Legg Mason, Inc. (LM) Dividend Increase Announced on April 26, 2017

The 27% dividend increase that Legg Mason, Inc. (LM) recently announced means that my next LM dividend payment will be $1.11 more than my very first one,   This 31% increase is due in part to the dividend increase and in part to the reinvested dividends over the past year.

On top of the colossal dividend increase, the value of my shares has increased significantly since my purchase about a year ago.

What is Legg Mason's line of business?  Financial services.  http://bit.ly/2oKGgAM

AMERIPRISE FINANCIAL SERVICES, INC. (AMP) Dividend Increase Announced on April 24, 2017

AMERIPRISE FINANCIAL SERVICES, INC. (AMP) raised its dividend by 11% recently.  Thanks to dividend reinvestment and thanks to the increase, my next dividend payment will be about 14% more than my first one.  In addition to the significant increase in dividend payments going forward, there has also been a significant increase in the share price of AMP.

AMP has been growing profits by 10% per year since it went public in 2005.  As more and more folks use financial services companies to manage their wealth, I anticipate that AMP will continue to grow over time.

Whirlpool Corporation (WHR) Dividend Increase Announced on April 17, 2017

My next dividend payment in June from Whirlpool Corporation (WHR) will be about 12% higher than my first dividend payment in September of last year.  That is due to dividend reinvestment and due to the 10% dividend increase that has recently taken place.  While my future dividend payments have increased quite nicely, the overall value of my shares of WHR has barely moved compared to the time of purchase.

Innovations at Whirlpool have come a long way since their first electric wringer clothes washer, pictured below.  More details can be found at their website at this link: http://bit.ly/2oiRRrq

Omega Healthcare Investors, Inc. (OHI) Dividend Increase Announced on April 13, 2017

Omega Healthcare Investors, Inc. (OHI) continues to show impressive growth in its dividend payments in my nonPension portfolio.  April 13th's increase of about 2% means OHI's June payment will be a full $1 higher than my first payment nine months ago.  That extra dollar is due to dividend increases as well as dividend reinvestment, and it translates to an approximately 11% increase.

While the dividend payments have risen considerably, the value of my shares has increased by only a very small amount.  But that's okay.  Lately, a renewed price appreciation has taken place.  That may or may not continue going forward.

24 Shares of Hanesbrands Inc. (HBI) Purchased on April 10, 2017

The price of Hanesbrands Inc. (HBI) shares is about 40% lower than it was two years ago even though profits are currently about 30% higher.  So I decided to purchase 24 share of HBI to add to my nonPension portfolio.  

There are no guarantees about what will happen to future earnings at HBI, but they are currently expected to increase significantly over the next few years.  There are no guarantees about what will happen to the P/E ratio over the next few years, but the current P/E is significant lower than normal.  there are no guarantees that the dividend payout will continue to increase annually as it has done over the past few years, but the payout ratio is currently low with room to grow.  

I will not throw a pity party if earnings fall in the near future, because I cannot predict what will happen.  I will not worry if the price falls from here, because I cannot expect for market forces to drive the price one way or another in advance.  I will not be in a state of despair if the dividend is frozen or cut, because that is always a possibility.  But if I look at the history of HBI, I expect the earnings will rise, price will rise, and dividends will rise over time, so I think my purchase is a good one.  

The average monthly dividend income is will be about $1.20, which is considerably lower than the income I received from CAT before I sold it last week, but I have a little extra cash because of that sale, and I expect more price appreciation and dividend growth from HBI than I do from CAT.  Time will tell if this sell/buy combination was a good one or not.  I can't wait to find out!

Carnival Corporation (CCL) Dividend Increase Announced on April 7, 2017

Carnival Corporation (CCL) has raised its dividend by 14%.  As a result of the increase as well as dividend increases, my June dividend payment will be 17% higher than my first payment in September of 2016.  While the dividend has grown, the value of my shares has also grown significantly.

Here is some information on how CCL is making innovations in security and commerce on its cruise ships:  http://cnnmon.ie/2no661N

Caterpillar, Inc. (CAT) Sold on 4/3/2017

I sold my stake in Caterpillar, Inc. (CAT).  It was the second stock that I sold, and the sale resulted in a gain of approximately $166 when you factor in commissions and fees.  My average monthly income will decrease by $1.88 as a result of this sale.

I did not sell CAT because the dividend yield was too low.  The yield was higher than my average yield in my portfolio.  I did not sell the stock because its future prospects are bleak.  I believe the company is likely turning around.  I did sell the stock because of two big factors:  When I bought it, I thought the dividend would be raised soon; it was not.  Additionally, the stock price has gone up considerably, causing (together with reductions in profits) the P/E ratio to climb rather high.

CAT will remain on my list of stocks to consider purchasing again in the future, but that time will likely come only after there is a pull-back in price and/or a dividend increase.

I try to make my purchases and sales on Mondays, so my replacement for CAT will be purchased next week.  Several stocks are on my short list.  I will make the final decision about which one to buy over the weekend.

Average monthly income March 31, 2017, up 1.2% month over month

At the end of February, I expected March to be a slow month for dividend increases in my nonPension portfolio.  My low expectations caused me to be pleasantly surprised by several increases.  Thanks to those increases, and thanks to the dividend reinvestment that I have set up on all of my securities, my average monthly income going forward is $68.85, up 1.2% from last month.  As a result, I am still ahead of my benchmark level of $68.30 determined at the beginning of this year, which is great news.

Here are the stocks that raised their dividends in March:

Best Buy Co,, Inc. (BBY) raised its dividend by 21% on March 1.  I was expecting BBY to raise their dividend in February, but the company waited a few days.  I was extremely happy with the big bump, the largest of the month.

QUALCOMM Incorportated (QCOM) announced an 8% increase on March 7 to take effect with payments after the March 22 payment.  I was happy to see the announcement earlier than I expected it.

J P Morgan Chase and Co (JPM) raised the dividend by 4% on March 21.  Although the increase was rather small, it was nice to see it come as early in the year as it did.  The previous increase was only three quarters before.

Intel Corporation (INTC) made an announcement of an increase on March 23, a full five quarters after the previous dividend increase.  Since INTC has a habit of not necessarily raising dividends every year, I was surprised by the move upward in March.  The increase was a modest 5%

In addition to the dividend increases, I benefited from smaller increases in income thanks to dividend reinvestment in a large chunk of my holdings, including AMGN, AMP, CCL, CMI, EAT, ETN, GILD, HOG, IP, KSS, MPC, PFE, PSX, R, TGT, WHR, and WYN.

I am expecting dividend increases from seven of my holdings in April, so I suspect that the average monthly dividend income will increase to approximately $70 by the end of the month.

Once April ends, almost half of my securities will have already declared a dividend increase for the year.  So that will leave eight more months for the rest of the increases to take place at a less intense pace.  As a result, my average monthly income will likely increase more slowly, and fall behind my benchmarks described in January.  In an effort to counteract this, I plan to consider replacing some of my stocks with others that have either higher yield, larger recent dividend increases, or lower valuations.  Some of the stocks that I am considering selling soon are CAT, CMI, HOG, JCI, and VIAB,

Ticker	Shares	Avg Monthly Dividends	One Year Ago	% Change
AAPL	5.073	$0.96	$0.88	9.62%
ABBV	9.440	$2.01	$1.79	12.28%
ADM	12.443	$1.33	$1.24	6.67%
ADNT	1.000	$0.00	$0.00
AMGN	3.078	$1.18	$1.03	15.00%
AMP	5.140	$1.29	$1.15	11.94%
BA	4.166	$1.97	$1.51	30.28%
BBY	16.368	$1.86	$1.53	21.43%
BG	9.213	$1.29	$1.17	10.53%
CAH	7.042	$1.05	$0.91	15.99%
CAT	7.340	$1.88	$1.88	0.00%
CCL	11.227	$1.31	$1.12	16.67%
CMI	5.207	$1.78	$1.69	5.13%
EAT	10.287	$1.17	$1.10	6.25%
EMN	7.187	$1.22	$1.10	10.87%
ETN	9.403	$1.88	$1.79	5.26%
GEO	15.548	$3.63	$3.37	7.69%
GILD	6.122	$1.06	$0.96	10.64%
GLW	27.667	$1.43	$1.25	14.81%
HOG	12.420	$1.51	$1.45	4.29%
HPQ	37.626	$1.66	$1.56	7.02%
INTC	14.269	$1.30	$1.24	4.81%
IP	13.643	$2.10	$2.00	5.11%
JCI	10.059	$0.84	$0.97	-13.79%
JPM	8.218	$1.37	$1.31	4.17%
KSS	11.550	$2.12	$1.93	10.00%
LM	16.349	$1.20	$1.09	10.00%
M	12.389	$1.56	$1.49	4.86%
MPC	16.515	$1.98	$1.76	12.50%
NGVT	2.000	$0.00	$0.00
OHI	15.870	$3.28	$3.02	8.77%
PFE	15.414	$1.64	$1.54	6.67%
PRU	6.254	$1.56	$1.46	7.14%
PSX	6.141	$1.29	$1.15	12.50%
QCOM	9.323	$1.77	$1.65	7.55%
R	10.312	$1.51	$1.41	7.32%
T	15.944	$2.60	$2.55	2.08%
TGT	7.193	$1.44	$1.34	7.14%
UNP	6.150	$1.24	$1.13	10.00%
VIAB	12.248	$0.82	$1.63	-50.00%
VZ	10.344	$1.99	$1.95	2.21%
WFC	10.211	$1.29	$1.28	1.33%
WHR	3.052	$1.02	$0.92	11.11%
WRK	15.507	$2.07	$1.94	6.67%
WYN	7.145	$1.38	$1.19	16.00%
TOTAL		$68.85	$64.40
Overall annual increase in dividend payments				6.91%
Overall dividend yield -- dividends reinvested				3.09%
Approximate annual growth rate including reinvestment and increases				10.22%
Annual growth rate needed				11.88%
Behind goal rate by				-1.66%