| Company | Cost Basis | Shares | Yield | Total Value | Return |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Southern | $39.71 | 25.0818 | 4.2% | $1,184.61 | 18.9% |
| Exelon Corporation (NYSE:EXC) | $41.36 | 28.818 | 3.4% | $1,047.25 | (12.1%) |
| National Grid | $48.90 | 20.3693 | 5.7% | $1,296.51 | 30.2% |
| Philip Morris International | $68.49 | 14.5429 | 3.6% | $1,381.72 | 38.7% |
| Ryman Hospitality | $44.93 | 24.7 | 4.6% | $1,072.47 | (3.4%) |
| Plum Creek Timber Co. Inc. (NYSE:PCL) | $38.42 | 26 | 3.3% | $1,324.18 | 32.6% |
| Brookfield Infrastructure Partners L.P. (NYSE:BIP) | $26.12 | 38.2825 | 4.4% | $1,477.70 | 47.8% |
| Vodafone | $26.75 | 56.7566 | 5.3% | $1,706.10 | 12.4% |
| Seaspan | $15.24 | 95 | 5.9% | $2,112.80 | 46% |
| AT&T | $35.20 | 28.4 | 4.8% | $1,066.70 | 6.7% |
| Retail Opportunity Investments Corp (NASDAQ:ROIC) | $12.20 | 81.95 | 4.1% | $1,202.21 | 20.2% |
| Annaly Capital Management, Inc. (NYSE:NLY) | $25.98 | 38.9 | 7.3% | $999.73 | 0.8% |
| Cash | $330.37 | ||||
| Dividends Receivable | $12.73 | ||||
| Original Investment | $12,983.97 | ||||
| Total Portfolio | $16,215.09 | 24.9% | |||
| Investment in SPY (Including Dividends) | 22.5% | ||||
| Relative Performance (Percentage Points) | 2.5 |
Source: Capital IQ, a division of Standard & Poor’s.
The portfolio continued to perform strongly since my last report. Cumulative performance is now at 24.9%, up 2.3 percentage points from before. However, we slipped a bit against the S&P, from 2.8 down to 2.5. The portfolio’s surge has occurred just as the market started getting rocky. I’m continuing to hold dividends in cash – better than a half-year’s worth – waiting for an excellent opportunity. I’ve been holding more cash than I normally would, expecting a downturn after the runaway start to the markets this year.
The blended yield is 4.8%, and we have more than $300 in cash in the portfolio. May is one of the big months for dividends around here, too, so more money will be rolling in.
In June, I’m going to add $2,000 in cash to the portfolio, to mimic what an investor might do annually. I’ll also add at least two new positions, and I expect to sell at least one. As I asked last week, if you have any good dividend stocks to buy or would like to recommend ones from the portfolio to sell, let me know in the comments box below. Thanks for the suggestions so far.
Dividends and earnings announcements
Here is the recent news on earnings and dividends:
Earnings news:
Brookfield Infrastructure Partners L.P. (NYSE:BIP) reported a 38% increase of funds from operation per share, while it was up 48% on an absolute basis. In particular, focus on the per-share amount, since this MLP sometimes issues shares to buy its assets. The company’s FFO payout ratio, at 59%, fell just below the target range of 60%-70%, meaning that we should see up a nice distribution increase if these highly stable assets continue to perform. The company is continuing to look at deals and says 2013’s acquisitions could be as nice as last year’s.
Retail Opportunity Investments Corp (NASDAQ:ROIC) reported $0.19 per share in FFO, and the company continues to grow quickly and strongly. Occupancy was up 110 bps year over year, to 93.4%, while same-store cash net operating income grew at a very strong 7.9% clip. With 23.5% debt-to-total-market cap, ROIC has a lot of room to leverage its balance sheet to grow its portfolio. I expect more greatness from the company. It’s up 20% (not including dividends) for 11 months.
Annaly Capital Management, Inc. (NYSE:NLY)’s adjusted earnings came in at $0.47 per share, compared with $0.54 in the year-ago quarter, and leverage is up to 6.6, from 5.8. Book value per share slipped sequentially, from $15.85, to $15.19. The interest rate spread declined sequentially and year over year and currently stands at just 0.91%. That continues to augur declining common dividends, and it’s one of the reason I moved to the preferred stock.
