Bert’s August Dividend Income Summary

Well, another month in 2014 is behind us.  The 3rd quarter is nearly over…how crazy is that?  While I may be a week late in writing this article,  I figured it was as good of a time as any to review my August dividend income.

Dividend Growth

Here is where it gets really fun.  I put together a table below to compare the dividends I have received in the second month of each quarter in 2014.  Since my portfolio has been growing rapidly this year, comparing the same month in each quarter will provide the best snapshot of my dividend growth.  As you can see, my income has more than doubled since May. The increase is an astonishing 183%!  I am really starting to see the impact of my portfolio’s capital infusion during the first half of the year.  Here is a brief summary of the transactions that occurred between the two quarter’s ex-dividend dates:

 Aug Dividend Income

As you can see, that is a lot of activity.  It feels like it was so long ago that I purchased those stocks.  The dividend income from these purchases mentioned above were the main drivers of my increase between Q2 and Q3.  While the impact on my portfolio is not as large, I always love taking a look at the impact dividend re-investing has on increasing your cash flow.  This can be demonstrated by reviewing the dividends received from ARCP during the three months.  I have not purchased any additional shares of the company, so any growth in dividend income is strictly from re-investing dividend.  The impact may seem small, but I gained $.29 in extra dividend income without lifting a finger.  Get your laughs out now about the small dollar amount, but the impact is much greater when you extrapolate the $.29 over my total portfolio.

 Another fact that I am very proud of is that I crossed $100 for the first time in a non-quarter end month.  Entering three-figure dividend is easy in March, June, September, and December since the majority of companies pay their dividend in the third month of the quarter.  The pickings are a lot more slim for the first and second month of the quarter, so crossing $100 in an “off-month” is very exciting for me.  Unless I go on a selling spree, there should not be any turning back.  In July I had $92 in dividend income, so I am getting very close  to eclipsing $100 in dividend income for each month!  Can it already be October so I can see if I will cross that mark?

August was a great month for me. I am finally starting to see my actual dividend income cath up to my projected annual dividend income figure.  I can’t wait to write this article for September.  The third month of each quarter is always the most exciting for a dividend investor.  Hopefully everyone had a great August and will have an even better September!

-Bert

Read about Lanny’s month of August here

19 thoughts on “Bert’s August Dividend Income Summary

    • Kipp,

      That is correct. I like to compare the month I receive the dividends as opposed to the same month last year is because my portfolio is over double the size that it was last year. So every month will look like my dividends have doubled! For this year, I figured a better picture of my dividend growth would be to compare the dividends received in the same month of each quarter.

      Thanks for stopping by!

      Bert

  1. Hi Bert,
    Congrats on a great month though! Reaching a triple digit dividend income is awesome, especially in August when fewer companies pay out.

    Is OIEIX in your Roth IRA or company retirement plan? That’s an expensive fund at over 1% Expense Ratio. Are you able to switch to something cheaper?

    Best wishes,
    -DL

    • DL,

      Thank you very much. I am very excited that I finall crossed the $100 mark. For some reason there is something about seeing $100 in dividend income that makes it seem like that much more than $99. I can only imagine what I will feel like when I one day cross the $1,000 mark.

      OIEIX is apart of my Roth. Before I started investing in a lot of individual stocks, I wanted to invest in some dividend funds to earn some income while being diversified in the market. As you know, it is very difficult to be diversified upfront when you only have a few stocks, so I felt it was the best of both worlds at the time. With that being said, I would not be investing in a fund like that if I had to make a purchase now! I know the expense ratio is high, but it is the highest yielding equity fund in the JPMorgan family (3.13% based on my calculation). Another positive is that the stock pays monthly dividends. The actual yields is slightly higher because of this. I would have to pay a fee to switch to a different fund family, so this fund is my best option at this time. I appreciate you bringing this point up, because I have been doing a lot of research over the last couple of days about the different mutual funds in the JPMorgan family! It can never hurt to shop around, right?

      Thanks again for stopping by!

      Bert

  2. Congrats on a great month. It is a great feeling to cross the $100 mark. And wonderful growth compared to the previous quarter. The new investments earlier in the year has started paying off. I also crossed the $100 mark for August and it is a high for me for the 2nd month of the quarter.
    I am sure that September will be even greater month for you.

    DGJ

    • DGJ,

      Thanks and congrats to you as well! $100 in an off month is a huge accomplishment for both of us. We will be writing about $1,000 before we know it! September has already been a fruitful month. It is my favorite as a dividend investor since it seems like we are getting a payment every other day.

      Bert

  3. Excellent month for you Bert! That .29 increase is nothing to laugh at, but rather laugh WITH, like a high pitched excited giggle. Realty Income, my monthly stock only goes up about 3 or 4 cents a month with reinvestment, but I’ll catch myself giving the ‘teehehehe’ ever time I see it 🙂 Keep up your contributions and soon you’ll be well over $100 every single month!

    All my best,
    Ryan

    • Ryan,

      Haha. Thank you very much. Hopefully I can reach $100 in October and complete the $100/month dividend challenge (I just made that challenge up). You know you are a true dividend growth investor when you get that excited about a small increase! O would be a great stock for this, you get to see the impact on a monthly basis.

      Thanks again for stopping by.

      Bert

  4. Congrats on a great month Bert! Every milestone is motivation to keep striving for more. Just think about a year or two from now when things have compounded further and you’ve added even more capital. It should result in a number that will blow your mind. The joys of investing early and often.

    • W2R,

      Thank you very much. You are correct about the milestone impact. Once you cross a milestone you want to keep striving to pass the next one. By Nobember, I owuld love to have $115 in dividend income! Once you start to see the real dollars re-invest to the portfolio, you just want to keep going and going and going.

      Thanks again for stopping by.

      Bert

  5. Bert,

    Great job! The KMI and HCP purchases really gave your dividend income a big boost. I may buy equity in HCP at some point. That’s one of the few REITs I currently track that I don’t yet own.

    The snowball is rolling downhill very nicely now. And you’re getting close to triple digits in every single month. Keep it up!

    Cheers.

    • DM,

      Thank you very much. It is easy to double the income received when two 5% heavyweights enter the ring! I am a big fan of HCP since its real estate holdings are very diversified in the medical industry. I believe there are five major areas and none of them are a majority of the portfolio. But don’t hold me to those exact figures. Plus, who can complain about a REIT that is an Aristocrat. Do you have an entry point for the stock?

      Lets keep the snowball rolling! Thanks again for stopping by.

      Bert

      • Bert,

        At $40 I’d start to consider it. That would be a yield of 5.5%. But I’d really prefer it down in the mid $30s to garnish a high enough yield to make up for the low DGR. That would put me at a 6% yield. I think that’s where I’d become pretty interested.

        Cheers!

    • Agent,

      Thanks for stopping by! I was a big fan of the KMI consolidation. It hsould allow the company to grow at a faster pace and maintain a strong, growing dividend. Just out of curiousity, what drew you to AAPL instead?

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