Later this week the U.S. Federal Reserve is expected to raise interest rates in the United States once again.
Unfortunately, it seems unlikely that the Reserve Bank of Australia will be following in the footsteps of its U.S. counterpart any time soon, meaning savers will have to contend with low interest rates for some time to come.
Thankfully the Australian share market is not short of quality dividend options that offer yields vastly superior to the rates on offer from bank accounts and term deposits.
Three which I think are worth considering are listed below. Here's why I would consider snapping them up this week:
National Storage REIT (ASX: NSR)
With Australia's population growing and many baby boomers downsizing, demand for storage facilities has been on the rise. National Storage intends to meet this demand with the development of 11 new sites and several redevelopments of existing sites. I believe this puts it in a great position to continue growing its distribution at a steady rate over the coming years. In FY 2018 I expect the company to pay an annual distribution of 9.8 cents per share, equating to a distribution yield of approximately 6.2%.
WAM Capital Limited (ASX: WAM)
WAM Capital is one of Australia's leading listed investment companies. While there are a number of options on the Australian share market under the WAM umbrella, my preference has always been this one. This is largely down to the impressive performance of its funds and its enviable record of dividend increases over the last eight years. This year the LIC is on course to make it nine years in a row of dividend increases after raising its interim dividend. I estimate that its shares provide a full-year fully franked yield of 6.5%.
Westpac Banking Corp (ASX: WBC)
The banks have come under significant pressure over the last few months after the negative news flow brought about by the Royal Commission weighed heavily on investor sentiment. But with the Commission now on a short break before returning with a focus on agribusiness and many of the banks trading on historically low multiples, I think all the bad news is now priced in and could make it an opportune time to consider an investment. My preference is Westpac and I feel its trailing fully franked 6.8% dividend is hard to say no to.
