Another wild quarter is in the books. As noted in our last blog, we are back on the road and living the full-time RV life once again. Now that I have some time, welcome to my Q3 2026 Dividend Portfolio Update!
We were planning on heading to Washington, but with the possibility of bad weather through the mountain passes we decided to play it safe. Our little RV, especially pulling our Jeep, is not built for that type of scenario. Plus, we just went through 5 months of stress and we need a break! It finally feels like we are getting situated and back in the groove of RV life. The last thing we need to do is to put ourselves in a bad or even dangerous situation.
Q3 was another quarter dominated by geopolitical headlines which resulted continued volatility in the oil and gas markets. Then the bond markets decided to throw a tantrum which in turn bullied the Fed into a rate increase. All of this made for more wild swings in the equity markets this quarter as we fluctuated between all-time highs and “oh my god, we are all going to go broke!” At least that was the sentiment on X in the personal finance space.
I have opinions on this rate increase, but I really don’t feel like going on a political rant right now. I don’t know about you, but I am sick and tired of hearing about the Middle East. I’m even more sick and tired of the never-ending flood of propaganda and political bullshit published or posted on a daily basis.
It is an election year so this is normal and shouldn’t be a surprise to anyone. The sad part is the amount of people openly rooting against their own country and cheering any bad news because “their party” isn’t in control. I guess that’s what happens when a good part of the population has gone off the rails.
These people have bought into the lame idea that the answer to their problems is more government. It shows you that propaganda does work. All you needs are enough stupid, lazy and gullible people and you can gain support for some of the dumbest ideas that have failed time and time again throughout history.
We don’t need more government people! We need mental institutions, history lessons and remedial economics and/or personal finance courses. Get the crazies the help they obviously need and educate those that want to learn to be self-sufficient.
Thankfully, getting back on the road means I have less time to dither away online and watch TV. Less exposure to politics and the daily musings of the idiots and their lemmings is never a bad thing.
Well, I guess I went on a rant anyway and it wasn’t even about the rate hike. Sorry.
Over the last 3 months it was difficult to do much to help this portfolio. My attention was focused on my family, selling our home and getting everything in order so we could get back on the road. It has been mentally, physically and financially exhausting. So as expected this portfolio took a back seat until recently when we got setteled down.
Dividend Portfolio As Of 9/30/2026
| TICKER | COMPANY | SHARES HELD | CHANGE FROM LAST UPDATE (6/30/2026) |
| ABBV | ABBVIE INC | 15.7070 | 0.1083 |
| BKH | BLACK HILLS CORP | 8.1509 | 0.0787 |
| DOW | DOW INC | 11.8788 | 0.1400 |
| EPD | ENTERPRISE PRODS PART LP | 9.6844 | 0.1389 |
| FRT | FEDERAL RLTY INVT TR NEWREIT | 7.2510 | 0.0662 |
| GIS | GENERAL MILLS INC | 8.2032 | 0.1350 |
| IBM | IBM CORP | 3.6560 | 0.0258 |
| IRM | IRON MTN INC NEW REIT | 14.6709 | 0.1074 |
| JEPI | JPMORGAN EQUITY PREMIUM INCOME ETF | 26.5596 | 0.5169 |
| JEPQ | JPMORGAN NASDAQ EQUITY PREMIUM INCOME ETF | 55.4654 | 1.8398 |
| JNJ | JOHNSON & JOHNSON | 6.9272 | 0.0342 |
| KDP | KEURIG DR PEPPER INC | 12.4789 | 0.0907 |
| KHC | KRAFT HEINZ CO | 6.4868 | 0.1075 |
| KMB | KIMBERLY CLARK CORP | 3.4322 | 0.0380 |
| KO | THE COCA-COLA CO | 2.3499 | 0.0294 |
| MAIN | MAIN STR CAP CORP | 14.1345 | 0.1981 |
| MO | ALTRIA GROUP INC | 17.6892 | 0.2584 |
| O | REALTY INCOME CORP REIT | 17.9571 | 0.2334 |
| PYPL | PAYPAL HLDGS INC | 5.4123 | 0.0141 |
| QQQI | NEOS NASDAQ-100(R) HIGH INCOME ETF | 30.9026 | 2.0562 |
| SCHD | SCHWAB U.S. DIVIDEND EQUITY ETF | 151.4147 | 7.2123 |
| SO | SOUTHERN CO | 2.4336 | 0.0206 |
| VICI | VICI PPTYS INC REIT | 15.9061 | 1.2536 |
| XOM | EXXONMOBIL HLDGS CORP | 5.9513 | 0.0371 |
As you can see there wasn’t a whole lot of action in the last three months. When I had some time and money I added to our core holding SCHD with 6 additional shares purchased. I also added 2 shares of QQQI, 1 share of JEPQ and 1 shares of VICI when they dropped. Other than that it was all reinvestments this quarter, which gave me an additional share of SCHD on top of the 6 I purchased.
With the markets fluctuating so much there are some good opportunities out there. Maybe with some more free time and a little cash in my pocket I can take advantage of some of these bargains. It’s been awhile since I started a new position.
In Q3 I received $393.66 in dividend payments! This is an increase of $103.54 or 35.69% when compared to Q3 2025. Another nice year-over-year increase! This included my largest single month ever of $155.82 in September.
Year to date I have received $1,093.68 in dividend payments. This is an increase of $221.10 or 25.34% when compared to the first three quarters of 2025. I am on track to easily clear $1,400 for 2026. However, like last year, I don’t want to just be satisfied with that. I’m greedy and want more.
About this time a year ago I had also hit my annual dividend goal for the year early. I decided to set a higher, and very ambitious, goal of $1,250 for the end of 2025. I knew it would be very difficult and it was. I fell short by about $70. But, trying to run up the score at the end of the year set me up to be even stronger going into 2026. Now I am in the same position as $1,400 seems to be a foregone conclusion. That being the case, I would like to at least try to get to $1,500 in dividends received by the end of 2026. That would be a very satisfying number. And while it will be difficult just as $1,250 was last year it is a number that is possible. So let’s go for it!
On a quarter-over-quarter basis my dividend portfolio value only increased slightly. This was to be expected with the amount of volatility and the extreme moves in the markets. But an increase is an increase so I will take it and like it.
| Month | Portfolio Value | QOQ % Change |
| June 2026 | $27,844.04 | 0.68% |
| September 2026 | $28,033.05 |
On a year-over-year basis my dividend portfolio is looking strong with a 20% increase in value. In August I almost cracked $29k before pulling back in September. I would love to see a $30k print to end 2026! Is that too much to ask for?
| Month | Portfolio Value | MOM % Change |
| September 2025 | $23,357.18 | 20.02% |
| September 2026 | $28,033.05 |
As of the end of Q3 2026 my divided portfolio will provide projected annual dividend income (PADI) of $1,506.33. This equates to an average of $125.52 per month. That’s an increase of $66.30 annually or $5.52 per month from our Q2 update.
Year to date my PADI has increased $218.66 annually or $18.22 per month from the end of 2025. That is a very nice 16.98% increase in PADI through three quarters of the year. However, it’s not enough!
My goal to end 2026 was to have $1,600 in PADI. To keep pace I need to increase PADI by an average of $78.25 per quarter. Q1 was exceptional as I added $112. However, I fell short in Q2 and now again in Q3. This has put me at a deficit going into Q4 which means I will need to add almost $94 of PADI for the last quarter of the year to reach my $1,600 goal.
I’m confident I can reach that amount now that we are getting back to a normal existence. But I don’t want to simply be satisfied with hitting that goal if I do. Like the dividends received number I want to beat that goal and start 2027 on a strong note. Getting to $1,600 is what I need to do, but I am going to aim for $1,650 in PADI by year-end.
There is a method to the madness of trying to reach $1,650. If I look at the history of this account the PADI growth pattern over the years averages between 22% – 25% annually. If I simply reach my goal this year I would have to be on the high side of that range to hit $2k in 2027. If I have a down year growing this account I will probably fall short. So anything I can add over $1,600 this year will make the task of hitting $2k in 2027 a little easier.
That is the goal for 2027, $2k in PADI! Sure has a sweet sound to it!
One last thing before I go. A little options trading update and a warning to others. Turns out it’s not good to trade options when your attention is diverted elsewhere and you are not fully focused on the task at hand. I did that and now I’m trying to work my way out of a hole.
I sold some options and outright forgot about them. I was being pulled in so many directions I should have never bothered in the first place. Then I drove 1,200 miles over a three-day period and during that time the market tanked and the options were assigned. So instead of rolling the options over and living to see another day I now own stock in three companies. Such is life at the moment. But, all is not lost unless you sell, which I’m not going to do. Another lesson learned.
Thank you for reading our blog. It’s exciting to be back on the road and while it’s been a stressful five months we are now starting to get to the fun part. I will give further updates on our travels in our next blog which will be our Q3 financial update. Although those financial numbers will be completely out of context due to the sale of our home. But, that’s a discussion for another day.
Happy Investing!!
Joe
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