Purchases for June 15th

 The Big Initial Investment

Stocks pulled back early today, so I was able to get some bounces.  I found 7 stocks to invest $2k each into, and at $7 a trade, I should have been down $49 all things equal, but I ended up down only $26.  My nice 6.8% profit growth is now around 1.8% with the new flatliners coming in.

The basic formula for my initial choices was to DIVERSIFY first priority, then P/E for risk, then dividend payout.  That should create a good foundation, along with sticking to dividend aristocrats.

Here were my picks and why I picked them. 

O (Realty Income Corp) - A risk with the current interest rate announcements, but I think they are stable enough vs. other similar stocks.  I am also taking into account the hiring blitz in this climate, and the jobs outlook.  My wife sells knick-knacks on the side, and has the most successful month in a long time.  We attribute that to jobs and economic confidence - and with that comes business & personal property purchases.  This one had the nicest bounceback today.  It also has a monthly dividend of 0.211, and the price is right for a large amount of shares.  And as of a few hours ago, they announce the dividend increase to 0.2115!  The shorties predict this stock to take a dive in the next week or two, we will see.
 


APD (Air Products & Chems) - I am very familiar with this company from personal experience, and believe they have a firm foothold in their field.  My only pause is their global presence, which may be impacted by the Paris Treaty, but then again, their Middle East and Asian presence may more than make up for it.  They have many contracts with large corporations, and their name implies quality which usually means they don't have to be the lowest bidder for a contract.








HD (Home Depot) - I tend to avoid retail stocks.  With the advent of Amazon and other online sellers, I think many brick & mortar based retailers are not a good investment.  I know Young Dividend disagrees, with TJX and ROST on his list.  I went with HD for a few reasons:  How many times did you need a tool or part, and had to get it fixed same day?  Your Amazon Prime and similar shipping options won't help you with getting that drywall in an hour.  Heck, yer not even sure it is the right color online!  So you run out to Home Depot, Lowe's, Ace, etc.  I don't see that changing anytime soon.  Plus HD has not opened a store in 3 years, which means they know their markets, and their online sales have increased dramatically.  ALSO, they are a good trickle down for the upcoming infrastructure improvements.  When the government is footing the bill, who cares what that dremel costs, Amirite?


JNJ (Johnson & Johnson) - Abbot Labs is up 10% since I bought them 2 weeks ago.  I think the Health related stocks are a good gamble with the dissolution of Obamacare.  Young Dividend loves JNJ, and they have their hands in so many different pots I can see they will adjust to any changes in the market.  How can this one go wrong?



MA (Mastercard) - Finance stocks can slip and slide a little, but I wanted a piece of either MA or Visa, as I think they can weather most storms.  The proliferation of the chip cards, and their constant RnD into protecting against fraud, I think they are ready to make sure the world is in debt to them.  I don't like the idea of owning both, but I may look into Visa as time goes by.





MCD (McDonald's) - If I could invest in Subway, Chik-Fil-A or In-N-Out, I would.  However, they are not publicly traded.  That leaves the big M.  My hometown is currently building the "Automated McD" as I type this.  They razed the old building, and putting up the frame of a new building which will not have counter workers.  I also believe they will be automating the kitchen as much as possible.  While not good for the minimum wage crowd (it is their own fault for voting for an increase in my state), it should be good for Ronald M. overall.  Profits will go up.

PM (Philip Morris) - I believe the spectre of the smoker has died down a bit, and in a free society it is ultimately the choice of the individual.  With stressful political situations around the world giving people nicotine fits, I think PM will do well in the next decade.  I don't smoke, but I believe in your right to.  I do a lot of global travel, and there are still parts of the world where you cannot eat without smoke, nor can you stay in a smoke free hotel room.  PM's global presence makes it very attractive. 



I had some $$ left over after this, so I checked the dividend aristocrats for the cheapest stock.  Found ORI Old Republic International, an insurance underwriter.  0.19 a quarter with a trend of increasing for $20 a share - not bad to risk.  Growth is slow but steady, and a portion of the market that flourishes in a healthy economy and one I didn't have a hat in the ring for yet.




What?  No tech stocks?  Just doesn't feel right.  I think many non-trader RCGs have been entering the technical work force, participating in SPPs, and sitting on them thinking their company is the greatest.  Historically, the tech sector is affected by the younger generation of investors, and thus a tad too volatile (*COUGH* SNAPCHAT).  I will have to research this one a lot more to find something I like.  There are no tech stocks that stand out in the aristocrat list.

I'm not sure when my next cash influx will be, but hopefully it will be soon.  May is typically an expensive month for me, and there's still some cleanup halfway into June from it, but I should recover in two weeks to (hopefully) make another investment.  My decision now is to further diversify, or, take advantage of any dividend stocks that are dropping to strengthen my position.  The good news is that I'm now making an extra $45 a month (on average) from dividends.  I'll need to show the dividend patterns like Young Dividend does at some point.