With the entire main market to choose from (and a limited amount of cash to put to work), there will always be a few stocks that I haven’t managed to add to my portfolio. Here are just a couple I want to buy, primarily for the passive income they throw off.
Rocketing share price
I’ve had my eye on Rio Tinto (LSE: RIO) for a while, hoping that a flagging share price wouldn’t rise until I was in a position to buy. And what’s happened? The FTSE 100 behemoth has climbed almost 17% in value in the last month! Of course it has (rolling eyes emoji).
As frustrating as this is, much of why I wanted to add this stock still applies. This is one of the world’s biggest miners with its fingers in many different metal(?) pies. With the green energy revolution slowly taking hold, the demand for the stuff Rio digs up, such as copper, should rise in the decades ahead.
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But the biggest attraction for me remains the bi-annual cash payouts. Rio Tinto shares still offer a forecast dividend yield of 5.9%. Assuming there aren’t any serious near-term wobbles in trading, this should also be safely covered by profit.
Never a sure thing
The chief reason for Rio doing so well recently is news that China will bring in a number of measures designed to stimulate its slowing economy. This should be good news for companies in the sector since it’s one of the biggest buyers of metals in the world.
Now, whether these measures prove successful is another thing entirely. Separately, I also need to bear in mind that mining projects frequently encounter setbacks and problems. Oh, and even when production targets are hit, Rio Tinto and its peers have no say over commodity prices.
These issues aside, I remain a potential buyer here, even though dividends can never be guaranteed.
The recovery is (probably) on!
A second FTSE stock I’ve been coveting is housebuilder Taylor Wimpey (LSE: TW).
As I type, the projected yield stands at 5.7%. This is way above the average within the UK market’s top tier and arguably worth the extra risk that comes from holding single company shares.
It’s also worth noting that the UK property market is finally showing signs of positive momentum. House prices rose by 3.2% in September compared to last year, according to Nationwide. That’s the fastest rate for almost two years.
Too much risk?
My primary reason for not buying the stock to date is that I already hold a slice of rival Persimmon.
Should I break my rule of not owning more than one business in any one sector? After all, I remain bullish on the medium-to-long-term outlook for the UK property market, especially if the new government shakes up the planning laws for the better.
It’s a tricky one and I’ve not quite made up my mind yet. A bounce in inflation could hinder further interest rate cuts. This might then hit buyer demand and, ultimately, a dividend stream which isn’t projected to be covered by profit in FY24.
I’m going to continue monitoring the property market for a while longer before making a decision.
But, in theory, I’d love to own Taylor Wimpey.
