Low Risk Income Alternatives to CD's (stocks, p2p lending etc)

The smoking population has been declining since the 1960’s and that stock has still outperformed the S&P500 over that time period. I think that is an overblown concern. Looking at analyst reports they expect profits to grow through 2023.

A bigger risk in my opinion is ESG investing going mainstream and people refusing to buy into sin stocks.

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After my recent purchases including 3 I don’t think I mentioned my portfolio stands like this:
Please note this entire portfolio is only 10% of my overall retirement. The 90% is in well diversified etf’s based on m1finance’s “Aggressive 2020” which is intended for folks retiring in 2020. I had to pick that last year because there was no simple way to indicate you are ALREADY retired. If I had to do it NOW I’d have to pick their 2021 plan.

Stocks with a good dividend and growth potential

Holdings

23

Dividend Yield

7.325%

Expense Ratio

0%

Portfolio locations

Retirement

Dividend and Growth

Slices (23)

Name

Target

T

AT&T

5%

C

Citigroup, Inc.

5%

F

Ford Motor Co.

5%

PEAK

Healthpeak Properties, Inc.

5%

SPG

Simon Property Group, Inc.

5%

BNS

The Bank of Nova Scotia

5%

SO

The Southern Co.

5%

VLO

Valero Energy Corp.

5%

ABBV

AbbVie, Inc.

4%

AYX

Alteryx, Inc.

4%

BRX

Brixmor Property Group, Inc.

4%

DKL

Delek Logistics Partners LP

4%

GIS

General Mills, Inc.

4%

HT

Hersha Hospitality Trust

4%

KMI

Kinder Morgan, Inc.

4%

MAC

Macerich Co.

4%

O

Realty Income Corp.

4%

STX

Seagate Technology Plc

4%

SQ

Square, Inc.

4%

STOR

STORE Capital Corp.

4%

TTD

The Trade Desk, Inc.

4%

WBA

Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc.

4%

WELL

Welltower, Inc.

4%

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For anybody currently considering or buying stocks this site looks amazing. I’ve only been playing with it for a few days but it linked to my brokerage via Plaid so no actual user/pass is given to them and showed a wealth of information. It emails you stock “briefs” with info about upcoming events. I am currently on information overload with the site. All of this is free although they do have a plus service that has even more features. They have a referral service but I have no idea what that gives you or me.

Atom Finance

Enjoy!

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Are referral links allowed on this forum?

2 Likes

No idea. If not, @scripta please remove or I will upon notice. I don’t know what it gives me anyway…probably only useful if i was a plus member. I know on slickdeals you can’t post a referral but you can say “if someone wants to use my referral message me otherwise here’s the regular link…”

I’m not a moderator so I can’t edit your post (but thank you for thinking that I might be). Please remove it yourself.

2 Likes

Sorry for the mixup. Fixed!

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For those wanting a simple blueprint to follow consider the following list of 25 Top Ranked Stocks Increasing Dividends For Decades.

#25 . Consolidated Edison Inc (NYSE:ED) — 4.03% Yield

#24 . Telephone & Data Systems Inc (NYSE:TDS) — 3.45% Yield

#23 . T Rowe Price Group Inc. (NASDAQ:TROW) — 2.62% Yield

#22 . Federal Realty Investment Trust (MD) (NYSE:FRT) — 5.55% Yield

#21 . Bank OZK (NASDAQ:OZK) — 4.47% Yield

#20 . United Bankshares Inc (NASDAQ:UBSI) — 5.26% Yield

#19 . Northwest Natural Holding Co (NYSE:NWN) — 3.61% Yield

#18 . Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc (NASDAQ:WBA) — 4.55% Yield

#17 . Essex Property Trust Inc (NYSE:ESS) — 3.88% Yield

#16 . Eaton Vance Corp (NYSE:EV) — 4.06% Yield

#15 . Realty Income Corp (NYSE:O) — 4.72% Yield

#14 . National Retail Properties Inc (NYSE:NNN) — 5.97% Yield

#13 . Black Hills Corporation (NYSE:BKH) — 3.75% Yield

#12 . South Jersey Industries Inc (NYSE:SJI) — 5.09% Yield

#11 . Cincinnati Financial Corp. (NASDAQ:CINF) — 3.06% Yield

#10 . Franklin Resources Inc (NYSE:BEN) — 5.03% Yield

#9 . AT&T Inc (NYSE:T) — 7.02% Yield

#8 . UGI Corp. (NYSE:UGI) — 3.98% Yield

#7 . Old Republic International Corp. (NYSE:ORI) — 5.13% Yield

#6 . New Jersey Resources Corp (NYSE:NJR) — 4.06% Yield

#5 . AFLAC Inc (NYSE:AFL) — 3.17% Yield

#4 . Prosperity Bancshares Inc. (NYSE:PB) — 3.30% Yield

#3 . Chevron Corporation (NYSE:CVX) — 6.08% Yield

#2 . Exxon Mobil Corp (NYSE:XOM) — 8.24% Yield

#1 . People’s United Financial Inc (NASDAQ:PBCT) — 6.74% Yield

I currently own shares in #5, #9, #15, and #18 so some excellent additions for consideration. I’d price shop to see which stock purchase prices are still down and how much…for example PBCT is down 29.33% in last year. Exxon is down 38.20% in last year. Chevron is down 26.96%…etc. So in addition to a great dividend it they have a better than normal upside potential.

This guy does a fantastic job of explaining how he determines the best stocks. Well worth the read as are his other articles.

Here’s a stock to look at. Make sure you note the last paragraph.

Monthly Dividend Stocks: AGNC Investment (AGNC)

Source: Shutterstock

Dividend Yield: 10.4%

AGNC Investment functions like a REIT but with a twist. It invests in agency mortgage-backed securities on a leveraged basis, funded primarily through collateralized borrowings structured as repurchase agreements — effectively a mortgage REIT.

In easier terms, AGNC has a business model that focuses on borrowing capital at low rates and investing it in higher-yielding securities. Any difference is then distributed to shareholders in the form of a monthly dividend. Since government agencies like the Federal National Mortgage Association (OTCMKTS: FNMA ), or Fannie Mae, guarantee the security of the investments, AGNC stock is a very safe investment.


But how safe is it, really? They’ve always been in the same business (agency-backed securities), and look at the chart. That dividend won’t do you much good if the principal keeps eroding. That’s probably why the yield is so high.

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Reit’s have certainly been in a downward slide in the past but the consensus among alot of people is that with the recent economy and stock market people will be returning to stocks that provide dividend income and are tied to real assets such as real estate or infrastructure. Also keep in mind they’ve been paying 10-14% for quite some time. 10% is on the LOW side of their payout history. The last time they lowered their dividend was $0.15 decrease on 12/18/2013. Payout history is available here:

Some factors to consider:

  1. They pay monthly which is really nice for people wanting income. Obviously I wouldn’t put every dollar I own into any one stock. It should be part of a balanced portfolio. The one I started and posted about now has 35+ stocks in it. I’ve purchased SEVERAL REITS looking at their long term prospects rather than short term covid pains.

Apologies as some of these links are blocked unless you are a seekingalpha subscriber. Typically content is free for around 24 hours before being locked behind the paywall. They usually leave the first paragraph or so, so you can get some idea of whats going on and they list the stocks mentioned at the very top of the article. None of this is an issue for non seeking alpha posts.

[Partially blocked] Assessing AGNC Investment's Results For Q2 2020 (Running On All Cylinders) (NASDAQ:AGNC) | Seeking Alpha

[Available - talks about AGNC preferred shares] How To Increase Future Income Without More Risk | Seeking Alpha

[Written on Aug 7th] from fool article above:

Like just about every mortgage REIT out there, AGNC trades at a discount to book value. AGNC’s current discount is just about 15% as of Friday morning. Historically, mortgage REITs stay close to book value, so it is likely for AGNC’s stock price to approach book value over the next few months. In addition, the company pays a $1.44 annual dividend, which works out to a 10.5% dividend yield. Finally, book value per share should increase as the company buys back stock and earns much more than it pays out. For income and value investors, AGNC Investment Corp. should be worth considering.

This doesn’t even go into how some investor’s sell options a few dollars above their purchase price and rake in the fee’s from those to raise the Yield returned percentage. I have not dabbled with options yet.

I mentioned I’ve added significant stocks to my Dividend and growth pie and decided I’ll share it. About 1/2 the people on seeking alpha are very secretive because they want you to buy their marketplace service to see their whole portfolio’s. A few generously share information however and that’s who I’m trying to emulate. Obviously no guarantee’s but in the year I had the first 16 stocks they went up 35% in value. As I’ve added stocks it’s diluted that although at one point it was up to 45%…it’s currently at 30.70% return. kmi, bns, and vlo have done poorly in stock price but continue to pay an attractive dividend. T, PRU and ENB all pay a 7% return and are doing particularly well overall. There are many articles listing them as stocks for retiree’s. FYI there’s some additional content after his huge list too. :wink:

Stocks with a good dividend and growth potential

Holdings

38

Dividend Yield

7.365%

Expense Ratio

0.06%

Portfolio locations

Retirement

Dividend and Growth

Slices (38)

Name

Target



ABBV
AbbVie, Inc.
3%



ACC
American Campus Communities, Inc.
3%



T
AT&T
3%



AVB
AvalonBay Communities, Inc.
3%



BRX
Brixmor Property Group, Inc.
3%



DKL
Delek Logistics Partners LP
3%



ENB
Enbridge, Inc.
3%



FRT
Federal Realty Investment Trust
3%



GIS
General Mills, Inc.
3%



HT
Hersha Hospitality Trust
3%



NNN
National Retail Properties, Inc.
3%



OKE
ONEOK, Inc.
3%



PAA
Plains All American Pipeline LP
3%



PRU
Prudential Financial, Inc.
3%



O
Realty Income Corp.
3%



STX
Seagate Technology Plc
3%



SPG
Simon Property Group, Inc.
3%



SPE
Special Opportunities Fund, Inc.
3%



SQ
Square, Inc.
3%



STOR
STORE Capital Corp.
3%



SO
The Southern Co.
3%



TTD
The Trade Desk, Inc.
3%



WBA
Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc.
3%



WELL
Welltower, Inc.
3%



AGNC
AGNC Investment Corp.
2%



AYX
Alteryx, Inc.
2%



C
Citigroup, Inc.
2%



EPR
EPR Properties
2%



F
Ford Motor Co.
2%



PEAK
Healthpeak Properties, Inc.
2%



KMI
Kinder Morgan, Inc.
2%



MAC
Macerich Co.
2%



MPW
Medical Properties Trust, Inc.
2%



SRC
Spirit Realty Capital, Inc.
2%



SKT
Tanger Factory Outlet Centers, Inc.
2%



BNS
The Bank of Nova Scotia
2%


UMH
UMH Properties, Inc.
2%



VLO
Valero Energy Corp.
2%

I’ve also setup A DGI Portfolio (stable blue chips that keep up with inflation), a 8% Growth Portfolio and a Risk Adjusted Rotation Strategy Portfolio in my IRA accounts. The article I used to set them up is now hidden on seeking alpha and I don’t see a way for me to upload a pdf I printed/saved of the article.

Dave Van KNapp publically shares his DGI (DGI = Dividend Growth Investing) Portfolio which is very similar to mine here:
Reviewing My “Mature” Dividend Growth Portfolio - Dividends and Income

The latest research is often rosy. I’ve been watching a few REITs for over a decade, during which they’ve traded 10-15% below book value the entire time, rarely close to book value. I think you are implying that the price should increase to meet the current book value, but I see no reason to expect that. And book value could just as easily go down towards the current price, and the price could drop even more to retain the historic discount.

I’m not knocking your investments or strategy, just providing a contrarian point of view.

This just does not make sense to me. I think it is utterly idiotic to buy back stock. It’s a destruction of value. If they have nothing better to do with the money, they should pay out a larger dividend.

As I indicated, that was a quote from the article listed above it. I did not personally say any part of that.

That being said, Book value is determined by the assets of the stock divided by the outstanding shares yes? If they buy back shares then there are less outstanding shares therefore each one is worth more from a book value standpoint? Let me know if I got that wrong.

I personally do believe alot of people are going to jump on reits because they have not yet recovered from covid AND they have the higher interest rates along with being based on real assets and not hype (tech stocks…coughteslacough) When a bunch of the average joes starts buying it’s going to push the stock price up. In the meantime draw down the dividend.

If you want a safer alternative stick with T, PRU and ENB…7% returns and long standing companies with good dividend history. T is controversial however with some folks swearing it’s going to have short term pain and possibly long term if they don’t get their act together. It’s stock price has pretty much been a flat line for decades with only minor changes but it paid it’s dividend every year and I think they will fight hard to keep their dividend aristocrat reputation.

Also to put things into perspective all the stocks mentioned add up to 10% of my retirement portfolio with the other 90% in a retirement portfolio that has alot of low cost vanguard etf’s. While it has decent capital appreciation it was hit hard by covid too before recovering which certainly influenced me to look at dividends more closely. If the process works as expected I’ll be transferring funds to the stocks from the retirement portfolio. I’m not in a rush.

Also ask yourself if buying back stock is “useless” why are a BUNCH of companies doing it right now while the stock prices are down? Stock Buybacks: Why Do Companies Buy Back Shares?

That’s correct, but the slightly increased book value does not have a direct effect on the price of each share. The cash money spent on buybacks disappears into the ether. Paying out dividends returns the money directly to investors.

I do agree that buybacks may make sense when stock is obviously and significantly undervalued. I just don’t believe this to be the case with most buybacks. I have watched companies spend hundreds of millions of dollars for many years buying back shares while the prices of those shares kept decreasing. They would have been better off holding on to cash or paying out dividends.

In the case of these reits most were knocked down 60-80% when covid hit. Those are the ones I grabbed with both hands. The dividends are just gravy, I can wait a few years for them to recover if that’s what it takes or even longer as long as the keep the dividend. As one person on seeking alpha put it…think like a landlord when it comes to reits. Anyway I’ll keep folks updated on how things are going every so often. all my cd’s were 4 or 5 year ones so they will continue producing the 3.5-4% they were locked in at. The excess funds not used for everyday life will be invested…and probably the dividends until the cd’s start maturing.

Here’s the pdf I thought would be beneficial:

https://docdro.id/fOnCxjJ

I question this statement. The principle is insured, not the expected interest earnings. And they’re borrowing to buy the notes - so that interest expense means they still lose money with every default. And it’s quite unnerving to be investing in 2% mortgages; there’s very little room for their borrowing costs to move before holding a note is costing them more than it’s earning.

There’s a reason REITs have historically paid a high dividend rate, their ongoing profitability is anything but “safe”.

2 Likes

If anyone needs a decent dividend tracking spreadsheet here’s one I found…he both provides a copy and walks people through how to set one up. How to make a dividend tracking spreadsheet - Wealth Capitalist

If anyone has a spreadsheet that will break down into monthly income (keeping in mind some stocks pay at different times/months) I’ve love a copy. No joy on googling so far. There is an android app called “Dividend Flow” that does exactly what I want but the author limits the free version to 10 stocks. If you want to do more you have to subscribe to a monthly service. Now I don’t mind paying a one time fee but i’m not paying this joker $3 a month just to be able to add more stocks. It offered other features too but only 1 really was something I cared about.

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The pie/portfolio I’m using is now up to 50 stocks…most dividend payers of 5-7%. Many are reits that were down 60-80% in value and have high dividends as a result. They offer short term pain but long term gain both by value and dividend. Also some utilities that pay dividends as people always need electricity, water and natural gas…ditto visa, mastercard etc…to see all 50 stocks click the link.

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