Category: Dividend Income

Here is the dividend income report for July, 2015.

The monthly dividend income came out to $263.13. The yearly income total for 2015 through the end of the month was $2678.45.

The income for July, 2014 was $198.43, and the yearly income for 2014 through the end of July was $2132.33.

I started a taxable brokerage account that I have started funding. I now have sufficient money to buy enough shares of several companies such that each dividend payment would buy an entire share. But now for some reason I am a bit reluctant to pull the trigger.

Here is a table with the year-to-date amounts, the monthly amounts, and the three- and twelve-month moving averages for each July from 2011 through 2015:

Month	YTD	Amount	3MMA	12MMA
2015-07	$2678.45	$263.13	$412.44	$415.35
2014-07	$2132.33	$198.43	$333.77	$322.07
2013-07	$1673.29	$180.57	$258.23	$288.65
2012-07	$1794.53	$219.72	$261.24	$277.53
2011-07	$1556.17	$204.83	$235.96	$211.69

 

Here are the stocks and the income amounts for July, 2015:

• Automatic Data Processing: $28.77
• Coca-Cola Co: $36.78
• MDU Resources Group Inc.: $10.38
• Kimberly-Clark: $50.16
• Illinois Tool Works: $26.42
• Chubb Corp: $58.46
• Piedmont Natural Gas Inc: $20.28
• Sysco Corp: $17.14
• RPM International Inc.: $14.74

 

Image from Wikimedia, assumed allowed under Fair Use.

This site has a disclaimer.

Here is the dividend income report for June, 2015.

The monthly dividend income came out to $612.21. The yearly income total for 2015 through the end of the month was $2415.32.

The income for June, 2014 was $522.86, and the yearly income for 2014 through the end of June was $1933.90.

I started a taxable brokerage account that I have started funding. I plan on buying enough shares in some stocks such that each quarter’s dividend would be enough to buy an additional share. I have found a few stocks for which I can do that for under $6000 each. Some of them will replace shares in my IRA accounts (which will leave more money in those accounts to bulk up on what’s left) and some will be shares in new companies.

Here is a table with the year-to-date amounts, the monthly amounts, and the three- and twelve-month moving averages for each June from 2011 through 2015:

Month	YTD	Amount	3MMA	12MMA
2015-06	$2415.32	$612.21	$411.83	$409.95
2014-06	$1933.90	$522.86	$333.10	$320.58
2013-06	$1492.72	$351.48	$257.79	$291.91
2012-06	$1574.81	$305.84	$260.85	$276.29
2011-06	$1351.34	$236.50	$235.38	$203.23

 

Here are the stocks and the income amounts for June, 2015:

• AFLAC Inc: $41.21
• American States Water Co: $23.69
• Black Hills Corp: $14.43
• Bemis Co Inc: $28.65
• ConocoPhillips: $79.97
• Vectren Corp: $22.06
• Johnson & Johnson: $48.65
• Chevron: $24.93
• Emerson Electric Co: $25.76
• Sonoco Products Co: $23.79
• Exxon Mobil Corp: $81.71
• Archer-Daniels-Midland Co: $32.26
• 3M Co: $13.73
• Walgreen Co: $19.41
• Dover Corp: $9.18
• Consolidated Edison Inc: $19.85
• Kellogg Company: $50.48
• Valspar Corp: $17.59
• RLI Corp: $23.10
• Questar Corp: $11.76

 

Image from Wikimedia, assumed allowed under Fair Use.

This site has a disclaimer.

Here is the dividend income report for May, 2015.

The monthly dividend income came out to $361.99. The yearly income total for 2015 through the end of the month was $1803.11.

The income for May, 2014 was $280.01, and the yearly income for 2014 through the end of May was $1411.19. At the end of April, 2015 I had made $1441.12, so I am a month ahead.

The only other news is that my 12-month moving average is above $400 for the first time. It took me five years, and I can now cover half my rent. Frankly, I thought this whole dividend thing would be a bonanza more quickly.

There is not really a whole lot to report. Like last month, I have not been able to devote as much time to my stocks as I would like.

I am thinking about taking some of my savings and buying some dividend growth stocks. Some of them would be new stocks that I have not bought yet, while some would replace shares in my IRA. I would sell these in my IRA to free up funds there. One snag is that my bank will only let me transfer $500 at a time. I found this out after I got an account there. I can transfer more, but I need to call them up to do that. The broker I am thinking about using gives me 50 free trades for the first 90 days. If I can only transfer $500 at a time, the offer would expire by the time I got enough money over. My plan is to buy enough shares of each stock so that each quarter’s dividends will be able to purchase an entire share.

Here is a table with the year-to-date amounts, the monthly amounts, and the three- and twelve-month moving averages for each May from 2011 through 2015:

Month	YTD	Amount	3MMA	12MMA
2015-05	$1803.11	$361.99	$411.92	$402.51
2014-05	$1411.19	$280.01	$304.77	$306.30
2013-05	$1141.24	$242.65	$260.91	$288.11
2012-05	$1268.97	$258.15	$257.13	$270.51
2011-05	$1114.84	$266.55	$233.03	$194.61

 

Here are the stocks and the income amounts for May, 2015:

• AT&T: $48.20
• Verizon: $55.65
• WGL Holdings Inc: $15.46
• ABM Industries Inc: $8.94
• Lowe’s Cos Inc: $12.35
• Clorox Co: $41.48
• Air Products & Chemicals Inc: $12.77
• Colgate-Palmolive: $41.33
• Hormel Foods Corp: $11.94
• Northwest Natural Gas Co: $27.11
• Procter & Gamble: $38.15
• Texas Instruments: $18.71
• Eaton Corporation: $29.90

 

Image from Wikimedia,  assumed allowed under Fair Use.

This site has a disclaimer.

Here is the dividend income report for April, 2015.

The monthly dividend income came out to $261.30. The yearly income total for 2015 through the end of the month was $1441.12.

The income for April, 2014 was $196.43, and the yearly income for 2014 through the end of April was $1130.58.

There is not really a whole lot to report. I have not been able to devote as much time to my stocks as I would like. My plan was to listen to conference calls more. I am looking at buying shares in water utilities. I am also thinking about putting some of my savings into a taxable account, and either buying more stocks or perhaps some ETFs. I did buy some ADM in early April. My goal at the beginning of the year was to buy something once a month. So far I have only made three purchases in four months. Hopefully the adage “Sell in May and go away” will hold true this year, and some stocks will be selling for lower prices.

I notice that PE ratios are still going upward. Perhaps there is some difference in the economy that I cannot articulate that is pushing the media PE ratios up for some valid reason, and the rising ratios is not a sign of some sort of bubble or excess. I know the gold bugs, inflationistas and austerians say rising stock prices is a sign that the economy is a sham and it will all collapse any day now. They have been saying this for at least five years. Some have said it their whole lives, regardless of what is going on. I have been saying for a year now that I hope/think that PE ratios will stop climbing, but that does not seem to be happening. I might just start buying and hope for the best. I plan on holding everything I buy for a few decades, if not the rest of my life, so while I don’t like the idea of paying more than necessary, it is not quite the disaster it would be for someone who relies solely on price.

Here is a table with the year-to-date amounts, the monthly amounts, and the three- and twelve-month moving averages for each April from 2011 through 2015:

Month	YTD	Amount	3MMA	12MMA
2015-04	$1441.12	$261.30	$409.21	$395.68
2014-04	$1130.58	$196.43	$323.64	$303.18
2013-04	$898.59	$179.23	$262.82	$289.40
2012-04	$1010.82	$218.56	$274.05	$271.21
2011-04	$848.29	$203.10	$216.30	$179.46

 

Here are the stocks and the income amounts for April, 2015:

• Automatic Data Processing: $28.60
• Chubb Corp: $58.13
• Coca-Cola Co: $36.48
• MDU Resources Group Inc.: $10.29
• Kimberly-Clark: $49.76
• Illinois Tool Works: $26.28
• Piedmont Natural Gas Inc: $20.10
• Sysco Corp: $17.00
• RPM International Inc.: $14.66

Image from Wikimedia,  assumed allowed under Fair Use.

This site has a disclaimer.

Here is the dividend income report for March, 2015.

The monthly dividend income came out to $612.48. The yearly income total for 2015 through the end of the month was $1179.82.

The income for March, 2014 was $437.87, and the yearly income for 2014 through the end of March was $934.15.

For the first time, the monthly income was over $600 without any special dividends. The moving averages are almost at $400. Granted, most of this money is in a traditional IRA, so I will have to pay taxes when I take it out. But still, $400/month would pay quite a few bills.

There were a few stocks that increased their dividends. I also bought more JNJ. I might buy even more soon to get up to 100 shares. I also bought more ADM, so in June there will be another increase. So the Mar/Jun/Sep/Dec haul will get even bigger than the other months.

I think the drop in oil prices has not hurt my portfolio too much. As much as we need to do something about climate change, the fact is that people will not stop using oil for transportation any time soon. I don’t think the major oil companies will have too many issues. It seems like most of the drama is in smaller companies. The big oil stocks that I own have gone down in price, but I am still higher than my cost basis. I think that using the dividends to re-invest in more shares has actually lowered my cost basis. At least, that what I gather from my broker’s web site. Maybe I don’t need to worry too much about basis; the plan is to live off the dividends and not sell the shares.

Here is a table with the year-to-date amounts, the monthly amounts, and the three- and twelve-month moving averages for each March from 2012 through 2015:

Month	YTD	Amount	3MMA	12MMA
2015-03	$1179.82	$612.48	$393.27	$390.27
2014-03	$934.15	$437.87	$311.38	$301.75
2013-03	$719.36	$360.85	$239.79	$292.68
2012-03	$792.26	$294.68	$264.09	$269.92
2011-03	$645.19	$229.43	$200.06	$163.15

 

Here are the stocks and the income amounts for March, 2015:

• AFLAC Inc: $40.95
• American States Water Co: $23.56
• Black Hills Corp: $14.32
• Bemis Co Inc: $28.48
• ConocoPhillips: $79.11
• Vectren Corp: $21.87
• Archer-Daniels-Midland Co: $18.16
• Chevron: $24.68
• Emerson Electric Co: $25.55
• Johnson & Johnson: $45.10
• Sonoco Products Co: $21.60
• Exxon Mobil Corp: $76.62
• 3M Co: $13.64
• Walgreen Co: $19.33
• Valspar Corp: $17.53
• Dover Corp: $9.13
• Consolidated Edison Inc: $19.64
• Questar Corp: $11.66
• Kellogg Company: $50.08
• RLI Corp: $21.81
• Eaton Corporation: $29.66

 

Image from Wikimedia, assumed allowed under Fair Use.

This site has a disclaimer.

Here is the dividend income report for February, 2015.

The monthly dividend income came out to $353.85. The yearly income total for 2015 through the end of the month was $567.34.

The income for February, 2014 was $336.61, and the yearly income for 2014 through the end of February was $496.28.

I bought more AT&T and Verizon to get them up to 100 shares, so that helped bring the total up. Vodafone paid less than last year, but the difference was made up by Verizon. So I think the yearly difference will be more impressive for May.

I sold my shares of Abbott Laboratories after the payout. Based on P/E ratios, none of the stocks that I own and pay in February look too attractive right now. Of the stocks that I am looking at that I do now own and pay in February, Deere looks interesting right now.

Here is a table with the amounts, the year-to-date amounts and the three- and twelve-month moving averages for each February from 2012 through 2015:

Month	YTD	Amount	3MMA	12MMA
2015-02	$567.34	$353.85	$492.40	$375.72
2014-02	$496.28	$336.61	$363.62	$295.33
2013-02	$358.51	$248.39	$348.20	$287.16
2012-02	$497.58	$308.90	$337.51	$264.48

 

Here are the stocks and the income amounts for February, 2015:

• ABM Industries Inc: $8.89
• AT&T: $47.53
• Verizon: $55.00
• WGL Holdings Inc: $14.59
• Lowe’s Cos Inc: $12.31
• Vodafone: $16.48
• Air Products & Chemicals Inc: $12.07
• Texas Instruments: $18.59
• Abbott Laboratories: $12.74
• Clorox Co: $41.19
• Northwest Natural Gas Co: $26.85
• Colgate-Palmolive: $38.95
• Hormel Foods Corp: $11.89
• Procter & Gamble: $36.77

 

Image from Wikimedia,  assumed allowed under Fair Use.

This site has a disclaimer.

Here is the dividend income report for January, 2015.

The total for the month was $213.49, which is also the total of the year through the end of January.

In January, 2014 the total was $159.67. I think the increase is mostly through buying enough shares of Chubb Insurance to get me to 100 shares. In January, 2013 I only had about 21 shares.

Here is a table I made with TablePress. It shows the amounts, the year-to-date amounts and the three- and twelve-month moving averages for each January from 2012 through 2015:

Month	YTD	Amount	3MMA	12MMA
2015-01	$213.49	$213.49	$471.54	$374.28
2014-01	$159.67	$159.67	$335.67	$287.98
2013-01	$110.12	$110.12	$348.07	$292.20
2012-01	$188.68	$188.68	$316.66	$256.77

 

Here are the stocks and the income amounts for January, 2015:

• Automatic Data Processing: $28.44
• MDU Resources Group Inc.: $10.21
• Kimberly-Clark: $47.16
• Chubb Corp: $50.75
• Illinois Tool Works: $26.15
• Piedmont Natural Gas Inc: $19.33
• Sysco Corp: $16.87
• RPM International Inc.: $14.58

 

Image from Wikimedia,  assumed allowed under Fair Use.

This site has a disclaimer.

Here is the dividend income report for December, 2014.

The monthly dividend income came out to $909.86. The yearly income total for 2014 through the end of the month was $4,438.02. As with every December, RLI paid both a regular dividend ($0.18/year this quarter) and a special dividend ($3.00/share this year). Even without the special dividend, the total for the month was $570.45, and the yearly total was $4,098.61. The special dividend came out to $339.41. The special dividend alone was more than the total for most months. Still, 2014 was a better year than 2013.

The income for December, 2013 was $594.59, and the yearly income total up through that month was $3,406.20.

The three-month moving average for December, 2014 was 481.67, and the twelve-month moving average was $369.80. For December, 2013 those numbers were $344.05 for the 3MMA, and $283.85 for the 12MMA. All these averages include the special annual dividends from RLI.

The year that I made the most dividend income was in 2007. I had my money in my 401(k) through my then-employer, and it was all in mutual funds. Most of them were index funds. I do not know if the international fund was an index fund. The total that year was $6,575.54. For 2008 the income was $5,420.86. I honestly sometimes wonder if this dividend strategy will work. Sometimes I think that the way to investing success is to have a plan and stick to it. But do I have a good plan? I am thinking about subscribing to The ETF Guide’s Profit Strategy Newsletter. The host of The Index Investing Show runs it and he talks about it a lot. He said they use some ETFs and covered calls to generate up from $500 to $2,000 a month on a portfolio of $100,000. It would be neat if that could fund my IRA.

In some ways 2013 and 2014 were mirror opposites in terms of the arrangement of stocks in my portfolio. In 2013, I did not buy any new stocks, I sold several (CAT, FDR, MO, PNR, as well as spin-offs) and I only increased my holdings in one stock to get it up to around 100 shares (COP). In 2014 I started a position in one (K), I only sold one stock (INTC, more if you include spin-offs), and I increased my holdings in several to get them to around 100 shares (AFL, BMS, CB, COP, T, XOM).

Sometimes I think that if I keep doing what I am doing things will work out alright.

Here are the stocks and the income amounts for December, 2014:

• AFLAC Inc: $40.68
• American States Water Co: $23.42
• Black Hills Corp: $13.69
• Bemis Co Inc: $27.28
• ConocoPhillips: $78.32
• Vectren Corp: $21.69
• Questar Corp: $10.46
• Johnson & Johnson: $23.94
• Chevron: $24.45
• Emerson Electric Co: $25.37
• Sonoco Products Co: $21.44
• Exxon Mobil Corp: $76.06
• Archer-Daniels-Midland Co: $15.49
• Walgreen Co: $19.23
• Dover Corp: $9.08
• Consolidated Edison Inc: $18.85
• Kellogg Company: $49.71
• Coca-Cola Co: $33.47
• Valspar Corp: $17.46
• RLI Corp: $20.36
• RLI Corp: $339.41

 

Image from Wikimedia, assumed allowed under Fair Use.

This site has a disclaimer.

Here is the dividend income report for November, 2014.

The monthly dividend income came out to $291.27. The yearly income total for 2014 through the end of the month was $3,528.16.

The income for November, 2013 was $252.75, and the yearly income total up through that month was $2,811.61. November 2013 was slightly behind November 2012. Some companies that paid dividends early in the year brought them forward to the end of 2012, so 2013 was lower than it should have been. I have sold a few stocks, but bought more shares in the stocks that I kept.

The three-month moving average for November, 2014 was 357.30, and the twelve-month moving average was $343.53. For November, 2013 those numbers were $277.74 for the 3MMVA, and $291.18 for the 12MMVA.

Here are the stocks and the income amounts for November, 2014:

• ABM Industries Inc: $8.57
• AT&T: $27.75
• Verizon: $7.70
• WGL Holdings Inc: $14.46
• Lowe’s Cos Inc: $12.26
• Air Products & Chemicals Inc: $12.01
• Colgate-Palmolive: $38.75
• Clorox Co: $40.89
• Hormel Foods Corp: $9.47
• Northwest Natural Gas Co: $26.59
• Abbott Laboratories: $11.62
• Procter & Gamble: $36.50
• Texas Instruments: $18.47
• Eaton Corporation: $26.23

 

Image from Wikimedia, assumed allowed under Fair Use.

This site has a disclaimer.

Here is the dividend income report for October, 2014.

The monthly dividend income came out to $243.87. The yearly income total for 2014 through the end of the month was $3,236.89.

The income for October, 2013 was $184.81, and the yearly income total up through that month was $2,811.61. I made $198.43 in July, 2014 and $196.43 in April, 2014. I bought more Chubb; I now own just over 100 shares of CB. I think that going forward I will make at least $200 in January/April/July/October going forward. I might make less in January since Coke (KO) pulls its January dividend forward into December.

I have started keeping track of the three-month and twelve-month moving average of my income. I did this for a few reasons. Some stocks do not stick rigidly to a schedule of paying out every three months. I think ETN changed its schedule a while back, and VOD only pays twice a year. I also make a lot more in March, June, September and December than they do in January, April, July and October. I think that comparing moving averages will give a better idea how my income is changing over time given all these differences.

I have also decided that I will not try to get more balance in my monthly income. I wanted to buy more stocks that pay in January, April, July and October to make those months closer to the other months. I have a spreadsheet that I use to keep track of dividend announcements and payout amounts; it includes the stocks that I own and many I am looking at. I have noticed that a lot more stocks pay out in March, June, September and December than in January, April, July and October. Why fight the trend? Why not just go with it? I think keeping track of moving averages will smooth out these differences.

Which is the whole point of moving averages.

The 3-month moving average for October, 2014 was 368.19, and the 12-month MA for October, 2014 was 340.32. For September, 2014, the 3-month MA was $353.04, and the 12-month MA was $335.39. For Ocotber, 2013, the 3 month MA was $295.19, and the 12-month MA was $291.08.

Here are the stocks and the income amounts for October, 2014:

• Automatic Data Processing: $27.69
• Coca-Cola Co: $33.23
• MDU Resources Group Inc.: $9.87
• Kimberly-Clark: $46.79
• Chubb Corp: $50.47
• Illinois Tool Works: $26.00
• Piedmont Natural Gas Inc: $19.14
• Sysco Corp: $16.18
• RPM International Inc.: $14.50

 

Image from Wikimedia, assumed allowed under Fair Use.

This site has a disclaimer.