Expected Dividend Increases for January 2024

As I'm writing this blog post on Monday, December 18th, it is currently 21 degrees Fahrenheit here in Central Wisconsin, but it feels like just 5 degrees! Fortunately, the high temperatures will climb back into the 40s in time for the Christmas holiday weekend. As it stands, we're looking at our first snow-free Christmas since 2018!

With that aside, all of the dividend raises that I expected for this month have already been announced (and two additional raises). Thus, I will go over those payout increases and look ahead to the ones that I am expecting for January 2024.

Actual Dividend Increases for December 2023

Dividend Increase #1: Abbott Laboratories (ABT)

Abbott Laboratories declared a 7.8% raise in its quarterly dividend per share to $0.55. This was slightly better than the 5.9% increase that I was expecting to $0.54.

Across my six shares of ABT, my net annual forward dividends edged $0.96 higher from this dividend declaration.

Dividend Increase #2: Amgen (AMGN)

Amgen announced a 5.6% bump in its quarterly dividend per share to $2.25, which was less than the 8% increase that I was anticipating. However, that's justified considering the company's recently completed acquisition of Horizon Therapeutics.

My net annual forward dividends surged $2.88 higher across my six shares of AMGN due to this dividend announcement.

Dividend Increase #3: American Tower (AMT)

American Tower declared a 5.6% raise in its quarterly dividend per share to $1.70. This was better than the 3.7% increase to $1.68 that I predicted.

Across my six shares of AMT, my net annual forward dividends grew by $1.92 from this dividend declaration.

Dividend Increase #4: Broadcom (AVGO)

Broadcom announced a 14.1% boost in its quarterly dividend per share to $5.25, which was much more than the 10.9% increase to $5.10 that I was expecting.

My net annual forward dividends rocketed $10.40 higher across my four shares of AVGO due to this dividend announcement.

Dividend Increase #5: Bristol Myers Squibb (BMY)

Bristol Myers Squibb declared a 5.3% raise in its quarterly dividend per share to $0.60. That's exactly what I anticipated.

Across my 22 shares of BMY, my net annual forward dividends climbed higher by $2.40 from this dividend declaration.

Dividend Increase #6: CVS Health (CVS)

CVS Health announced a 9.9% boost in its quarterly dividend per share to $0.665, which was just above the $0.66 that I predicted.

My net annual forward dividends grew by $3.60 across my 15 shares of CVS due to this dividend announcement.

Dividend Increase #7: Eastman Chemical (EMN)

Eastman Chemical declared a 2.5% increase in its quarterly dividend per share to $0.81. That was less than the $0.82 that I expected.

Across my seven shares of EMN, my net annual forward dividends rose by $0.56 from this dividend declaration.

Dividend Increase #8: Innovative Industrial Properties (IIPR)

Innovative Industrial Properties announced a 1.1% raise in its quarterly dividend per share.

My net annual forward dividends inched $0.48 higher across my six shares of IIPR due to this dividend announcement.

Dividend Increase #9: Mastercard (MA)

Mastercard declared a 15.8% boost in its quarterly dividend per share to $0.66, which was what I predicted.

Across my four shares of MA, my net annual forward dividends grew by $1.44 from this dividend declaration.

Dividend Increase #10: Realty Income (O)

Realty Income announced a 0.2% increase in its monthly dividend per share to $0.2565. This was in line with my expectations.

My net annual forward dividends edged higher by $0.144 across my 24 shares of O due to this dividend announcement.

Dividend Increase #11: Pfizer (PFE)

Pfizer declared a 2.4% raise in its quarterly dividend per share to $0.42, which was what I forecasted.

Across my 26 shares of PFE, my net annual forward dividends rose by $1.04 from this dividend declaration.

Dividend Increase #12: U.S. Bancorp (USB)

U.S. Bancorp announced a 2.1% bump in its quarterly dividend per share to $0.49.

My net annual forward dividends increased by $1.04 across my 26 shares of USB due to this dividend announcement.

Expected Dividend Increases for January 2024

Expected Dividend Increase #1: Air Products & Chemicals (APD)

My best guess is that Air Products & Chemicals will declare an 8% boost in its quarterly dividend per share to $1.89.

Across my five shares of APD, my net annual forward dividends would grow by $2.80 from such a dividend declaration.

Expected Dividend Increase #2: BlackRock (BLK)

I believe that BlackRock will announce a 2% increase in its quarterly dividend per share to $5.10.

My net annual forward dividends would rise by $0.80 across my two shares of BLK if this dividend announcement materializes.

Expected Dividend Increase #3: Comcast (CMCSA)

My projection is that Comcast will declare a 6.9% raise in its quarterly dividend per share to $0.31.

Across my 39 shares of CMCSA, my net annual forward dividends would surge higher by $3.12 from such a dividend declaration.

Expected Distribution Increase #4: Enterprise Products Partners (EPD)

My best guess is that Enterprise Products Partners will up its quarterly distribution per unit by 2% to $0.51.

My net annual forward distributions would rise by $2.08 across my 52 units of EPD if this prediction pans out.

Expected Distribution Increase #5: Energy Transfer (ET)

I predict that Energy Transfer will announce a 0.8% raise in its quarterly distribution per unit to $0.315.

Across my 86 units of ET, my net annual forward distributions would grow by $0.86 from such a dividend announcement.

Expected Dividend Increase #6: Kimberly Clark (KMB)

My forecast is that Kimberly Clark will declare a 3.4% increase in its quarterly dividend per share to $1.22.

My net annual forward dividends would rise by $0.64 across my four shares of KMB if this prediction becomes reality.

Expected Dividend Increase #7: Kinder Morgan (KMI)

My best guess is that Kinder Morgan will announce a 2.7% raise in its quarterly dividend per share to $0.29.

Across my 64 shares of KMI, my net annual forward dividends would increase by $1.92 from such a dividend announcement.

Expected Dividend Increase #8: Alliant Energy (LNT)

I predict that Alliant Energy will declare a 6.1% boost in its quarterly dividend per share to $0.48.

My net annual forward dividends would grow by $1.43 across my 13 shares of LNT if this dividend declaration occurs.

Expected Dividend Increase #9: ONEOK (OKE)

I believe that ONEOK will announce a 2.1% increase in its quarterly dividend per share to $0.975.

Across my 34 shares of OKE, my net annual forward dividends would rise by $2.72 from such a dividend announcement.

Expected Dividend Increase #10: WEC Energy Group (WEC)

My best guess is that WEC Energy Group will declare a 6.7% raise in its quarterly dividend per share to $0.8325.

My net annual forward dividends would increase by $2.52 across my 12 shares of WEC if this dividend declaration happens.

Concluding Thoughts:

The 12 dividend boosts that I received in December helped my net annual forward dividends grow by $26.864. For context, it would take an $895.47 investment at a 3% yield to replicate the effect of dividend growth on my portfolio for the month.

Looking ahead to next month, I anticipate that I will receive an $18.89 lift in my net annual forward dividends from 10 dividend raises. That is like investing $629.67 at a 3% dividend yield.

Discussion:

How have your dividend increases been thus far for December 2023?

Did you benefit from any first-time dividend boosts?

I appreciate your readership and welcome your comments below!

November 2023 Dividend Income

As I'm writing this blog post, it is currently December 11th. Surprisingly, the temperatures are still holding above the average for this time of year here in Central Wisconsin. It's currently 23 degrees Fahrenheit and it is expected to reach a high of 27 degrees Fahrenheit later today.

With that aside, I will detail my dividend income for November 2023. Let's dig in!

In November 2023, I collected $327.57 in net dividends. That equates to a 7.1% growth rate compared to the $305.77 in net dividends that I received from my portfolio in August 2023.

My net dividends were 43.3% greater than the $228.67 in net dividends that I collected in November 2022.

Diving deeper, I received $311.97 in net dividends from 30 companies within my Robinhood portfolio. My net dividends collected from my Webull account were $15.20 from three companies (also factoring in $0.06 of ADR fees for British American Tobacco). Lastly, I received $0.40 in net dividends from 16 companies within my M1 Finance portfolio.

The net dividends that I collected from August 2023 to November 2023 grew by $21.80, which was due to the following activity in my account:

I received an extra $0.40 from Starbucks (SBUX) within my Robinhood portfolio. That was the result of the 7.5% raise in its quarterly dividend per share to $0.57.

My net distributions collected from Energy Transfer (ET) in my Robinhood and Webull accounts grew by $0.22, which was due to the 0.8% increase in its quarterly distribution per unit to $0.3125.

I received an additional $0.15 in net dividends from Main Street Capital (MAIN) within my Robinhood portfolio. This was the result of a 2.2% raise in its monthly dividend per share to $0.235.

My net dividends collected from Realty Income (O) grew by $0.01 in my Robinhood account, which was due to the 0.2% increase in its monthly dividend per share to $0.256.

I received an extra $0.16 in net dividends from Tanger Inc. (SKT) within my Robinhood portfolio. This was the result of a 6.1% bump in its quarterly dividend per share to $0.26.

My net dividends received from AbbVie (ABBV) surged $4.44 higher in my Robinhood account, which was due to a 4.7% raise in its quarterly dividend per share to $1.55 and my addition of three shares in August.

I received an additional $0.24 in net dividends from A.O. Smith (AOS) within my Robinhood portfolio. That can be explained by the 6.7% raise in its quarterly dividend per share to $0.32.

My passive income collected from Magellan Midstream Partners (MMP) declined by $16.77 in my Robinhood account. However, this was mostly offset with an additional $16.24 in dividends from ONEOK (OKE) from a higher share count. That is how my net dividends declined by just $0.53 from this transaction.

I received $0.72 in extra dividends from Texas Instruments (TXN) within my Robinhood portfolio, which was the result of a 4.8% increase in its quarterly dividend per share to $1.30.

My net dividends collected from British American Tobacco (BTI) dipped by $0.55 in my Robinhood and Webull accounts. This was due to the variability of foreign currency translation.

I received an additional $2.20 in net dividends from Lowe's (LOW) within my Robinhood portfolio, which was thanks to a purchase of another two shares in August.

My net dividends collected from Verizon Communications (VZ) grew by $10.35 in my Robinhood account. This was due to the 1.9% raise in its quarterly dividend per share to $0.665, as well as my addition of 15 shares in July.

I received an extra $3.99 in net dividends from Bristol Myers Squibb (BMY) within my Robinhood portfolio, which was due to my purchase of seven more shares in July.

Concluding Thoughts:

Due to dividend increases and one additional dividend payer that will be in the mix for February 2024, this should be my final middle month of the quarter below $350 in net dividend income. Starting in February, I'm also aiming to begin allocating between $1,500 and $2,000 in capital each month.

Discussion:

How was your dividend income for November 2023?

Did you collect any first-time dividend payments?

Thanks for reading and please feel free to comment below!

November 2023 Dividend Stock Purchases

As I'm writing this blog post, it's already December 4th. The weather remains uncharacteristically warm for this time of year here in Central Wisconsin. It's also my nephew's 9th birthday today, which really drives home the idea that the older you get, the more time flies (it seems like just yesterday, he was a baby).

Now that the month of November is over, it is time to go over my stock purchases/sale activity for that period.

My first sale of the month was all 64 shares of Medical Properties Trust (MPW) at $4.81 a share. This reduced my net annual forward dividends by $38.40. My decision to sell out of MPW was based largely on this analysis from Dividend Sensei. For the sake of brevity, MPW has significant maturities that are coming due soon. This could force the company to cut its dividend once again to preserve liquidity, which could lead to significant underperformance moving forward as well.

The other sale for November was all six shares of MMM (MMM) at $99.10 a share. That lowered my net annual forward dividends by $36. As Dividend Sensei explained, mounting legal costs and a diminishing growth outlook could result in an eventual dividend cut from MMM. Besides some rare exceptions like Energy Transfer in 2020, dividend or distribution cuts tend to lead to poor investment results. I'm basically trying to get out ahead of a potential cut from MMM and redeploy proceeds into a more fundamentally strong and stable high-yielder.

That brings me to my purchase of 25 shares of MPLX LP (MPLX) at an average cost of $36.22 a share. This purchase added $85 to my net annual forward distributions, which equates to a 9.39% distribution yield. The impetus for this investment decision and my investment research that followed was again thanks to Dividend Sensei's recent article.

Concluding Thoughts:

My investment decisions for November boosted my net annual forward distributions by $10.60. More importantly, I believe that the objective quality of my portfolio improved from these transactions.

Combined with the $11.28 in dividend increases that I received during the month, my net annual forward dividends surged from nearly $4,260 to start the month to $4,280 by the end of it.

Discussion:

How was your November 2023 for capital deployment?

Did you sell any stocks as I did during the month?

Thanks for your readership and please leave your thoughts below!

Expected Dividend Increases for December 2023

As I'm writing this blog post, it's hard to believe it is December 1st. If it weren't for a glance at the calendar, you wouldn't know that it is December here in Central Wisconsin. It currently feels like 33 degrees Fahrenheit, which is pretty great for this time of year.

With that aside, now is time to look at the dividend increases that I received last month. I will also preview the dividend announcements that I expect for this month. Let's dig in!

Actual Dividend Increases for November 2023

Dividend Increase #1: Main Street Capital (MAIN)

Main Street Capital announced a 2.1% increase in its monthly dividend per share to $0.24, which met my forecast.

This dividend bump raised my net annual forward dividends by $1.80 across my 30 shares of MAIN.

Dividend Increase #2: Aflac (AFL)

Aflac declared a 19% hike in its quarterly dividend per share to $0.50. This was well above my expectation of a 4.8% increase to $0.44.

Across my 11 shares of AFL, my net annual forward dividends surged higher by $3.52 due to this dividend declaration.

Dividend Increase #3: Automatic Data Processing (ADP)

Automatic Data Processing announced a 12% boost in its quarterly dividend per share to $1.40, which was just above my prediction of 10.4% and $1.38.

My net annual forward dividends grew by $4.20 across my seven shares of ADP as a result of this dividend announcement.

Dividend Increase #4: Merck (MRK)

Merck declared a 5.5% increase in its quarterly dividend per share to $0.77. This was also in line with my projection.

Across my 11 shares of MRK, my net annual forward dividends rose by $1.76 due to this dividend declaration.

Dividend Freeze: Simon Property Group (SPG)

Simon Property Group announced that it was keeping its quarterly dividend per share in line with the previous of $1.90. I don't really mind SPG's conservatism in light of the current environment, so I am fine with a pause on the dividend increases.

Expected Dividend Increases for December 2023

Expected Dividend Increase #1: Realty Income (O)

I believe Realty Income will declare a 0.2% increase in its monthly dividend per share to $0.2565.

Across my 24 shares of O, my net annual forward dividends would rise by $0.144 from such a declaration.

Expected Dividend Increase #2: Abbott Laboratories (ABT)

My best guess is that Abbott Laboratories will announce a 5.9% boost in its quarterly dividend per share to $0.54.

My net annual forward dividends would grow by $0.72 across my six shares of ABT if such an announcement plays out.

Expected Dividend Increase #3: Amgen (AMGN)

I predict that Amgen will declare an 8% raise in its quarterly dividend per share to $2.30.

Across my six shares of AMGN, my net annual forward dividends would increase by $4.08 from such a declaration.

Expected Dividend Increase #4: American Tower (AMT)

I believe that American Tower will announce a 3.7% increase in its quarterly dividend per share to $1.68.

My net annual forward dividends would rise by $1.44 across my six shares of AMT if such an announcement materializes.

Expected Dividend Increase #5: Bristol Myers Squibb (BMY)

My best guess is that Bristol Myers Squibb will declare a 5.3% raise in its quarterly dividend per share to $0.60.

Across my 22 shares of BMY, my net annual forward dividends would grow by $2.64 from such a declaration.

Expected Dividend Increase #6: Broadcom (AVGO)

I predict that Broadcom will announce a 10.9% boost in its quarterly dividend per share to $5.10.

My net annual forward dividends would rise by $8 across my four shares of AVGO if such an announcement plays out.

Expected Dividend Increase #7: CVS Health (CVS)

I believe that CVS Health will declare a 9.1% increase in its quarterly dividend per share to $0.66.

Across my 15 shares of CVS, my net annual forward dividends would increase by $3.30 from such a declaration.

Expected Dividend Increase #8: Eastman Chemical (EMN)

My best guess is that Eastman Chemical will announce a 3.8% raise in its quarterly dividend per share to $0.82.

My net annual forward dividends would grow by $0.84 across my seven shares of EMN if such an announcement materializes.

Expected Dividend Increase #9: Pfizer (PFE)

I predict that Pfizer will declare a 2.4% increase in its quarterly dividend per share to $0.42.

Across my 26 shares of PFE, my net annual forward dividends would rise by $1.04 from such a declaration.

Expected Dividend Increase #10: Mastercard (MA)

I believe that Mastercard will announce a 15.8% boost in its quarterly dividend per share to $0.66.

My net annual forward dividends would increase by $1.44 across my four shares of MA if my estimate pans out.

Concluding Thoughts:

There you have it. I am slated to receive an additional $11.28 in net annual forward dividends due to the four increases last month. It would take $376 invested at a 3% dividend yield to replicate the effect that dividend increases had on my income.

This month is poised to be a pretty busy one on the dividend announcement front, so it will be interesting to see how they all play out! If these predictions play out as anticipated, my net annual forward dividends would surge higher by $23.644. This would be equivalent to investing $788.13 at a 3% dividend yield.

Discussion:

How were your dividend increases for the month of November?

Did you receive any first-time raises as I did with ADP?

Thanks for reading and please feel free to comment below!

Weather Update And Interesting Thoughts On Visa

As I'm writing this blog post on Thursday, November 16th, the weather here in Central Wisconsin is beautiful. This is especially true for this time of year. It's expected to reach a high of 62 degrees Fahrenheit today. Ergo, I plan on getting outside soon.

As readers will recall from my updated posting schedule blog post, my writing one week out of each month will be meaningfully reduced. That's because I am settling into a role at Dividend Kings and also working on building my emergency fund up. Thus, I won't resume writing my monthly stock watch list post likely until January 2024.

In the meantime, here are just thoughts that popped up in my head shortly after writing an article on Visa (V) over at Seeking Alpha.

Visa Practically Has License To Print Money

One of the biggest takeaways from my article continued to be V's unbelievable profit margins. In the first nine months of its fiscal year 2023, the company turned 54.4 cents out of each $1 of net revenue into free cash flow.

Short of printing money, the closest thing that I can think of in terms of free cash flow margins to V is my home state's lottery. In the last 35 years, the Wisconsin Lottery has paid 56.9% of its revenue out in prizes. Operational expenses accounted for another 6.4% of total revenue over that time.

This implies that the Wisconsin Lottery's profit margin since its inception has been in the high-30% range. To me, this is just mindboggling and really goes to show just how lucrative V's business model and wide competitive moat make it.

Concluding Thoughts:

That's all I really have for this week, so I hope readers found value in the additional perspective regarding V's amazing profitability. Soon, I plan on highlighting the dividend raises that I received in November to date and looking ahead to December.

Discussion:

Since I'm not aware of any business that is more profitable than V, do you know of any publicly traded companies with higher margins?

Thank you for your readership and I look forward to your comments below!

Happy Thanksgiving To Everyone!

As I'm writing this blog post here on November 20th, it is the week of Thanksgiving. I just wanted to wish everybody a Happy Thanksgiving. I'll also just briefly highlight a few things that I am grateful for and leave it at that for this week.

Gratitude #1: Family

As is the case with at least some of us in the investing community, there have been times that I have lost sight of my blessings in my pursuit of wealth. I often look toward the future in anticipation of hopefully one day being on a very financially sound footing.

But this time of year especially, I'm so fortunate to have a mother, father, grandmother, uncle, brother, sister-in-law, and nephew who I at least spend some time with each week. I have been trying to live less in the future and more in the present of late. Spending quality time with my family has helped me in this regard.

My spending habits are modest by American standards. So, I need to remind myself that the real reason I am investing in the first place is to be able to extend charity toward my family and toward non-profits about which I am passionate. In times of financial need, I hope to be there for my family and others.

Gratitude #2: Health

As somebody with anxiety and depression, it can be tough for me at times to characterize my health as excellent. But even with my mental health setbacks, I try to remind myself that I'm still in a position so many other people would take in a heartbeat. The fact that I can walk, jog, run, reasonably function, and so much more is something that I strive to not take for granted.

Gratitude #3: My Career And Geographic Location

Finally, I was blessed to rebound from my job loss at Motley Fool rather quickly. Although it will be a sizable pay cut for a while versus where I was at prior to my job loss, I'll still at least be in the middle class, with some disposable income. In an economically developed and relatively free country like the USA, that's still a pretty nice place to be overall.

Concluding Thoughts:

Even after my job loss, there are several things that I am so grateful to have in my life. I really couldn't ask for much more than to have a great family, okay health, and a solid career in an exceptional country. Through the trials and tribulations of life, God has blessed me so much more than I deserve!

Discussion:

What are you grateful for right now?

As an honorable mention, I am grateful for your readership and support! Please feel free to leave your comments below.

October 2023 Dividend Income

As I'm writing this blog post, it is already Wednesday, November 8th. Surprisingly, the weather is going to be beautiful for this time of year here in Central Wisconsin. After Friday, we'll be in a major warming trend. High temperatures will rise from the low-40 degrees Fahrenheit range to 60 degrees on Tuesday!

On that note, the time of the month means that the previous month is well behind us. Without further ado, I will dig into my dividend income for October 2023.

In October 2023, I collected $282.51 in net dividends. That works out to a 9.5% quarterly growth rate over the $258.02 in net dividends received in July 2023.

Compared to the $204.57 in net dividends that I collected in October 2022, this equates to a 38.1% year-over-year growth rate.

Examining these results further, I received $272.08 in net dividends from 29 companies in my Robinhood account. I also collected $10.24 in net dividends from four companies within my Webull portfolio. Finally, I received $0.19 in net dividends from eight companies in my M1 Finance account.

My net dividends collected soared by $24.49 from July 2023 to October 2023, which was due to the following activity throughout my portfolio:

My net dividends received from JPMorgan Chase (JPM) were $0.30 higher within my Robinhood account. That was the result of its 5% raise announced in June.

I collected an extra $5.01 in net dividends from American Tower (AMT) in my Robinhood portfolio, which was due to the most recent dividend increase and my additional purchase in June.

My net dividends received from W.P. Carey (WPC) grew by $0.02 within my Robinhood account. This was the result of a 0.2% bump in its dividend.

I collected an additional $0.01 from Realty Income (O) in my Robinhood portfolio, which was due to the most recent 0.2% dividend increase in September.

My net dividends received from Spirit Realty Capital (SRC) grew by $0.13 within my Robinhood account. That was the result of a 1% raise in its dividend declared back in August.

I collected an extra $3.45 in net dividends from Medtronic (MDT) in my Robinhood portfolio, which was due to my additional purchase in June.

My net dividends received from Main Street Capital (MAIN) grew by $0.15 within my Robinhood account. That was the result of a 2.2% raise in its dividend in August.

I collected an additional $7.82 in net dividends from Leggett & Platt (LEG) in my Robinhood portfolio, which was due to my add in August.

My net dividends received from Medical Properties Trust (MPW) declined by $8.96 within my Robinhood account. That was the result of the 48.3% slash to the dividend in August.

I also collected $0.21 less from GSK (GSK) in my Robinhood portfolio, which is due to the variability of the dividend payment.

My net dividends received from Philip Morris International (PM) grew by $0.63 within my Robinhood and Webull accounts. This was the result of a 2.4% raise in September.

I collected $0.97 in additional dividends from Altria Group (MO) in my Robinhood, Webull, and M1 Finance portfolios, which was due to the 4.3% raise announced in August.

My net dividends received from VICI Properties (VICI) surged higher by $7.05 within my Robinhood account. That was the result of the 6.4% raise in September and my tranche purchased in August.

I collected an extra $5.61 in net dividends from Iron Mountain (IRM) in my Robinhood and Webull portfolios. This was due to the 5.1% raise in the dividend and my purchase of more shares in August.

My net dividends received from Automatic Data Processing (ADP) grew by $2.50 within my Robinhood account, which was the result of my addition in July.

Finally, I collected an extra $0.01 from Illinois Tool Works (ITW) in my M1 Finance portfolio. This was due to the 6.9% raise announced in August.

Concluding Thoughts:

For the sake of building my emergency fund up to around nine months of expenses, I'm not expecting to begin deploying at least $1,500 in monthly capital until at least January. Thus, January 2024 net dividend income will likely clock in just below $300. But that should be my final month with net dividend income under the $300 mark.

Discussion:

How was your dividend income in October 2023?

Did you get paid any first-time dividends during the month?

As always, I appreciate your readership and welcome your comments below!

October 2023 Dividend Stock Purchases/Sale

As I'm writing this blog post, it's Friday, November 3, 2023. The temperature is going to reach a high of 47 degrees Fahrenheit here in Central Wisconsin, which isn't bad for this time of year.

With that aside, let's briefly highlight my one sale and my one purchase for the month of October.

My one sale for the month of October was 14 shares of W.P. Carey (WPC) at $52.58 a share. Unfortunately, the company made the decision to exit office properties through a spin-off. This will result in a 20% dividend cut, which is a tragedy as WPC was just a year away from a 25-year dividend growth streak. As my colleagues Adam Galas and Brad Thomas explained in a recent article on Seeking Alpha, the move was arguably questionable. WPC had already been working on and succeeding at reducing its exposure to office properties in recent years. The move just suggests that management isn't very confident in its fundamentals right now.

In limited circumstances, there are times that I will hold after a dividend cut. I did so with Energy Transfer (ET) and it has worked out pretty well. But I've simply ran out of patience with WPC. This action reduced my net annual forward dividends by $59.864, pending the actual amount of what the cut would have been.

I redeployed these capital proceeds into Ares Capital (ARCC), which is arguably the best BDC in the world not named Main Street Capital (MAIN). I purchased 38 shares at an average cost per share of $18.97, which equates to a 10.12% dividend yield considering the $72.96 in net annual forward dividends added by this transaction. Investors can learn more about why I'm comfortable with the stock in this recent article.

Concluding Thoughts:

Though they are rare when a portfolio is properly constructed, dividend cuts are a (painful) part of the game. Fortunately, there are plenty of great businesses in which the proceeds can be redeployed.

Thanks to $17.74 in dividend increases and my swapping of WPC for ARCC, my net annual forward dividends grew from just shy of $4,230 at the start of October to nearly $4,260 heading into this month.

Discussion:

Do you own WPC? If so, what are you doing with your shares following the news in late September?

As always, thanks for reading and please feel free to comment below!

Exciting Career News

As I'm writing this blog post on Friday, October 20, 2023, it's currently 56 degrees Fahrenheit and raining here in Central Wisconsin. This is about what you would expect for late-October, but it certainly beats snow!

With that weather update aside, I have some thrilling news regarding my career. As I alluded to a couple of weeks ago about my blogging schedule for the rest of 2023, I'll elaborate on said news in this blog post.

Image Source: iStock

I'm Officially An Analyst At The Dividend Kings

Even preceding the formation of this blog in July 2018, I was and still am keenly interested in the dividend growth investing strategy. There were several individuals who were instrumental in the shaping this as my intended investing strategy since my teens, such as Joshua Kennon (dating back to when Dotdash was About.com) and Jason Fieber.

But ever since I created an account at Seeking Alpha in 2017, the individuals whose work I have followed the most include Brad Thomas and most especially, Dividend Sensei (aka Adam Galas). Reading the work of these guys over the years, my understanding of how to assess a company's quality (e.g., operating fundamentals, balance sheet strength, and risk management) and valuation has grown immensely.

Adam, Brad, and the team of analysts at The Dividend Kings and iREIT on Alpha are hands down among the very best in this business. That's why I'm happy to report that besides ramping up my content production at Seeking Alpha, I have taken a role as an analyst at the former. Each week, I write an article for Dividend Kings that is then eventually published to SA by Dividend Sensei. Here are the links to the first three that I have co-produced for those who are interested: Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) and Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) and an EPD, MAIN, and PM listicle.

Concluding Thoughts:

For a while now, I have thought about writing for a Marketplace service on SA. Almost two years after initially passing up an offer from DK to continue writing at Motley Fool, things have come full circle. I now am prepared to seize upon this opportunity and am eternally grateful to Dividend Kings for welcoming me aboard.

Discussion:

Which individuals have been most important to your formation as an investor?

Thanks for reading and please leave your comments below!

Expected Dividend Increases for November 2023

As I'm writing this blog post, it is Monday, October 23, 2023. The temperature is currently 54 degrees Fahrenheit here in Central Wisconsin, which isn't bad for this time of year. That's why I plan on getting outside shortly to enjoy the days above freezing while we still have them.

Weather aside, the time of the month makes it a decent time to cover the dividend increases that have come my way so far this month. As of writing, I still expect three raises to come in over the next few days. Thus, I will update this post as necessary. Let's dig into those dividend hikes and look ahead to next month!

Actual Dividend Increases for October 2023

Dividend Increase #1: A.O. Smith (AOS)

A.O. Smith announced a 6.7% increase in its quarterly dividend per share to $0.32, which was just below my estimate of a raise to $0.33. But I don't mind a conservative raise from AOS.

Across my 12 shares of AOS, my net annual forward dividends grew by $0.96 due to this dividend announcement.

Dividend Increase #2: Energy Transfer (ET)

Energy Transfer declared a 0.8% raise in its quarterly distribution per unit to $0.3125. That was precisely what I expected.

My net annual forward distributions rose by $0.86 across my 86 units of ET as a result of this distribution declaration.

Dividend Increase #3: Lockheed Martin (LMT)

Lockheed Martin announced a 5% bump in its quarterly dividend per share to $3.15, which was less than my forecast of $3.20. However, I will still take the raise!

Across my four shares of LMT, my net annual forward dividends climbed by $2.40 due to this dividend announcement.

Dividend Increase #4: McDonald's (MCD)

McDonald's declared a 9.9% raise in its quarterly dividend per share to $1.67. That's better than the $1.63 that I was expecting, which is why I'm lovin' MCD's dividend.

My net annual forward dividends grew by $1.80 across my three shares of MCD as a result of this dividend declaration.

Dividend Increase #5: Pinnacle West Capital (PNW)

Pinnacle West Capital announced a 1.7% increase in its quarterly dividend per share to $0.88, which was what I anticipated.

Across my seven shares of PNW, my net annual forward dividends inched higher by $0.42 due to this dividend announcement.

Dividend Increase #6: Tanger Factory Outlet Centers (SKT)

Tanger Factory Outlet Centers declared a 6.1% increase in its quarterly dividend per share to $0.26. That was just below my prediction of $0.265.

My net annual forward dividends grew by $0.66 across my 11 shares as a result of this dividend declaration.

Dividend Increase #7: AbbVie (ABBV)

AbbVie hasn't yet announced its dividend increase. But since they will be releasing Q3 earnings this Friday (Oct. 27), I would expect the 4.1% raise to $1.54 to go through by that time.

Across my 14 shares of ABBV, my net annual forward dividends would surge $3.36 higher from such an announcement.

UPDATE: ABBV announced a 4.7% increase in its quarterly dividend per share to $1.55. Across my 14 shares, this lifted my net annual forward dividends by $3.92 due to the announcement.

Dividend Increase #8: Exxon Mobil (XOM)

Exxon Mobil will also be releasing its Q3 earnings on Friday. This is when I anticipate a 4.4% increase in its quarterly dividend per share to $0.95 will be declared.

My net annual forward dividends would rise by $1.76 across my 11 shares of XOM due to such a dividend declaration.

UPDATE: XOM declared a 4.4% increase in its quarterly dividend per share to $0.95 as I expected. My net annual forward dividends grew by $1.76 across my 11 shares of XOM as a result of the declaration.

Dividend Increase #9: Visa (V)

Visa will be sharing earnings results for its fiscal Q4 tomorrow. That's when I believe V will announce a 16.7% hike in its quarterly dividend per share to $0.525.

Across my seven shares of V, my net annual forward dividends would grow by $2.10 from such an announcement.

UPDATE: V announced a 15.6% boost in its quarterly dividend per share to $0.52. Across my seven shares of V, my net annual forward dividends rose by $1.96 due to the announcement.

Dividend Increase #10: American Electric Power (AEP)

I am reiterating my expectation of a 6% boost in the quarterly dividend per share to $0.88 from American Electric Power.

UPDATE: AEP declared a 6% increase in its quarterly dividend per share to $0.88. My net annual forward dividends grew by $3 across my 15 shares of AEP as a result of the declaration.

Dividend Freeze: Crown Castle International (CCI)

Crown Castle International kept its quarterly dividend per share in line at $1.565. Considering the higher churn that the company is dealing with stemming from the T-Mobile and Sprint merger, this is okay with me. Management is committed to keeping the dividend the same in 2024 and expects growth to resume in 2025 and beyond.

Expected Dividend Increases for November 2023

Expected Dividend Increase #1: Automatic Data Processing (ADP)

The first dividend hike that I'm expecting will come from Automatic Data Processing (ADP). My best guess is that ADP will declare a 10.4% raise in its quarterly dividend per share to $1.38.

My net annual forward dividends would rise by $3.64 if this prediction plays out across my seven shares of ADP due to such a declaration.

Expected Dividend Increase #2: Aflac (AFL)

The third dividend increase that I'm predicting for next month will come from Aflac. I believe AFL will declare a 4.8% raise in its quarterly dividend per share to $0.44.

My net annual forward dividends would rise by $0.88 across my 11 shares of AFL due to such a declaration.

Expected Dividend Increase #3: Main Street Capital (MAIN)

The next dividend raise that I expect in November is from Main Street Capital. My best guess is that MAIN will announce a 2.1% increase in its monthly dividend per share to $0.24.

Across my 30 shares of MAIN, my net annual forward dividends would surge higher by $1.80 from such an announcement.

Expected Dividend Increase #4: Merck (MRK)

The fifth dividend bump that I'm predicting for next month will come from Merck. I believe that MRK will declare a 5.5% increase in its quarterly dividend per share to $0.77.

My net annual forward dividends would grow by $1.76 across my 11 shares of MRK due to such a declaration.

Expected Dividend Increase #5: Simon Property Group (SPG)

The final dividend raise that I expect in November is from Simon Property Group. My guess is that SPG will announce a 2.6% bump in its quarterly dividend per share to $1.95.

Across my nine shares of SPG, my net annual forward dividends would rise by $1.80 from such an announcement.

Concluding Thoughts:

I received $17.74 in dividend increases from 10 companies in October. That would be like investing $591.33 in fresh capital at a 3% dividend yield.

In November, I expect to get a $9.88 boost in net annual forward dividends from raises. This is equivalent to investing $329.33 at a 3% yield.

Discussion:

How was your October for dividend declarations?

Did you receive any first-time raises during the month?

As usual, I appreciate your readership and look forward to your comments below!

An Update To The Blog's Posting Schedule

As I'm writing this blog post on Friday, October 13, it is just 46 degrees Fahrenheit and raining here in Central Wisconsin. Damp and cold weather is an excellent indication that fall is here and winter isn't far behind.

With that aside, I wanted to update readers on a change to my writing schedule for this blog for at least the foreseeable future.

I Am Pausing The Monthly Stock Watch List Blog Post (For Now)

Readers familiar with this blog may be aware of my monthly stock watch list blog posts. These are where are highlight three stocks that are on my watch list for each month. I didn't highlight any stocks that were on my watch list for October 2023 for the following reasons:

1) My recent job loss prompted me to strive to boost my emergency fund from three months to around six months by the end of this year. Thus, I likely won't be investing enough capital to justify writing these blogs until early next year.

2) My schedule is also a bit busier as I adjust to my new role (more on that to come in a later blog post).

All Other Blog Posts Will Continue

Since I won't be writing my monthly stock watch list blog posts again until probably January 2024, there will be one or two weeks each month where I probably won't write anything. That will all just depend on whether there are four or five Tuesdays in a given month.

The good news is that I will continue my monthly dividend income, dividend stock purchases (to a lesser extent due to little available capital), and dividend increases/expected dividend increases series indefinitely.

Concluding Thoughts:

So, that's what the plan is for the remainder of the year. I just want to thank everyone for their readership and support over the years. I look forward to continuing to blog on an almost as frequent basis for the rest of this year before likely returning to the same schedule at the start of next year.

Discussion:

Please feel free to leave any thoughts you may have in the comments section below!

September 2023 Dividend Income

As I'm writing this blog post on Friday, October 6, it is currently 52 degrees Fahrenheit here in Central Wisconsin. The foreseeable future is going to be stuck in the 50 degrees Fahrenheit range, which makes it a bit less pleasurable to be outside. But it's still doable.

With that aside, the month of September is about a week in the books. That makes now a good time to look at my dividend income for the month.

During September 2023, I received $434.85 in net dividends. Against the $421.41 in net dividends that I collected in June 2023, this equates to a 3.2% quarterly growth rate.

Compared to the $343.64 in net dividends that I received in September 2022, this works out to a 26.5% year-over-year growth rate.

Sparing the painstaking details of every component that led my dividend income higher, I will simply go over an overview of each of my accounts moving forward with this series.

I collected $337.10 in net dividends from 47 companies in my Robinhood account. This was including a the relatively routine special dividend that is paid by Main Street Capital in the end month of each quarter. The oddity of the month within this portfolio was the $3.96 special distribution paid by Magellan Midstream Partners in relation to its deal with ONEOK (OKE) as I explained in my previous blog post. Otherwise, the biggest contributor to my increased dividend income was my purchase of 30 shares of Brookfield Asset Management (BAM) in August.

Next, I received $81.36 in net dividends from my Capital Income Builder (CAIBX) mutual fund within my retirement portfolio from a previous employer. This was slightly more due to my higher share count from dividend reinvestment.

I also collected $15.88 in net dividends from six companies in my Webull account. This was slightly higher due to the dividend hike from UnitedHealth Group (UNH) announced in June.

Finally, I received $0.51 in net dividends from 23 companies within my M1 Finance portfolio. The timing of PepsiCo's (PEP) dividend more than offset the extra $0.01 from Hershey (HSY) from its dividend raise declared back in July.

Concluding Thoughts:

Another month has concluded and the dividend portfolio is steadily growing. Since my capital deployment will be minimal for the foreseeable future as I build up my emergency fund, dividend reinvestment and dividend raises are going to have to carry me for at least the rest of this year.

Discussion:

How was your dividend income during September 2023?

Did you receive any first-time dividends last month as I did with BAM?

Thanks for your readership and please feel free to comment below!

September 2023 Dividend Stock Purchases

As I'm writing this blog post on Friday, September 29, the weather has warmed up again here in Central Wisconsin. Today is supposed to reach a high temperature of 76 degrees Fahrenheit and the weekend is going to reach into the low- to mid-80 degrees Fahrenheit range. This will probably be one of the last beautiful weekends before the temperatures get frigid and the outdoors isn't so enjoyable for six months. That's why I'm definitely going to get outside for at least a few hours this weekend!

Since the month of September is basically over, now is a good time to go over the dividend stock purchases for the month. Given that I recently lost my position at The Motley Fool and I would like to build up my emergency fund, I didn't deploy any of my own capital this month. Let's dig in.

Starting with my retirement account, I reinvested $81.36 in dividends from my Capital Income Builder (CAIBX) mutual fund. This increased my position by 1.29 shares at an average cost per share of $63.07. The resulting $2.75 lift in my net annual forward dividends equates to a 3.38% net dividend yield.

Thanks to the recent action that ONEOK (OKE) took to buy all units of Magellan Midstream Partners (MMP) in an $18.8 billion deal, my direct position in MMP is no more. My 16 units of MMP were exchanged for 10.672 shares of the new OKE and $403.96 in cash from OKE's $25 per unit cash payment and MMP's special distribution per unit of $0.2474. I took the proceeds from this deal and redeployed them into another 6.328 shares of new OKE at an average cost per share of $63.64. These actions boosted my net annual forward dividends by $64.94.

I lost $67.04 in net annual forward distributions from the closing of my position in MMP, so this corporate action lowered my net annual forward dividends by $2.10. But the new OKE is going to be an absolute force to be reckoned with in many ways, so I view this as an overall positive.

Concluding Thoughts:

My net annual forward dividends edged $0.65 higher from dividend stock purchases and the like during the month of September.

Fortunately, my portfolio worked harder than I did to make me richer for the month. Due to the $16.906 in dividend increases that I received during the month, my net annual forward dividends climbed from just shy of $4,210 to start September to nearly $4,230 heading into October.

Discussion:

How was your capital deployment in September 2023?

Did you start any new positions during the month?

I appreciate your readership and welcome your comments below!

Expected Dividend Increases for October 2023

As I'm writing this blog post on Saturday, September 23, it is currently 64 degrees Fahrenheit and raining. That's basically perfect weather for staying inside and writing a blog post!

With that aside, now would be a good time to write about the dividend increases that I received during the month. Let's dig in.

Actual Dividend Increases for September 2023

Dividend Increase #1: Verizon Communications (VZ)

Verizon Communications declared a 1.9% bump in its quarterly dividend per share to $0.665, which was as I expected in my previous blog post of this series.

Across my 45 shares of VZ, my net annual forward dividends rose by $2.25 from this dividend declaration.

Dividend Increase #2: VICI Properties (VICI)

VICI Properties announced a 6.4% increase in its quarterly dividend per share to $0.415. This was just below my expectation of $0.42.

My net annual forward dividends soared by $4.80 due to this dividend announcement across my 48 shares of VICI.

Dividend Increase #3: Realty Income (O)

Realty Income declared a 0.2% raise in its monthly dividend per share to $0.256, which was what I anticipated.

Across my 24 shares of O, my net annual forward dividends edged $0.144 higher from such a dividend declaration.

Dividend Increase #4: Philip Morris International (PM)

Philip Morris International announced a 2.4% increase in its quarterly dividend per share to $1.30. That was just below the $1.31 that I was predicting.

My net annual forward dividends were lifted by $2.52 across my 21 shares of PM due to this dividend announcement.

Dividend Increase #5: Microsoft (MSFT)

Microsoft declared a 10.3% raise in its quarterly dividend per share to $0.75, which was just above my forecast of $0.74.

Across my five shares of MSFT, my net annual forward dividends rose by $1.40 from this dividend declaration.

Dividend Increase #6: W.P. Carey (WPC)

W.P. Carey announced a 0.2% increase in its quarterly dividend per share to $1.071. That was what in line with my expectation.

My net annual forward dividends grew by $0.112 across my 14 shares of WPC due to this dividend announcement.

Dividend Increase #7: American Tower (AMT)

American Tower declared a 3.2% raise in its quarterly dividend per share to $1.62, which was better than the $1.60 that I anticipated.

Across my six shares of AMT, my net annual forward dividends increased by $1.20 from this dividend declaration.

Dividend Increase #8: Starbucks (SBUX)

Starbucks announced a 7.5% boost in its quarterly dividend per share to $0.57. That was exactly what I expected.

My net annual forward dividends surged higher by $1.60 across my 10 shares of SBUX due to this dividend announcement.

Dividend Increase #9: Texas Instruments (TXN)

Texas Instruments declared a 4.8% increase in its quarterly dividend per share to $1.30. Across my 12 shares of TXN, this lifted my net annual forward dividends by $2.88.

Dividend Freeze: U.S. Bancorp (USB)

Rather than raise its quarterly dividend per share to $0.50 as I expected, U.S. Bancorp opted to keep its dividend per share the same at $0.48. In this economic environment, that's probably not a bad idea, though.

Expected Dividend Increases for October 2023

Expected Dividend Increase #1: McDonald's (MCD)

The first dividend boost that I'm expecting for next month will be from McDonald's. My best guess is that MCD will up their quarterly dividend per share by 7.3% to $1.63.

Across my three shares of MCD, my net annual forward dividends would rise by $1.32 if this raise plays out as expected.

Expected Dividend Increase #2: A.O. Smith (AOS)

The next dividend raise that I am predicting for October is from A.O. Smith. I believe AOS will announce a 10% raise in its quarterly dividend per share to $0.33.

My net annual forward dividends would grow by $1.44 across my 12 shares of AOS if this dividend boost materializes.

Expected Dividend Increase #3: Crown Castle International (CCI)

The third dividend increase that I'm forecasting for next month will be from Crown Castle International. I predict that CCI will declare a 4.8% raise in its quarterly dividend per share to $1.64.

Across my eight shares of CCI, my net annual forward dividends would be lifted by $2.40 from such a declaration.

Expected Dividend Increase #4: Tanger Factory Outlet Centers (SKT)

The next dividend raise that I'm expecting for October is from Tanger Factory Outlet Centers. My best guess is that SKT will announce an 8.2% increase in its quarterly dividend per share to $0.265.

My net annual forward dividends would rise by $0.88 across my 11 shares of SKT due to such an announcement.

Expected Dividend Increase #5: American Electric Power (AEP)

The fifth dividend increase that I'm predicting for next month will be from American Electric Power. I believe that AEP will declare a 6% raise in its quarterly dividend per share to $0.88.

Across my 15 shares of AEP, my net annual forward dividends would surge higher by $3 from such a declaration.

Expected Dividend Increase #6: Pinnacle West Capital (PNW)

The next dividend raise that I'm forecasting for October is from Pinnacle West Capital. If I had to guess, PNW will announce a 1.7% increase in its quarterly dividend per share to $0.88.

My net annual forward dividends would grow by $0.42 across my seven shares of PNW due to such an announcement.

Expected Dividend Increase #7: Energy Transfer (ET)

The seventh distribution increase that I'm expecting for next month will be from Energy Transfer. My best guess is that ET will declare a 0.8% raise in the quarterly distribution per unit to $0.3125.

Across my 86 units of ET, my net annual forward distributions would rise by $0.86 from such a declaration.

Expected Dividend Increase #8: Exxon Mobil (XOM)

The next dividend raise that I'm predicting for October is from Exxon Mobil. I believe that XOM will announce a 4.4% bump in its quarterly dividend per share to $0.95.

My net annual forward dividends would increase by $1.76 across my 11 shares of XOM due to such an announcement.

Expected Dividend Increase #9: Visa (V)

The ninth dividend boost that I'm forecasting for next month will be from Visa. My best guess is that V will declare a 16.7% increase in its quarterly dividend per share to $0.525.

Across my seven shares of V, my net annual forward dividends would grow by $2.10 from such a declaration.

Expected Dividend Increase #10: AbbVie (ABBV)

The final dividend raise that I'm predicting for October is from AbbVie. I believe that ABBV will announce a 4.1% increase in its quarterly dividend per share to $1.54.

My net annual forward dividends would rise by $3.36 across my 14 shares of ABBV due to such an announcement.

Expected Dividend Increase #11: Lockheed Martin (LMT)

Lockheed Martin historically raised its dividend on the last Friday of September. But since it has yet to announce its raise as of Oct. 2, it looks like the raise will come sometime this month. I am standing by my estimate of a 6.7% increase in its quarterly dividend per share to $3.20.

Across my four shares of LMT, this would boost my net annual forward dividends by $3.20.

Concluding Thoughts:

My net annual forward dividends have climbed $16.906 from the nine increases announced in September. This would be equivalent to investing $563.53 in capital at a net dividend yield of 3%.

If my assumptions for next month are correct, my net annual forward dividends will soar by $20.74. This would be equivalent to investing $691.33 at a 3% dividend yield.

Discussion:

How was your September for dividend raises?

Did you receive any first-time payout increases for the month?

Thanks for reading and please feel free to comment below!

Revised Goals for 2023

The weather here in Central Wisconsin as of Friday, September 15, has certainly cooled off from the triple-digit Fahrenheit temperatures that were set just weeks ago. It is predicted that the high temperature today is going to reach 75 degrees Fahrenheit, which is an ideal temperature in my opinion. With probably just a few days here and there of this type of weather left, I am definitely going to get outside before typical fall and winter weather hit us.

Anyways, taking into consideration the financial and professional impact of my recent job loss, now is probably a good time to adjust my goals a bit for the three and a half months that we have remaining in 2023.

Image Source: Pexels

My Updated Financial Goals for 2023

1. End 2023 with a six month emergency fund

My recent job loss has drove home the importance of a healthy emergency fund. I currently have an emergency fund of about three months of living expenses. And while it looks like I will be blessed to quickly land back on my feet, three months just doesn't seem like an adequate emergency fund after having experienced my first layoff. That's why I'd like to just over double my emergency fund to six months of living expenses.

2. Conclude 2023 with net annual forward dividends of at least $4,300

At the time of writing, my portfolio is expected to generate net annual forward dividends of $4,221.86. Since I am going to be focusing on building up my emergency fund, I either won't be investing for the rest of 2023 or capital deployment will be quite minimal. But dividend increases over the next few months should help me surpass $4,300 in net annual forward dividends before the year is over.

3. Reach $120,000 in investments and $140,000 in net worth

My cash flow is likely going to be less for the next few months than what it had previously been throughout this year. This is why my goal is to simply have the value of my portfolio remain around $120,000. And as I slowly build up my emergency fund, the thought is that I can increase my net worth by around $5,000 from the current mark of nearly $135,000.

My Personal Goals for 2023

1. Publish approximately 360 Motley Fool articles

Prior to my layoff, I was going to crush my goal of publishing at least 450 Motley Fool articles. In fact, I was on track to publish over 520. But given the circumstances, I will have to settle for the roughly 360 that were published.

2. Publish at least 90 Seeking Alpha articles

Until my layoff, my goal was to publish one Seeking Alpha article each month. My new goal is to publish 90 Seeking Alpha articles for this year. Based on the 15 that I already have had or will have published as of writing, this is a modest goal of five articles per week. As I get settled into Seeking Alpha and a new role at a Marketplace service, I may up this goal for 2024.

3. Publish one blog post each week.

Out of all my goals, this is the only one that is going to remain the same. I like where I'm at right now with publishing to the blog. It's still a nice hobby to update readers on my progress on the journey to achieve financial independence.

Concluding Thoughts:

Have you ever updated your goals as the year evolved?

Thanks for your readership and please leave your comments below!

Major Life Update And Two Takeaways

I'm going to keep this blog post especially short and sweet. The weather here in Central Wisconsin is beautiful today on Saturday, September 9: It is currently 74 degrees Fahrenheit and sunny.

With that aside, let's get into the crux of this post.

My Contract Was Not Renewed

Each September, The Motley Fool sets its budget for the next fiscal year. Due to the significant economic changes since I started in 2021, tough decisions and cutbacks had to be made. Thus, my contract was not renewed for the next fiscal year.

Going into it, I knew this would be a possibility. But I was fine with it because of the autonomy over my schedule the opportunity provided me. I was able to spend more time with my nephew and avoid commuting to work.

The First Takeaway: An Emergency Fund Provides Peace of Mind

Having a roughly three month emergency fund helped to cushion the blow a bit. Fortunately, I look to have a new opportunity in the works that I will elaborate on more as it unfolds.

For the rest of this year, I am going to be working on building my emergency fund further to six or seven months of expenses for good measure.

The Second Takeaway: Things Happen for a Reason

A couple of years back, an opportunity fell into my lap. But because I was settled into Motley Fool and progressing from writing five articles a week to ultimately 11 before I was laid off, I passed on said opportunity.

I had always wondered what might have been had I taken the opportunity and ran with it. Now, by God's grace, I have another chance.

Concluding Thoughts:

As disappointing as news of my job loss initially was, I feel blessed to have wrote almost 900 articles for Motley Fool. And I'm looking forward to my next opportunity.

Discussion:

Have you ever lost a job?

Were you fortunate enough to have an emergency fund?

Thanks for reading and please feel free to comment below.

August 2023 Dividend Income

As I'm writing this blog post on Saturday, September 2, you wouldn't know that fall is less than three weeks away. The high temperature here in Central Wisconsin is expected to reach 100 degrees Fahrenheit today!

Anyways, with August now in the books, now would be a good time to look at my dividend income for the month. Let's dive into it!

In August 2023, I received $305.77 in net dividends. That works out to a 10.6% growth rate over the $276.48 in net dividends that I collected from my portfolio in May 2023.

My net dividends received in August 2023 were 46.3% greater than the $209.05 in net dividends collected in August 2022.

Digging deeper, I received $289.95 in net dividends from 31 companies within my Robinhood account. I collected $15.42 in net dividends from three companies in my Webull portfolio during the month (inclusive of the $0.06 in ADR fees for British American Tobacco). Finally, I received $0.40 in net dividends from 16 companies within my M1 Finance account in August 2023.

The net dividends that I collected from May 2023 to August 2023 surged higher by $29.29, which was the result of the following activity within my portfolio:

My net dividends received from United Parcel Service (UPS) were $8.13 more in my Robinhood and M1 Finance accounts, which was due to the timing of the dividend payment.

I collected an extra $3.66 in net dividends from TJX Companies (TJX) within my Robinhood portfolio. This was also the result of the timing of the dividend payment.

My net dividends received from Clorox (CLX) were $0.04 higher in my Robinhood account, which was due to the 1.7% increase in the quarterly dividend per share announced in July.

I collected $0.28 in additional net dividends from British American Tobacco (BTI) within my Robinhood and Webull portfolios. This was the result of the variability of its dividend payments.

My net distributions received from Energy Transfer (ET) grew by $0.22 in my Robinhood and Webull accounts, which was due to the distribution bump declared in July.

I collected an extra $0.15 in net dividends from Main Street Capital (MAIN) within my Robinhood portfolio. This was the result of the 2.2% increase in the monthly dividend per share announced in May.

My net dividends received from Realty Income (O) grew by $0.01 in my Robinhood account, which was due to the 0.2% increase in its monthly dividend declared in June.

I collected an additional $0.27 in net dividends from NNN REIT (NNN) within my Robinhood portfolio. This was the result of the 2.7% lift in the quarterly dividend per share announced in July.

My net dividends received from Texas Instruments (TXN) rose by $7.44 in my Robinhood account, which was due to my dividend stock purchases in May and July.

I collected an extra $8.36 in net distributions from Enterprise Products Partners (EPD) within my Robinhood and Webull portfolios. This was the result of the 2% distribution per unit increase declared in July and my purchase of 16 more units in June.

My net dividends received from Air Products & Chemicals (APD) were $3.50 higher in my Robinhood account, which was due to my purchase of two more shares in April.

I collected an additional $2.64 in net dividends from General Dynamics (GD) within my Robinhood portfolio. This was the result of my purchase of two more shares in June.

My net dividends received from Lowe's (LOW) were $0.41 more in my Robinhood and M1 Finance accounts, which was due to the 4.8% raise declared in May.

I collected an extra $0.20 in net dividends from General Mills (GIS) within my Robinhood portfolio. This was the result of the 9.3% dividend hike announced in June.

My net dividends received from JPMorgan Chase (JPM) were $6.02 less in my Robinhood and M1 Finance accounts, which was due to the timing of the dividend payment.

Concluding Thoughts:

My net dividends surpassed the $300 milestone during the month of August. And given trends of my capital deployment, I anticipate that this will be my last middle-of-the-month quarter under $325 in net dividends.

Discussion:

How was your dividend income for August 2023?

Did you receive any first-time dividend payments in the month?

I appreciate your readership and welcome your comments below!