Lanny’s June Dividend Income Summary

6 months in.  Wow, the year is officially half over.  However, is there another way to look at it?  What about – we have half of the year left to make an impact?  I like the sound of that better.  I hope everyone had a great 4th of July weekend and that everyone has enjoyed their time with friends, family and, well, updating their portfolios!  I am excited to share my June dividend income results, as it happened to be – my best month, ever.

dividend income

Dividend Income

As the intro stated, June has been the best month ever, with a total of $1,498.60.  I was only $1.40 short of the $1,500 mark, but I am fairly confident that by September, that should be crossed!  This has quite a bit to do with my investments with my 401(k) at work, as well as my Health Savings Account (HSA), which continually has over $1,700 going in as contributions per month (as I am maxing those accounts throughout the year).  See the dividend income results below:

Quite a few names popping up in there, eh?  I had to remove the bottom row just to fit them all!  Not a bad problem to have, at all.  Further, National Grid (NGG), a utility player, had a reverse stock split and paid out a special dividend, which further increased the record month here.  Sadly, one thing to mention, is Mattel’s (MAT) dividend going forward will be brutally less than this on a going forward basis, as they had slashed their dividend (gutted, in my mind) from $0.38 per quarter down to $0.16.  The amount in September should be around $13 instead of somewhere over $32, “ooph”.  Time to press onward, however, and they only represented approximately 1% of my portfolio.  That is why one must diversify, but mad at myself, nonetheless.

Similarly, I have split out between the individual stock amounts and the retirement accounts, as the ” – R” indicates a retirement account dividend (or the furthest column to the right).  I separate these two, as I like to know what portion of my dividend income is coming from those retirement accounts that I cannot touch until 59.5 (barring any other usage rule I could use).  Here, it shows that I received a solid total of $527.54 (up from $496.63 last year due to DRIP, 401(k) and HSA)  or 35% of my income from retirement accounts and the other 65% was from my individual taxable account portfolio.  Additionally, this shows from retirement accounts that I’m all ready for my set it and forget it mentality to keep that income going.  To see my portfolio – one can go to our portfolio summary page.

Dividend Income Year over Year Comparison

2016:

June Dividend Income

2017:

When you compare your past to the present, it’s amazing how to analyze what happened.  First, my income grew by $398.60.  However, let’s take a look deeper into these results.  First, one can see that I have many more entities paying me now, with Grainger (GWW) (due to latest purchases), Kraft (KHC) paying this month and that special dividend from National Grid (NGG).  Additionally, my Pfizer (PFE) dividend income grew at a substantial rate (no, no, I am not buying blue pills here, haha, in order to juice this dividend), as I had purchased more shares on a dip earlier this year.  Lastly, as we all know, I kicked Uncle Sam’s A$$ for 2016, primarily due to my pace of maximizing my tax-advantaged investment vehicles (to see how – check out that blue hyperlink on Uncle Sam’s A$$, yes I wanted to make that mention twice about Sammie).

Overall, the increase of 36% has been a site to see.  Would I like to see similar results in September?  Can you give me an “Oh Hell Yeah?!” – sorry Stone Cold, I had to take that line on this one.  Lastly, I know there were quite a few dividend increases that were felt from a plethora of companies above, which is why dividend growth is also important, damn you  Mattel.

dividend increases in June

A nice little fun part of the article here, where I reflect on the dividend increases announced in my portfolio during the month.  I was lucky to have four different companies make announcements, and one surprise announcement, specifically, from Caterpillar (CAT).  This was a surprise, as they did not increase dividends for quite some time, and though it was only a 1.30% increase, an increase from them is a pleasure to receive.  I have noticed, not shockingly, that dividend increases have not been as strong this year, especially in retail/grocery chains, which is what you can see above from Target (TGT) and Kroger (KR).  This can be associated with the impact of Amazon (AMZN) potential and their Whole Foods Market (WFM) deal.  Stay tuned on that end.  However, to summarize this here, the increases added $12.25 per year, which would equate to an investment of $350 needed at 3.50% in order to create.  One has to love dividend increases, that’s for sure!

dividend income conclusion & summary

As I discussed with my updated – normal monthly expenditures at the moment, this $1,498.60 would cover ~152% of my average $984 monthly expense for my house, including utilities, my damn cart that I’m paying off and even a trip to the grocery store!  My auto loan, as an update, is getting smaller & smaller and I look forward to unlocking a new cash flow source, so the dividend income this  month and going forward will taste that much better.  In similar fashion –  all of the investing from last year and moves this year, show being frugal to save 60% of my income, that every dollar counts, has helped me in achieving lofty goals that I set in place for my 2017 year.  LET’S GO!!!!

The results have been truly incredible to receive and endure.  I know that it has taken hard work, that’s for sure, in order to continue this progress to financial freedom.  If this journey was not hard, than everyone would do it, as they say, and the joy of the fruit tastes that much better from the labor that is being committed to the goal.  The interesting part about this month, is that my June expenses also were extremely less than previous months by a few hundred dollars, which helped me save and invest more money, as well as continue my pay down strategy on my auto loan.  I truly mean it when you rid yourself with additional expenses and “things” you don’t need, that success  in your journey typically follows.  Bert & I have a lot of great content upcoming within the next few months, so please stay tuned to that and we are hoping to drive more value to the readers, we are excited to get to work for everyone on our end!

How did your June end up?  Are you feeling great at the mid-point of the year?  Alter or continue with your same strategies?  Excited to see everyone’s results.  Thank you very much for stopping by to read the progress in June, I truly appreciate it and please feel free to share your comments, thoughts, questions and/or other items below.  Talk soon everyone and, of course, good luck and happy investing!

-Lanny

82 thoughts on “Lanny’s June Dividend Income Summary

    • CD –

      Appreciate it over there! Hard work, consistency and staying with the strategies and we are moving right along. I can’t believe I almost hit the $1,500 mark! Striving harder, and my shoes are on, ready to run.

      -Lanny

  1. Congrats on (almost!) getting to the 1500 mark, great job!

    I just calculated that in the first 6 months of 2017 I collected as much dividends as in the whole of 2016. The snowball at work!

    Keep it up guys!
    Tall Investing

    • Tall –

      Uhm… CONGRATULATIONS!! That’s the FUN part of investing – just how big the snowball amasses when you stay consistent at what you do. The growth, and reinvestment helps I’m sure and it’s amazing the impact of doing as much as you can, as early as you can. Thanks for sharing that piece of info – big inspiration to other readers.

      -Lanny

  2. Incredible!! Keep up the great work, Lanny.

    The 150% expense coverage ratio is particularly exciting in that you could have taken off of work for all of June and into July and not have had to worry about paying bills!

    I hope my OHI holdings don’t experience the same slashing of dividend like Mattel’s…

    Welcome to the second half of 2017

    • ADD –

      That was another cool part that’s worthy to note, I could have, just could have taken the work off mostly and let it ride…. ah… do you hear that and feel it…

      Okay now back to it – I know, and keep an eye out, obviously for OHI, to ensure they don’t reach dangerous levels. Honestly, shame on me – as the analytics/metrics were on the wall that Mattel couldn’t continue paying the dividend out. Shame on me.

      -Lanny

  3. So close!! Drips alone will get you over the mark in September. Your December will be interesting to see due to your 401(k) push! I like the diversity you have with your dividends, a few names I am not familiar with and need to check out.

    • Stefan –

      I’ll have quite the bit of contributions going into September and hopefully some dividend increases. But the grind is the same – moving forward is where I’ll be damn right headed. You the same.

      -Lanny

    • Div Grem –

      A few bucks doesn’t hurt right? Kidding, this was awesome and love seeing the growth numbers all around. However, Mattel will sting for a moment, but luckily, it represented such a small piece to the portfolio. Really shows that diversification helps you!

      -Lanny

  4. I loved reading this report Lanny. Congrats on getting the best month ever in dividends. June was definitely a good month for me although I need to make some changes in the expenses department. You make a great point about diversification. Even though one company slashed its dividends, you had other companies to rely on, and CAT only made up a small portion of your portfolio, so I count that as a win-win. Looking forward to the content you and Bert have planned coming up.

    • DP –

      Thank you very much for the kind comments! And monitoring expenses can definitely add more bang to your portfolio for further investment, enjoy life – but find the value in what you are doing! Looking forward to the rest of “it all” that’s for sure.

      -Lanny

  5. Dude, that’s an awesome month and awesome growth y/y – so close to 1500 too! I love reading all these updates for the quarter ending months because everyone’s looking so good. It’s awesome to be able to reinvest all that for the future.

    My June was better than expected. I had a surprise payout from a fund that typically only pays in December but even without that, my growth was solid.

    • TITM –

      That is wild, for sure – almost $1,500 reinvested right back into the portfolio to produce… MORE dividends going forward.

      Of course it was better – why? Because YOU are kicking ass, that’s what we do!!!!

      -Lanny

  6. Great progress Lanny. In another year you may have replaced a whole minimum wage job! Like you have your own employee, without the drama. Battle on and have a great summer
    -Bryan

    • Surfer –

      Thank you very much, and damn, that would be fricken awesome haha. No drama employee… well Mattel on the other hand… dammit, dammit, dammit. Hope you are killing it too IS.

      -Lanny

  7. Don’t remind me about half of 2017 being over. I see baby DivHut growing up sooooo fast, another birthday, another holiday, etc. These moments help remind me to really enjoy and appreciate every single day. Now on to your amazing June. What an impressive total for one month of passive income. As always an inspirational post that just shows what can be earned passively with consistent buying, holding and reinvesting. Even with a dividend cut (MAT) you are well on your way to a solid 2017 annual return in passive income. As always, it’s nice to see many names in common paying us for the month. Thanks for sharing.

    • DH –

      That’s what life is all about, man! Pumped that you are enjoying that and taking it all in. Man, there we go.

      We do have MANY common names, but glad to see you didn’t have MAT, luckily – it’s a small impact but will take additional investment to get that back.

      -Lanny

  8. Fantastic month and your investment account is really chugging along. I’m very heavy in my retirement accounts so I have the 59.5 number stuck in my mind and I’m more racing to catch up in my taxable investment account. Right now it’s only $56,000, but I hope to grow it to at least $65,000 by year end with continued contributions unless there is a major correction. One thing for certain though, your next end of quarter you’ll be hard pressed not to rub a couple nickels together and not hit the $1500 mark!

    • Duncan –

      Splashing some dividends over there? $56K is a TON! I assume your projects are close to $1,650 – $2,000? Somewhere in that range? And hey – retirement accounts are OK! Further – there are some fun conversions you can do to help move that into accessible accounts, as well.

      Keep contributed to investments that you feel are undervalued but have strong fundamentals within the company itself!

      If an opportunity for a stock that pays a dividend in September comes up – I’ll be biased and buy them haha, just to make sure I’m over the hump, hahah.

      -Lanny

    • ATree –

      Sweat and tears went into it and the fruit is nice, eh? Haha, but in all seriousness – I still am rubbing my eyes seeing the numbers, little by little – it all helps!

      -Lanny

    • Hunting –

      But you are doing some pretty intense things over there that are bringing you even more income than just dividends! Talk about in control and on a relentless pursuit, and I totally dig it. Pumped for you and we need to keep this going, going strong as well.

      -Lanny

  9. Very well done, sir. Great income report!

    A double bonus of the tax-advantaged accounts is not just that you’re able to save that much more thanks to the pre-tax treatment, but capital gains tax on your dividends doesn’t hinder the growth rate.

    Were you as disappointed as I was in the TGT announcement? Granted a raise is a raise, but I was hoping for a little more than $0.08/year.

    • Catfish –

      Phew, thank you so much. And you are right – the big amount in the retirement accounts means a strong dividend growth rate, as there’s no tax effect, VERY good point there!

      I was disappointed, but given their news, financial position, etc.. – I am OK with that raise, for this year, until they are able to perform better, don’t want them to be in a Mattel position… ugh, haha.

      -Lanny

  10. Great job! I has over $1K this month and think I should get close to that in July as well, but you’re saving a much higher % than me! Thanks for sharing Lanny,

    Passive Income Dude

    • Dan –

      Man, it’s awesome, just awesome. Getting two months of $1K in a row over there? Breezing me in the slow lane, eh? haha, the savings % definitely works out, I have easily been in the 60-75% range most of the year, sometimes it hasn’t been easy, but no sacrifices on life, that’s for sure. Just doing more on what you value that makes you happy, weird how it works out, right?

      -Lanny

    • PCI –

      I know! It was all going very well on the dividend standpoint and them Mattel has to go and continue on their “soul searching” <--- dangit! Kills me just typing it, because I know when I was a kid how cool mattel products were and that kids were obsessed - board games, action figures, you name it. It's okay, moving forward, right? That's what we all have to do in these situations. -Lanny

  11. Awesome Lanny. That 401k strategy is really starting to show its true colors in the quarter end months, big, big number right there! Congrats, you may have a shot at $2k in December! That’d be huge! Get it!

    • Stacks –

      Thanks for the comment and appreciate the notice on that. Huge dividends and the reinvestment is very real from that as well. Also – the motivation to $2K THIS YEAR?! Whoa, statement made and I may have to take you up on that challenge, man, here we gO!!!!!!

      -Lanny

  12. Nearly $1,500 is pretty impressive. Before you know it, you’ll be smashing through $2,000 in a single month. Financial independence should be on the way. Great job.

    • Chris –

      Thank you – Viv also posted the same here and it just seems wild to think of $2,000. Financial independence, a great way to live, free to pick and choose what to add value in life and more of it, sounds gosh damn nice. Lets GO!!!

      -Lanny

    • AFFJ –

      Thank you very much and you are doing very, very well over there too! It’s been a solid month of June and July has brought on some shaky markets, time to see if there are any opportunities.

      -Lanny

    • BHL –

      Thank you very, very much! I hope that I/we have been helpful here on our site and that the community is gaining value from what we are writing! It’s great to share these figures, to hopefully show that what we talk about.. actually works! Thanks again for posting.

      -Lanny

    • John –

      Glad to see another fellow shareholder! Love their consistent increases almost once every three months, their dividend yield plus growth rate is quite amazing – keep an eye on them, as well right now as they have taken a few dollars off their share price as of late : )

      -Lanny

  13. Hey Lanny,

    great results – congrats! – the total of 1,5k and the yoy increase is impressive. the power of dividend growth investing!
    I’ve seen you hold some IBM. do you plan on adding after the recent price drop? I have a small position as well and think about adding, but not sure yet.

    My dividend income for June came in as 288,41€ after taxes wich is a yoy increase of 215%. I’m happy with that.
    https://dividendsolutions.wordpress.com/2017/07/03/dividends-in-june-2017/

    Keep it up,
    DividendSolutions

    • Dsolutions –

      Appreciate the kind comment & words, the DG is real and alive!

      With IBM – I will currently HOLD – would like to see what they do on a top-line perspective as it relates to revenue – declines in dividend growth rate have occurred, year after year, which then you can see the shift to a higher yield. I would hold – but that’s just me : ) Really focus in on industries that don’t change much but offer a solid yield and a solid growth rate with 15+ years of growth, and I think you’ll be very happy!

      Further – I’ll have to check out your income because that’s very impressive, congrats!!

      -Lanny

  14. Hi Lanny,
    Congrats on an awesome month – I’m just going to call it $1,500 of income which is fantastic! Love watching the numbers roll higher in your monthly reports!

    I have to ask about MAT though – why are you mad at yourself about it? Would you have sold had you known a cut was coming (your comments suggest you expected it)? I’m curious what learnings / changes you’ll make going forward if you see another holding where the writing’s on the wall for a cut. Personally I think you’ve done the right thing by diversifying away the impact of a dividend cut.

    Best wishes,
    -DL

    • DL –

      Thanks you can send the final dollar and change in the mail, kidding kidding hahah.

      Appreciate the “pad” of me still holding with appropriate diversification. I had a similar situation with First Energy (FE) – a few years ago – I had talked with around 3-5 people that their dividend wasn’t sustainable based on operating cash flow and payout ratio. Less than 6 months later – they announced a dividend cut. Here with Mattel – their payout ratio was right around that 100%, and I knew that was going to be hard to keep up, so similar writings was on the wall.

      What I learned was this: That payout ratio is critical – that under 60% is big to me. Further – dividend growth history needs to be longer for me as well, just has to be. Lastly – reading more about contracts, deals and talking to people on what they “know” about a company or what they “perceive” a company as – has also helped. With Mattel – I didn’t do too many of these things, which is typically against what I do, and was more excited about their strategies going forward to “right” the company financially from cost saving metrics – instead of being focused in on what are they doing in the “toy” market place to gain their market share back. Hope that helps!

      -Lanny

  15. I’m going to send your blog to all my friends that doubt the power of dividend growth investing. 1500 bucks in dividends is very impressive.

    • Double D –

      Means a ton to me! If it helps your friends to see that this can “work”, doesn’t take too much capital at all to start and it isn’t overly complicated – then HELL YES. Let myself or Bert know if you guys have any questions.

      -Lanny

    • Viv –

      If I hit $2K… just let me buckle my seat first because… whoa. Never have looked that far into what the number could be in such a short amount of time. Gets me pumped up over here! Thanks Viv.

      -Lanny

    • IVMC –

      Thanks for coming on by. Consistency, persistence and taking emotion out of it – that’s been the majority of the game and it hasn’t worked out too bad so far. Slow and steady, I guess, right? Those old tales actually aren’t half bad!

      -Lanny

  16. Congrats Lanny on a great month ! Now I thought you were going to pass me on the leadership board of Dividenddriven as my June month not so juicy as yours :-)) But my May month helped me out :-))

    Which one gives the biggest yield in your portfolio?
    Keep on growing that portfolio…so you can pass me on that leadership board…

    Cheers, Patrick

    • DCake –

      Too funny, you guys are all doing so dang well!

      My largest yielder would have to be Chimera REIT – yields over 11%, SMALL position though. My largest producer, though, from an individual stock perspective has to be Philip Morris. Outside of that, the largest producer overall, has to be my 401k mutual fund of VINIX – boring, consistent and simple. It all works out : )

      -Lanny

  17. Wow you are certainly seeing some substantial gains when it comes to your dividend portfolio rising. It’s going to be no time at all that you’re crossing $1500 months. Keep up the awesome work and I look forward to reading more of your financial journey.

    • MSD –

      Thank you SO much! I appreciate the stop by, it means a great deal. I know that with the combination of the 401k, HSA – those are systematically fueled. I see a few small opportunities out there, as the market has slide quite a bit over the last few days. Just looking forward to saving money and investing!

      -Lanny

  18. You rocking it this month. Soon as others say you will be over 2000. Mattel sucks but dividend increases reinvested dividends and maybe a buy would help but I bet you will still have an increase. Keep it up

    • Doug –

      Thank you very much for the inspiration to get to a new height – working towards that, no doubt. And yes, will have to make a move due to the Mattel news, but will be smart about it!

      -Lanny

  19. Awesome results!

    Our June results were our best month ever too, although not nearly as high as yours. Looking forward to your September updates.

  20. Most people feel it’s half way over. I feel that I have 6 more months to grow my Independence Fund! It’s all about perspective right? Congrats on the record dividend income also. A lot of dividend records are being broken last month.

    • DD –

      Great perspective and appreciate you for sharing that honestly, as it’s easy to lose sight on being positive. I love the records we are setting – shows that this community is alive, thriving and sticking to our guns here! Cheers to 6 more months this year!

      -Lanny

  21. Hello,I am still convinced that I am happier and getting better returns with low-cost passive index funds than when I used to trade individual stocks.

  22. Too much diversification (too many # of stocks) in portfolio would lead to average returns compare to selective concentrated portfolio. What are your thoughts on this issue as too many stocks will end up creating a mutual fund.

    Looking for your thoughts.

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