The Westpac Banking Corp (ASX: WBC) dividend is one of the most popular options for income investors on the Australian share market.
Over the years, Australia's oldest bank has shared a large portion of its profits with shareholders.
The good news is that this trend is expected to continue in the future according to a number of analysts.
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What are analysts saying about the Westpac dividend?
While opinion is divided on the exact value of the Westpac dividend in the coming years, one thing that analysts agree on is that the yield on offer with its shares will be generous.
One of the more cautious brokers is Macquarie, which has a neutral rating and $22.00 price target on its shares.
Its analysts are forecasting fully franked dividends per share of $1.22 in FY 2022, $1.23 in FY 2023, and $1.25 in FY 2024. Based on the current Westpac share price of $20.20, this will mean yields of 6%, 6.1%, and 6.2%, respectively.
What else?
The team at Goldman Sachs, which also has a neutral rating but lofty $27.29 price target, expect even bigger dividends for Westpac.
The broker has pencilled in fully franked dividends per share of $1.24 in FY 2022, $1.29 in FY 2023, and $1.46 in FY 2024. This implies yields of 6.1%, 6.4%, and 7.2%, respectively.
Finally, over at Citi, its analysts are bullish on Australia's oldest bank and expect the Westpac dividend to be much larger than the others in the coming years.
Citi is forecasting fully franked dividend of $1.23 in FY 2022, $1.53 in FY 2023, and then $1.85 in FY 2024. If these forecasts are accurate, it will mean very generous yields of 6.1%, 7.6%, and 9.15%, respectively.
In addition, its analysts have a buy rating and $29.00 price target on the company's shares. This suggests material upside potential over the next 12 months.
