June Update for the ETF Dividend Portfolio

We’ve made it to the half way point of the year and the ETF portfolio is as high as it has ever been ($13,866) so all is well. Life is good. I’m really starting to enjoy this portfolio, much more than I thought I would.

I don’t talk much about my individual stocks but I basically have three portfolios: one for ETFs (this one), one for dividend paying Australian stocks, and the third for more growth oriented American stocks (but they still have to pay a dividend, even if it’s half a percent like Visa).

This ETF portfolio is the smallest and newest by far and was started with the thought of it eventually becoming my whole portfolio when or if I ever became tired of researching individual companies. I could sell individual shares and put the money into the ETF portfolio and I would have much less to think about while sitting on the beach.

Honestly I thought the ETF portfolio would be so boring that I’ll probably forget to add new funds to it but I’m completely fascinated by it, as much as I am with the Australian and American stock portfolios. I probably spend as much time researching and thinking about my ETFs as I do with individual companies.

Obviously it could be made easier and more boring by investing in 2 or 3 ETFs but where is the fun in that?

ETF Dividend Payments in June

It was only the monthly payers again in June but they’re definitely growing in number. I started out with the JP Morgan JPEQ ETF and have now added FEPI and QQQI so I own about $3,427 worth of monthly paying ETFs which are all high yielding covered call option ETFs.

JPEQ paid out $16.11, FEPI paid $8.77 and QQQI gave me $4.76 for the month which is a total of $29.64. My intention is to increase this amount to at least $100 per month as quickly as possible. So I’ll probably neglect the quarterly paying ETFs a little bit until I reach this goal.

For the first six months of 2024 the ETF portfolio has earned me about $202 in dividends compared with $102 from the whole of 2023. So in half the time I have earned about twice the amount in dividends. It would be nice if I could double that $202 over the next 6 months.

The ETF Dividend Portfolio for June

As you can see from the introduction of this post the ETF dividend portfolio is now valued at about $13,866 which is $1,178 up from last month. New contributions accounted for $778 of that increase and ETF gains accounted for the other $400.

So we’re on track to have the portfolio above $20,000 in 2024 if things continue to progress as they are. I remember when I reached $20,000 worth of individual stocks I felt like I was really onto something. It was a massive achievement and I was very proud of myself as it was a $20,000 credit card debt that broke me and forced me to get smart about money.

It’s much nicer to have $20,000 worth of income producing assets than it is to be in debt for $20,000. Rather than debt collectors harassing you everyday you can have little dividends deposited into your bank account each month. Invest in a high dividend yielding options ETF like QQQI and that $20,000 would pay you about $166 every month. This is not a recommendation, I’m just saying it’s better to receive money than it is to be hounded for money.

Just as a note, the ticker symbols ending in .AX are Australian listed ETFs and those without them are US listed ETFs. The US listed prices and average cost per share are in US dollars but everything else like market value and total dividend income are in Australian dollars.

Here’s what the portfolio looks like this month…

See the ETF Dividend Portfolio from May.

What to Expect in July

Unless it’s monthly and high yielding I’m not adding to the position in July. The goal is to be making at least $100 every month from the monthly paying ETFs and then every January, April, July and October will be high months when the quarterly payers also distribute dividends.

I’m hoping to break the $100 mark in July for the first time as all of the ETFs will be paying dividends. This little collection of assets is really starting to turn into something now. It has been less than a year since I started tracking the ETF portfolio online and I’m about to have my first $100 month. I’m happy with that!

How is your wealth compounding machine going this year? Any closer to reaching financial freedom or are you reading this from your own private island?

Total ETF + Managed Funds Portfolio for June

Portfolio value inside the Vanguard website: $5,072 up from $4,503
Betashares ETF portfolio: $4,788 up from $4,358
US & ASX listed ETFs held in brokerage accounts: $4,004 up from $3,862
Total Index Funds portfolio value (VHY, VGS, GEAR, JPEQ, FEPI, QQQI and IVV): $13,866 up from $12,688

Most recent dividend payment (June): $29.64 up from $13.90 in May (Monthly dividends from JPEQ, FEPI and QQQI)
Dividends paid in 2024 so far: $202.68
All dividends paid in 2023: $102.68
All ETF dividend payments since buying $353.32

ETF Dividends Goal: $2,000+ per year.