Ha! “Recent buys.” Am I doing this right?
So as I mentioned in my last post, I purchased several more stocks after my first one, which was for Coca-cola!
The research behind these was essentially the same, meaning I stood on the shoulders of some of the DGI Giants in our circles and moved forward based on their hard work. I’m thinking that my next stock purchase will take some actual hard work and due diligence on my part, so I’ve already started putting some legwork into that. But meanwhile, I figured I’d update on what I actually got going.
Please excuse the smaller number of shares. I realize some of you have 10X or more what I have here, but remember I’m just getting started:
5X UNP @ $97.5899 for $494.95
5X WMT @ $73.5599 for $374.80
5X MMM @ $156.719 for $790.60
5X PG @ $82.379 for $411.90 (this was a free trade)
So, as you can see on my portfolio page (which I promptly updated after buying up the stock for Proctor & Gamble), I have updated my total stock equity amount to $2,460.35 from $2,048.40. My trades for UNP, WMT and MMM all came with the $7 trade fee from Scottrade, but luckily my referral situation finally got figured out. I had signed up through a referral link but something went wrong in the process. All it took was a quick call to customer service and they were quick to help me out (very nice!). So now I have two more free trades to make within the next 30 days!
I’ve also added another $2,500 to my Vanguard SEP IRA which brings its value to about $15,270!
All these recent moves have pushed me over the $40k mark in combined brokerage + investment accounts, which is … such a good feeling.
I think as I move toward the $50k mark, my goal is to start adjusting my portfolio to include a higher percentage (which currently sits at 0%) of both bonds and international stocks. Most likely, I’ll go with the Vanguard index funds that track both those markets.
What do you guys think of VBMFX and VGTSX? Should I buy into those next? Should I wait until I have $10k for each and go with VBTLX and VTIAX for a decreased fee?
As always, your input is appreciated!
Heck yeah you did that correctly! Great purchases there, can’t go wrong with any of the companies mentioned. MMM is one of my favorite companies that I don’t own but can’t wait to. One day I’ll be a fellow shareholder!
Keep up the great work.
Bert, one of the di
Dividend Diplomats recently posted…Expected Dividend Increases in July 2015
@Dividend Diplomats,
From the look of your current portfolios, it looks like it won’t be long. Those are some serious dividends being paid out. Very cool.
And thanks!
FM
Yep nice buys. I own UNP and PG. I want to own MMM.
Dividata.com is one of my fav sites as it breaks down the dividend history, years paying etc very nicely.
Im not much help on the Vanguard funds unfortunately. Haven’t done any research there.
Adam
Adam – IWTRS recently posted…Recent Buys – June 14, 2015
Adam,
Thanks!
I’m checking Dividata.com out right now. This kind of thing makes me want to build out my own tool geared toward Dividend Growth projections. Maybe once I get a better handle on things, I’ll try that out. :D
FM
Nice purchases. All of those are great companies and I own all of them in my portfolio as well. Great job pushing your total investments up to $40k. Next stop $50k. In regards to the bond and index fund investments, I like Vanguard funds for the passive part of my portfolio. I don’t have much there, just a Roth and a Rollover IRA, but they are all in index funds. Personally I’d probably stay away from the bond index right now, I only do it in my 401k to have some exposure there. But if you want to have fixed income exposure then just make sure the bond index fund is either intermediate or short duration. I don’t see the long duration bond funds doing well in a rising rate environment and I’m not a big fan of the bond mutual funds because there’s less control. Much like with investing in an actively managed mutual fund, if shareholders decide they want to sell and cash out some funds the management is forced to do so, whether that goes against the investment plan or not. Great job though and best of luck with reaching FI by 2025.
JC @ Passive-Income-Pursuit recently posted…Net Worth Update – June 2015
JC,
Thanks and yes, next stop is $50k!
With regard to the bond index, I just don’t want to have a portfolio that’s so unbalanced. I’d like to adhere to a three-fund portfolio to reduce long-term risk. I don’t plan on taking any of the money out of these accounts. If I need money, that’s what the Emergency Fund is for. Anything larger, of course, and I’d have to figure something out, but that’s life.
Although, you do bring up an interesting point about shareholders cashing out but would that still apply with an bond index fund?
In any case, thanks for the input and for the well wishes!
FM