September 2014 Income

September has always been one of my biggest months. It didn’t disappoint in 2014. Total dividend income for September 2014 was $312.11. In September 2013, I made $186.88; in September 2012, $87.42; and in 2011 it was only $21.59. I like this trend! This amount brings the year total up to $1656.91. Last year I made $1132.01 in total so I am already way above that.

Options were so-so this month. My covered call options on KMI expired for a $9 loss after a roll. (However, I actually lost $29.18 on this trade due to Schwab’s high options trading commissions!) I also bought-to-close put options on BBY and INTU for $29.93 and $41.93 after commissions, respectively.

Unfortunately, my 2 put contracts on GTAT at a strike price of $15 are nearly worthless as the company just declared bankruptcy. I’ll likely have to chalk that up to about a $2900 loss. I’ll write more about this later. I’m not too happy now and hopeful, but not optimistic at all, that a buyer could swing in and prop it up. I have not included this loss in September because the contracts are still open and don’t expire until October 18th.

Symbol Dividend Amount Shares Bought @ Price
AFL $22.10 0.3591 61.54
AVA $48.27 1.5125 31.9142
BMS $13.77 0.3389 40.63
BP $30.30 0.6397 47.37
CVX $27.88 0.2256 123.61
HRS $23.29 0.3428 67.93
IBM $13.35 0.0693 192.62
JNJ $21.44 0.2055 104.35
MCD $25.10 0.2688 93.39
O $9.25 0.2265 42.72
TGT $25.83 0.4167 61.98
V $6.05 0.0282 214.50
VTR $16.13 0.2583 62.45
WFC $29.35 0.5648 51.97

Total dividends for September 2014: $312.11
Total cumulative dividend income for 2014: $1656.91
Forward 12-Month Dividends: $2607.91


Total option income for September 2014: $42.68
Total cumulative option income for 2014: -$255.85

Full disclosure: Long all the above stocks

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8 Responses

  1. FerdiS says:

    Sorry about the GTAT mess — that’s a tough one to recover from. On the positive side, those are great dividend income totals and, as you say, a nice trend! Keep it up!

    Cheers
    FerdiS

    • scott says:

      Thanks, FerdiS. It definitely felt great to break $300 in monthly dividends for the first time. December, my last big month this year, is shaping up to be around $340. Who knows, maybe next I’ll break into $400?

  2. DivHut says:

    Over $300 in monthly passive income from dividends is a nice figure. Plus your year over year growth is excellent too. The power of compounding, dividend increases and fresh capital all doing their magic. Been reading about the GTAT mess online too. Believe me your are not alone. Still, a great month for dividends. Thank you for sharing and look forward to your next update.
    DivHut recently posted…Dividends Delivered In Thirty Minutes Or LessMy Profile

    • scott says:

      DivHut, Thanks! I’m optimistic that next year sometime I’ll finally crack into $400 too. That will feel great. As you said, the power of compounding, dividend increases, and new capital is amazing. My next purchase will actually be tomorrow. I’m hopeful that I will be able to buy some more Visa before the market yo-yo’s back up. It’s been on quite the roller coaster lately, but not that I care because these dips are just opportunities to buy more.

      Regarding GTAT, a loss is a loss, but that $2900 isn’t going to kill me. While I don’t like it, I can easily recover. It wasn’t my retirement fund or anything. However, if you read the Yahoo Message board for GTAT, there were some people who lost in the hundreds of thousands posting on there. One guy even said he lost 65% of his entire portfolio! I don’t feel so bad after reading those. In fact, maybe I can feel a little better in that some guy out there sold me those puts as insurance and now I’m helping him recover a little! 🙂

  3. Congratulations on a great September. Breaking records is always an awesome feeling, and one I can relate too since I just set an all-time high for dividends myself during September. What I like is how diversified your dividend income is between so many companies. I am working on expanding my portfolio and diversifying away from a few concentrated positions. Takes time and fresh capital, but shouldn’t be too big of an issue.
    writing2reality recently posted…Passive Income and Pageviews – September 2014 UpdateMy Profile

    • scott says:

      Thanks W2R, Congrats on the new record for you in September too! It is sometimes hard to see the progress if just look at the minor contribution that each stock purchase adds. However, once you keep accumulating stocks and then look at the YOY trends, the magic of compounding becomes apparent. I could have diversified my portfolio a bit over the last few down days in the market, but instead decided to invest more in things that I already own. Like you said, I’ll be able to diversify more once I get some fresh capital.

      Thanks for stopping by!

  4. Scott,

    Sorry to hear about the options loss, but at least your dividend income is holding its own! Great job breaking a new record. It’s onward and upward, my friend. Your YOY trends look great. Keep it up!!

    Best regards.
    Dividend Mantra recently posted…Create Your Own Miniature Berkshire HathawayMy Profile

    • scott says:

      DM, Thanks for stopping by. I’m pretty bummed about the options loss, but at least it was done with money that I could afford to lose. I would have hated to have had to sell my dividend stocks to make the margin requirement! That might have been the last straw with puts for awhile! (Though, used correctly I still think they are a great strategy! And, with the VIX finally creeping up options premiums are getting richer as well. Some degree of volatility is good to have if you are selling premium.)

      Looking forward to hearing about your next purchase!

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