Bert’s July Dividend Income Summary

Another month down. July is always a fun month because it is my birthday month!  This year, I finally entered my final year in my 20s and will be enjoying this victory lap before I enter my 30s.  The market was interesting this month and there were several weeks where there weren’t any investment opportunities jumping off the screen at me or Lanny.  But then the end of the month struck!   But I’ll save the details for the article…..Here is my July dividend income summary!

dividend income

July dividend income summary

In July, I received $180.67 in dividend income, an increase of 35.57% compared to last year!   The following chart provides a detailed breakdown of the individual dividends received.  Please note that a “W” represents a dividend received in my wife’s account.

Here are some highlights and notes from July:

  • Taking a step back, I’ve made several purchases in the last 12 months where I added to my stake in companies that I already owned.  This was a HUGE contributor to the 35% increase.  This includes additional purchases for Cardinal Health, CM, and O (which I purchased three times in January/February).   Interestingly, based on current valuations, I could add to CAH and CM if I were to choose.  So who knows, those figures may increase once again!
  • It was really nice to receive my first dividend from Leggett & Platt (LEG) , which I purchased in the second quarter.   The new dividend was HUGE and helped offset the decrease from DWDP.
  • Speaking of DWDP, I cannot wait to stop discussing this one in these reports soon.  DWDP switched the month they paid their dividend.  Thus, it appears that I received $0 from the company this month.  Instead, the income was just shifted.  Sure it sucks this month, but I pick up a nice benefit elsewhere.

July Portfolio News and Dividend Increases

In this section, I’ll review two different ways that my forward dividend income will increase during the month: dividend increases and investment activity.   The first table I will review is the dividend increases during the month.

Despite the fact that there were a lot of companies that announced a dividend increase during July, I did not receive too many of them.  However, there were some nice, pleases ant surprises in the listing of companies that DID pay a dividend.   First, I was not expecting an increase from BP as it has been YEARS since they have announced an increase.  The impact was only $4, but hey, that’s $4 more dollars than I was expecting to receive last year.  At their current share price, that should add about .1 fractional shares via DRIP.

Second, I also mentioned in my expected dividend increases article that a ton of banks increased their dividend this month.  BAC was one of the largest and I was not expecting a 25% increase.  My position in BAC is tiny, but it will always hold a special place in my heart since my grandma purchased those shares for me back in the 2000s.  It is exciting that my position is almost back in the green for them!   Lastly, NSC continues to CRUSH it this year.  This was their second dividend increase in 2018 and the company has increased their dividend over 31% this year!

Next, I wanted to take a look at the dividends received from new stock purchases during the month and from our 401(k) and HSA contributions.

First, I was able to sneak in one stock purchase at the end of the month.   My position in TSN foods isn’t large and didn’t add a ton of dividend income, but I was very happy to be able to add the company at its current valuation levels, with a yield over 2%, and before the company announced their dividend increase.   It just made sense and represented a new industry/company in my portfolio!

Otherwise, it was a relatively quiet month.  My wife and I continue to maximize our 401(k) and HSA plans, so we have added a nice chunk of change each month due to our contributions each paycheck. There was one nice surprise.  My wife’s employer announced an additional $500 contribution based on performance of the organization.  So that is why she received over 11 shares this month.

What’s crazy is that I received over $135 in additional dividend income from new purchase, 401(k) and HSA contributions, and good old fashioned dividend increases!  Man do I love dividend investing!

July Dividend Income Summary

This year has been crazy and the market has provided us with some great opportunities and dividend increases.  I’m very fortunate to be in a position where I have been able to capitalize and take advantage when I have had the chance.  This community continues to motivate me to save every dollar I possibly can, push myself, and grow my portfolio.  It is a long journey towards financial freedom and each month, we are all getting a month closer.  Now, let’s continue pushing and make August count!

How did you perform this month?  What was your growth rate?  Did you make any purchases during the month?  If so, how much income did it add to your portfolio?

Bert

29 thoughts on “Bert’s July Dividend Income Summary

  1. Happy Bert-thday for July Bert!

    It’s definitely been a crazy year with the market continuing to produce great returns! As a value focused investor, I always get nervous when the market is going so strong, but there always seems to be a few great value opportunities lying around, as well as plenty of solid dividend payers that seem to keep producing the goods despite the market conditions. Sounds like you’ve taken advantage of some good opportunities over the past 12 months.

    And don’t worry – the thirties are a fantastic period in life 🙂

    Cheers, Frankie

    • Thanks Frankie! Appreciate the birthday wishes my friend. I think you have the right mentality. There are always opportunities out there. In a bull market, you just have to dig a little deeper, that’s all! Thank goodness Lanny and I love having our shovels out and trying to find value in this market. I’m looking forward to my thirties and some of the exciting chapters it will bring in my family’s life 🙂

      Bert

  2. Superb yoy growth Bert! Keep it up.
    I remember when my wife and I finally got married and it was so fun watching how quickly combined finances/401ks and dividends can grow! She is a stay at home mom now so the growth has slowed considerably. The plan is to get back to work in about 5 years when the kids are in school. I’m looking forward to the day we can supersize our savings again but for now its a lot of fun for her and I wouldn’t want it any other way.
    ADD

    • ADD,

      Thank you very much! ISn’t it crazy how fast the 401(k) contributions grow your portfolio. If you step back and think about it, that’s a lot of freaking cash going into your portfolio each paycheck. It is awesome hearing that your wife is staying home and happy, even if it caused your savings to slow. I’m sure it is well worth the experience of having her at home, happy, and spending time with your kids.

      Bert

  3. Hey Bert, it’s my B-day month too! Congrats on being on this planet another whole year, have a beer on me!
    Nice dividend growth too, despite the switching of one payer.
    We came in around €563, we seem to now have such a distribution that all months get a more or less similar dividend income (despite having many quarterly payers).
    Anyhow, have yourself a great weekend!

    • Team CF,

      I will have a beer tonight to celebrate out birthdays. Make sure you have one for me as well 🙂 I appreciate the kind words about the dividend increase. I can’t wait to swing by your summary and see the details behind the 563 euros. Enjoy your weekend as well.

      Bert

  4. Hi Bert,
    Happy birthday! I can see that your portfolio already sent you some gifts in form of dividends 😀
    Impressive YoY increase and I am even more impressed of how much forward income you managed to add this month (together with your wife).
    Speaking of my month, I received just a little amount from CSCO and O this month. My YoY increase was more than 300% but that’s because of the very low base from last year 😀
    And I am very happy to have added SBUX to my portfolio – was thinking about this purchase since I started investing and finally their price looked attractive enough to initiate a purchase 🙂
    BI

    • BI,

      Thank you very much! I loved everyone of the presents my stocks gave me this month haha That’s a hilarious way of putting it. Who cares about the size of the base, isn’t it incredible that you increased your income 300% in one year. That’s what I’m talking about. You;ll love having SBUX in your portfolio and it will make each coffee purchase from SBUX that much better.

      Bert

  5. Good work, as always, Bert. It’s a quiet period for dividend increases for me too. I feel like with the market taking out new all time highs, some of the values we saw early in the year have disappeared. I know we will get some new opportunities. The market will probably get more volatile in the fall. Tom

    • Tom,

      Thank you very much. I appreciate it! There definitely aren’t as many discounts out there in the market. There are some, but it may require a little more digging/hunting for them. I’m sure volatility will increase because of the current market and trade environments. BUt this isn’t the first time that we have have tough political climates. That’s why we focus on companies that have paid/increased their dividend through many different economic cycles. In the long-run, I feel just fine about the kind of stocks we invest in.

      Bert

  6. Congratulations, Bert!

    Very insightful article schowing amazing growth numbers. I really like your position in LEG and O. LEG is definitely on my watchlist.

    The increase of BAC’s dividend was indeed on the high side. Nice story about your grandma. She was a wise lady to buy stocks of BAC. Too bad the market crashed back then. But, hey we’re in for the long haul ????

    • Thank you so much Compounder! I’m very excited about my LEG position and I’m happy I was able to initiate that position earlier in the year. My grandma was a very wise lady and has some nice dividend stocks from her earlier years that have been a nice boost in her retirement. She was ahead of her time and was always a long-term thinker like us. Maybe that’s where I got it from haha

      Bert

  7. Happy belated birthday, and congrats on a very solid month! Always nice to see that forward dividend income growing.

    My July was quiet on the dividend payouts, but I did add just shy of $200 in forward dividend income. Looking forward to August, which is a much better month for me.

    • TI,

      I’m very pumped that BP is back at it again. A pleasant surprise that I wasn’t expecting. The percent wasn’t the best, but it was better than the 0% I was expecting going into the year. Hopefully this will continue over the coming years. Im excited to swing by and read your article too. Enjoy your weekend as well.

      Bert

  8. Congrats on a super month! A 35% increase YOY is incredible. Happy birthday as well! I said goodbye to my 20’s forever when I turned 30 years old last July, lol. But I am looking forward to the future. Congrats again! 🙂

  9. 35 percent is awesome. O and CM and CAH were big drivers in that. Don’t have PM yet but have MO. Next year this will blow by the 200.00 range. Keep it up.

  10. Congrats on receiving your first dividend from LEG! Like you, I was also quite surprised by the 3.4% raise from BP. I bought BP for the current income to accelerate the dividends in my portfolio, but I’m certainly glad to take any raises. The raise from BP was only $0.32 annually in total for my 4 shares, but it all adds up to dollars eventually.

    • Kody,

      You’re darn right every dollar adds up eventually. Who cares if it was $.32 cents or $32. All that matters is that your income continues to grow and your stocks are putting in some hard work for you. That’s the name of the game here and it just takes one small step at a time.

      Cheers,

      Bert

  11. Fantastic growth year over year. If you can continue to put up numbers like that you will get pretty far. Keep up the excellent work Bert!

  12. Hi Bert! Nice work when a relatively quiet month results in over $180 of dividend income and 35% YoY growth. Hard to argue with that.
    Congrats on all that new forward dividend income, as well. Future months will be looking good!
    A belated Happy Birthday to you… enjoy that victory lap for your 20s. Your 30s self will no doubt have to thank the 20s Bert for building an amazing portfolio foundation.

  13. Happy Birthday Bert!! Wow, the big 29! Enjoy! I remember feeling a sense of doom when I turned 30, but the 30’s have been amazing (well there was a blip during year 30 but now it’s great). You’ll love your 30s, especially since those divvys will be even HIGHER!!! Wooooot!

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