September 2025 Dividend Income

As I'm writing this blog post, it's Friday, September 26th. The temperature here in Central Wisconsin is set to reach a high of 76 degrees Fahrenheit later today. Better yet, the forecast is for a mostly sunny day. So, I'm certainly hoping to spend time outside in a bit!

With that aside, the end of the month is right around the corner. Thus, I will be briefly highlighting my net dividends collected in September 2025. Without further ado, let's jump into it!

Net Dividends Are Steadily Growing

In September 2025, I received $623.20 in net dividends (including ADR fees for BAM in my taxable account). Compared to the $615.38 in net dividends collected in June 2025, that's equivalent to a 1.3% quarterly growth rate.

Against the $543.81 in net dividends received in September 2024, this equates to a 14.6% year-over-year growth rate.

In my Charles Schwab account, I collected $369.96 in net dividends from 39 companies.

I also received $138.34 in net dividends from 14 companies within my Fidelity IRA portfolio.

In my other retirement account, I collected $95.17 in net dividends from my Capital Income Builder mutual fund. A higher share count from automatically reinvesting the prior dividend led to this uptick.

Lastly, I received $19.73 in net dividends from seven companies within my Webull portfolio. The 12.5% boost in Wells Fargo's (WFC) quarterly dividend per share to $0.45 was to credit for this slight growth.

Concluding Thoughts:

The dividend growth portfolio continues to progress. By God's grace, American capitalism, and consistent capital deployment/selective dividend reinvestment, I hope to sustain this momentum.

Discussion:

How was your September 2025 for dividend income?

Did you receive any first-time dividends during the month as I did with EQIX?

Thanks for reading and I look forward to your comments below!

September 2025 Stock Purchases/Sales

As I'm writing this blog post, it's currently Friday, September 19th. The temperature here in Central Wisconsin is set to reach a high of 73 degrees Fahrenheit later today. Thus, I'm planning on getting outside in a bit!

With that aside, I'm most likely done allocating capital this month. So, without further ado, I'm going to be outlining my stock purchases and stock sale for September 2025.

Stock #1: Amazon (AMZN)

My first stock purchase for the month was another four shares of Amazon at an average price per share of $225.03. Curious readers can find my investment thesis in my September 2025 Stock Watch List blog post and in this recent Seeking Alpha article.

Stock #2: ONEOK (OKE)

The next stock that I completed in September was an additional 12 shares of ONEOK at an average cost of $75.92 per share. Intrigued readers can check out my investment thesis in my September 2025 Stock Watch List blog post linked earlier or my August Seeking Alpha article. This move upped my net annual forward dividends by $49.44, which equates to a 5.43% net dividend yield.

Stock #3: Union Pacific (UNP)

The third stock purchase for the month was two more shares of Union Pacific at an average price per share of $222. Readers can peruse my investment thesis in my aforementioned September 2025 Stock Watch List blog post. My net annual forward dividends increased by $11.04, which is equivalent to a 2.49% dividend yield.

Bonus Stock: Brookfield Asset Management (BAM)

I also added two shares of Brookfield Asset Management at an average cost of $58.52 per share. Interested readers can find my investment thesis in a Seeking Alpha article from earlier this month. My net annual forward dividends grew by $3.50, which works out to be a 2.99% net dividend yield.

Stock Sales: Hershey (HSY) and Alphabet (GOOGL)

I closed out my five share position in Hershey at an average share price of $190.81. HSY is trading at a forward P/E ratio of nearly 30, which is significantly above the 10-year average P/E ratio of 23.5. I'm confident that HSY can execute its turnaround. However, I believe it's already priced into the stock. This move reduced my net annual forward dividends by $27.40.

I also closed an 11 share position in Alphabet (GOOGL) in my Fidelity IRA at $254.89 a share (~20% of my overall position at a 55% gain, bringing GOOGL down to just under 6% of my portfolio). To be clear, I'm still a long-term believer in the stock. I just viewed this as an opportunity to right-size the portfolio weight with no tax consequences. This reduced my net annual forward dividends by $9.24.

Stock Purchases: NextEra Energy (NEE) and Carlisle Companies (CSL)

I redeployed the proceeds into buying 13 shares of NextEra Energy at an average cost of $70.66 a share. The investment thesis for this decision can be found in my October 2025 Stock Watch List blog post. My net annual forward dividends grew by $29.458 due to this move.

I also purchased an eight share starter position in Carlisle Companies at an average cost per share of $333.85. Interested readers can check out my investment thesis in this May Seeking Alpha listicle. 

Basically, CSL is an established player in the building envelope products industry. Economic development means plenty of new buildings requiring the company's materials will be constructed. More than half of U.S. non-residential buildings are over 35 years old. This will lead to tons of re-roofing demand. CSL's balance sheet is also investment-grade. The 1.3% dividend yield beats the S&P 500 index and looks set to keep growing at a double-digit pace each year. Finally, the stock is trading just above 15x forward earnings. That's well below the 10-year average P/E ratio of 20.5, which positions CSL for potential multiple expansion. This move added $35.20 to my net annual forward dividends.

Concluding Thoughts:

In September, I invested $2,372.17 in capital. My net annual forward dividends from these moves rose by $63.98, which equates to a 2.70% net dividend yield. Capital redeployment increased my net annual forward dividends by $28.018.

Dividend increases have lifted my net annual forward dividends by $18.028 to this point. Upward adjustments in foreign dividend payers like BTI and NVO also were positives. If my remaining raise materialize, my net annual forward dividends would rise from $6,245 at the start of September to $6,375 to head into October.

Discussion:

How was your capital deployment for September 2025?

Did you close any positions during the month as I did with HSY?

Thank you for reading and please feel free to comment below!

Expected Dividend Increases for October 2025

As I'm writing this blog post, it's currently Friday, September 12th. The temperature here in Central Wisconsin is set to reach a high of 82 degrees Fahrenheit later today.

Now that there are two and a half weeks left in the month, I'm going to look at the dividend raises that I have received thus far and the ones pending yet (the latter will be updated as they are announced). I'll also look ahead to the payout boosts that I'm expecting for October 2025.

Dividend Increase #1: Realty Income (O)

As expected in the previous blog post of this series, Realty Income announced a 0.2% increase in its monthly dividend per share to $0.2695.

Across my 153 shares of O, my net annual forward dividends edged $0.918 higher due to this dividend announcement. 

Dividend Increase #2: VICI Properties (VICI)

VICI Properties also met my expectations, declaring a 4% raise in its quarterly dividend per share to $0.45.

My net annual forward dividends rose by $7.42 across my 106 shares of VICI from this dividend declaration.

Dividend Increase #3: Verizon Communications (VZ)

Verizon Communications matched my forecast as well, announcing a 1.8% bump in its quarterly dividend per share to $0.69.

Across my 45 shares of VZ, my net annual forward dividends increased by $2.25 due to this dividend announcement.

Pending Dividend Increase #1: Microsoft (MSFT)

Microsoft hasn't announced its next dividend, either. Yet, I'm standing by my prediction of a 10.8% boost in the quarterly dividend per share to $0.92.

Across my 11 shares of MSFT, my net annual forward dividends would rise by $3.96 from such a dividend announcement.

UPDATE: MSFT announced a 9.6% hike in its quarterly dividend per share to $0.91. Across my 11 shares of MSFT, my net annual forward dividends grew by $3.52.

Pending Dividend Increase #2: Philip Morris International (PM)

Philip Morris International hasn't declared its next dividend yet. However, I maintain my forecast of a 5.2% increase in its quarterly dividend per share to $1.42.

My net annual forward dividends would grow by $3.92 across my 14 shares of PM from such a dividend declaration.

Expected Dividend Increases for October 2025

Expected Dividend Increase #1: AbbVie (ABBV)

The first dividend lift that I anticipate for next month will be from AbbVie. My hunch is that ABBV will announce a 6.7% raise in its quarterly dividend per share to $1.75.

Across my 14 shares of ABBV, my net annual forward dividends would rise by $6.16 due to such a dividend announcement.

Expected Dividend Increase #2: Agree Realty (ADC)

The next raise that I'm predicting for October will come from Agree Realty. I believe that ADC will declare a 1.6% increase in its monthly dividend per share to $0.26.

My net annual forward dividends would grow by $0.96 across my 20 shares of ADC from such a dividend declaration.

Expected Dividend Increase #3: American Electric Power (AEP)

The third dividend boost that I expect for next month will be from American Electric Power. My best guess is that AEP will announce a 5.4% increase in its quarterly dividend per share to $0.98.

Across my 15 shares of AEP, my net annual forward dividends would rise by $3 from such a dividend announcement.

Expected Dividend Increase #4: A.O. Smith (AOS)

The next dividend increase that I'm anticipating for October will come from A.O. Smith. I'm projecting that AOS will declare a 5.9% lift in its quarterly dividend per share to $0.36.

My net annual forward dividends would grow by $0.96 across my 12 shares of AOS from such a dividend declaration.

Expected Distribution Increase #5: Energy Transfer (ET)

The fifth distribution raise that I predict for next month will be from Energy Transfer. I believe that ET will announce a 0.8% increase in its quarterly distribution per unit to $0.3325.

Across my 207 units of ET, my net annual forward distributions would rise by $2.07 from such a distribution announcement.

Expected Dividend Increase #6: Lockheed Martin (LMT)

The next dividend increase that I'm expecting for October will come from Lockheed Martin. My best guess is that LMT will declare a 4.5% bump in its quarterly dividend per share to $3.45.

My net annual forward dividends would grow by $2.40 across my four shares of LMT from such a dividend declaration.

Expected Distribution Increase #7: MPLX LP (MPLX)

The seventh distribution hike that I anticipate for next month will be from MPLX LP. I'm projecting that MPLX will announce a 12.4% boost in its quarterly distribution per unit to $1.075.

Across my 54 units of MPLX, my net annual forward distributions would be lifted by $27.018 from such a distribution announcement.

Expected Dividend Increase #8: Pinnacle West Capital (PNW)

The next dividend increase that I'm predicting for October will come from Pinnacle West Capital. I believe that PNW will declare a 1.7% increase in its quarterly dividend per share to $0.91.

My net annual forward dividends would edge $0.42 higher across my seven shares of PNW from such a dividend declaration.

Expected Dividend Increase #9: Visa (V)

The final dividend boost that I expect for next month will be from Visa. My best guess is that V will announce an 11.9% hike in its quarterly dividend per share to $0.66.

Across my 11 shares of V, my net annual forward dividends would rise by $3.08 from such a dividend announcement.

Bonus Dividend Increase: McDonald's (MCD)

McDonald's has yet to declare its next dividend. However, I still think that MCD will up its quarterly dividend per share by 5.6% to $1.87.

My net annual forward dividends would grow by $2 across my five shares of MCD from such a dividend declaration.

Concluding Thoughts:

I received five dividend raises in September. These boosted my net annual forward dividends by $18.028. This would be like investing $600.93 at a 3% dividend yield.

If my 10 raises for October materialize, my net annual forward dividends/distributions will have surged by $48.068. That would be equivalent to investing $1,602.27 at a 3% net dividend yield.

Discussion:

How has your month been so far for dividend announcements?

Have you received any first-time payout raises in September?

I appreciate your readership and welcome your comments below!

October 2025 Stock Watch List

As I'm writing this blog post, it's currently Friday, September 5th. The temperature here in Central Wisconsin is set to reach a high of just 56 degrees Fahrenheit later today. That's considerably less than the average temperature for this time of the year.

Now that I'm likely done with my stock purchases for this month, I'll look ahead to the stocks on my radar for October 2025. Without further ado, let's jump into it!

Stock #1: MercadoLibre (MELI)

The first stock is MercadoLibre, which is a newcomer to the watch list. Interested readers can check out my investment thesis in this recent Seeking Alpha article.

Otherwise, the gist of my investment thesis is that MELI is the leading e-commerce and fintech company in Latin America. As the local economies expand, the penetration rate of e-commerce and fintech services is likely to also rise. The company's credit ratings with S&P and Fitch were also both upgraded in the past 12 months to BBB- on stable outlooks. Best of all, I believe the stock is significantly undervalued from the current $2,370 share price.

Stock #2: NextEra Energy (NEE)

The next stock on my watch list for October is NextEra Energy. Curious readers can find my updated investment thesis on NEE in this Seeking Alpha article.

The crux of my investment thesis revolves around the company's presence in the demographically thriving state of Florida. This is supporting heavy capex investments, which has the company confident in its 6% to 8% annual adjusted EPS growth rate through 2027. Honestly, I'd be surprised if growth didn't come in on the high end of that range. What's more, NEE has an A-rated balance sheet. The 3.1% dividend yield is also well-covered by adjusted EPS. That's why the company has committed to annual dividend growth of approximately 10% through at least 2026. The stock is also moderately discounted from the current $72 share price.

Stock #3: ONEOK (OKE)

The final stock on my watch list for next month is ONEOK. Readers can peruse either my September 2025 Stock Watch List blog post or my recent Seeking Alpha article.

OKE's recent acquisitions are unlocking new growth opportunities for the company. Anticipated synergies are another lever that the company is pulling to grow. OKE's financials are also healthy, with a BBB credit rating from S&P on a stable outlook. The 5.6% yield is also secure and set to grow at a mid-single-digit rate annually. Finally, the stock is trading far under my fair value estimate from the current $74 share price.

Discussion:

Another month. Three more great businesses on my radar. MELI would represent a new position for me. I anticipate a roughly 40% allocation to it, an approximately 35% allocation to more OKE, and a ~25% allocation to more NEE.

Concluding Thoughts:

Are any of MELI, NEE, or OKE on your watch list for next month?

If not, what stocks are on your radar for October 2025?

Thanks for reading and please feel free to comment below!