Dividend Income Summary: Lanny’s January 2021 Summary

DividendDiplomats

5 years ago

dividend income, dividend investing

Dividend income baby! 2021 is here, President Biden is at the helm, Tom Brady has won his 7th Super Bowl, WallStreetBets took a punch at the hedge fund managers but ONE thing has stayed consistent…

You may be wondering what that is. “That” is very simple – dividend income continues to come in, day in and day out. The work of saving and investing has paid off, as the dividend income snowball continues to roll and pick up steam!

Dividend Income

Dividend Income is the fruit from the labor of investing your money in the stock market. Further, Dividend Income is my primary vehicle on the road to Financial Freedom, which you can see through my Dividend Portfolio.

How do I research & screen for dividend stocks prior to making a purchase? I use our Dividend Diplomat Stock Screener and trade on Ally’s investment platform (one of our Financial Freedom Products) – commission free.

Relates: Financial Freedom Products

I also automatically invest and max out, pre-tax, my 401k through work and my Health Savings Account. This allows me to save a TON of money on taxes (aka thousands), which allows me to invest even more. In addition, all dividends I receive are automatically being reinvested back into the company that paid the dividend. This takes the emotion out of timing the market.

Growing your dividend income takes time and consistency. Investing as often, and early, as you can allows compound interest (aka dividends) to work it’s magic. I have gone from making $2.70 in a single month in dividend income to well over $4,000+ in a single month. That dividend income record was set in 2020. The power of compounding and dividend reinvestment is a wonderful component to the portfolio. Each and every month, whether big or small, I continue to report the passive income that dividend investing provides me. Why?

*Not pictured is my wife’s dividend income above*

I want to show YOU that dividend investing makes it possible to achieve financial freedom and/or financial independence. We all start somewhere, but consistently investing, compounding (reinvesting) dividends and keeping it simple, allows you to be in a significantly better position than most. Further, if I can grow this portfolio and income stream, YOU can too.

dividend income – January 2021

Now, on to the numbers… In January, we (my wife and I) received a total of $961.98 of dividend income. Oooh!! So close, the big 4 digit mark was right there! We’ll go over this below, but very lucky to showcase these results. The great story here is that it’s MOSTLY taxable and that this is the income I can use… TODAY. The road to financial freedom from dividend investing is becoming clearer. The passive income stream just continues to grow.

Despite the pandemic from COVID-19, dividend income continues to grow, due primarily to additional investment and reinvestment. In the dividend stock purchases article released earlier in January (for December), my wife and I invested almost $4,000+ in dividend stock investments!

Further, though the dividend cuts hurt very bad, I know we did not take the worst of it. Dividend increases have also helped fuel the income growth. Dividend increases are discussed below and that’s one of the best feelings of being a dividend investor.

Here is the breakdown of dividend income for the month of December, between taxable and retirement (far right column, under “Retirement”) accounts:

Big hitters from Philip Morris (PM), Canadian Imperial (CM) and National Grid (NGG). Bringing in the heat! My wife also had a few strong dividend payers, as well, such as Eastman Chemical (EMN) and Bank of Nova Scotia (BNS).

The reinvestment is strong on all of these dividend stocks. Big oil from Total (TOT) is still providing nice cash flow and that payout should be at or above $100 soon with reinvestment.

I am big on 2021 to be the year of dividend growth! October through December 2020 really brought in dividend growth and 2021 is off to a solid start!

Related: Top 5 Foundation Dividend Stocks and watch our video: Top 5 Foundation Stocks VIDEO

Therefore, as for our retirement accounts, we received a total of $162.48 or 17%. The other 83% was from the individual taxable portfolio that can be used for everyday expenses. I need to keep bolstering the taxable account, as that passive income stream can be accessed today/right now. However, I continue and will always maximize the 401k and IRA, as that continues to pay-off in dividends, literally.

DIvidend Income Year over Year Comparison

2019:

2020:

Dividend income, year over year is higher by $111.42. This is a 13% growth rate from prior year. The growth is definitely strong for a January month-end.

First, my wife’s Eastman (EMN) dividend stream is larger by over $8 in the past year, which is solid. Now, Total (TOT), like I said earlier, has gone from $83 to $96 in 365 days. Pumped to see it cross $100. Glaxo Smith Kline (GSK) continues to finally build onto the dividend income stream, pairing that with the COVID-19 vaccines out there.

Second, Iron Mountain (IRM) had a significant increase due to more purchases, with the dividend income stream going from $24.55 to $45.37. I was also picking up quite a bit of Cisco (CSCO) during the pandemic, hence the significant growth there.

Lastly, I tip my cap to the big Canadian Banks, as Canadian Imperial is a powerhouse.

I also want to note, dividend investors are really enjoying the roaring come back from dividend growth. November through January 2021 proved to be pivotal moments for dividend investors, due to massive dividend increases. Here is the article below and a recent, related video.

The plan is to continue to invest where it makes sense and beef up current positions, increase the # of shares I own and set records again in 2021.

Dividend Increases

I received 4 dividend increases in January. No BIG surprises here, but very solid increases.

Orrstown (ORRF) had a nice dividend increase of almost 6%, I love community banks! Intel (INTC) despite Microsoft (MSFT) choosing to go in-house for their server-chip provider, still came in with a strong 5.3% dividend increase, I love it!

I cannot wait for February. Why? There are 8 HUGE dividend increase announcements coming. Check the related link below!

In total, dividend increases created a total of $29.51 in additional passive dividend income. I would need to invest $843 at a 3.50% dividend yield in order to add that income. Thank you for the increases, as I didn’t have to come up with the capital to create that form of income!

Dividend Income Conclusion & Summary

The name of the game is to apply what you learn through financial education. The next steps are to maximize every dollar for investment opportunities and live life on your own terms. My plan is to demonstrate that dividend income can be a revenue engine. A revenue engine that allows you to take back control of your life. A revenue engine to help you reach financial freedom. Dividend investing, once you learn the right way, becomes easier and starts to immensely make sense!

Excited for the future, no doubt. Further, all of the investing from last year and moves this year, shows that my aim to save 60% of my income, and making every dollar count, has provided the dividend growth.

If you are just starting out on your investment journey and you aren’t sure to start – please see the articles mentioned throughout this post. We are trying to bring you financial education and help you reach your financial goals.

Further, if you are starting out and/or want to know the Top 5 Stocks we always recommend, please see our YouTube video, subscribe to our channel and check us out! We’ll help break down further investing topics not only on this blog, but by showing you through video!

As always, thank you for stopping by, leave your comments and questions below. Good luck and happy investing everyone!