April 2024 Dividend Income

 

Alright, you know what time it is.  Let's do this.

Paramount Global (PARA): $0.53

Kraft-Heinz (KHC): $2.19

Lockheed Martin (LMT): $0.52

Coca-Cola (KO): $5.67   ($1.79 taxable/$3.99 IRA)

Domino's (DPZ): $0.17

PepsiCo (PEP): $5.97 ($2.17 taxable/$3.80 IRA)

HP (HPQ): $0.31

AGNC: $1.60

Gold Hedged Bond Fund (GOLY): $0.07

Kimberly Clark (KMB): $6.24 ($1.36/$4.88 IRA)

GlobalXSuperdividend (SDIV): $0.29

Iron Mountain (IRM): $4.25

Main Street Capital (MAIN): $0.57

Franklin Resources (BEN): $3.66

Stag Industrial (STAG): $0.16

Leggett & Platt (LEG): $2.56

McCormick (MKC): $0.08

Bank of America (BAC): $1.68 (IRA)

Invesco High Dividend Low Volatility ETF (SPHD): $0.17

JP Morgan Exchange Traded Fund (JEPI): $2.76 (IRA)

WisdomTree (DON): $0.12

Armanino Foods of Distinction (AMNF): $2.73

Campbell's (CPB): $4.12 ($0.42/$3.70 IRA)

Baird Aggregate Bond Fund: $5.53 (401K)

Realty Income (O): $9.84 ($7.53/$2.31 IRA)

Best Buy (BBY): $16.07

That brings the taxable sub-total to $49.32.  The retirement accounts brought in $28.54.  All in all, this month clocked in $77.86 of dividends. Interest came in at $7.93 and the "foundation" account brought in $0.09.

There was just one round of buys on Robinhood, which you can read about here.  I also bought a share of Realty Income (O) and the automatic $50 to Best Buy went through.  That was the extent of it.

Pretty light month overall.  Still, progress was made in the right direction, so I will take it regardless. 

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Robinhood Buys: 4/17/2024

 

Unilever (UL): $3

Northrop Grumman (NOC): $3 (Roth)

PepsiCo (PEP): $3

Vanguard High Dividend Yield ETF (VYM): $3 (Roth)

Vanguard Utilities ETF (VPU): $3

Exxon Mobil (XOM): $3 (Roth)

Starbucks (SBUX): $3

Blackrock (BLK): $3 (Roth)

Kroger (KR): $3

iShares Core Dividend Growth ETF (DGRO): $3 (Roth)

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October 2023 Dividend Income

 

Happy Halloween!  As October winds down, what better way to wrap things up than by seeing what treats the portfolio brought in over the last 31 days?  The quarter openers are generally my weakest month, but it should still be interesting, regardless.

Coca Cola (KO): $5.30   ($1.62 taxable/$3.68 IRA)

Paramount Global (PARA): $0.53

Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (VOO): $3.49   ($0.50 taxable/$2.99 IRA)

HP (HPQ): $0.29

iShares Core Dividend Growth ETF (DGRO): $5.07 ($0.41 taxable/$4.66 IRA)

Vanguard Dividend Appreciation Fund (VIG): $0.78

Kimberly Clark (KMB): $6.01   ($1.29 taxable/$4.72 IRA)

Vanguard S&P 500 Growth ETF (VOOG): $0.10

Iron Mountain (IRM): $4.16

Vanguard Utilities ETF (VPU): $0.63

AGNC: $1.48

Vanguard US REIT Fund (VNQ): $0.79

Franklin Resources (BEN): $3.46

GlobalXSuperdividend (SDIV): $0.24

Leggett & Platt (LEG): $2.47

Main Street Capital (MAIN): $0.26

Campbell's (CPB): $4.11 ($0.41 taxable/$3.70 IRA)

WisdomTree (DON): $0.03

Invesco High Dividend Low Volatility ETF (SPHD): $0.19

McCormick (MKC): $0.05

Stag Industrial (STAG): $0.13

Realty Income (O): $9.08 ($6.78 taxable/$2.30 IRA)

Best Buy (BBY): $11.77

Baird Aggregate Bond Fund: $4.61 (401K)

The taxable sub-total comes to $38.37, which isn't too bad all things considered.  The retirement accounts brought in $26.66.  All in all, the dividend total for the month comes to $65.03.  Still have a way to go before this breaks the triple digit mark, but it's not a bad number in its own right.

Interest clocked in at $4.50.

No real moves in the market this month, aside from the recurring buys.  I did shuffle some things around in the liquid capital front.  Sadly, the attempt to transfer my E-trade assets to Robinhood didn't go through.  I think it was Armanino that stopped it, but I can't be sure.  They do offer to do partial transfers, but I decided against it.  I'd still have two accounts to run and there's a transfer fee that would've rendered it more trouble than it was worth.

To even things out a bit, I did buy into Fundrise's IPO.  I was reluctant, as the minimum buy-in was a bit high and I didn't want to pull even more from my reserves, but it was only open for a narrow window of time.  I didn't want to wait another year and I figured this would be a good way to help lay the groundwork and gain some momentum for 2024.  It's not an income generator, but the price has trended upward, so here's hoping that works out.

Two months left in the year.  It's still a pretty sizable window of time to make progress, but it is moving into "crunch time" territory.  As the expression says, let's freaking go.

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July 2023 Dividend Income: U G L Y This Month Had No Alibi

 

Another month has come and gone.  As such, it's time to take a moment to look back to see how the dividends looked.  Quarter openers are my weakest month, but surprises do happen from time to time.  So, let's see how things fared.

Domino's (DPZ): $0.11

PepsiCo (PEP): $2.08

Kraft Foods (KHC): $1.94

Coca-Cola (KO): $5.26 ($1.58/$3.68 IRA)

SpartanNash (SPTN): $1.12

Paramount Global (PARA): $0.52

Vanguard Dividend Appreciation ETF (VIG): $0.78

Vanguard US REIT Fund (VNQ): $0.99

HP (HPQ): $0.29

Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (VOO): $3.66 ($0.51/$3.15 IRA)

Vanguard S&P 500 Growth ETF (VOOG): $0.09

Vanguard Utilities ETF (VPU): $0.58

Kimberly Clark (KMB): $6.00 ($1.28/$4.72 IRA)

Iron Mountain (IRM): $3.92

JP Morgan Exchange Traded Fund (JEPI): $2.87 (IRA)

AGNC: $1.43

GlobalXSuperdividend (SDIV): $0.24

Stag Industrial (STAG): $0.13

Best Buy (BBY): $10.01

McCormick (MKC): $0.05

WisdomTree (DON): $0.04

Franklin Resources (BEN): $3.42

Realty Income (O): $8.99  ($6.69/$2.30 IRA)

Main Street Capital (MAIN): $0.25

Invesco High Dividend Low Volatility ETF (SPHD): $0.17

Armanino Foods of Distinction (AMNF): $0.66

Baird Aggregate Bond Fund: $4.14

The taxable sub-total comes to $38.88.  The retirement sub-total is $20.86.  All in all, the portfolio pulled in $59.74.  Interest clocked in at $4.05

It didn't break triple digits like the other two quarter months, but it's a pretty decent number on its own.  On the other hand, a lot of Vanguard ETFs pushed their pay date back, so the number is artificially inflated to a certain degree.

I do like how the Best Buy position is progressing.  That $50/month and dividend reinvestment combo has certainly gotten results. It's really doing most of the heavy lifting this time around.

Speaking of buys, I made four rounds of buys on Robinhood (which you can read about here, here, here, and here).  I also added a share of AT&T (T).  Just about every other investor out there is holding at best or dropping the stock altogether, but I figured for $13, why not?

I also threw $20 into Fundrise.  It was a 50/50 split between the regular fund and their innovation fund, which is more akin to venture capital focusing on tech-based startups.  From what I've read, the name is the best part, but I figured I'd take advantage and branch out a bit.  If I can get in on their IPO the next time that opens up, then I'll have the trifecta as far as that site is concerned.

It was a light month, but car maintenance is a huge pain and it really jacked up my budget this month. The checking account took a hit and I damn near maxed out my credit card, so I did.  I've already started chipping away at it, but I'm going to actually have to breach my "pay in full each month" system for a little while.  Rest assured; I am not looking forward to it.

Oddly enough, market gains offset the losses this month.  It's mostly just on paper, as I'm not selling those stocks anytime soon, but it did make updating the balance sheet a slightly easier pill to swallow.

Still, we endure and move forward. The year's not over yet.  Setbacks can be shaken off and pieces can be put in place to set things up for future growth and success.  

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April 2023 Dividend Income

 

The first trimester of 2023 is complete.  As we roll into May, let's take a look back at what dividends came in over the course of Apri.  Quarter openers are interesting for me.  They're the weakest month out of the trio, but it also has some of the bigger payers.  It's not bogged down by pocket change payments like the other two.  Not gonna lie, it's not too shabby.  Anyway, let's dive right in.

You can check out last quarter's numbers here and last year's numbers here for comparison.

Kraft-Heinz (KHC): $1.87

PepsiCo (PEP): $5.30 ($1.85 taxable/$3.45 IRA)

SpartanNash (SPTN): $1.11

Paramount Global (PARA): $2.49

Coca Cola (KO): $5.24 ($1.56 taxable/$3.68 IRA)

Kimberly Clark (KMB): $5.98 ($1.26 taxable/$4.72 IRA)

HP (HPQ): $0.28

Iron Mountain (IRM): $3.87

J.P. Morgan Exchange Traded Fund (JEPI): $3.56 (IRA)

AGNC: $1.37

Franklin Resources (BEN): $3.09 

Leggett & Platt (LEG): $1.86

Realty Income (O): $7.11 ($4.81 taxable/$2.30 IRA)

Main Street Capital (MAIN): $0.24

GlobalXSuperdividend (SDIV): $0.25

Best Buy (BBY): $8.12

Stag Industrial (STAG): $0.13

McCormick (MKC): $0.05

WisdomTree Midcap ETF (DON): $0.03

Invesco High Dividend Low Volatility ETF (SPHD): $0.15

Baird Aggregate Bond Fund (401K): $3.52

That brings the taxable sub-total to $34.39

Retirement sub-total is $21.23

That brings us to 55.62.  Not bad, not bad at all.  For the weakest month, I'm quite happy with that.  It broke the $50 threshold and there was solid growth.  

Interest clocked in at $3.37

Realty Income and Best Buy are doing especially well now that I'm pumping money into those on a pretty regular basis.  Speaking of....

In addition to the recurring buys, I also made some buy batches on Robinhood.  You can read about them here, here, here, and here.  That was about it.  Nothing too outlandish, just kept chugging along.  Up next is the mid-quarter month and those are always fun.   

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January 2023 Dividend Income

 

Hard as it may be to believe, we are already 1/12 of the way through the year.  January has come and gone, and as such, we take a moment to look back at the dividends that came in.  This won't total won't come anywhere close to last month's humdinger, but we'll see how things went regardless.

Paramount Global (PARA): $2.45 (+$0.74 QoQ, +$1.72 YoY)

HP (HPQ): $0.19 (+$0.08 QoQ)

Kimberly Clark: $5.87 ($1.23/$4.64 IRA)  (+$4.65 QoQ, +$4.70 YoY)

Iron Mountain (IRM): $3.82 (+$0.04 QoQ, +$0.18 YoY)

JP Morgan Exchange Traded Fund (JEPI): $4.58 (+$0.73 QoQ)  (IRA) 

Best Buy (BBY): $6.71 (+$0.09 QoQ, +$1.59 YoY)

PepsiCo (PEP): $5.27 ($1.82/$3.45 IRA) (+$0.04 QoQ, +$3.84 YoY)

McCormick (MKC): $0.05 

Nasdaq 100 Covered Call ETF (QYLD): $0.19 (+$0.07 YoY)

GlobalXSuperDividend (SDIV): $0.13 (+$0.01 QoQ and YoY)

AGNC: $1.34 (+$0.06 QoQ, +$0.84 YoY)

Main Street Capital (MAIN): $0.19 (+$0.05 QoQ, +$0.16 YoY)

Realty Income (O): $3.74 ($1.50/$2.24 IRA) (+$0.14 QoQ, +$2.52 YoY)

Franklin Resources (BEN): $3.06 (+$0.14 QoQ, +$0.51 YoY)

Leggett & Platt (LEG): $1.84 (+$0.46 QoQ, +$1.40 YoY)

Stag Industrial (STAG): $0.13 (+$0.09 YoY)

Armanino Foods of Distinction (AMNF): $0.60 (+$0.30 YoY)

Invesco High Dividend Low Volatility ETF (SPHD): $0.15 (+$0.03 QoQ)

Campbell's (CPB): $4.10 ($0.40/$3.70 IRA) 

Baird Aggregate Bond Fund: $2.21 (401K)

That brings the taxable sub-total to $26.25.  That's up $8.80 from last year.  It is down a bit from last quarter, but it's only a few cents and that's because a couple of stocks and ETF's paid last month instead.  I'm good with it.

Retirement accounts brought in $20.82.  Almost an even split.

Grand total comes to $47.07.  Still short of that $50, but it'll get there.

Interest clocked in at $2.36.

In addition to the Robinhood buys (which you can read about here, here, here, and here) I also began my plan to buy 1 share of Realty Income every week. I nabbed 5 shares this month, so that's off to a good start.  My daily VTI/Crypto/gold and silver buys are also chugging along pretty nicely.  Best Buy debited my account for its monthly transaction, but the purchase hasn't gone through quite yet.  I'm guessing that'll constitute a February buy.  I kind of figured that was going to happen, but I'm still hyped to see it start growing.

Still need to update the portfolio.  I'll get around to it at some point this month.

Don't want to jinx it, but so far 2023 seems to be off to a decent start.  There's still a lot of year left, though, so we'll see how things play out going forward.  

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October 2022 Dividend Income: Haymaker

 

The stock market can be a spooooky place.  This is especially true in volatile times such as the ones in which we find ourselves.  One tool that, if used properly, can help you navigate the dark and foggy terrain is dividends.  That little qualifier is an important one, but that is why I, as well as several other dividend bloggers track their progress.  I mean, it's fun too, but ideally it will help educate and inspire others to take their first steps in the path to financial freedom.  I've been at this for a couple of years now and while the numbers did start out comically small (they usually do) if you stick to it, you will see progress and growing momentum.  Will this month prove the point or will a jump scare knock me down a peg or two?   Let's find out, shall we?

PepsiCo (PEP): $5.23 ($1.78 taxable/$3.45 IRA)

SpartanNash (SPTN): $1.07

Domino's (DPZ): $0.09

iShares Core Dividend Growth ETF (DGRO): $4.45 ($0.34 taxable/$4.11 IRA)

Vanguard S&P 500 Growth ETF (VOOG): $0.07

Coca Cola (KO): $4.98 ($1.46 taxable/$3.52 IRA)

Paramount Global (PARA): $1.71

Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (VOO): $3.36 ($0.40/$2.94 IRA)

Vanguard Utilities ETF (VPU): $0.63

Iron Mountain (IRM): $3.78

Kimberly Clark (KMB): $1.22

HP (HPQ): $0.11

AGNC: $1.28

GlobalXSuperdividend (SDIV): $0.12

Franklin Resources (BEN): $2.92

Leggett & Platt (LEG): $1.38

Realty Income (O): $3.57 ($1.34 taxable/$2.23 IRA)

Main Street Capital (MAIN): $0.14

JP Morgan Exchange Traded Fund (JEPI): $3.85 (IRA)

Stag Industrial (STAG): $0.13

Best Buy (BBY): $6.62

McCormick (MKC): $0.05

Wisdom Tree (DON): $0.03

Invesco High Dividend Low Volatility ETF (SPHD): $0.12

That brings the taxable sub-total to $26.78, barely up from last quarter. 

Over in the 401K, the Baird Aggregate Bond fund threw in $2.35.  If we add that to the IRA dividends, it comes to $22.45. Thus, the grand total comes out to $49.23.  That is a lot better.  Obviously, those IRA buys made the month.  Be that as it may, coming close to breaking the $50 threshold in the weakest quarter month is pretty nice.

Interest clocked in at $1.45.

In addition to the buys on Robinhood (which you can read about here, here, here, and here) I also made single share buys of Westrock (WRK), VF Corp (VFC), Paramount Global (PARA), and Leggett & Platt (LEG).  Nothing too crazy, but a steady and consistent round of buys for the month.

On other fronts, as expected, the balance sheet took an Ivan Drago right cross to the face, as I had to make a car purchase.  The lease was up on my Civic and while Honda did extend it for another six months, I did need to finally wrap it up and I chose to purchase it.  Of course, I needed a loan, which was a hassle, but there are actually quite a few upsides to this.

For one, there's an endgame.  The lease cycle goes on and on. At least now, I'll hit a point where the loan is paid off and I'll be able to eliminate that expense from the budget.  Not going to lie, I'm looking forward to it.  More money to invest or enjoy, not to mention the fact that it's going to result in a lot less off-season hunkering. 

Better yet, the monthly payment on the loan is less than what I was paying on the lease.  So, if I keep paying what I've been paying, I'll still have it paid off early.  This is the plan, though I'm going on top of even that by throwing another 10 bucks at it every week just for a little extra.  As much as I love the idea of having it paid off in 2023, I'm not sure how realistic a goal that is.  2024 on the other hand, that seems much more doable.  We'll see how things play out, though.

In the meantime, we still have a little under two months left to make moves and set the stage for 2023... or at least prepare for whatever random curve balls the year decides to throw at us.  Hold on to your butts...I guess.

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July 2022 Dividend Income: Where the Hell Did You Come From!?

 

Like sand through the hourglass, these are the dividends of July.

PepsiCo (PEP): $1.74 (+$0.22 QoQ,  +$0.40 YoY)

SpartanNash (SPTN): $1.06 (+$0.21 QoQ)

Nasdaq 100 Covered Call ETF (QYLD): $0.39 (+$0.29 QoQ, +$0.36 YoY)

Wisdom Tree (DON): $0.09 (+$0.06 QoQ, +$0.08 YoY)

Main Street Capital (MAIN): $0.14 (+$0.09 QoQ, +$0.12 YoY)

Dominos (DPZ): $0.08 (+$0.06 YoY)

Invesco High Dividend Low Volatility ETF (SPHD): $0.20 (+$0.05 QoQ)

Coca Cola (KO): $1.42 (+$0.49 QoQ, +$0.57 YoY)

Paramount Global (PARA): $1.22 (+$0.01 QoQ)

Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (VOO): $1.77 

Kimberly Clark (KMB): $1.21 (+$0.01 QoQ, +$0.06 YoY)

Iron Mountain (IRM):  $3.73 (+$0.04 QoQ, +$0.19 YoY)

HP (HPQ): $0.09 (+$0.01 QoQ)

AGNC: $1.24 (+$0.65 QoQ, +$0.91 YoY)

GlobalXSuperdividend (SDIV): $0.14 (+$0.03 QoQ, +$0.10 YoY)

Realty Income (O): $1.31 (+$0.05 QoQ, +$0.22 YoY)

Stag Industrial (STAG): $0.09 (+$0.02 QoQ, +$0.07 YoY)

Franklin Resources (BEN): $2.60 (+$0.03 QoQ, +$0.18 YoY)

Leggett & Platt (LEG): $1.37 (+$0.08 QoQ, +$0.73 YoY)

Best Buy (BBY): $6.54 (+$0.07 QoQ, +$1.49 YoY)

McCormick (MKC): $0.04 (+$0.03 QoQ)

That brings the sub-total to $26.47, which is up $3.69 from last quarter, but down $7.62 from last year.  That's due to Publix's dividend being off, so I can let it slide....this time.

That's just the sub-total, though. We've still got 401K dividends to cover.

DFA US Small Cap: $1.35

 Baird Aggregate Bond Fund: $1.71

That sub-total comes to $3.06.  Put em together and the grand total comes to $29.53.  So close to the $30 threshold, but no cigar.  Will happen next quarter, though. 

Interest clocked in at $0.69.  

In addition to the buys on Robinhood (which you can read about here, here, here, and here) I also made single share buys into Paramount Global (PARA), Wendy's (WEN), AT&T (T), and Franklin Resources (BEN).

But I didn't stop there.  Nope, I also picked up 9 shares of Realty Income (O), 2 shares of Vanguard's Total Market ETF (VTI), 19 shares of Store Capital (STOR), 8 shares of Coca Cola (KO), 6 shares of Exxon Mobil (XOM), 6 shares of NextEra Energy (NEE), 10 shares of Campbell's (CPB), and 10 shares of Verizon (VZ).

So, in the middle of June, Capital One did away with their IRA savings accounts. "Custodianship" was relinquished and passed elsewhere (ie. the accounts were moved to another financial institution.)  The huge perk here is that all the money that I had been slipping into those accounts the past 3 or so years that was just sitting as cash collecting interest can now be pumped into the market.  This is also why the interest payment is substantially lower than it has been.

There are, however, quite a few downsides.  This place is a bit of a dinosaur as it still charges per-trade commissions (hence the larger buys which stand in stark contrast to my more usual scattershot investment approach,) has no automatic dividend reinvestment option, and doesn't even have online deposits.  If I want to put money in, I have to print out a form and mail them a check. It's not the best.

Hopefully, they get their act together, but in the meantime, I've got some money to play with.  I've been doing about $500ish from each of the two accounts each week, so I am hanging with the big dogs for the nonce.  If I maintain this pace (which I see no reason why I wouldn't,) I've got about two more months' worth of capital left, then I'll have to wait for the dividends to replenish them before I can make more moves in those accounts.  

This is gonna be fun.  Should also see a decent spike in the numbers going forward.  It's good because there are times lately where it feels like the numbers have been stagnating.  This could provide a decent jumpstart to the proceedings.

After a month like that, I of course, had to update the portfolio, which I did.  You can read it here.

Kicked the second half of the year off with a pretty good bang if I do say so myself.  There's still five more months to move the needle.  Let's see what we can do.

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April 2022 Dividend Income: Kaio-KEN!!

 

Another month comes to a close, and thus, we mark the occasion by logging the dividends.  Will it be a surprise record breaker?  Let's dive in and find out, shall we?

PepsiCo (PEP): $1.52 (+$0.09 QoQ, +$0.32 YoY)

SpartanNash (SPTN): $0.85 

Invesco High Dividend Low Volatility ETF (SPHD): $0.15 (+$0.14 YoY)

Coca-Cola (KO): $0.93 (+$0.07 YoY)

Paramount Global (PARA): $1.21 (+$0.48 QoQ, +$0.97 YoY)

Kimberly Clark (KMB): $1.20 (+$0.03 QoQ, +$0.06 YoY)

HP (HPQ): $0.08 (- QoQ)

Iron Mountain (IRM): $3.69 (+$0.05 QoQ, +$0.21 YoY)

AGNC: $0.59 (+$0.09 QoQ, +$0.28 YoY, +$0.03 from last month)

GlobalXSuperdividend (SDIV): $0.11 (+$0.03 QoQ, +$0.08 YoY, +$0.03 from last month)

Franklin Resources (BEN): $2.57 (+$0.02 QoQ, +$0.28 YoY)

Main Street Capital (MAIN): $0.05 (+$0.02 QoQ, +$0.04 YoY, - from last month)

Stag Industrial (STAG): $0.07 (+$0.03 QoQ, +$0.06 YoY, +$0.01 from last month)

Realty Income (O): $1.26 (+$0.04 QoQ, +$0.21 YoY, +$0.01 from last month)

Leggett & Platt (LEG): $1.29 (+$0.85 QoQ, +$0.88 YoY)

Best Buy (BBY): $6.47 (+$1.35 QoQ, +$1.45 YoY)

McCormick (MKC): $0.01

Nasdaq 100 Covered Call ETF (QYLD): $0.10 (-$0.02 QoQ, +$0.09 YoY)

Wisdom Tree (DON): $0.03 (+$0.02 YoY, same as last month)

Armanino Foods (AMNF): $0.60 (+$0.30 QoQ, +$0.35 YoY)

That brings the sub-total to $22.78, which is up $5.33 from last quarter and up $6.08 from last year.

Not too much on the 401K front, the Baird Aggregate Bond fund threw in $1.29 and that was about it.

That brings the grand total to $24.07.  Interest threw in $5.03, which isn't too shabby all things considered.

In addition to the Robinhood buys (which you can read about here, here, here, here, and here) I also made single share buys of AT&T (T), Procter and Gamble (PG, Coca-Cola (KO), SpartanNash (SPTN), and Tanger Outlet (SKT) over on E-Trade.  The AT&T buy was the impromptu one that I made when I saw that the price had dipped below $20.  

I've been trying to get all of my E-Trade positions over the one-dollar dividend mark not taking into account any Robinhood holdings.  All I have left is AGNC, Armanino, and SJW.  It's gonna be good.  It'll also be good to get back to adding to positions that aren't People's United, Tanger, and SpartanNash.  I think they've been neglected the past couple of months.

The real move made this month had nothing to do with me.  Rather, Publix announced a stock split.  This is a rather nifty little accounting hack where a company's stock price is cut to a fraction of what it was, but the number of shares goes up in the same ratio.  It's like a controlled correction.  The dividend per share is less, but doing the math, I think they snuck in a dividend increase, but we'll talk about that next month.  Suffice it to say, the number of Publix shares held increased substantially. As such, when the price goes up, the shareholder's net worth increases much faster.  Of course, the opposite holds true as well.  When it goes down, so too does the individual's net worth.  If you're just holding, you could argue it's a moot point, but it is worth bringing up. In any event, I am looking forward to being able to acquire more shares at that reduced price going forward.

The portfolio has been updated accordingly

April also brought several dividend increases.  Coke, Pepsi, Armanino, Franklin Resources, SpartanNash, Best Buy, and Tanger all upped their dividends.  That last one is the most encouraging as they had suspended their dividend at the beginning of the pandemic.  They still aren't to where they were, but that increase did close the gap quite a bit.  It's just good to see them getting back on the horse after being thrown for a loop.  Their aristocrat streak may be over, but at least they're shaking it off quick.

All in all, April went well.  The dividend numbers weren't jaw dropping, but they were solid.  It was also one of the more active months for the portfolio.  With the snowbirds going home, it was a good way to end the season.  The next few months will be interesting, as I simultaneously hunker down and try to keep some semblance of momentum going.  Throw in all the madness on the macro front and you have a bizarre tight rope to have to walk.  You do what you can with what you've got, and that's really all you can do.  Beyond that, how things play out is anyone's guess.

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January 2022 Dividend Income: CON-SOL-I-DATE! CON-SOL-I-DAAAAAATE!!!!

 

That was a Dalek reference I was going for there.  In any event, the first month of the new year is done and it was a big'un.  Maybe not in the dividends, that's to be expected, though.  Spoilers, it didn't come anywhere close to last month's mind boggling limit break.  Speaking of, we should get to that, shouldn't we?

ViacomCBS (VIAC): $0.73

Kimberly-Clark (KMB): $1.17

Hewlett Packard (HPQ): $0.08

Iron Mountain (IRM): $3.64

GlobalXSuperdividend (SDIV): $0.08

Nasdaq 100 Covered Call ETF (QYLD): $0.12

Pepsi (PEP): $1.43

AGNC: $0.50

Franklin Resources (BEN): $2.55

Leggett &Platt (LEG): $0.44

Realty Income (O): $1.22

Main Street Capital (MAIN): $0.03

Best Buy (BBY): $5.12

Stag Industrial (STAG): $0.04

Armanino Foods (AMNF): $0.30

That brings the taxable sub-total to $17.45, which is up $4.46 from last year.

The 401K threw in $0.85, up from last year, but again, nowhere close to what it threw out last month. That brings the grand total to $18.30.  

Interest clocked in at $3.92

Nothing mind blowing, but the numbers were decent.  

In addition to the Robinhood buys (which you can read about here, here, here, and here), I also made single share buys of Exxon Mobil (XOM), Leggett & Platt (LEG), and ViacomCBS (VIAC).  I also added nine shares of Armanino Foods (AMNF).  That position has no DRIP option, so it was nice to add to it. I did consider making that a weekly buy (mirroring a strategy that both Dividend Diplomats have been using) but the trade commission would be too much of a burden.  I'm considering implementing that strategy later on down the line, though I'm not sure what position to hit.  That's something to think about, though.

The portfolio still needs to be updated.  

As noted above, 2022 is off to a rousing start.  The credit limit on my card went up.  Admittedly, I pay in full every month, so it's unlikely I'll ever use it, but it is nice to have the breathing room.  I also dropped one of my two jobs.  Yes, the pizza making has reached its end.  Short term, it might lead to some pace slowing as far as money moves go, but long term, this is definitely the right move.  I'll be pumping more into the 401K and getting more Publix stock.  Beyond that, I've actually got time and energy now to do things.  The work/life balance has improved drastically.  By the by, the 5 day 40 hour work week is a cake walk.  I really don't know what people are complaining about.  Freaking bush league.

The balance sheet continues to strengthen, which is impressive given what the market has been doing.  2022 is going to be a powerhouse year.  I'm definitely looking forward to it.

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July 2021 Dividend Income: Curve Ball

 2021 continues to fly by, as we're already into August.  This, of course, means that Christmas is just around the corner.  In the meantime, though, we have dividends to log.  Let's get right to it.

Invesco High Dividend Low Volatility ETF (SPHD): $0.05 

PepsiCo (PEP): $1.34 (+$0.14 QoQ, +$0.30 YoY)

Domino's (DPZ): $0.02

Coca Cola (KO): $0.85 (+$-0.01 QoQ)

ViacomCBS (VIAC): $0.48 (+$0.24 QoQ)

Kimberly Clark (KMB): $1.15 (+$0.01 QoQ)

Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (VOO): $0.17 (+$0.03 QoQ)

Iron Mountain (IRM): $3.54 (+$0.06 QoQ, +$0.29 YoY)

AGNC: $0.33 ( +$0.02 QoQ, +$0.19 YoY)

GlobalXSuperdividend (SDIV): $0.04 (+$0.01 QoQ)

Franklin Resources (BEN): $2.42 (+$0.03 QoQ, +$0.46 YoY)

Leggett & Platt (LEG): $0.44 (+$0.03 QoQ)

Realty Income (O): $1.09 (+$0.04 QoQ, +$0.11 YoY, +$0.01 from last month)

Main Street Capital (MAIN): $0.02 (+$0.01 QoQ)

Stag Industrial (STAG): $0.02 (+$0.01 QoQ)

Best Buy (BBY): $5.05 (+$0.03 QoQ, +$1.17 YoY)

Nasdaq 100 Covered Call ETF (QYLD): $0.03 (+$0.02 QoQ)

Armanino Foods of Distinction (AMNF) $0.30 (+$0.04 QoQ, +$0.11 YoY)

Wisdom Tree (DON): $0.01

Publix : $16.74

That brings the sub-total to $34.09.  Yeah, Publix paid its dividend a bit early.  The difference was only a couple of days, but it still throws things off quite a bit.  In the grand scheme it doesn't matter, but the quarterly and annual numbers are going to be a bit wonky going forward.  There is one other side effect that you'll notice later that just adds to the weirdness.  This also means that the next mid-quarter post is going to be a bit lackluster. There's no chance of crossing the $50 threshold, though it does give me a bit more time to boost up positions to ensure that I do it on the next go around.

Armanino also threw in another dividend increase, which is always nice to see  

Over in the 401K, the Baird Aggregate Bond fund threw in $0.94.

All in all, the grand dividend total comes to $35.03.  Sure, it's kind of a fluke, but for now, it's a good number.

Interest threw in $2.39

July was an interesting month as far as purchases go.  There weren't any for the first two weeks, then I came back in force.  You can read about the Robinhood buys here, here, here, and here.  Over on E-Trade, I made single share buys of AT&T (T), SpartanNash (SPTN), Kinder Morgan (KMI), AGNC, and Lumen Technologies (LUMN).  Have to average down where you can.

In other fiscal news, the ATM machine at my bank ate my card.  So, while I waited for the replacement, I switched the recurring bills that were set to automatically charge my account through said card to my credit card, which gives me money back.  That bill is going to be a lot bigger, and I'll have to be mindful of the available credit at points, but I am looking forward to hitting that $25 threshold more frequently than I have been.  Really, though, the monthly expenses remain the same, I'm just lumping a bunch of them together and getting money back.  I was annoyed when it first happened, but in the long run, it works out in my favor.

July was a pretty strong month overall.  It is kind of a shame to have the wind cut from next month's posts's sails, but it is what it is.  I'll just have to use the added window of time to make sure that November's numbers are just that much more impressive. Onward and upward, as they say.

 

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October 2020 Dividend Income: Did a Stock Swap. I Swapped Some Stock

 We are now in the fourth quarter of the gauntlet that is 2020.  Another month has passed and, thus, it is time to look at what treats were received in the form of dividends.  So, without further ado, let's get to it.

Pepsi (PEP): $1.08  This is up $0.04 from last quarter and up $0.12 from last year due to DRIP and partial share buys in Robinhood.  

Vanguard Total Market Index (VTI): $0.05  

Vanguard S&P 500 Index (VOO): $0.04

Vanguard REIT Fund (VNQ): $0.05   Even the tiny positions I initiated in Robinhood are already bearing fruit.  It's nice to see, and oddly motivating.

Iron Mountain (IRM): $3.33  Up $0.08 from last quarter due to DRIP and up $1.46 YoY.

AGNC: $0.14 Same as last quarter.

Franklin Resources (BEN): $2.26 Up $0.30 QoQ and up $0.95 YoY

Leggett &Platt (LEG): $0.40  Same as last quarter

Realty Income (O): $1.00  Up $0.02 from last quarter and up $0.01 from last month due to DRIP and a dividend increase.  It is nice to finally break that one dollar barrier, need more positions to do that.

Best Buy (BBY): $3.91 Up $0.03 from last quarter

Armanino Foods (AMNF): $0.19 same as last quarter.

This brings the sub-total to $12.45, up $0.61 from last quarter and up $6.48 from last year.  It's odd because so many of these are tiny positions that are basically just throwing change.  Pepsi and Realty did OK, but Franklin, Iron Mountain, and Best Buy really carried the brunt of that total.  

The 401K threw in an extra $0.71, which is (again) down a couple of cents QoQ. It's not devastating now, but I'd still like to see that trend reverse and start going back in the right direction.

Interest also threw in a bit, clocking in $3.77.  This is also down due to repeated interest rate cuts, very annoying.

Oddly enough, here's where the real meat of the article comes, because this was a pretty active month for me.  To start, I sold off my shares of Diversified Healthcare Trust (DHC) and Howmet (HWM).  Those dividends were basically useless, so I redirected that into a share of Kinder Morgan (KMI). That one share pays more than the two prior companies combined, plus it thinned the list down a bit..temporarily.

This prompted me to sell all but one share of Tanger (SKT), Bloomin' Brands (BLMN), and Bed Bath and Beyond (BBBY).  I hope they reinstate their dividends at some point.  When they do, I'll rebuild those positions but I didn't see much sense in holding on to shares that weren't doing anything.  Credit where it's due, though,  I bought BBBY at about $8 and sold it at $25.  That was a pretty good return and I think the first sale I made for a profit.

This gave me some money to play with so I bought a share of Phizer (PFE), Coca-Cola (KO), People's United (PBCT), Exxon Mobil (XOM), and another share of AT&T (T).  I tried to add another share of SJW, but they wouldn't take the order for some reason.  It was bizarre.

Over on Robinhood, I also made some small moves.  I added partial shares of two more Vanguard ETF's to the portfolio.  The first was the dividend appreciation index (VIG), I think that this will complement VYM rather nicely, and a Vanguard utilities ETF (VPU).  Partial shares of Dunkin (DNKN), Starbucks (SBUX), Campbell's (CPB), AT&T (T), Target (TGT), McDonald's (MCD), VTI, ConEd (ED), Proctor Gamble (PG), and Pepsi (PEP) were also purchased.  This being Robinhood, these buys were all only a dollar or two a pop; so while it looks like a lot, it wasn't that much in terms of capital deployed.  In fact, some of the numbers as far as share count didn't even budge, which was jarring, but I suppose that's a cue to do more than just a buck on buys.   The portfolio has been updated accordingly.  It's a little sad to see so many 1 share positions again, but over time that should remedy itself.  

All in all, this was an OK month.  I am looking forward to seeing what effect the buys will have going forward and hopefully I can keep the pace going not just for the closing months of 2020, but also through the next year to make it more notable.  

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July 2020 Dividend Income: Merry Man

Another month has come and gone.  We're moving closer to the end of 2020, but as we come into a new month, it's time to look back to see what dividends came in.  Allons-y and all that.


Pepsi (PEP): $1.04  Up $0.07 from last quarter due to DRIP and a dividend increase
Iron Mountain (IRM): $3.25  Up $1.28 due to new share buys and DRIP and up $1.42 from last year.
AGNC: $0.14 Down $0.04 from last quarter and down $0.02 from last year. Same as last month
Realty Income (O): $0.98 Up a penny from last quarter and the same as last month
Leggett & Platt (LEG): $0.40
Best Buy (BBY): $3.88 Up $0.03 from last quarter and up $0.38 from last year
Armanino Foods (AMNF): $0.19 down $0.11 due to a dividend cut
Franklin Resources (BEN): $1.96  Up $0.03 from last quarter and up $1.44 from last year

This brings the total to $11.84, which is up $0.97 from last quarter and up $4.85 from last year. That's actually not too shabby percentage wise.

The 401K threw in another $0.73, a little less than it did last quarter (3 cents less to be exact), but up $0.29 from last year.

Grand total comes to $12.57, which is up $0.94 QoQ and up $5.16 YoY.

Interest clocked in at $4.36, which is up $0.63 from last month.

Technically, there weren't any real buys this month.  I did open an account on RobinHood, though. Because I used a referral link I (as well as the person who's link I used, assuming they didn't hit their limit) got a free share of stock.  Now, the site boasts that it could be some big name company like Facebook or Microsoft, but odds are that it'll be some dinky $3-7 no name stock.  The one I got didn't even pay a dividend, so I sold that and took the whopping $4 and put it into 3M (MMM).

This is another perk of RobinHood, fractional share buys.  Even though the stock price of the company is a lot higher than $4, I was still able to initiate a position.  Suffice it to say, I plan on putting this to good use in the months and years to come.  A couple of other brokerage firms also offer it, but RobinHood is one of the more well known options when it comes to this perk.  It's the other reason I decided to go ahead and set up the account.

All in all, July was pretty uneventful. Yeah, the Armanino cut was unfortunate, but reinvested dividends were able to cover that loss.  The slow and steady growth continues, which given the chaos is a welcome development. 

I'm hoping that August will have a bit more momentum.  On the one hand, it is a mid-quarter month and those are usually my strongest months, but with 2020 being 2020, who knows what's going to happen?   Still, as the saying goes, always forward.

                 

                               "stock dividend" by CreditDebitPro is licensed under CC BY 2.0 






















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April 2020 Dividend Income: Down With the Sickness

So, the bad news is that COVID-19 still hasn't been sent back to hell.  The good news is that, while the market was volatile, the dividends came in steady.  Without further ado, let's get to it.

Pepsi (PEP): $0.97  Up a penny from last quarter due to DRIP
Iron Mountain (IRM): $1.97  Up $0.04 QoQ from DRIP.  Up $1.36 from last year
AGNC: $0.18    Up a penny from last quarter

Best Buy (BBY): $3.85   Best Buy coming in with a dividend increase.  This marks the first reinvested dividend from this company.  A part of me wonders where the position would be if I had set the dividends to reinvest all those years ago, but at the same time, being able to see it now does seem like the more favorable set up.

Franklin Resources (BEN): $1.93    Up $0.02 QoQ and up $1.41 YoY
Bed, Bath, and Beyond (BBBY): $0.70  Up a penny due to DRIP

Realty Income (O): $0.97  Up $0.24 from last month due to a purchase and a dividend increase.  Up $0.26 QoQ with DRIP also contributing.  YoY growth is $0.28 cents

Armanino Foods (AMNF): $0.30  Up $0.02 due to a dividend increase

That brings the total to $10.87.  Breaking the double digit threshold in a non mid-quarter month is pretty nice (why is the quarter ender my weakest month?)  With the Best Buy dividend stabilized, it should ensure that the bar remains set.

The 401K added another $0.76 to the table, bringing the grand total to $11.63.  That's up $4.52 from last quarter and up $9.53 from last year.

Interest payments clocked in at  $3.17. This is up from last quarter, but down from last month.

It was a decent month on the buying front.  I added another share of Westrock (WRK) to the portfolio.  I also brought two new positions to the table with single share purchases of Leggett and Platt (LEG) and Walgreen's Boots Alliance (WBA). Both are aristocrats, with the pharmacy drug store chain only a stone's throw away from kinghood.  I think if I can keep making small purchases like this on a regular basis, it'll go a long way.  With the market doing what it's doing, it seems like a good chance to diversify, but I'm also making a point to build the already existing positions to get the snowball moving a bit faster.  It's kind of annoying to see a whole list of just one share stocks, so hopefully, I'll be able to spice it up with larger positions later on down the road.  The portfolio hasn't been updated just yet, but I'll be getting around to it in the near future.

That about wraps things up.  All in all, I was pleased with how the numbers turned out.  It wasn't an all-time record, but I think this is a peak for the quarter opener months, which is something.  Next quarter, though, is the big cahuna of the quarterly payouts.  It'll be a doozy, that's for sure.

                             "stock dividend" by CreditDebitPro is licensed under CC BY 2.0 














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