Happy Thanksgiving

Have a break while at work today, so thought I'd share a few things.

I averaged down AT&T yesterday at market open, which was good as the stock went up from there.  Bought 21 shares, and added a nice +$40 to my annual div income.  Now at about $920, I have 3 more paychecks before the end of the year, so I *shouldn't* have any problems hitting the $1k mark for annual income.  Not bad for 6 months of work! :)  I may just average AT&T down again , since I'm not overweight on it yet, and the yield is incredible.  I figure the Time Warner merger will either boost the stock price, or if it fails, I'll be guaranteed my dividend for a long time, I really have a hard time seeing a downside to this.  I wish they would just sell off CNN already and be done with that fake news! :P

AT&T may be my first DRIP stock.  Another round of purchases at the current price and every quarter I'll have enough AT&T dividend income to buy a full share of AT&T stock.  My philosophy is to take dividend earnings and purchase shares of stocks on sale, not throw money at stocks that are overpriced such as Abbot & Mastercard.  If AT&T ever bounces back, I may have to reconsider, but since it is currently underwater in my portfolio at (now) -6%, it is definitely a candidate.  As a middle-aged investor, I need to be a bit more aggressive and meticulous about where each dollar goes.

I learned a real good lesson a few weeks ago.  I was a bit worried about the consumer staples, O, and AT&T falling and maybe never returning to the levels I bought them at, but as I gradually saw everything coming back (especially Hormel), I learned that I need to have more confidence in my stock picks.  I mean, over half are YD picks, have a record of stability, and the ones that are semi-speculative I still did my research on and have at least 6+ years of dividend increases.  I should have a bit more confidence in my choices.  After all, I am quite diversified, so a stock or two under water shouldn't concern me too much.  I was hesitant about buying AT&T initially, but I did my homework, looked at the (small) amount I was investing, and realized the potential reward was worth the risk.  No investor should worry about one particular stock's effect on their portfolio.  If they do, then they need to diversify more, and make sure they aren't overweight in any one stock or sector, that's all.  I guess I had just been burned too many times before, it is good to be cautious, but not paranoid if you don't have data to back it up.

Anyways, Happy Thanksgiving.  I have a lot to be thankful for.

P&G and my watchlist top picks

Bought 10 shares of Procter & Gamble.  I know many Div investors are waiting for a better yield, but getting 3.18% on a Consumer Staple is a bargain in my opinion (last I checked inflation was 1.9% so, all good).

I also filled out my holdings spreadsheet with my top picks to fill out my 32 dividend stocks.  While I may not purchase them yet, they are in line.  Some of them need to shape up before I will buy them anyway or they will get replaced.  I'll take each one at a time to explain the method to my madness.

Tyson Foods (TSN) - Low yield, but a profitable company.  I may have missed the boat on this year's holiday prime purchase time, so it might not be until Spring/Summer before I grab this one.  I know I'm not going to buy a frozen turkey from Amazon, so I expect this company to excel in these times.  This will probably be my last "Consumer Discretionary" purchase.

Wal-Mart (WMT) - With the closing of many K-Marts (and Sears), I believe Wally World will only get stronger.  I may have missed the purchase boat on this one as well, but I might grab it next buy-in pre-shopping season or next pullback.  Having a stake in WMT & Target should cover the bases against Amazon, and you can never have too many Consumer Staples, anyway.


Alaska Air Group (ALK) - I was surprised to find this listed as an Industrial on Fish's list, but then you don't see many airlines with 5+ years of dividend increases.  This airline and Delta both have hit that mark recently.  It is a speculative purchase, but it fills out my 2 industrials, and airlines are always good for profits (at least) if you know when/how to buy them.  I don't care much for using domestic airlines in general, but I know them, and I know how they behave, so I feel this is a safe bet for someone who has made money on airlines over the years.  Probably the only sub-sector I can day-trade successfully.

Telephone & Data Systems, Inc. (TDS) - Ugh, the TCom sector is practically garbage, worse than the retail sector since even retail has a few gems.  AT&T is basically the only shiny piece of glass in the rough of this sector, and that isn't saying much.  I am tempted to just have ONE TCom stock and find some other sector to fill out the "32 Div Stocks".  TDS isn't pretty enough to own, although they have increased divs for quite a long time.  Their Yield Payout too high, their P/E is too high, Beta is too high.  It will be a while for this stock, or even this sector.  I will probably buy this sector last.  Verizon I won't consider due to their debt.


Exxon Mobil (XOM) - What's to say that hasn't been said?  It's Exxon, basically Chevron's twin when compared to everything else in the Energy sector.  Oil may be in a decline, but with the Tesla Tax Break going away, I think Oil will do fine until I expire.  There's also that smug feeling of buying gas at the pump and knowing that what I pay will come back to my pocket.  Go Big Oil!

Owens & Minor (OMI) - Healthcare stocks have done very good for me, J&J and Abbott let me feel a little freer to be somewhat speculative in this sector.  However, I would like to see OMI's Yield Payout lower a little bit more before I buy.  The stock is inexpensive, so if my son, Little Dividend, snaps it up, I may look at something else.

 

National Retail Properties (NNN) - REITs after a certain point become reliable compared to each other in that sector.  I know YD doesn't like the way they operate fundamentally, but they are there and real estate never goes away.  NNN has raised its dividend for quite a few years, and until I can mentally get past the REIT yield payout number (O's is higher) I'll move in here.  There are about two other REITs I am keeping my eye on, so this one may change.



Qualcomm (QCOM) - Mastercard is considered a "Tech" company these days, so that works for me, as Tech is another lame sector for dividend investors.  QCOM and IBM were the only two worth considering for me, and since Mastercard took one spot, I can give the other to QCOM.  That is until they get bought out by Broadcom - I still need to keep an eye on this one in the coming months, and who knows, IBM might get its chance at bat.

Last but not least...

J.M. Smuckers (SJM) - The Consumer Staples have been beat up pretty bad since Amazon/Whole Foods.  If staples have been beat up, then Smuckers has been put into a coma.  The drop is so significant, it suddenly looks attractive.  Their Yield Payout is great, they still have a spot in the grocery aisle, and in my refrigerator.  However, if Clorox or Colgate decide to have an attractive yield, I may head in that direction!  I wanted KMB in this spot, but their fundamentals aren't looking so hot.



Well, there's my tentative watchlist.  I'm pretty committed to TSN, WMT, ALK, & XOM, but the others not so much.  After filling out the list, I can concentrate more on buying on dips in my stocks, getting to the "DRIP Level" (see my post on DRIPping), and getting my monthly payouts closer to each other.  Then I could buy more Abbot on a pullback, or CMP the next time their mine caves in.

Happy Investing!