX shares to buy today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• Why you should buy cheap Woolworths shares before it’s too late
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• 3 Australian shares to buy and hold forever in your ASX portfolio

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has positions in Life360. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended Goldman Sachs Group, Life360, and Macquarie Group. The Motley Fool Australia has positions in and has recommended Macquarie Group. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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Looking to build a $1,000 monthly passive income stream with S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) shares?

Well, you’re certainly shopping in the right market.

Over the next nine weeks, ASX 200 investors will receive an eye-popping $34 billion in dividends. And as staggering as that figure is, it’s actually down from the $35.1 billion in dividends paid over the same period in 2023.

With that said, here are two top ASX 200 shares to consider buying now for $1,000 a month, or $12,000 annually, in passive income.

But first…

Trailing yields and diversification

If you’re looking to build a proper, long-term passive income portfolio, you’ll want to hold more than just two stocks.

While there’s no magic number, 10 is a decent ballpark figure. Ideally, the companies will operate in various sectors and locations. That kind of diversity will help lower the overall risk to your income portfolio if any one company or sector takes an unexpected hit.

Also, bear in mind that the yields you generally see quoted are trailing yields. Future yields may be higher or lower depending on a range of company-specific and macroeconomic factors.

With that said…

Two ASX 200 shares to tap for passive income

The first company to buy for passive income is ASX 200 bank stock Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA).

CBA has a lengthy history of paying two fully franked dividends per year. And shares in Australia’s biggest bank have been trading near all-time highs.

Some investors might be jittery following the recent share price strength. But I like buying into strength. New record highs, after all, are often followed by more new record highs.

As for that passive income, the ASX 200 bank paid a final dividend of $2.40 per share on 28 September. Investors who owned CBA shares at market close on 20 February can expect to see the interim dividend of $2.15 per share land in their bank account on 28 March.

That equates to a full-year payout of $4.55 per share.

At the current CBA share price of $116.44, that works out to a fully franked trailing yield of 3.9%.

Which brings us to the second company to buy today for passive income, ASX 200 mining stock Fortescue Metals Group Ltd (ASX: FMG).

The Fortescue share price has rebounded over the past week. This comes amid an uptick in the iron ore price, fuelled by increased optimism on China’s economic growth outlook.

Shares are currently changing hands for $24.97 apiece.

Fortescue paid a final dividend of $1.00 per share on 28 September. If you owned shares at market close on 27 February, you can expect to receive the interim dividend of $1.08 per share next week, on March 27.

That comes out to a full-year passive income payout of $2.08 per share. Which sees Fortescue shares trading on a fully franked yield of 8.3%.

$1,000 a month in passive income from these ASX shares

Assuming you buy the same amount of each ASX 200 dividend share, you’ll earn an average yield of 6.1%.

To collect your $1,000 monthly passive income ($12,000 yearly) then, you’d need to invest $196,721 today.

Now, that’s sizeable amount to invest in one go.

But that’s okay.

Investing is a long game.

You can always invest smaller amounts each month. If you stick with it, you’ll reach that passive income goal in good time.

The post 2 top ASX 200 shares to buy now for $1,000 a month in passive income appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• Why are ASX 200 mining shares are smashing the benchmark on Wednesday?
• Here are the top 10 ASX 200 shares today
• Shares vs. property: Which Australian states and ASX stocks are delivering the best passive income?
• 3 ASX 200 mining shares to buy now with less than $1,000
• Fortescue shares retreat to fresh 2024 low as iron ore breaks below US$100 per tonne

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.

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As most ASX investors would know, the investing world has had a fairly strong start to 2024. Year to date, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is up a solid 1.24% so far, and has hit several new all-time highs along the way. That’s after the ASX 200 rose an impressive 11.9% over the two months to 31 December, of course. But what about superannuation?

Our superannuation accounts are not an asset class in themselves but represent a vehicle for other assets, which our super funds invest in to help us fund a comfortable retirement when the time comes.

Many Australians don’t have a comprehensive understanding of what kind of assets our super is invested in. The most popular super account is the so-called ‘balanced fund’, which invests in a variety of different assets. These typically include a mix of ASX shares, international shares, bonds, unlisted assets and cash.

Because of this diverse mix of asset classes in most Australians’ super, it can be hard to keep track of exactly how our funds are performing. Even if the share market is having a good few months.

Share market delivers a strong January for superannuation

Luckily, financial research firm Chant West has done some of the hard work for us. In a media release last month, Chant West revealed that super funds were off to a great start in 2024.

The firm found that the ‘median growth fund’ (funds with between 61 and 80% allocated to growth assets like shares) were up an average of 1% over the month of January 2024. That was after gaining an average of 9.9% over the 2023 calendar year.

Chant West also found that more balanced funds holding between 41% and 60% growth assets grew by an average of 0.7% over January.

Those numbers might not sound too impressive, but they are a strong showing for only a one-month period. Chant West senior research manager Mano Mohankumar cited strong returns from international shares, as well as a weaker Australian dollar, for the strong January showing. Here’s some more of what he had to say on these findings:

The end of January marks exactly four years since the pre-COVID high reached in 2020. Despite the challenging backdrop of market volatility over that period, the median growth fund is up nearly 23%, so members who have remained patient and resisted the temptation to switch to a more conservative option have been well-rewarded.

Even more importantly, super funds are continuing to meet their long-term return and risk objectives.

So good news for any Australian with a superannuation fund. Let’s hope the rest of 2024 is just as robust.

The post Here’s how much your superannuation has grown in 2024 appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• Why Core Lithium, Deep Yellow, Iperionx, and Tuas shares are racing higher today
• Why Amcor, Arafura, Brainchip, and South32 shares are tumbling today
• How I’d invest my first $1,000 in ASX shares in 2024
• Why this ASX Nvidia partner has just been placed in a trading halt
• Why this ASX 300 uranium stock could rocket 45%

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.

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