June 2025 Stock Watch List

As I'm writing this blog post, it's Friday, May 9th. The temperature here in Central Wisconsin is expected to reach a high of 72 degrees Fahrenheit today with a sunny forecast. The forecast for this weekend is going to be just as pleasant, with respective highs reaching 73 and 75 on Saturday and Sunday.

Now that I have made my stock purchases for this month, it would be a good time to look ahead to June 2025. Here are three stocks that are highest on my watch list for the month.

Stock #1: Energy Transfer (ET)

The first stock on my watch list for June 2025 is Energy Transfer. Interested readers can find my updated investment thesis in my recent Seeking Alpha article. Otherwise, my thesis is essentially the same as it was from my November 2024 Dividend Stock Watch List blog post.

ET's first-quarter results were solid. The company's credit ratings are investment-grade. The 7.7% distribution yield is easily covered by DCF. The icing on the cake is that the $17 unit price (as of May 9th, 2025) is significantly below my fair value estimate of $22 a unit.

Stock #2: Alphabet (GOOGL)

The next stock on my watch list for next month is Alphabet. My investment thesis is pretty much the same as it was in my March 2025 Dividend Stock Watch List blog post.

GOOGL massively beat earnings expectations in Q1. Despite ongoing legal disputes, the company has plenty of growth catalysts moving forward. The AA+ credit rating is another positive. GOOGL's 5% dividend raise to begin its dividend growth streak was modest. However, I believe this low floor is going to be very easy for the company to beat over time. GOOGL's $153 share price is a forward P/E ratio of less than 16, which is well below the 10-year average P/E ratio of nearly 25.

Stock #3: Merck (MRK)

The final stock on my watch list for June 2025 is Merck. Curious readers can check out my recent listicle on iREIT+Hoya for my updated investment thesis.

For those without a subscription, my thesis is basically that MRK is taking steps to minimize the loss of exclusivity hit to Keytruda via a subcutaneous version of the drug. This could be approved by the U.S. FDA this September. New products like Winrevair and Capvaxive also have blockbuster peak sales potential. The company's A+ credit rating from S&P also gives it opportunities for bolt-on acquisitions to further bolster its commercial product lineup and product pipeline. MRK's 4.3% dividend yield is also well-covered. Shares trade at a forward P/E ratio of about 8, which is significantly below the 10-year average P/E ratio of just above 15. That makes the stock a bargain from the current $76 share price.

Concluding Thoughts:

That's it for now. I'll likely target a roughly 50% allocation to GOOGL, a 30% allocation to MRK, and a 20% allocation to ET with capital for the month. This will keep me close to a 3% dividend yield, blending growth, value, and yield.

Discussion:

Are any of ET, GOOGL, or MRK on your watch list for June 2025?

If not, what stocks are you considering for next month?

Thanks for your readership. I look forward to your comments below!

April 2025 Dividend Income

As I'm writing this blog post, it's currently Friday, May 2nd. The high temperature is expected to be just 55 degrees Fahrenheit today here in Central Wisconsin. Fortunately, it will be warming up this weekend, with high temperatures expected to be in the mid-60s on Saturday and the mid-70s on Sunday.

With that aside, April 2025 is in the rearview mirror. Thus, I'll be taking a moment to highlight my net dividend income for the month.

Approaching $300 In Net Dividends In Off Months

During April 2025, I received $275.62 in net dividends (including GSK ADR fees). This equates to a 2.8% quarterly growth rate relative to the $268.05 in net dividends collected in January 2025. The timing of PepsiCo's dividend payment and a recent focus on stocks that pay dividends in other months contributed to this slower net dividend income growth rate. 

Compared to the $246.69 in net dividends received in April 2024, that's equivalent to an 11.7% year-over-year growth rate.

I collected $236.02 in net dividends from 20 companies in my Charles Schwab portfolio (less PEP due to the aforementioned dividend payment timing).

My net dividends received from four companies within my Fidelity IRA account were $32.49 (again less PEP). That was made up for by my sale of Starbucks (SBUX) in January 2025 and redeploying those proceeds in this account into Realty Income (O).

Lastly, I collected $7.10 in net dividends from three companies in my Webull portfolio. This was due to the sale of Iron Mountain (IRM) in February 2025.

Concluding Thoughts:

Overall, my net annual dividends continue to grow at a solid clip, despite slower growth in April 2025. In Q1 2025, my net dividends compounded by 25% year-over-year to nearly $1,368. Through continued fresh capital deployment, dividend raises, and dividend reinvestment, I hope to keep up a similar pace for the foreseeable future.

Discussion:

How was your dividend income in April 2025?

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

Thanks for reading. I look forward to your comments below!

April 2025 Stock Purchases/Sales

As I'm writing this blog post, it's Friday, April 25th. The temperature here in Central Wisconsin is set to reach a high of 57 degrees Fahrenheit later today. This weekend is set to log highs reaching into the low-60 degrees Fahrenheit range. Better yet, those days are expected to be sunny.

Now that the month is almost over, I will go over my stock purchases and sales for April 2025. Without further ado, let's dive into it!

Stock Purchase #1: Brookfield Asset Management (BAM)

The first stock that I purchased in April 2025 was 11 shares of Brookfield Asset Management at an average price per share of $48.74. Interested readers can find the gist of my investment thesis in my April 2025 Stock Watch List blog post. This transaction boosted my net annual forward dividends by $19.25, which equates to a 3.59% dividend yield.

Stock Purchase #2: Enterprise Products Partners (EPD)

The next stock that I added to during the month was 16 units of Enterprise Products Partners at an average cost of $34.15 a unit. Again, curious readers can peruse my investment thesis in my April 2025 Stock Watch List blog post linked above. That lifted my net annual forward distributions by $34.24, which works out to a 6.27% distribution yield.

Stock Purchase #3: Nvidia (NVDA)

The third stock that I purchased in April 2025 was five shares of Nvidia at an average price per share of $108.11. The investment thesis for NVDA can also be checked out in my April 2025 Stock Watch List blog post. This raised my net annual forward dividends by $0.20, which is equivalent to a 0.04% net dividend yield.

Bonus Stock Purchase: Microsoft (MSFT)

I added a share of Microsoft at a cost of $379.70. This is the first time that I've added to my position in MSFT since November 2022. Overall, MSFT is a world-class holding. I also believe it's almost as solid of a value now as it was two and a half years ago when I last added to it. This increased my net annual forward dividends by $3.32, which equates to a 0.87% net dividend yield.

Stock Sales: Kinder Morgan (KMI), Southern Company (SO), and Philip Morris International (PM)

I closed out my 52 share position in Kinder Morgan (KMI) for an average price per share of $26.77. I also exited my five share position in Southern Company (SO) for $90.89 a share. In my view, each of these names were moderately overvalued. Their respective dividend growth rates were also quite low, so that played a role in my decisions to sell as well. Overall, these transactions reduced my net annual forward dividends by $75.24.

I also sold 13 shares of Philip Morris International (PM) or nearly half of my position for $163.73 a share. PM is a fundamentally solid company, which is evidenced by its 9.4% annual earnings growth consensus per FAST Graphs. However, the market is more than pricing this into the stock, with it trading at a forward P/E ratio of 22.2. This transaction decreased my net annual forward dividends by $70.20. 

Stock Purchases: Enterprise Products Partners (EPD), Microsoft (MSFT), and British American Tobacco (BTI)

I purchased yet another 34 units of Enterprise Products Partners (EPD) at a cost of $30.77 a unit. This is a high conviction holding for me and I don't mind the fact that EPD is nearly 5% of my portfolio now. I also purchased another two shares of Microsoft (MSFT) at a cost per share of $372.16. These transactions added $79.40 to my net annual forward dividends.

I added another 20 shares of British American Tobacco (BTI) at an average price per share of $42.75. My rationale for doing so remains the same as it was in my February 2025 Stock Watch List blog post. I also purchased another three shares of Microsoft at an average cost of $366.44 a share. These moves lifted my net annual forward dividends by $73.38.

Concluding Thoughts:

I deployed $2,002.78 in capital to fresh capital purchases in April 2025. Against the $57.01 in net dividends that was added by these transactions, that equates to a 2.85% net dividend yield. I also increased my net annual forward dividends by $7.34 from my capital redeployment (and built up my emergency fund slightly).

My net annual forward dividends also increased by $7.43 from April 2025 Dividend Increases. Additionally, foreign currency translation adjustments on a few ADRs from a weakening USD also pushed my net annual forward dividends higher by $28.45. This is how my net annual forward dividends rose from just above $5,765 heading into April to nearly $5,870 going into May.

Discussion:

How was your capital deployment during April 2025?

Did you open any new positions in the month?

Thank you for your readership and I welcome your comments below!

Expected Dividend Increases For May 2025

As I'm writing this blog post, it's Good Friday, April 18th. The temperature here in Central Wisconsin is expected to reach a high of 60 degrees Fahrenheit later today. Though, rain is in the forecast throughout the day. Overall, I'm still stoked that it's Easter weekend!

With that out of the way, the month of April is less than two weeks away from its conclusion. I'll take a look at the dividend raises received thus far. I will also look ahead to the raises that I believe are on tap for May 2025. Let's jump into it!

Actual Dividend Increases for April 2025

Dividend Increase #1: Agree Realty (ADC)

Agree Realty announced a 1.2% increase in its monthly dividend per share to $0.256. This was slightly below my expectation of a 1.7% increase in the monthly dividend per share to $0.257.

Across my 20 shares of ADC, my net annual forward dividends grew by $0.72 due to this announcement.

Dividend Increase #2: American Water Works (AWK)

On the last day of April, the water utility hiked its quarterly dividend per share by 8.2% to $0.8275 - - just above my expectation of a 7.9% increase to $0.825. This lifted my net annual forward dividends by $2 across my eight shares of AWK.

Dividend Increase #3: Johnson & Johnson (JNJ)

Johnson & Johnson declared a 4.8% raise in its quarterly dividend per share to $1.30. That was just below my prediction of a 5.6% lift in the quarterly dividend per share to $1.31.

My net annual forward dividends increased by $1.20 as a result of this dividend declaration.

Pending Distribution Increase #1: Energy Transfer (ET)

Energy Transfer has yet to announce its next quarterly distribution per unit. However, I'm sticking by my projection of a 0.8% bump in the quarterly distribution per unit to $0.3275.

Across my 183 units of ET, my net annual forward distributions would grow by $1.83 due to such an announcement.

UPDATE: ET announced a 0.8% increase in its quarterly distribution per unit to $0.3275. My net annual forward distributions increased by $1.83 from this announcement.

Pending Dividend Increase #2: Alphabet (GOOGL)

Alphabet hasn't declared its next quarterly dividend per share. Since it has been four quarters of the same dividend, I'm reaffirming my expectation of a 10% boost in the quarterly dividend per share to $0.22.

My net annual forward dividends would surge $3.36 higher across my 42 shares of GOOGL from such a declaration.

UPDATE: GOOGL declared a 5% increase in its quarterly dividend per share to $0.21. This came in below my expectations. However, after the massive Q1 2025 EPS beat, I'm willing to give them the benefit of the doubt. My net annual forward dividends grew by $1.68 across my 42 shares of GOOGL from this declaration.

Expected Dividend Increases for May 2025

Expected Dividend Increase #1: Main Street Capital (MAIN)

The first dividend raise that I'm predicting for next month will come from Main Street Capital. I believe that MAIN will announce a 2% increase in its monthly dividend per share to $0.255.

Across my 30 shares of MAIN, my net annual forward dividends would rise by $1.80 due to such an announcement.

Expected Dividend Increase #2: Lowe's Companies (LOW)

The next dividend increase that I'm projecting in May 2025 will be from Lowe's Companies. My guess is that LOW will declare a 4.3% raise in its quarterly dividend per share to $1.20.

My net annual forward dividends would grow by $2 across my 10 shares of LOW from such a declaration.

Expected Dividend Increase #3: Medtronic (MDT)

The final dividend raise that I'm expecting for next month will come from Medtronic. My best guess is that MDT will announce a 1.4% increase in its quarterly dividend per share to $0.71.

Across my 13 shares of MDT, my net annual forward dividends would grow by $0.52 due to such an announcement.

Dividend Increase: RTX Corporation (RTX)

Rather than raising its quarterly dividend per share in April, RTX declared a 7.9% increase in May to $0.68. This was above my prediction of a 6.3% increase to $0.67.

My net annual forward dividends rose by $2.40 across my 12 shares of RTX from this declaration.

Concluding Thoughts:

The four raises that I received in April have increased my net annual forward dividends by $7.43. This is equivalent to investing $247.67 at a 3% net dividend yield.

If the raises that I'm expecting in May play out as anticipated, my net annual forward dividends would grow by $6.72. That would be like investing $224 at a 3% dividend yield.

Discussion:

How was your April 2025 for dividend hikes?

Did you receive any first-time payout boosts as I did with GOOGL?

I appreciate your readership and look forward to your comments below!