January 2014 Dividends

2014 started off strong with a huge increase in year-over-year dividends for the month of January. I earned $0 in January 2013 and 2012 (and only received $16.16 from an ETF I owned in January 2011). This month BAX ($14.70), CSCO ($17.76), and GE ($28.37) all paid their dividends bringing, in total, $60.83.

Given that only three of my companies pay in January, this is great! Other than choosing to invest in dividend paying companies, I did not actively do anything to earn this money; I made this money simply by being a shareholder.

I’ve recently been paying a lot out-of-pocket for radiology conferences and review courses (studying for board exam in June) so, unfortunately, haven’t been able to invest any new capital lately. Given the markets so far in 2014, this was probably a good thing. However, now I wish I could purchase some of the great companies that are now cheap.

I will have to hold out until I get reimbursed.