Hi Everyone!
The quarter end is upon us and boy was it a good one! Like most of you know, the quarter ends are usually the bigger payout months and this month was no exception for us.
As for portfolio and overall market news, I can't complain. Had I written this right at the beginning of the month things would be better but I didn't. And man has the market taken a turn over the past week! The first few down days, my taxable account did not budge. V was down, but MO and CVS and PEP were up. You get the picture - tech/growth hit hard, defensive stocks held their own like they are supposed to do. But then the last two days happened and my portfolio was no different than the market. Both portfolios took a major hit like the broader averages.
However, like I said in the first sentence above, I can't complain. CVS position is still higher than it was a few months ago and these down days make great stocks cheap. Visa and financial technology stocks look good right now and keep adding as they fall. Walgreens just posted earnings and had over 10% revenue growth from year to year. So much for the Amazon effect and destroying retail! I remain confident that CVS will post similar results in the coming quarter. Not to mention it appears that they got the preliminary approval for the merger with Aetna - barring selling off Part D plans.
I look around today and I see no changes (yet) to the economy where I live since last week. If anything, this is the type of pull back you look for. A healthy correction right now. Dip a toe in and keep adding on the way down if this is the beginning of the bear market. We shall see!
As for dividends, they keep on paying!!
V - $22.42
O - $41.39
XOM - $48.52
TAP - $12.02
PEP - $39.82
DLR - $11.21
FTSE - $130.44
M.M. - $0.76
TOTAL: $306.58
Now that's what I'm talking about! Double the income from this time last year when we only brought in $147.11. The Dividend Diplomats preach this all the time but maximizing our 401K is really paying dividends - pun intended. Last year FTSE was $95. This year a $130 check! Visa is another position I am really excited about. A $5 gain from last year all due to organic growth - no extra money was added to the position - just good old dividend increases and reinvestment.
Looking towards the future, my wife and I continue to save as best we can and might have a tad bit of money to invest should the market keep falling.
One area of our finances that we never talk about is our HSA's. Our boy spent a week in the hospital 8 months ago and I was unsure what costs were going to look like. I pulled out money from our investments and keep the money in a cash account to pay down his medical bills. Well, with maxing out my HSA I had a decent amount of money to invest so I invested 1/3 of it today - the 11th of October. If the market keeps falling, I will look to continue to add.
I don't talk about HSA's or my wife's 401Ks because I view them as our "surprise" funds when we retire. Either the HSA's will be spent on medical bills throughout the years or it will be a lump sum. My wife's 401K might be used as that dream vacation or perhaps college education. Either way, they do not calculate into our FIRE date - at this time.
Hope you had a great September!
ADD
Thank you so much for the shout out ADD! But in all seriousness, it is all about the progress you have made over the years and the hard work you and your wife are putting in place. I mean, look at that growth you highlighted for your 401k. That's unbelievable. Keep up the great work and you will continue to see more months where your dividend income is growing and growing.
ReplyDeleteBert
Outstanding post, I think people should acquire a lot from this weblog its really user pleasant. So much great information on here .
ReplyDeleteKLSE Stock Picks