Weekend Reading – September 10, 2011

Another weekend is upon us. I figured this weekend would come fast after the 4-day week after having Monday off for Labor Day. I guess when you’re working nine hour days in a tense environment, the days don’t end as fast as one would like. But it’s all fine, as my day job provides me the necessary capital to continue investing in dividend growth stocks and retire early.

The markets continue to stay turbulent. Now, the buzz is that another round of quantitative easing is in store for us. I’m not a fan of the idea of QE3, as the first two rounds did very little but artificially prop up the markets. I’m a value investor who much prefers to buy equities on sale. I have no desire to pay more for my favorite companies because the Fed wants to intervene. We’ll see what happens here. I’m hoping that they realize continuing to band-aid a gaping hole doesn’t do much. This economy took many years to get into the position it’s in, and it’s going to take many years for it to get out of it. There’s no magical fix.

But, I digress. It’s Saturday afternoon. The markets are closed, the sun is shining and I’m not at work. It’s  a great day!

Here are some excellent articles from fellow dividend growth investors, frugalists and personal finance bloggers from the past week.

3 Investments to Deal With Inflation
Dividend Monk highlights three different investments to help deal with inflation. This is a great article that sums up why inflation can be your friend or enemy, and preparing for it is extremely necessary. There are quite a few reasons to believe that pent-up inflation has been building over the last couple years…and it’s just waiting to wreck havoc with your finances. Get prepared!

Millionaire minimalists
My Own Advisor highlights a few millionaires/billionaires that are minimalists in some instances, and at the very least relatively frugal in other examples. There are a couple names on this list I haven’t heard from before. The most interesting example is Aaron Patzer, the founder of Mint.com. I think Mint is a fantastic service and I highlighted why not too long ago. Aaron Patzer is worth many millions of dollars, but lives in an apartment smaller than mine, and is also car-free. Pretty cool stuff!

Is Intel A Good Buy?
Dividend Ninja highlights one of my favorite stocks right now, Intel. He asks the readers if it’s a good buy or not. I have come to the conclusion that it is, but it certainly has some risks and headwinds facing it. I believe Intel offers a lot of value right now as long as it remains a smaller part of the portfolio.

The two personal finance books that changed my life
Jacob highlights a couple books that changed his life for the better. I have not personally read “Rich Dad Poor Dad”, but “Your Money Or Your Life” did change my life. It was the first personal finance book that I read, and it was the first one that made me realize how much of my life energy I’m trading away for worthless goods. I highly recommend it!

Guide To DRIPing
The Passive Income Earner shows us why, and how he chooses to participate in a Dividend Reinvestment Plan. He presents some excellent ideas here, and while I don’t personally DRIP, I can certainly see the benefits of engaging in one of the plans.

10 Things About Millionaires You Probably Didn’t Know
The Wealthy Canadian highlights some of the characteristics that millionaires share. The best practices to increase your odds at increasing your wealth are to start early, live below your means and invest in assets that provide cash flow and increase in value over time. I believe fully that these practices are crucial and I do my best to follow all of them in my own journey.

TSX dividend yield and ex-dividend date…nomination for my book
The Dividend Guy provides a list of Canadian stocks with yield and ex-dividend date information for all our northern brothers. Definitely vote for Mike’s book!

Novartis AG (NVS) Dividend Stock Analysis
DGI analyzes Novartis and concludes it fits his entry criteria. I currently hold no position with Novartis, but I think it would fit nicely in my portfolio when funds and allocation are both available for it. It seems to be growing pretty steadily and has a pretty strong entry yield. It appears to be one of the stronger pharma plays.

Dividend Income Progress Update – August 2011
D4L updates us on his recent purchases and his dividend income from August. Very inspiring numbers here, as always. Keep up the great work!

Thanks for reading.

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