Coles Group Ltd Citi upgrade

Coles Group Ltd (ASX: COL)

Another dividend share that investors might want to look closer at is Coles. This supermarket operator has been growing strongly in recent years thanks to its long track record of same store sales growth, store expansion, and its defensive qualities.

The latter proved particularly beneficial during the pandemic, with Coles one of only and a handful of companies reporting strong sales growth despite the economic downturn.

The good news is that this positive form has been maintained in FY 2021 even as COVID headwinds ease, putting Coles in a position to deliver another strong full year result.

According to a note out of Citi, its analysts are expecting Coles to deliver a robust result in FY 2021. In light of this, the broker has a buy rating and $21.20 price target on its shares. The broker is also forecasting a 63.5 cents per share fully franked dividend this year, which represents a fully franked 3.4% dividend yield.