June 2025 Stock Purchases/Sales

As I'm writing this blog post, it's Friday, June 20th. The high temperature here in Central Wisconsin is set to reach 82 degrees Fahrenheit. The forecast is also for partly sunny weather. This is ideal weather to be outside, so I plan to get out there later today!

Now that the month is just about over, I'm likely done with capital deployment for June 2025. Without further ado, I'll jump into my purchases and sales for the month.

Stock Purchase #1: Energy Transfer (ET)

My first purchase during the month was 24 units of Energy Transfer at an average cost of $17.53 a unit. Interested readers can find my investment thesis in my June 2025 Stock Watch List blog post. Against the $31.44 in net annual forward distributions that this purchase added, that equates to a 7.48% net forward yield.

Stock Purchase #2: Alphabet (GOOGL)

The next purchase that I made in June 2025 was seven shares of Alphabet at an average price per share of $168.89. Curious readers can peruse my investment thesis in my June 2025 Stock Watch List blog post. Given the $5.88 in net annual forward dividends added from this transaction, that works out to a 0.50% net dividend yield.

Stock Purchase #3: Merck (MRK)

My third purchase that I made during the month was eight shares of Merck at an average cost of $75.98 a share. Again, readers can check out my investment thesis in my June 2025 Stock Watch List blog post. This purchase added $25.92 to my net annual forward dividends, which is equivalent to a 4.26% net dividend yield.

Bonus Stock Purchase #1: UnitedHealth Group (UNH)

I also purchased two shares of UnitedHealth Group at an average price per share of $312.32. The purchase added $16.80 to my net annual forward dividends. Compared to the $16.80 in net annual forward dividends that this purchase added, that equates to a 2.69% net dividend yield.

Bonus Stock Purchase #2: Brookfield Asset Management (BAM)

I also added one share of Brookfield Asset Management at a cost of $54.89 a share. This increased my net annual forward dividends by $1.75, which works out to a 3.19% net dividend yield. Interested readers can check out this recent Seeking Alpha article co-produced with Brad Thomas for my investment thesis.

Stock Sales: Clorox (CLX) and General Mills (GIS)

I closed out my two share position in Clorox for an average price per share of $127.84 and my four share position in General Mills for $55.06 a share. These sales were done with the intent of further consolidating my holdings. As a result, my net annual forward dividends fell by $19.36.

Stock Purchase: PepsiCo (PEP)

I used the proceeds from my aforementioned sales and another $52.04 in capital to purchase four shares of PepsiCo at an average cost of $131.99 a share. My net annual forward dividends grew by $22.76 from this purchase.

Concluding Thoughts:

Not counting the dividend reinvestment in my Capital Income Builder mutual fund, I deployed $2,942.24 in fresh capital in June 2025. The fresh capital and capital redeployment added $85.19 in net annual forward dividends, which is equivalent to a 2.90% net dividend yield.

My net annual forward dividends increased by $5.474 from dividend increases during the month as well. Dividend adjustments to my ADR holdings also raised my net annual forward dividends by $7.173. These factors led my net annual forward dividends to jump from almost $5,935 at the start of the month to nearly $6,035 heading into July.

Discussion:

How was your capital deployment for June 2025?

Did you start any new positions this month?

Thanks for reading and please feel free to comment below!

Expected Dividend Increases For July 2025

As I'm writing this blog post, it's currently Friday, June 13th. The temperature here in Central Wisconsin is predicted to reach a high of just 58 degrees Fahrenheit today (with rain in the forecast). That's well below the average for this time of the year. The good news is that high temperatures are expected to climb into the low to mid-70 degrees range for tomorrow and Sunday. It would still be below the average for this time of year, but that's ideal weather, especially with a partly sunny forecast.

With that out of the way, I thought now would be a good time to go over the dividend raises that I received in June. I'll also look ahead to the dividend increases that I'm predicting for July 2025.

Actual Dividend Increases For June 2025

Dividend Increase #1: UnitedHealth Group (UNH)

UNH upped its quarterly dividend per share by 5.2% to $2.21. This missed my expectations of a 7.1% increase to $2.25. All things considered, I'll take this raise. As I believe new (and past) CEO Stephen Hemsley works to right the ship and near-term headwinds eventually fade, I believe dividend growth can return to the low-double-digits.

In the meantime, this dividend announcement increased my net annual forward dividends by $3.52 across my eight shares of UNH.

Dividend Increase #2: FedEx (FDX)

FedEx declared a 5.1% increase in its quarterly dividend per share to $1.45. This was slightly below the 7.2% raise to $1.48 that I was expecting.

My net annual forward dividends grew by $1.12 across my four shares of FDX due to this dividend declaration.

Dividend Increase #3: Realty Income (O)

As expected, Realty Income announced a 0.2% increase in its monthly dividend per share to $0.2690.

Across my 139 shares of O, my net annual forward dividends increased by $0.834 from this dividend announcement.

Expected Dividend Increases For July 2025

Expected Dividend Increase #1: Cummins (CMI)

The first dividend raise that I'm expecting for next month will come from Cummins. My hunch is that CMI will declare a 7.1% boost in its quarterly dividend per share to $1.95.

My net annual forward dividends would rise by $2.60 across my five shares of CMI due to such a dividend declaration.

Expected Dividend Increase #2: Duke Energy (DUK)

The next dividend increase that I'm predicting for July 2025 will be from Duke Energy. I believe that DUK will announce a 4.3% raise in its quarterly dividend per share to $1.09.

Across my six shares of DUK, my net annual forward dividends would grow by $1.08 from such a dividend announcement.

Expected Distribution Increase #3: Enterprise Products Partners (EPD)

The third distribution bump that I'm forecasting for next month will come from Enterprise Products Partners. My best guess is that EPD will declare a 1.9% increase in its quarterly distribution per unit to $0.545.

My net annual forward distributions would be boosted by $10 across my 250 units of EPD due to such a distribution declaration.

Expected Distribution Increase #4: Energy Transfer (ET)

The next distribution raise that I'm expecting for July 2025 will be from Energy Transfer. My hunch is that ET will announce a 0.8% increase in its quarterly distribution per unit to $0.33.

Across my 207 units, my net annual forward distributions would be lifted by $2.07 from such a distribution announcement.

Expected Dividend Increase #5: NNN REIT (NNN)

The fifth dividend increase that I'm predicting for next month will come from NNN REIT. I believe that NNN will declare a 2.6% increase in its quarterly dividend per share to $0.595.

My net annual forward dividends would edge $1.08 higher across my 18 shares of NNN due to such a dividend declaration.

Expected Dividend Increase #6: J.M. Smucker (SJM)

The next dividend raise that I'm forecasting for July 2025 will be from J.M. Smucker. My best guess is that SJM will announce a 1.9% bump in its quarterly dividend per share to $1.10.

Across my three shares of SJM, my net annual forward dividends would increase by $0.24 from such a dividend announcement.

Expected Dividend Increase #7: Wells Fargo (WFC)

The seventh and final dividend boost that I'm expecting for next month will come from Wells Fargo. My hunch is that WFC will declare a 12.5% lift in its quarterly dividend per share to $0.45.

Across my eight shares of WFC, my net annual forward dividends would grow by $1.60 due to such a dividend declaration.

Concluding Thoughts:

My net annual forward dividends grew by $5.474 from three dividend raises in June 2025. This is equivalent to investing $182.47 at a 3% net dividend yield.

If the seven dividend raises that I'm expecting for July 2025 materialize, my net annual forward dividends would rise by $18.43. That would be like investing $622.33 at a 3% dividend yield.

Discussion:

How's your month going for dividend raises thus far?

Did you benefit from any first-time dividend hikes in your portfolio this month?

Thank you for your readership. I look forward to your comments below!

July 2025 Stock Watch List

As I'm writing this blog post, it's currently Friday, June 6th. The temperature here in Central Wisconsin is expected to reach a high of 72 degrees Fahrenheit later today, with the forecast being partly sunny. That temperature is less than the average for this time of year, but arguably perfect.

Having likely completed all of my dividend stock purchases for the month, I believe now is a great time to look ahead at three stocks at the top of my watch list for July 2025.

Stock #1: Amazon (AMZN)

First up on my watch list for next month is Amazon, which is no stranger to this blog post series. I just discussed it in my May 2025 Stock Watch List blog post. Interested readers can also find my investment thesis in my recent Seeking Alpha article.

The crux of my investment thesis is that Amazon is a leader in industries with secular growth trends like e-commerce and cloud computing. The company is also a financial fortress, with an AA-rated balance sheet. Trading at a forward 12-month P/OCF ratio of 15.1, shares are also substantially discounted relative to the 10-year average P/OCF ratio of 23.8 per FAST Graphs. The current share $214 share price (as of June 6th, 2025) is substantially less than my fair value estimate of $304 a share.

Stock #2: Enterprise Products Partners (EPD)

Next up on my watch list for July 2025 is Enterprise Products Partners. EPD's most recently appeared in my April 2025 Stock Watch List blog post. Curious readers can also check out my investment thesis in my Seeking Alpha article from last month.

The heart of my investment thesis centers around $7.6 billion in major projects that EPD currently has under development. Most of these projects ($6 billion) are going to be finished in 2025. I'm also confident that any future projects the company initiates construction on will earn excellent returns for unitholders. This is because of EPD's reputation for having a high return on invested capital. The 6.8% distribution yield is also well-covered. The company also has the only A-rated balance sheet among its midstream peers. Topping off the buy case, units are trading at a forward 12-month P/OCF ratio of 7.6 from the current $31 unit price. This is cheaper than the 10-year average P/OCF ratio of 9.6 per data from FAST Graphs and my fair value of $36 a unit (based on my fair value P/OCF ratio of 8.6).

Stock #3: Union Pacific (UNP)

The final stock on my watch list for July 2025 is Union Pacific. The last time I covered this one on my blog was in my December 2022 Dividend Stock Watch List blog post. Readers can find my investment thesis in an iREIT+Hoya Capital listicle from March.

The gist of my investment thesis is that railroads have efficiently moved big and bulky freight for roughly 200 years. As the economy continues to grow and Union Pacific invests in becoming even more efficient, this bodes well for future earnings growth prospects. The company's 2.4% dividend yield is also secure and positioned for payout boosts in the years ahead. Union Pacific also enjoys an A-rated balance sheet. The stock is also trading at a forward 12-month P/E ratio of 18.5, which is below the 10-year average P/E ratio and my fair value multiple estimate of 21.2. That implies shares are worth $257 each and moderately undervalued from the current $223 share price.

Concluding Thoughts:

Another month. Three more excellent companies on my watch list. I'm planning on a roughly 40% weighting to AMZN, with the remainder being pretty evenly split between EPD and UNP. This will help me stay close to a weighted-average yield of 3%, while also providing my portfolio with growth and value.

Discussion:

Are any of AMZN, EPD, and UNP on your watch list in July 2025?

If not, what stocks are on your radar in the coming weeks?

I appreciate your readership and welcome your comments below!

May 2025 Dividend Income

As I'm writing this blog post, it's Friday, May 30th. The temperature here in Central Wisconsin is expected to reach a high of 78 degrees Fahrenheit later today, with a mild thunderstorm also expected. This weekend is going to be ideal, with a mostly sunny forecast and highs reaching into the upper 70s and low 80s. So, I'm definitely going to be spending at least a few hours outside in the coming days!

Now that the month is basically over, I'm going to be taking a moment to highlight my net dividend income for May 2025. Let's dive into it.

Net Dividend Income Approached $600

In May 2025, I received $568.35 in net dividends (including ADR fees for British American Tobacco). Compared to the $516.48 in net dividends that I collected in February 2025, that equates to a 10% quarterly growth rate.

My net dividends were also 55.4% greater versus the $365.82 in net dividends that I received in May 2024.

In my Charles Schwab portfolio, I collected $533.23 in net dividends from 22 companies. That was mostly due to additions to my BTI stake in January 2025 and February 2025. Additions to my Enterprise Products Partners (EPD) stake in April 2025 also played a role in the higher income.

I also received $18.50 in net dividends from three companies within my Fidelity IRA account. This higher income was largely fueled by my March 2025 purchase of more Realty Income (O).

Finally, I collected $16.62 in net dividends from three companies in my Webull portfolio. The slight uptick in income was due to a more favorable GBP to USD exchange rate, which lifted my net dividends from BTI.

Concluding Thoughts:

Overall, I was pleased with my net dividend income in May 2025. Through recent investment activity and dividend raises, I believe that I will be close to reaching the $600 milestone for net dividends in August 2025.

My net dividends year to date are up nearly 30% versus 2024 levels. The dividend snowball is beginning to pick up steam in rolling down the hill, which is quite encouraging after nearly eight years of investing.

Discussion:

How was your dividend income in May 2025?

Did you receive any first-time dividends for the month?

Thank you for your readership and please feel free to comment below!