The summer is flying by and it’s hard to believe it’s already time for our July dividend portfolio update! Going into the month we were prepared for a weakness after a strong performance in June. However, the markets had other plans as our dividend portfolio zoomed to new highs. This time it was the big guns like J&J, Abbvie and even MMM that rebounded from lows and added some much needed spark to our portfolio. Of course there always has to be a few dogs and this month it was telecom a AT&T and Verizon fulfilling that role.

That brings us to the steaming pile of garbage that is Warner Brother Discovery. I had high hopes for this company after the spinoff from AT&T. Their presence in streaming and large portfolio of content should have push growth and set the company and investors up for success. But those hopes have pretty much been dashed as this company turned into a giant turd that can’t seem to do anything right.

While it was essentially flat for the month, WBD is our only holding that doesn’t pay a dividend. If this company isn’t growing and it’s not paying us to wait then it has no place in our portfolio. So unless something changes we will be cutting our losses before the end of the year.

OUR DIVIDEND PORTFOLIO MONTH ENDING JULY 2023:

Symbol	Qty	Change From Prior Month
ABBV	13.994	–
ABR	31.374	–
BKH	3.2	–
DOW	9.894	–
EPD	5.113	–
FRT	6.372	0.068
GIS	5.282	–
IBM	3.312	–
IRM	13.277	0.141
JEPI	13.084	0.085
JNJ	6.321	–
K	2.144	–
KHC	5.413	–
KMB	2.145	0.018
KO	2.138	0.016
MAIN	11.804	0.067
MMM	9.59	–
MO	12.67	0.255
MPW	17.016	0.483
O	7.405	1.027
QYLD	32.884	–
SCHD	10.253	–
SO	2.173	–
SPTN	6.448	–
T	16.647	–
VICI	4	4.000
VTRS	13.574	–
VZ	2	–
WBD	3	–
XOM	5.348	–

In the month of July we received dividend payments from FRT, IRM, JEPI, KMB, KO, MAIN, MO, MPW & O. Our dividend payments for the month totaled $43.88 and all proceeds were reinvested into the underlying positions.

July was a decent month for investable income relative to how this year has gone so far. As such, we were able to add a share to our position in O which we are always happy to do. The company is a monthly dividend payer who consistently increases their payout several times a year. Some increases are very small and fractional, but it adds up over time.

We also started a new position in VICI. This is a REIT that basically owns Las Vegas when it comes to properties. The company has been on our radar for along time, but we prioritized adding to our existing holdings over starting this position. With the markets moving much higher over the last couple of months and REITs being flat to down it was a nice time to take advantage of the opportunity.

Year to date we have received dividend payments totaling $389.91. This is a 40% increase over the same seven month period in 2022. On a year over year basis our dividend portfolio distributions grew 23.12% for the month of July. 

Stock	July 2022	July 2023	YOY Growth %
FRT	$4.35	$6.81	56.55%
IRM	$7.73	$8.12	5.05%
JEPI	$2.50	$4.67	467.00%
KMB	$2.38	$2.51	5.46%
KO	$0.91	$0.98	7.69%
MAIN    (m)	$1.32	$2.70	104.55%
MO	$8.55	$11.67	36.49%
MPW	$2.12	$4.79	125.94%
O    (m)	$1.03	$1.63	58.25%
QYLD  (m)	$4.75	$0.00	-100.00%
Total	$35.64	$43.88	23.12%

 

It’s nice to see another great YOY growth chart. With the exception of QYLD, which pushed the July dividend payout into August, all of our positions grew at a nice pace. Even positions like IRM, KMB and KO, where we haven’t added any whole shares to our holdings in a long time, have grown nicely. Goes to show what reinvesting dividends can do!

As for QYLD and JEPI, we are still trying to decide on letting one of these go. We would like reduce to one covered call holding and reallocate the funds. We are obviously leaning toward eliminating QYLD over JEPI, but I’ve been very indecisive about pulling the trigger. So instead of doing something stupid, I’ve done nothing which has actually benefited us the last two months.

After another strong month the markets look to be overbought. This could make for a good time to sell one of the two ETF’s. If we decide to go forward my thought is that the best option is to probably to add to our position in SCHD. This is a great ETF for the long haul and would be less volatile than adding to one of our individual stock positions.

But, there is a negative side to this transaction which is the difference in dividend yield from QYLD to SCHD. That difference would reduce our PADI by about $45 a year! That’s a 2/3 decrease in the income that is currently being generated. One would hope that the chance of more capital appreciation and dividend growth from SCHD would win out in the end. But, that’s a pretty large step backwards for us to take when we finally just crossed the $750 milestone. Perhaps it would it be better to hold the position and just redirect the distributions elsewhere? Then we can use that income to grow our other positions without reducing our PADI. So much to consider.

It appears I am suffering from a severe case of paralysis by analysis. Any thoughts from our readers is appreciated!

At the month end for July 2023 our dividend portfolio was valued at $14,020.32. This is a 6.41% increase from June 2023 which is a new high. On a year over year basis our portfolio value increased by 25.34% from July 2022. 

Month	Portfolio Value	MOM % Change
June 2023	$13,175.67	6.41%
July 2023	$14,020.32

Month	Portfolio Value	YOY % Change
July 2022	$11,185.45	25.34%
July 2023	$14,020.32

With the additional shares added to our positions and the reinvestment of all dividends received our portfolio will now provide projected annual dividend income (PADI) of $768 or about $64 per month on average. This is an increase of $14.00 per year or just over $1.00 per month on average from our June 2023 update. Additionally, the yield on cost(YOC) for our portfolio remained at 5.62% as our purchase were well below that mark.

Our July dividend portfolio update reflects some nice progress, excellent growth and a couple of challenges. For the first time we reached $14k in portfolio value and 25% YOY growth is outstanding. Our challenges are finding an exit point for WBD and hopefully making a decision on QYLD once and for all. Either way our portfolio is heading in the right direction and that is exciting!

Thank you as always for reading our blog. 

Happy Investing!

Joe

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