2022 and 2023 have seen a strange shift in the investing world. For the decade before 2022, interest rates were at historically low levels. They were essentially zero over 2020 and 2021. That meant that investors could not get any kind of decent return on cash investments. Savings accounts, term deposits and the like offered next to no return. That meant ASX 300 dividend shares were one of the only real options if investors wished to receive a decent yield on their cash.
Well, that world has gone. Just this week, the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) raised interest rates for the tenth time in a row. The cash rate has gone from 0.1% at the end of 2021 to the 3.6% we see today – one of the sharpest rises in history.
As a consequence, many savings accounts and term deposits are now offering interest rates of up to 5% (and some even higher) today.
But that doesn't mean we can't get even better yields from some ASX 300 dividend dynamos.
So let's check out three that are offering yields that can smash cash right now.
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Smash cash with these ASX 300 dividend shares
First up is Accent Group Ltd (ASX: AX1). This ASX 300 retail share operates well-known footwear outlets such as Platypus Shoes and The Athlete's Foot. Over the past 12 months, Accent shares have paid out a total of 16 cents per share in dividend payments – the highest 12-month total in its history.
Despite the Accent share price rising by almost 43% over the past year, the shares still offer a trailing dividend yield of 6.67% today. That grosses up to a whopping 9.53% with Accent's full franking credits.
Another ASX 300 share offering a supersized dividend yield is Adairs Ltd (ASX: ADH). Unlike Accent, the Adairs share price has been suffering over the past 12 months, currently down by just over 17%. But despite this, this company paid out a historically high 18 cents per share in dividends over 2022.
That gives Adairs shares a dividend yield of 7.5% today. Again, Adairs' dividends usually come fully franked, so this grosses up to a pleasing 10.71%.
An 11.3% yield from Harvey Norman?
Finally, let's check out Harvey Norman Group Holdings Limited (ASX: HVN). Harvey Norman is a company needing little introduction, thanks to its prominent presence on the Australian retail scene for over four decades.
This is another ASX 300 share that has had a rough time over the past year, with Harvey Norman losing almost 29% of its value since March 2022. But that isn't obvious when you look at this company's dividend. 2022 saw Harvey Norman dole out its largest shareholder payments ever, with investors showered with a total of 37.5 cents per share, fully franked.
This gives Harvey Norman a dividend yield of 7.92% today, which grosses up to a massive 11.31% with that full franking.
So as you can see, there are plenty of ASX 300 shares out there that have the potential to still give investors massive yields on their capital today.
