I’ve made it a habit to post late for four months now, so I plan to do something about that!
I’m really good at creating habits or falling into a rut and staying there because it’s comfortable or known.
The upside of seeing the value of habits and being able to create and commit to them is that you can ensure that they’re good habits. It takes just as much time and effort to create a habit that is destructive as it takes to create one that is enhancing.
For me, the more unconscious a habit is the more destructive it is as it has grown out of sloth and or negativity. My best habits have to be carefully planned, thought about and worked on with much effort as my natural default always leans towards the negative.
So I’m going to make it a habit of posting the ETF portfolio update on time every month! No more excuses, no more procrastination, just action.
ETF Dividend Income in May
It was the monthly paying ETFs only this month and I expected it to be a little higher. The issue was the high dividend covered call ETF FEPI which paid out $9.48 instead of the usual $40. It has changed over from a monthly paying ETF to a weekly paying ETF and I guess the May dividend was used to pay for the changeover. I don’t know why the drop but I do know I’ll be selling it in June as I don’t want to own a weekly paying stock. And to be honest, I probably should have sold FEPI a long time ago.
JPEQ paid out $66.05, FEPI distributed $9.48, HYLD sent out $3.86, and QQQI gave me $40.86, which is a total of $120.25 for the month of May.
This time last year the portfolio made $107.92 in dividends for the month of May which is an 11% increase YoY (year on year).
The rolling 6 month, monthly dividend payment was $182.86 last month. It has decreased slightly to $181.87. That’s a decrease of $0.99 per month which is interesting as the average for the past three months have been 183, 182 and now 181. I wonder if it’ll be 180 next month?
The ETF Dividend Portfolio for May
This month the ETF dividend portfolio has increased to $39,017 up from $36,915 in April which is a nice increase of about $2,102. New contributions were a very ordinary $651.02, which means that the portfolio would have increased by roughly $1,5450 if I didn’t add any new money.
I added 3 shares to JEPQ (listed as JPEQ in Australia), added $65.94 to HYLD, $318.31 to QQQI, and bought $87.04 worth of ATEC (Australian technology ETF).
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 ETF portfolio looked like at the end of March 2026…
See the ETF Dividend Portfolio from April.
What to Expect in June
Again, I’m late posting this update so I already know most of what will happen in June! The biggest thing to happen has been the sale of FEPI as I have no interest in a weekly paying ETF and FEPI has been a consistent underperformer in my portfolio. The oversized dividend yield does not excuse the NAV erosion.
How has your freedom making machine started the year? What’s your 6 month rolling monthly dividend average for your ETFs? (total dividends paid over the last 6 months, divided by 6 equals your average).
Total ETF + REIT + Managed Funds Portfolio for May
Total Index Funds portfolio value (VHY, VGS, GEAR, JPEQ, FEPI, QQQI, SCHD, NDQ, ATEC, HYLD and IVV): $39,017 up from $36,915.
Most recent dividend payment (May): $120.25 down from $231.69 in April (Monthly dividends from JPEQ, FEPI, HYLD, and QQQI)
Dividends paid in May 2025: $107.92 which is a 11% Increase YoY (Year on Year)
6 Month Dividends Monthly Average: $181.87 down from $182.86 last month
Dividends paid in 2026: $929.18 (this time last year it was $738.74)
Dividends paid in 2025: $2,040.09 (181% increase)
Dividends paid in 2024: $725.85 (606% increase)
All dividends paid in 2023: $102.68
All ETF dividend payments since starting the ETF portfolio: $3,797.80
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.