Another month is almost in the books and it is time to report my dividend income results for December. This is the first time I have posted my monthly results, which should help me stay focused on my long range goals of building a solid dividend income portfolio. I currently own 10 different stocks that pay dividends and plan to grow my portfolio over the next year.
Here are my results -
Dividend Income Earned in December
I earned $38.79 in dividend income during December, which was my highest monthly total this year. All of the income growth stocks I hold pay dividends on a quarterly schedule, of which four paid in December. It is important to note that all of the following dividend payments received were automatically reinvested back into additional shares of stock using DRIP.
- Intel Corp Comp (INTC) – $2.52
- Johnson & Johnson – $9.01
- Consolidate Edison (ED) – $17.88
- McDonald’s Corp (MCD) – $9.38
Since my monthly income varies each month, I like to track my 3 month rolling average of dividend payments. The past three months, I earned the following dividend income.
- October – $8.79
- November – $20.37
- December – $38.79
All of my stocks pay quarterly dividends, so tracking the 3 month rolling average is a good indicator of my growth each month. For December, my 3 month dividend income average rose to $22.65 – up from $21.30 in November.
December Investments
During the month of December, I did not sell any stocks in my dividend portfolio. I am happy with each of my 10 holdings and will continue to monitor each company into the new year. In the event a stock in my portfolio cuts their dividend, I will likely sell my positions at that time.
The only new investments I made during the month were from my two automatic investment plans. Each month I have $50 automatically invested in both Clorox (CLX) and Cincinnati Financial (CINF) – both members of the 2012 dividend aristocrat index. Each of these investments were made through the respective company’s direct stock purchase plans. The nice thing about each of these plans is that I am not charged any commission, which makes my investment dollars stretch further.
- $50 automatic investment in Clorox (CLX) – 0.768 shares
- $50 automatic investment in Cincinnati Financial (CINF) – 1.668 shares
The net result of these purchases will result in an additional $4.53 in annual income. While it is not a lot, these small purchases should add up overtime with additional investments and dividend reinvestment’s.
- Clorox (CLX) – $1.84
- Cincinnati Financial (CINF) – $2.69
2012 Investment Outlook
I have several goals for growing my dividend income in 2012. For starters, I would like to invest at least $6,000 into my dividend portfolio (or $500 per month). I have already increased my automated investments for CLX and CINF from $50 to $100 each month. I want to use the next year to grow my positions in these two holdings by taking advantage of no commission costs by investing through direct stock purchase plans.
How did your December dividend results turn out?
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