Thirty Days Has September
When I was a boy, I learned a rhyme that helped me remember the number of days in every month. You probably did too, or you learned to figure out which months were the long ones by using your hands. The peaks of the knuckles were the 31-day months, and the valleys were the shorter months that were 30 days. Of course, there is the month I was born, and most of the time it is 28 days except during leap year.
When I started working, most of my employers paid me twice each month. In September it was usually the 15th and the 30th. That was nice, but it would have been great to get paid weekly. Now, however, Cindie and I are paid more often than that. During September 2020 we will be paid dividends on two thirds of the days of the month. That is 20 days of income.
We Are Content
Many investors are never content. They have to see huge gains in their portfolio to be satisfied. If their account values go down, they worry or panic. As a dividend growth investor, the total balance of our consolidated accounts is a nice number, but it is just a number. The dividends are not fuel for more spending or for increasing our standard of living. Dividends are real money. Account values are only valuable if you can sell the assets.
As I was reminded in a sermon this past Sunday, Christians live in the host country (the present life.) Our destination is our home country in eternity to be with the Lord. All of the treasures and investments of this life are not for our luxurious living, but for His Kingdom purposes. Sometimes we forget that, but our eyes remain fixed on Jesus. Our goal is to lay up treasures in heaven because those cannot be stolen or deteriorate due to rust or moth. The treasures in heaven bring glory to God and are an expression of thanksgiving, trust, and contentment. We know what it is like to have little and we know what it is like to have plenty. We are content either way.
Dividend Tracker makes it visible
Because we are paid so frequently, I like to be aware of the income in advance, so that I can be thinking about any withdrawals, reinvestments or giving we want to do. The iPhone app “Dividend Tracker” makes it easy to see which companies are paying each day of the month. I usually look at the app calendar by Pay Date. It is easy to switch the calendar to the Ex-Dividend Date or to the Earnings Date for our holdings.
Consolidated or By Account
I like to view the consolidated calendar for all of our accounts, but I can look at the calendar for each of our six accounts. It is easier for me to look at the consolidated calendar most of the time. Because the calendar is interactive, I can also look at the positions by day by selecting any day.
September 1 as an Example
The following images from my iPhone illustrate the power of drilling into the Dividend Tracker calendar options. I selected September 1, and there are six dividends to be paid on this date for PFE, INTC, KR, WEC, AFL, and KLAC.
Then I selected INTC to drill into the details. These images only represent a small portion of the types of information Dividend Tracker displays.
Dividend Tracker is Powerful
The power of this app is not limited to dividends. It is possible to look at holdings by sector and by using the heatmap feature. The best way to learn about Dividend Tracker is to go to the following link: DIVIDEND TRACKER
Know Your Flocks & Herds 