One month down, eleven months to go. Oh what a year it has been already – both in the stock market and in America at large. But, despite all the news, one thing remains constant. Dividends in my portfolio keep rolling in working hard for me day in and day out. It’s easy to be distracted and not follow your plan. In fact, FOMO, or fear of missing out, is a real thing. Did anyone buy Gamestop or AMC recently?
If you did, I’m jealous. I thought about it, but chose not to. No one ever really knows what the stock market will do, and so it’s important to have a plan and stick to it. But, it may not be a bad idea to have a little extra play money to engage in more risky investments from time to time. But, you didn’t come here for investment advice, because I am most certainly not a financial advisor. You came here to see how much dividends I earned in January 2021. So, let’s dive in.
Dividends Earned
In January 2021, I earned $18.18 in dividends broken down as follows:
NO. | STOCK | NAME | DIVIDENDS |
1 | KMB | Kimberly Clark | $3.42 |
2 | MO | Altria Group | $9.77 |
3 | O | Realty-Income | $1.84 |
4 | PEP | Pepsi | $3.15 |
$18.18 |
Almost $20. On the one hand, that amount might seem small. And, of course, it is. But, on the other hand, that is $18.18 that I never had before. Moreover, that money gets added to my portfolio in the form of additional shares, thus creating a snowball of dividends. Every year, I hope that this number will get larger and larger, creating a bigger and bigger snowball. The goal is so that one day, I will earn enough in dividends to cover most, if not all, of my expenses.
Annual Income
Here is a graphical representation of the dividends earned in January in relation to the dividends earned in previous years:
Here is the raw data:
MONTH | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | Rate |
January | $0.00 | $14.93 | $37.54 | $2.22 | $18.18 | 718.92% |
February | $0.00 | $77.66 | $141.16 | $7.49 | ||
March | $0.00 | $72.93 | $136.45 | $78.68 | ||
April | $0.41 | $31.47 | $55.39 | $0.33 | ||
May | $2.85 | $79.33 | $142.69 | $2.23 | ||
June | $16.89 | $98.51 | $160.47 | $10.29 | ||
July | $5.99 | $42.32 | $59.68 | $6.67 | ||
August | $21.95 | $108.44 | $147.73 | $9.72 | ||
September | $28.72 | $111.15 | $151.66 | $30.19 | ||
October | $23.21 | $48.09 | $3.00 | $11.46 | ||
November | $62.11 | $124.92 | $7.18 | $15.84 | ||
December | $76.51 | $140.24 | $116.51 | $47.57 |
WOW! As compared to last year, I made 718.92% percent more in dividends. That’s almost like buying Gamestop stock last week. Of course, I am still down from 2019 levels, but I have every confidence that I will cross that threshold in due time. I’ve increased the minimum contributions to my dividend portfolio to $1000 per month. Slow and steady wins the race.
Forward Annual Dividends
At the time of this writing, my forward annual dividends is $419.89. A month ago, my forward annual dividends was $382.05. This represents a healthy 10% increase from the previous month. I’ll take it.
Finally, the Dividend Tracker has been updated accordingly.
What Expenses Would Dividends Cover?
Here, I visualize what expenses my annual dividend income could pay for. This is one of my favorite parts of pursuing dividend growth investing.
$419.89 per year is $34.99 dividends per month, on average. At present, I pay $1 per month to use Acorns. Also, my Hulu Plus bill is $6.41 per month. I earn enough in dividends to cover Acorns, Hulu Plus and Amazon Prime. The next bill I am targeting is Netflix. That amount is $15.99 per month. The total amount needed until I can pay the next bill is $4.12 in dividends. I anticipate being able to cover Netflix either in February or March 2021.
The following is a list of expenses I am targeting:
YouTube Channel
Ok, I’ve recorded my first video. I have yet to edit it and I have yet to hit the upload button. I am still nervous and/or anxious about the whole thing, but I anticipate posting my first video sometime in February! It’s jus a welcome to my channel type of video. Wish me luck. I’ll make a new post once I make the upload.
Conclusion
Dividend Growth Investing is a long-term strategy. There will be distractions and other opportunities along the way. But consistently investing in dividend stocks (or funds) over a long period of time can contribute to financial freedom.
How was January for you? Did you reach any milestones? Let me know your thoughts by commenting below.
Nice & steady progress rebuilding the portfolio. Just a few more dollars per month and Netflix will be paid.
Definitely looking forward to that Netflix bill being covered. I hope to make significant progress rebuilding the portfolio this year. Thanks for the comment.
Good job you are moving in the right direction and back on track. Keep it up.
Doug recently posted…Jan 21 Dividend Review
Thanks Doug. Slow and steady wins the race.
A nice start to the new dividend year, DP. The growth compared to last year looks great. It shouldn’t take long to grow that snowball while contributing $1K a month to the portfolio. In fact, 2019’s total should be eclipsed rather quickly too. Just keep doing what you are doing.
Love hearing about the YouTube channel… I’ll definitely give it a look when it’s ready. Take care.
Engineering Dividends recently posted…Portfolio Thoughts (Jan. 2021)
I can’t wait until I am able to exceed 2019 numbers. I wish I could contribute more to the portfolio, but I am also thankful that I am able to contribute so much.
Triple digit YOY growth is a great way to begin a new year! Nicely done. It is great to see you rebuilding your portfolio. Keep up the awesome work! 🙂
My Dividend Dynasty recently posted…January 2021 Dividend Income
Yea, I definitely can’t argue with Tripe digit YoY Growth. Thanks MDD.
That is some awesome growth DP! Great to see you steadily rising AND sticking to your gameplan. Keep it up!
Thanks Mr. Robot. I’m really hoping to have more definitive answers about my financial plan in the next couple of weeks (or so), but sufficed to say I am very excited. I’ll give you a sneak peak: I’m going to be working a second job starting in March! That will definitely help with me sticking to my gameplan. Thanks for the comment.
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Love to see that you rebuilding your portfolio! I have been pleased to read the entirety of the report as mentioned above in detail. I am going to share the post on my Twitter page to see my followers. Thanks and keep it up!
Thanks Samantha
I am going to remember and follow the guide “Dividend Growth Investing is a long-term strategy.”! It’s super and brilliant reading. I got some wise tips through this posting. It’s nice to read that you rebuilding your portfolio. Please carry on!
Will do Boxabl. I’m glad you found value in the post and blog.