July 2023 Financial Update

This is not where we expected to be when we started writing our July 2023 financial update! We were sitting in a beautiful campground in South Dakota. The owners of the campground are amazing people. Not only do they maintain and manage the campground, but the rest of the property is a working family farm. We were on the list to purchase farm fresh eggs once a week and Mrs. RVF was taking rides with the owner out to the pasture to help feed and water the cows.

They were also gracious enough to share fresh vegetables from their garden with us and other campers at no cost. Each evening we would sit outside and watch the sunset. Some nights the campers would gather around the community fire pit and share stories. This and the surrounding scenery reminded us of why we chose to live this lifestyle.

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July 2023 Dividend Portfolio Update

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.

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June 2023 Financial Update

We will keep this months financial update relatively short as the writing mood is just not in us at this time. As we wrap up our stay in Montana and head to South Dakota we will be doing so with heavy hearts. If you follow us in social media you know by now that we lost our travel buddy Murphy unexpectedly this month.

The loss has brought down our enthusiasm levels considerably and driving away from here without him is going to be extremely difficult. We know that time will heal our hearts and our adventure will go on. But an important and loving part of our lives for the last 13+ years will be missing as we go forward.

So long little buddy!

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June 2023 Dividend Portfolio Update

It’s time for another dividend portfolio update! The month of June was a strong month for the stock market and not too shabby for our dividend portfolio. This was a welcome change from last month when we had the largest percentage loss ever for our portfolio.

While our largest holdings are still underperforming a few rebounded this month. Additionally, we had great action in some of our other holdings that helped to buoy our portfolio until those larger holdings regained some traction. One of the holdings that’s been on a tear is ABR, which was up over 15% the past month and 30% over the last 3 months.

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May 2023 Dividend Portfolio Update

The month of May was pretty brutal for our little dividend portfolio. It seemed that everything we own was going in the wrong direction. As such, we took the biggest monthly hit we have ever had for this account. That’s how it goes sometimes. Maybe the month of June will be kind and give us a nice rebound. Looks like it’s off to a good start, but will it hold?

Looking at the performance of our dividend portfolio we see that our largest holdings like ABBV, JNJ, FRT and, our own personal anchor, MMM all suffered significant losses for the month. The good news is this gives us a nice buying opportunity for some stocks positions we haven’t added to in a long time. The bad news is we need cash in order to take advantage of this opportunity.

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April 2023 Financial Update

April went by in a flash and it feels like May is shaping up to do the same. It’s hard to believe we are already publishing another financial update! Ever since we left Mesa we have been busy trying to get caught up on projects and hobbies while at the same time getting back to enjoying the things we love like hiking and sightseeing. And since we have family that lives close by we have to make sure we find time to visit and catch up while we can.

Over the last month it has been great to be out in the open air and enjoying nature again and we have tried to get out for a nice size hike at least once a week. The great part about being full-time in our RV is we get to enjoy things while everyone else is busy working and the kids are in school. Often times when we go on hike we are the only people around which allows us to enjoy the views and our surroundings undisturbed. That will begin to change over the next few months so we are trying to take advantage of it while we can. We are hoping to hit Zion National Park before it gets too crowded and we have to leave. It’s been awhile since we have been there and it has some of the best hiking!

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April 2023 Dividend Portfolio Update

Time flies when you are having fun and feels like April was over before we could even get ourselves completely settled in and back on track.

As the markets struggled for direction so too did our dividend portfolio. At times it seemed like April was going to be a banner month as earnings overall were turning out somewhat better than expected. Then our account took a hit with the earnings release for Abbvie (ABBV) which is the largest position in our portfolio. The subsequent drop in the stock price was a bit odd as the numbers were actually pretty good, but the erosion in the sales of their flagship drug after losing patent protection was just too much and the stock sold off.

Over the last couple of trading days the markets rallied and ABBV recovered a small portion of the drop. Our portfolios roller coaster ride ended slightly in the positive for the month which we are always happy to see. Of concern going forward is the continued volatility, continued fed incompetence and yet another bank failure which could have further negative impact on the economy and the markets.

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