Freedom Fund Update – April 2015

piggyfundWell, the time has come to update the Freedom Fund once again as we start another month. The Freedom Fund is my portfolio, and I think it’s aptly named. My portfolio is my way to freedom; freedom from a job I don’t desire to purchase goods I don’t need to impress neighbors I don’t care about. This journey is all about freedom and flexibility. One day, the dividend income this portfolio generates will fully cover my expenses and my time will be completely my own. What could you possibly want to own more than your time?

I’m extremely fortunate that I’m able to post these updates every single month, which shows the power of monthly contributions to investments because of the high savings rate I maintain. It shows how a relatively large sum of money can be built through the power of time, patience and perseverance.

It’s important to keep in mind that while updating the overall value of my portfolio is important for historical reference and for purposes of keeping track of total return, my main focus is on the rising dividend income stream the Fund provides.

I was busy in March!

The original plan was to stay low this past month due to the fact that I knew I’d have to write a pretty healthy check to the federal government as a result of the better-than-expected online income I earned last year. However, March broke all kinds of records in regards to income across the board (I’ll be going over this soon!) and I also decided to finally go back to the car-free lifestyle. This all had the effect of affording me more capital than I originally anticipated.

So I put my money to work (so I eventually don’t have to).

I initiated a stake in T. Rowe Price Group Inc. (TROW) early in the month. Fantastic fundamentals across the board, an attractive valuation, and a special dividend of $2.00 meant I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to finally invest in a company that I’ve been watching for some time now.

Later in the month, I noticed that Bank of Nova Scotia (BNS) seemed to be particularly cheap with one of the best valuations it’s had in the last five years. Couple that with a yield well north of 4% and a dividend history dating back before Abraham Lincoln, and I felt I had to stretch a bit here and add to my position for the first time since initiating it back in February 2013.

Finally, I stayed true to my watch list for the month and bought up shares in Praxair, Inc. (PX). This is just a fantastic company that’s done well for a very long time. They have projects going on all over the world and their business model just reeks of quality. I’m confident in their prospects and wouldn’t mind doubling down if I get an opportunity at an even cheaper price. Count me in as a happy shareholder.

The current market value of the Freedom Fund stands at $188,845.55, which is a 0.7% decrease since last month’s published value of $190,209.32. The portfolio was constrained a bit this month since some of my larger positions performed particularly poor in terms of their stock prices. But it’s largely business as usual so it matters not to me. In particular, Philip Morris International Inc. (PM) and BHP Billiton PLC (BBL) dropped rather substantially over the course of march – both were down more than 10% over the month alone. However, I continue to believe both are some of the best opportunities in the market right now, especially Philip Morris.

FFUpdateApril2014

I’m extremely grateful that the market has been volatile to start the year. The S&P 500 is basically unchanged year to date, yet it’s been a roller coaster in the meanwhile. And many stocks, like the ones I mentioned above, have been all over the place, which gives those withΒ an ability to separate price and valueΒ fantastic long-term opportunities.

I expect to be able to purchase shares in at least one company over the course of April, but I may be lucky enough to stay a little busier. It’s unlikely I’ll deploy capital anywhere close to the level of what I was able to in March since I don’t have a car to sell every month, but I also don’t have a large check to write to the federal government. And lightening expenses looking past May should provide my capital a nice tailwind. I’m excited!

The Fund now has positions in 53 companies. This is an increase since last month since the positions in TROW and PX are brand new.

These updates are mainly designed to show the increase or decrease in the value of the underlying equities I’m invested in, but the main purpose of investing in dividend growth stocks is for the rising stream of dividends over time. Thus, I don’t put too much emphasis on these monthly updates. I think it is a good idea, however, to keep track of the rising (or falling) value of one’s securities and be aware of where they are in terms of the marketplace and whether or not certain stocks are attractively priced. It find it a helpful exercise to update the values monthly. It gives me fresh perspective on which equities are performing well and which aren’t, and from there I can make educated decisions (based on further due diligence) on which stocks I’d like to add fresh capital to (while considering portfolio weight as well).

Full Disclosure: Long TROW, BNS, PX, PM, and BBL.

Did March treat you well? Were you able to put more capital to work than you initially anticipated? Is 2015 off to a great start for you and your portfolio?Β 

Thanks for reading.

Photo Credit: BimXD/FreeDigitalPhotos.net

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104 Comments

  1. And the March forward continues, I know 200k is the looming elephant of a milestone in the near future but hey, it’s inevitable anyways so you can almost already consider it as good as done! Looking forward to that dividend update

  2. Jason,

    Yeah, it’s definitely a foregone conclusion by now. Though, I’m hoping to delay the inevitable as much as possible, preferring good deals with current capital. πŸ™‚

    Can’t wait to update the dividend income. March was incredible.

    Hope the journey is going just as well for you!

    Cheers.

  3. I like how you said that you don’t put too much emphasis on these monthly updates. It is all about the dividend flow, and so long as the companies invested in stay solvent, who cares how much they are worth on a monthly basis?

  4. DM,
    Three nice adds this month. Still hovering below that inevitable $200k level. Just a matter of time. Looking forward to the income update.

    I bought some PM Last week and picked up more TROW just this morning. Both are compelling at these levels.
    -RBD

  5. UTMT,

    Thanks so much!

    I’m really excited to hit financial independence not just for the obvious and personal reasons, but also to prove to anyone and everyone that it’s possible at a relatively young age even without a six-figure income. Can’t argue with the results when the road map is right in front of you. πŸ™‚

    Appreciate the support. Thanks for stopping by.

    Best regards!

  6. Gremlin,

    Definitely not a dip in the dividend income. I’ll be posting that update pretty soon, which I’m really excited about. Always nice to show the juxtaposition between the portfolio and income updates. πŸ™‚

    I’m really happy that I’m finally a shareholder here in these two companies. Both look incredibly solid.

    Thanks for stopping by!

    Best regards.

  7. Pete,

    Absolutely. I update this as part of the blog, but in all honesty I barely pay attention to the value over the course of the month. Most major companies – the type of companies I invest in – just don’t actually see much change in their operations from day to day or month to month. The stock market is like a dramatization of the business world. Fine by me, as that sometimes provides incredible opportunity. πŸ™‚

    Take care!

  8. RBD,

    It was a really solid month. Added equity in three really great companies here, all of whose futures I’m optimistic about. We’ll see how it goes.

    Nice buys there. PM appears to be one of the best opportunities out there, from what I can see. It’s long been one of those stocks that people count out, which simply provides those with a keen eye a great chance to pick up a stock with the combination of undervaluation, high yield, and a high growth rate. That’s a pretty awesome combo! πŸ™‚

    Cheers.

  9. Pollie,

    Thanks! Looking forward to collecting dividends for decades to come from all three. πŸ™‚

    Looks like you had a great month over there as well with your own freedom fund and dividend income. Keep it up!

    Appreciate you dropping by.

    Take care.

  10. Great job DM! And yes the past 6 months for the market have been actually great! I’ve put a lot of money to work so far in 2015 (from what I thought was possible). I hope I can keep up the pace the rest of the year. And $200k is just around the corner, keep it up!

  11. FF,

    Glad you’re putting away some serious capital. It’s better to have our money work for us, rather than the other way around. πŸ™‚

    Thanks for the support!

    Cheers.

  12. Great update Jason, things are moving nice. Loving the market action although i’m inclined to think the market will move sideways this year for the most part, we’ll see. Some great stuff out there, i’ve been watching europe closely, the stocks have been ripping – US QE off , Europe QE on….so makes sense.

  13. Just wanted to thank you once again for this blog . It was exciting to obtain my first dividend credit of $9 from NOV. can’t wait to start slowly increasing my DI so I can be FREE from the 12 to 13 hour days. I obtained a bonus from work and instead of shopping for clothes. I shopped for Stocks and purchased PM, KMI, BBL, and trying to pick up more T. So my current holdings are BAX, PM,KMI,BBL,NOV, &T. Once again thanks for introducing me to a new road to financial freedom that does not involve 12 hr days. And your post about paying taxes was inspirational!! I now look at the glass as being half full never half empty! I am 45 years old and finally get it with your open and honest blog.
    Thanks
    Fonfon

  14. Volatility has certainly been a great opportunity to sell option premium both naked puts and calls against long positions for me. However, at near all time highs I have trouble committing new capital. I am sitting on more than 50% cash and building with each passing month. At this point I will let that cash continue to build until much better prices present themselves.

    I know we have two completely different approaches to the market. With your focus on dividend income and long term growth, there is no doubt these will most likely be good buys longer term.

    I just can’t help but hold out for lower prices.

    Looking forward to see how income for the month of March was for you. I personally just got done putting together my financial report that won’t be published till next week, but I crossed over the $200K mark for the first time. So that is exciting.

    Keep up the good work.

    Cheers!

  15. Tales,

    I certainly hope you’re right. I’d love to see it move sideways, or even better, downward.

    Thanks for dropping by. Hope all is well!

    Take care.

  16. Fonfon,

    Thanks for the kind words. Really glad to hear that the inspiration and results have come through loud and clear and you’re on your way. That’s fantastic! πŸ™‚

    There’s a whole world out there waiting for you, and it’s a place far away from 12-hour days. Believe me because I used to work those long hours and I’ve seen this new world with my own two eyes. Stick with it!

    Best wishes.

  17. Gen Y,

    I certainly hope we get even more volatility. It certainly wouldn’t surprise me to see a 10% or 20% correction any day now, but you just never know. I’ve been hearing about this coming correction for years now. Sitting on cash that whole time would have really hurt my prospects. Meanwhile, I prefer cash flow to cash since one regenerates and one doesn’t. πŸ™‚

    That said, if I earned your kind of income I could probably be a bit more lax in terms of aggressiveness. I definitely wouldn’t mind being in a position where I could invest thousands of dollars and also save a few grand for cash on the side. Many roads lead to Rome.

    Congrats on passing $200k. You’re well on your way to your goal of $10 million with your resources. Keep it up!

    Cheers.

  18. fiveoh,

    It’s definitely coming, but I do hope it delays its appearance for a while longer. πŸ™‚

    I’ve got quite a few stocks on my list for April. I’ll be publishing an article going over that early next week. Keep an eye out.

    Hope you had an excellent March!

    Best regards.

  19. Hi Jason – great month, congratulations! We did Β£1100 this month on dividend income, and hope to do better in April – we are looking forward to a great month here on our UK stocks owing to an upcoming special dividend from FLG just prior to its purchase by Aviva, and a special from GSK too.

    One thing I often think about as I start to near my passive income/dividend goals, is do you think you’ll find it difficult to make the decision to stop reinvesting your dividends, and start taking the income instead? The snowball effect you have referenced before becomes so much larger the longer you leave it, and I’m finding it really tempting to continue accumulating! Would be really interested in whether you (and others commenting here) have considered that decision point.

    As ever, appreciate the thoughtful content and am really enjoying your success – so pleased for you πŸ™‚
    best wishes
    Squodgy

  20. DM,

    Great way to end the first quarter with selling your car and immediately putting that money to work with the new additions to the portfolio. We are looking forward to that dividend report. πŸ˜‰

    All the best and keep up the hard work.

    FD

  21. Squodgy,

    Congrats on a monster month over there. That’s a huge sum of money. I’d be nearing the finish line with that kind of income. Awesome!!! πŸ™‚

    As far as your question goes, that’s something I’ve thought about and my answer is this: money has utility beyond saving and investing. I really enjoy saving and investing my way toward financial independence, but I also think there’s a finish line there. There’s purpose for that money beyond saving and investing, and that purpose is really up every individual to decide. But I can say with confidence that – when the time comes – I won’t have a problem finding other things to do with my time than rolling a snowball downhill. Now, it doesn’t take much to live a life of purpose and happiness, but it does take some money, and I won’t have any problems at all using the cash flow stream I worked so hard for to pay for whatever I want and need down the road.

    Just my take on it. I’d consider as well that the passive dividend income will very likely grow organically all by itself, even if you stop investing. So it’ll likely get to a point to where you’ll have more than you can spend anyway.

    Edit to add: You may find this article useful: https://www.dividendmantra.com/2014/09/dont-succumb-to-omys/

    Best wishes!

  22. Your graph is really amazing. It shows what you can do when you put your mind to it. I’m curious to see if you can keep up the same pace in the future. I’d be more difficult as you have a bigger stash. Great job!
    Best wishes,
    -Joe

  23. FD,

    Thanks! I guess, in the end, I’d rather have more cash flow and better health than a hunk of metal with wheels that rots out in a parking lot. πŸ™‚

    Can’t wait to publish the income report. Very excited about that. It was a blockbuster month. By far and away a record for me.

    Looks like you’ve been busy over there with all the purchases. You’re off to a fantastic start. Keep it rolling!

    Thanks for stopping by.

    Cheers.

  24. Steady totals still as my portfolio dropped over 1% easy. Hopefully 2015 will be in the green year for all of us and dividend increase are the norm.

    Good day and grind on!

  25. Joe,

    Yeah, good point there. I think the graph in terms of relative percentage increases will naturally continue to slow. But the absolute numbers – the more important metric – will increase exponentially over time. And that’ll most likely be especially true for the dividend income. The more dividend income you have, the more you can reinvest, and the more you’ll have in the future. Compounding will take over for me in a big way at some point within the next year or two, but I can already feel the tug. It’s starting to hit a critical mass now. It’s awesome! πŸ™‚

    Thanks for stopping by. Hope all is well in Portland.

    Best regards.

  26. A-G,

    Yeah, I’d love to see more months like this. I wouldn’t mind at all seeing a broad 10% drop, or perhaps more with specific stocks I have my eye on. A guy can dream. πŸ™‚

    But let’s definitely hope dividend increases (healthy ones at that) are the norm this year. 2015 is off to a pretty solid start so far in that regard. Hope it continues!

    Cheers.

  27. LD,

    Thanks!

    I’m definitely hoping to delay that milestone in favor of cheaper stocks, but at the same time it’ll be a really nice psychological barrier to cross. It’ll be really interesting to see how fast it hits relative to the first $100k.

    Appreciate the support.

    Best regards!

  28. Mike,

    Thanks!

    I’m really enjoying this year thus far. Definitely not a straight shot up, which is a welcome break from what we’ve witnessed the last few years. What goes up must come down, right? We’ll see how it goes, but I’m definitely looking forward to more deals. πŸ™‚

    Best wishes.

  29. Hello DM,

    Great blog, love reading it and getting more familiar with dividend investing (I’m also keeping an eye on your Belgium counterpart “No More Waffles”). Still need to get on the bandwagon though, we are currently not heavily involved with dividend shares (most of our investments are in ETF’s/Mutual funds and real estate). but we have decided to branch out and get some more stable income streams to be able to FIRE.

    Too bad the overall value of your freedom fund dropped, but as long as the dividend income stream increased there is not much to worry about I guess.

    Cheers, Mr. FSF

  30. Mr. FSF,

    Glad you found the blog. NMW is off to a great start over there. It’s really all about replacing one’s paycheck with a passive, sustainable, and growing income stream. And this strategy happens to be particularly robust in that regard. πŸ™‚

    As far as the portfolio value goes, I’d actually prefer it fall rather than rise (as long as that’s accompanied by a cheaper market). That means cheaper stocks, which also means my current capital (that which I’m using to buy stocks with) goes much further. Just like it’s nice to see food on sale, it’s nice to see stocks on sale. Cheaper stocks means higher yield means more passive income. And since passive income is buying freedom, that means more freedom.

    Thanks for stopping by!

    Take care.

  31. Shifting my focus from looking at my investment balances to looking at my FWD Div Income has been a tremendous boost to my frame of mind. My combined portfolio “lost” ~$3k in March, not counting ~$3,250 in additions. BUT… I increased my FWD Div income by $230 per year. That’s $230 that will continue to grow year after year without me having to go to my “job” to earn it.

  32. Hey Jason,
    Amazing to see how far you have come and how helpful you are to everyone! Already got on those Diageo stocks in the uk :),
    Would be very keen to hear what your take is on technology stocks and if you would ever consider investing in google,apple microsoft etc? Also would you ever invest in upcoming smaller companies. With say in the AIM market?

  33. Mantra,

    It is pretty wild seeing BBL and PM drop so much and providing a different valuation that we haven’t seen in a while – well at least on PM that is. I actually almost forgot about BBL’s dividend payment yesterday when I was doing my final tally – was a pretty sweet surprise.

    $188K is strong as heck though mantra, and I am sure your yield overall is looking higher with the slight downturn. What’s nice is if you were thinking of more BBL and/or PM – that obviously would provide a strong yield in place for those dollars of capital, given the higher yields. I am curious with what both will do when it comes to real dividend increases this year, BBL’s – as they’ve done in the past, maintained their current dividend from Sept to March – so hopefully the September one kicks up a little bit. PM we still have a ways to wait for their traditional month of September increase.

    Congrats DM and I can’t wait to celebrate your $200K mark soon.

    -Lanny

  34. GG,

    You’ve got the correct mindset over there! The value will fluctuate up and down, but it’s the income that’ll one day pay the bills. πŸ™‚

    Congrats on a fantastic start to 2015. Keep it going!

    Cheers.

  35. Laurence,

    Thanks so much. I’m truly blessed to be in a position to inspire and motivate others to reach for their dreams… to reach for something that most people think is impossible. πŸ™‚

    As far as tech stocks, I’m invested in IBM. I’m considering adding to my tech holdings and looking at Microsoft and Apple in particular. I’m not real keen on the entire sector, but wouldn’t mind placing small bets across a few major successful players. The balance sheets in Big Tech are amazing.

    I am actually invested in a couple of small companies. You’ll see AMNF in my portfolio. They have a market cap less than $70 million. However, it’s tough to find small companies that exude the kind of qualities I look for. In addition, there are special risks to consider there, so they’ll be few and far between for me.

    Thanks for dropping by!

    Best wishes.

  36. Thanks again for everything! I am half way through reading most of your “Recent buy” series… so insightful and every time i read it, I make notes for more research that I need to do in my journey. By the way, BBL amazes me… what a company!

    I am curious, do you write anywhere on your blog about reasons why it is better to invest on your own in div grow, as opposed to using a dividend etf or index fund? I figured that fees would be a big issue, but then as I am thinking about it… it appears that adding in the value aspect will allow someone to get better deals than just putting money into a dividend oriented fund… because the fund will just keep buying no matter what the price, whereas the individual will look for excellent buys/discounts. But I am just wanting to deepen my understanding of that … if you have written on that topic, that would be great for me to read. Thanks man! Keep up the awesome work! Seriously, I keep telling people about your site!
    jc

  37. Lanny,

    Yeah, that BBL dividend is nice, right? Let’s see how that one goes. Operations are cyclical, but they’re doing well with the capital thus far. Really like the way they’re responding.

    “I am curious with what both will do when it comes to real dividend increases this year, BBL’s – as they’ve done in the past, maintained their current dividend from Sept to March – so hopefully the September one kicks up a little bit.”

    Actually, I wouldn’t mind if BBL doesn’t increase its final dividend this year. Two payouts of $1.24 would be quite rich and the new spin-off is expected to pay out a dividend of its own… which would be like a dividend raise, all considered. But if they’re able to raise the final dividend by a little bit, that’d be even better. Management strikes me as prudent with cash flow, so I’m sure they’ll make the right call either way.

    Thanks for all the support!

    Best wishes.

  38. JC,

    Thank you very much. Really appreciate you spreading the word like that. It’s an honor for me to be mentioned in people’s conversations. Means I’m doing a good job. πŸ™‚

    As far as funds vs. stocks, I did write about that:

    https://www.dividendmantra.com/2013/04/why-i-vastly-prefer-dividend-growth/

    Valuation is an excellent point that I didn’t bring up, but it’s just another reason to consider this strategy. I’d like to revisit that article at some point in the next year or so and go over some additional points (like valuation) as well as possibly extrapolating out some of the concerns I already brought up.

    Thanks again!

    Best regards.

  39. DM,

    I just pulled the trigger at PM (again) right now just before the market closed, when people are fearful, I get greedy! This is the type of stock that will last for years and years and continue to pay investors dividends.

    Congrats on the March income stream! I can’t wait for your post especially on the dividend update!

    Happy Easter!
    -FFF

  40. Very solid total regardless. Considering your portfolio is pretty large now, probably harder to see a huge month to month increase unless we get a jump in the markets or you invest a huge amount of money. Slow and steady wins the game.

  41. Great! Thanks so much, I just read the article – very helpful! I will note that and also pass it on to one of my friends who has been talking about this issue recently. Have a great day man!

  42. Love your blog, very inspiring. Thank you for sharing your strategy and progress. I am right at the beginning of this endeavour and as such reviewing the options. Out of interest, what is your take on investing in an ETF like Vanguard’s All World High Dividend Yield, rather than underlying shares? Huge diversification and a solid yield in exchange for a fee of 29bps. I realise you aren’t paying a fee to hold stocks but it seems like a small price to pay vs the investment universe it represents. Alternatively, would it make a good benchmark for your portfolio? Thanks and all the best from Scotland.

  43. FFF,

    Nice move there. PM is one of those stocks that people continue to doubt, but that’s the way it’s always been for the company (as part of the old Philip Morris). Yet it continues to deliver year after year. I may not still be a shareholder 30 years from now, but I see no reason why it won’t continue to do well over the next decade or so. Anxious to see how some of the new products turn out for them, which we’ll see over the next year or so.

    Thanks for stopping by!

    Cheers.

  44. Tawcan,

    Yeah, exactly. That was something I was mentioning to Joe. The relative gains in percentage terms will fall, but the absolute gains (in both portfolio value and dividend income) should pick up nicely over time as compounding starts to do more of the heavy lifting. πŸ™‚

    Take care!

  45. Scottie,

    Thanks for dropping by from Scotland. Much appreciated! πŸ™‚

    As far as ETFs and what not go, I wrote an article a while back which discusses some of the reasons I avoid them:

    https://www.dividendmantra.com/2013/04/why-i-vastly-prefer-dividend-growth/

    That said, funds make sense for some people. Really depends on your objectives and interests. But keep in mind that ETFs and funds aren’t anything special. They’re just a group of investments picked by someone else for a fee.

    Best of luck as you begin your journey. Very exciting stuff!

    Cheers.

  46. PM is reverse correlation to Dollar index because a company is mostly exposed to international. I think a combination of MO and PM is very good.

  47. Your Freedom Fund is brilliant and very well made. I like how it showcases the time and dedication it takes to build your income stream one investment at a time and it is a lesson, that for some people, can’t seem to appreciate.

    I have a fund of my own, though not as diversified, mostly AT&T/PM/HCP and the rest of various solid holdings (low risk 8-10 year+ of growing dividends), though Dividend Aristocrats will always get priority when I feel the that the alternatives aren’t as appealing during investment time.

    I read a lot of financial blogs and most of them are pretty garbage with horrible wealth building advice, the worst offender being Financial Shill, I mean Financial Samurai (oh my God what wanker name, please go commit ritual suicide now with an Ebay katana). The best ones so far are yours and dividend growth investor.

    It is fact and not a point of debate that you cannot pay bills or buy food/amusement/necessities with Net Worth, but with Cash Flow. Cash Flow is absolute king, you need to have cash to pay for goods & services and it is obvious that sustainable and recurring Cash Flow is the most effective and realistic method of ensuring that you have the cash to maintain financial freedom.

    Real Estate Developers own lots of Apartment Buildings and Office Buildings… they collect RENT $$$, that’s Cash Flow.

    Telecom Giants like AT&T and Verizon collect FEE $$$ from subscribers. Cashflow

    PM & MO collect money by selling Tobacco Products, lots and lots of them. That’s $$$ Flow.

    What none of these dividend champs do is sell off pieces of their net worth or assets to stay in business, otherwise they wouldn’t be dividend champs and would be last year’s (or 10 years ago) dead business news.

    Keep up the dividend investing, you have a 100% chance of achieving your goals.

  48. ynikon,

    Good call there. The strong dollar is hurting their results like many other companies’, though PM is completely international so they’re more exposed to that. Though, the valuation seems to be extrapolating that out forever, which is highly unlikely.

    Cheers!

  49. Arthur,

    Thank you for the kind words. Means a lot to me. I do my best to provide high-quality content that’s informational, inspirational, and unique. It’s certainly not easy, but I take the responsibility seriously. And I’m really fortunate that I have such a fantastic and supportive audience.

    We’re definitely on the same page. It all comes down to healthy, sustainable, and growing cash flow. That’s why I like watching Kevin O’Leary on Shark Tank. The guy cares about two things: valuation and cash flow. πŸ™‚

    Appreciate the support. Sounds like you’re doing fantastic over there with your portfolio and cash flow. May we continue collecting for years to come!

    Best regards.

  50. DM,

    I appreciate your sincerity and how you put your investment portfolio and purchases public. You don’t just talk about why this investment is great or bad, you back it up with your hard earned cash and when something doesn’t work out as well (such as with ARCP and the accounting scandals) you don’t hide it but instead, discuss it. Much respect to you, wealth building and dividend growth investing is patient and expensive work.

    I dislike people who say “aggressive growth stocks are the best way to build your wealth” but offer no examples of what they are willing to invest money in, that is insincere and triggers my “Lying Financial Shill Adviser” flag. If you can’t back up your words with actual substance in action, then they are not sincere.

    Our backgrounds are different (I work as an accountant) but our investment and frugal living approach is pretty similar. I’m absolutely sure that dividend growth investing is the most straight forward and low risk approach to building income streams but since I am only human it feels good to know that someone else came to a similar proven conclusion.

    Happy Collecting and Journey to Financial Freedom πŸ˜€

  51. 200K is still just out of reach, but the dividends keep piling up! Can’t wait to see the dividend income post. It has been enjoyable seeing the market go sideways for a while so we have had the opportunity to invest at better prices.

    It appears that I might have started a trend with the TROW purchase. After I bought, there have been a ton of other bloggers out there following in my/our footsteps. Glad to have you and all the others on board with me.

    Keep up the great work!

  52. Henry,

    We’ll see! I’m keeping my fingers crossed it takes just a little longer. Would love to see a nice 10% or so broad correction, which would really set the portfolio back but also provide even better opportunities for fresh capital. πŸ™‚

    Thanks for dropping by!

    Best wishes.

  53. ADD,

    Oh, I’m so excited to publish the update on dividend income. March was an absolute monster. It’s a great peek at the possibilities of this. Very, very excited for that. πŸ™‚

    Yeah, TROW has been popular, though probably for good reason. I posted about it late last year and I’ve noticed it’s been on the radar for quite a few people ever since. Kind of reminds me of when I bought NOV a little while back before it started popping up all over. I just hope others are doing their own due diligence.

    Keep up the great work over on your end as well. 2015 is off to a great start for us!

    Cheers.

  54. I purchased both TROW and BNS this month as well so I have to agree with you that there’s some good value there. I was much busier that I planned during March and now my capital base is pretty much depleted. It just feels good to purchase more shares of excellent companies. Thanks for the update and I’m sure you killed it with your dividend income this month! Keep on inspiring people Jason!

  55. That’s par for the course so you’ll be fine…so you know how you wanted to live on 18,000, I wonder if your portfolio will do well enough to where you can live on 30-36,000 safely? What do you think? Is that a possibility?

  56. Congrats again on the purchases over the month, Jason. You’ve put some serious capital to work into excellent businesses and it’ll be fun to watch them prop up those dividends up over the next few months… especially that special dividend from TROW. Let’s hope you don’t hit that 200K mark any time soon so that we get even more exciting opportunities to add fresh capital. I’m pretty sure my next purchase will be following you into PX or adding to PM, maybe I should just do alphabetical order on that one, hehe. Your updates always inspire me to be a better investor and I can’t wait to read about your massive month of dividends soon!

  57. JC,

    Glad to be a fellow long-term investor in both companies. Looking forward to hopefully being rewarded with growing cash flow for decades to come. πŸ™‚

    It appears we both had a busy March. We’re incredibly fortunate to be in a position to regularly buy stocks and reap the rewards.

    Thanks for all the support. Doing all I can to inspire. Hope all is well with the family.

    Best wishes.

  58. Lila,

    That’s a good question. The projections I put together a couple of years ago have me looking at between $18,000 and $19,000 in dividend income in 2022. I might be off by a thousand here or there, but I’ll definitely not be anywhere near $30,000. I’m currently ahead of pace right now, but I’m also slowing the capital contributions after taking a pay cut to write full time. Either way, I think I’ll land right about where I set out to. We’ll see. πŸ™‚

    Cheers!

  59. Ryan,

    Thanks so much. Always appreciate the kind words and support. And you’ve been killing it lately with the capital you’ve been putting to work. Excellent job! πŸ™‚

    Alphabetical order. I like it! I suppose that’s the route I took. Maybe not a bad way to go. Ha!

    Let’s keep it rolling.

    Best regards.

  60. Jason, Well done! I definitely look to your example for myself.

    Just curious, have you ever looked at the combined growth rate of your dividends exclusive of your monthly purchases? Where I’m going with this is: Many jobs have cost of living adjustments of ~3% or raises of ~5-10%. Are your dividends increasing (exclusive of your additions) more than the COLA and raises?

    Thanks.
    Liam

  61. I keep hearing and reading a lot about an inevitable correction. I am a newbie, would you wait out the next 6-12 months before getting started? Some say correction, some say crash…I just have a tough time getting in right now with all the talk. I guess if a company is valued at a fair price, I shouldn’t think twice?

  62. Liam,

    Your question is timely. I’ve been tracking my organic dividend income privately, but I’m changing that this year. I plan to track dividend raises all by themselves and present that information all by itself and track it yearly from now on, so you’ll see exactly what kind of income growth I’m achieving organically. My first update on that will be in the next week or so – I plan to update this quarterly.

    “Many jobs have cost of living adjustments of ~3% or raises of ~5-10%.”

    Not sure about that. All the information I come across shows that real wages have been pretty static since the mid-1980s. So those raises of 5% to 10% are probably rarer than you think.

    Thanks for dropping by!

    Best wishes.

  63. Kris,

    Nobody has a crystal ball, so it’s just impossible to say if/when a major correction will occur. However, I can say that corrections of 10% or so are a fairly regular occurrence for the market over its history and actually quite healthy to keep things fairly even-keeled.

    That said, time in the market matters much more than timing the market:

    https://www.dividendmantra.com/2014/06/why-investing-new-capital-during-all-time-market-highs-doesnt-scare-me/

    Hope that helps. πŸ™‚

    Best regards.

  64. I do love the look of the Canadian banking sector. And now that my broker has recently added the Canadian markets I can buy direct instead of going through the NYSE… very tempting, but I have a large watchlist of UK stocks that are still holding me here.

  65. Have you ever run the numbers which shows how much of this is capital, how much is dividend, and how much market appreciation? I’d be interested to see if you’ve invested $150,000 and appreciate $30k or if it’s less or more. In my own calculations, I assume 7% market appreciation in my retirement estimations which I think is pretty reasonable in this weird economy we are in.

    Thanks,
    WE

  66. WE,

    Yeah, I keep a spreadsheet that contains all cash inflows since early 2010. I can then run an XIRR function against that which gives me my internal rate of return. It’s the best way I know of to approximate one’s total return. I last looked at it at the end of 2014. But like I mentioned to you before, I don’t really compare my portfolio against any benchmarks or anything, and capital appreciation is a distant second in importance to me in comparison to income and income growth. Cash flow pays bills, not beating or lagging benchmarks or anyone else. πŸ™‚

    I’ll probably check it again in a few years, but anything less than a five-year period is really just short-term noise.

    Take care!

  67. Nice job and Congrats Jason! I purchased PM few days ago and bought MSFT today. Waiting to see your watch list for month of April.

  68. AJ,

    Nice moves there. Both seem to be some of the better available values on the market, considering the growth and quality. πŸ™‚

    Thanks for dropping by. I’ve got a few ideas for April, which I’ll be discussing very soon.

    Cheers!

  69. I agree. Used the dropdown and bought some BHP Billiton shares for myself. πŸ™‚ Slowly starting to build my own dividend portfolio – and I think this is a very high quality stock that I’ll own for many years to come – and enjoy the dividends along the ride πŸ˜‰

  70. March has certainly been a busy month for you. I did not expect to see as many buys as you posted for the month. Congrats on continuing to add to your dividend income. It’s nice to track a portfolio value but I know that it’s secondary to your primary goal of adding to your dividend income. It was a nice reminder to see PX mentioned as your recent buy. It has been on the back of my mind for quite some time. I mentioned already that I like APD, ARG and PX in the industrial gasses sector and may want to initiate a position in ARG and/or PX. Thanks for sharing.

  71. Daniel,

    Glad to have you as a fellow shareholder in BBL. It’s fairly cyclical, but I think it’ll serve us well over the long haul. πŸ™‚

    Thanks for dropping by!

    Best regards.

  72. DH,

    Yeah, it was a really busy month, which I’m really happy with. I always remember how fortunate I am to be able to save and invest capital.

    I also like all the major players there in industrial gases. ARG is another strong player with excellent dividend growth, though it’s a specialized play. We’ll see how it goes, but I’m glad to have more than just APD here.

    Cheers!

  73. Great month! $200k is right on the cusp. Just like you, I stuck true to my watchlist and filled a few positions there this past month. I didn’t get to load up on oil just yet, but I’m sure there will be more opportunities in the near future.

    All the best!

  74. FI Fighter,

    Thanks for dropping by. Hope all is well!

    That’s basically it: just using capital in as opportunistic a manner as possible. Let’s hope the opportunities become even more abundant in the future. πŸ™‚

    Best wishes.

  75. Thanks Jason, your website has been an awesome source of information.

    I started investing about 6 weeks ago and have made some terrible mistakes already, but I like to think they were expensive but valuable lessons.

    I’m slowly formulating some basic rules like making sure brokerage fees are less the 0.5% per trade.

    Yes, I’m the guy who decided on a whim to buy 3 shares because I had $100 left over in my brokerage account, leaving me with 10% in fees! it’s so easy to press that BUY button! NEVER AGAIN πŸ™‚

    Cheers

  76. Sunny,

    I use the spreadsheet that comes with The Dividend Toolkit, which is a book that I’ve read and recommended.

    You can also find DDM calculators online, but the one I use comes with a spreadsheet and a range of valuation output.

    If you ever want to check the book out, you can purchase it here:

    http://www.e-junkie.com/ecom/gb.php?cl=106935&c=ib&aff=293351

    That’s an affliate link, so you’ll be supporting the site using it (only if you want to buy the book). But I only recommend what I personally use. However, like I mentioned, you can find calculators online for free. The book is far more valuable than the spreadsheet, though.

    Cheers!

  77. DE,

    Glad you’ve found information and inspiration here. That’s why I write! πŸ™‚

    I made some mistakes early on as well, like buying a mutual fund that I had no idea about. But just remember that stocks aren’t going anywhere. Take your time, soak up the knowledge (knowledge is power!), and only act when you’re 100% comfortable. You’ll get there.

    Thanks for the support.

    Best wishes!

  78. Did you read that Realty Income Corp is being added to the S&P500 index, replacing Windstream?

  79. adam,

    Yeah, that’s kind of unfortunate because shares are already pretty expensive right now. Hopefully, there’ll be a better time to pick up O at a later date. πŸ™‚

    Take care.

  80. Hey Dividend Mantra, first time commenter but I have been following your work here and on SA. I really appreciate your efforts and transparency, I am learning a lot! Thanks!

    I did have a questions regarding weighting. Lets say that someone has a decent lump sum to invest starting today because of moving out of mutual funds, how would you go about it? Put some to work now, all of it, none of it and wait for a pullback?

    Oh and the weighting part, how do I determine what percentages to allocate to each sector? This has been a struggle for me.

    Any recommendations would be great! Thanks again!

  81. Brazo264,

    Thanks for taking the time to drop a comment. Really appreciate the support and readership. πŸ™‚

    As far as investing a lump sum or dollar cost averaging, the research seems to indicate that you’re better off investing it all right away:

    http://pressroom.vanguard.com/content/nonindexed/7.23.2012_Dollar-cost_Averaging.pdf

    That said, I’d still DCA. Partly because it’s all I know. Partly because I don’t think I could find enough attractively valued stocks right now to deploy, say, $100k or something all at once.

    As far as weighting goes, that’s really an individual call. No right or wrong way to do it. But you can find my “ideal” weighting here:

    https://www.dividendmantra.com/2015/01/personal-capital-a-solid-and-free-portfolio-management-tool/

    Hope that helps!

    Best wishes.

  82. Smart to free up the car capital the same month you thought you’d have a new capital shortage, whether or not it was deliberate. It keeps that accumulation train chugging along. I think that’s a great move on Praxair. You may be happy to hear that the new analytical instruments in diagnostics, pharma, & process QC are huge gas hogs compared to the old ones, and if a lab buys their own gas generator to reduce some of their cylinder dependence, the generators are almost always serviced by the friendly local compressed gases vendor…

    My portfolio’s had more churn than I planned on, but I guess that’s going to be a recurring issue with (biotech) micros–3 positions have gotten acquired since Sept. Can’t complain too much because the price goes up but it’s a bother whenever I find a stock I like and some big company takes it away!

  83. Jana,

    Ha! It wasn’t quite deliberate, but the writing was on the wall. Selling it was already my “ace in the hole” and we just don’t really drive anywhere. The tax bill combined with the fact that it needed tires, insurance renewal, and registration meant it was time for it to go. The timing was pretty incredible. πŸ™‚

    I don’t have any biotech exposure yet, but that’s something I continue to think about. I’m sure that acquisition worked out well for you. Very nice!

    Thanks for stopping by. Hope you have a great weekend.

    Best wishes!

  84. Love your decision to call your investment account your “Freedom Fund”. You got a big “here, here” from me before I even read the rest of your comment. I am 14 months from collecting the dividends from my freedom fund.
    Will continue to invest in retirement, and hope, I am as prudent with my spending as I was with my saving.
    Keep up the good work.

  85. NRG,

    Thanks! I remember thinking up that name years ago; just made sense to me. It’s buying me my freedom. πŸ™‚

    Congrats on being so close to the other side. Sounds like you’ve worked hard for it there by saving and investing your way to the top of the mountain. Enjoy the fruits of your labor!

    Best wishes.

  86. Thank you for your response to my comment and providing the links. Being so in touch with your readers really makes a difference!

  87. Great month DM. 3 purchases in a month is wonderful. My portfolio experienced a drop too due to the overall market conditions, but that means my purchases were at a better price than otherwise.

  88. DGJ,

    Exactly. Cheaper stocks means our current capital goes that much further, which also means the yield is higher and our income is boosted. It’s a win-win as a dividend growth investor. πŸ™‚

    Cheers!

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