Lanny’s May Dividend Income Summary

Another month towards financial freedom.  Can you taste it?  I know I am starting to.  However, though sweet the taste this is, it’ll be very “sweet” once the dividend income trumps all expenses in a given month.  We are not quite there yet, but in time, this will happen.  Proof has been in the pudding, as you’ve seen throughout the years of writing articles, and May is no different.

Dividend Income

I received a total of $691.93 of dividend income in May.  Approaching the $1,000 in an “off-month” slowly, but surely.  Additionally, my wife earned $175.93 this month and I am still debating on how to incorporate that into the analysis, which I don’t mind this problem, right?  Therefore, combined, we earned almost $867.86 for the month!

Further, the 401(k), Health Savings Account (HSA) and all dividends are automatically invested/reinvested and helps take the emotion out of timing & making a decision.  The dividend reinvestment adds quite a bang to the portfolio.  Through two months in the 2nd quarter, my dividends being reinvested have added $59 (April & May) to my forward dividend income.

See – Tax Strategy – Part 3 to Reduce Taxes & Increase Investment.

Here is the breakdown of dividend income for the month of May!

AT&T (T) takes the crown here, with over $100 in dividend income again.  They’ve been yielding a highly absurd amount and one can only be curious at the sustainability of their dividend.

Citizens & Northern (CZNC), one of my favorite community banks, actually paid over $100 when you combine both taxable and retirement accounts.  They’ve had quite the year, doing well on the performance side and also issuing special dividends.

Procter & Gamble (PG) is one of my favorites here, as they are approaching that $50 mark and I know next quarter, it will be even closer.   I am also loving Delta’s (DAL) dividend and am hoping for a pullback there.  Bring on the divvies baby!

Here, it shows that I received a total of $266.25 (up from $242.01 last year) or 38% of my income from retirement accounts and the other 62% was from my individual taxable account portfolio.  This ratio decreased from last year due to the powerhouse additions of AbbVie (ABBV) and WestRock (WRK).

See – Maximizing your Roth for 10 Years… Then Set It & Forget It!

Dividend Income Year over Year Comparison

2018:

2019:

See that?  This is consistency of investing, dividend reinvestment and dividend growth working their magic.  Year-over-year, the dividend income increased 48.8%.  If I repeat, that is OVER $1,000 next year.  Bring it baby!  That’ll be the new goal, as I would love to have that type of income in an off-quarter-end month.

New companies that I discussed were added.  Further, Starbucks (SBUX) is new to the portfolio and they are a beast of a company.  Hormel’s (HRL) dividend isn’t quite as strong, yet, but in time it will be.  Their price has drastically taken off since purchasing them, therefore, it’s been hard to get back in to buy more shares.

I have to point out a great one.  Kinder Morgan (KMI) had a nice change from last year.  This was a 31% jump due to the dividend increase of 25% and the reinvestment of dividends in between those dates.  I am looking forward to this time next year, as I anticipate my KMI dividend may be at/approaching the $50 per quarter; so long as performance keeps up.

Dividend Increases

Not too many dividend increases this month.  However, Caterpillar (CAT) came in with a surprise.  They increased their dividend by 19.76%!  I love surprises when they arrive in double digit dividend increases.  Further, that added almost $29 to my total income going forward.

Further, the dividend aristocrat Leggett & Platt (LEG) chugged along and increased their dividend 5%.  This keeps their streak alive and adds to my total.  I can’t complain here, as I didn’t do a thing, but click buy on their stock a few months ago.

Lastly, on the LAST day of the month, reliable LyondellBasell (LYB) increased their dividend 5%, which added $8.20 to my forward income.

$40.01 added would require an investment of $1,143 at 3.50% yield, in order to produce that result.

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 a balanced life.  My plan is to show that dividend income can be a revenue engine.  A revenue engine that can allow you to take back control of your life.  Dividend investing, once you learn the right way, becomes easier and starts to make quite a bit of sense!

There is a nice adjustment to my most recent monthly expenditures article.  My property taxes increased by 14%.  Therefore, my new average is $1,040 per month  Therefore, my current dividend income would cover 66.5% of my average $1,040 monthly expense.  This isn’t including my wife’s income she earned, which would only help in the equation.

If I keep the same growth rate up, could I hit over $1,000 going forward?  Seems like a steep challenge.  I’ll strive for that figure, no doubt, and if I don’t reach that, I’ll be close at least!  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 allowed promising results already this year.

Another month in the books.  Dividend reinvesting, dividend increases and the power of time is occurring.  I can taste it, one month closer baby!  Financial Freedom, Financial Independence, insert your freedom phrase here, awaits!  Please share your thoughts, questions and feedback below!  Excited to read how everyone did this month, as well.  Thank you again, good luck and happy investing!

29 thoughts on “Lanny’s May Dividend Income Summary

    • Gremlin –

      Almost, but not there yet. Time for me to go get it. I’ll need to pump in quite a few thousand more and we are working against time, right? It’s funny, trying to find the balance with focusing on the goal and enjoying the ride.

      -Lanny

  1. Congrats Lanny! Great month! That is a nice payout from T. Fantastic YOY growth, nearly 50% is very impressive! Great to see that you had some strong dividend increases as well. Keep up the great work! 🙂

    • MDD –

      It’s a fun payout from AT&T and damn, I’ve had them for a long time. Between reinvestment and the dividend increases, income is growing between 8 and 9% per year, not too bad.

      What I’d LOVE is to have that tenure and snowball rolling for every company, I’ll get there, but “a lot of work left to do”. Boots on, let’s go.

      -Lanny

    • Tawcan –

      Thank you – Almost getting there and catching up with you! I’ve been loving your writing and your journey, it’s been a great ride thus far, that’s for sure!

      -Lanny

  2. That’s an awesome month! Almost 50% yoy with values that high is impressive. Gotta like that CAT divvy increase – if only all companies could be more like that haha!

    Best regards.

  3. Yet another solid month, Lanny! A near 50% YOY increase is absolutely mind boggling considering your starting base. Keep rolling that dividend snowball down the hill!

    • Kody –

      Working hard, saving money and investing. It’s amazing what time and consistency can really do. Humbled by where it’s at, but I’m still pushing forward! Thanks for stopping by.

      -Lanny

  4. What an absolute huge amount of money in an off month! Just thinking about the power of reinvesting all those dividends gets me super excited! Congratulations on a great month, again!

    DI

    • Dutch –

      What’s funny, and it takes me back, is a few years ago. I thought this was Everest, getting to these heights. Except each step up the mountain, you get closer and closer and closer. You never lose sight and eventually you make the climb. I can’t wait for the next step.

      -Lanny

  5. Almost 50% YoY income growth? That’s compounding at work, baby 🙂
    I think many people still underestimate the power behind that concept. Collecting those dividends, reinvesting it back to generate more cash flow simply works wonders. Pair it with consistency and you got the perfect forumula for success.
    Great job, Lanny!
    -SF

    • SF –

      I agree, completely. The circle of the dividend life is hilarious! Company pays dividend. Dividend buys more shares. This increases income. Company increases dividend. This increases income. Company pays dividend… etc., etc.!

      -Lanny

    • Chris –

      Thank you, I know. Been a LONG time and the fact that if we keep saying that, it actually/will eventually payoff. Can’t wait until there is a “1” in front of that 7!

      -Lanny

  6. Great job guys! Have been following you and other Dividend investment blogs over the years as I’ve converted my investments to DGI. I just launched a website which compiles reviews of Dividend Growth companies as a hobby. You can check it out at: https://www.divblogs.com

    – Bruce

      • Hi Lanny – took about 2 months in my spare time. Now that I have the webpages built-out it’s just a matter of adding each new review to the database. If it catches on, hopefully it will drive more traffic to your site as well as other like sites.

  7. Hi Lanny. Very nice month! You’ll reach that $1,000 in an off month in no time.

    After a long blogging break I have started blogging again and published my May dividend income. Hopefully I can be included in the next dividend from you the bloggers post 🙂

    Kind regards,
    Stashing Dutchman

  8. What a great month Lanny! 2/3 of your monthly expenses covered in an off-month is amazing. If you continue the growth rate, you will be able to cover 100% of them next year. Looking forward to see how it progresses from here.
    It’s nice to see that you received some dividend increases this month as well. For me, it was the first month this year without dividend increases. I wish I purchased CAT back in 2016 when they traded at half of what they are trading today. Of course, it’s easy to look back and you can’t grab them all at the best prices as you cannot predict the future 🙂
    Keep up the great work!
    BI

  9. That looks like a great month to me Lanny. Your savings rate is really paying off. I express your same concerns with T but I am going to keep holding and see how their streaming service pans out. I think it could be a great boast for revenue and they have been making some good moves to help with paying down debt. Overall you have a nice collection of stocks paying you dividends in this off month and I look forward to seeing your $1,000 goal. Thanks for sharing!

  10. Ebba and flows of expenses. Sometimes they go up and sometimes they go down. Not much you can do about property taxes. Solid showing for May. Enjoy those dividend raises. CAT was a welcome change after several ugly cuts from KHC, GE and the like. Keep it up!

  11. Wow, Lanny. The numbers you are posting are incredible. You seem to keep accelerating the growth. Loved that you skipped over the $500s and $600s at the same time.
    Wish I had been on the receiving end of that CAT dividend, too. Amazing!

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