The beginning of March marked the beginning of our 14th year. In the past thirteen years we have recommended 44 stocks. Thirteen of those still remain on our recommendations list. Our past 32 trades have averaged a 29% return in just over two years. There were three losses. Cash-flow from dividends accounted for 29% of the gains.
Our current recommendations have returned 176% in nine years on average. We have outperformed the Dow Jones Industrial Average (+136%), the S&P 500(+137%), the Teranet 11 Home Price Index (+143%) and the TSX (+76%) since the first issue. The only North American benchmark that we have not outperformed (yet) was the NASDAQ. It closed 260% higher. The bulk of these gains have come from only a handful of stocks, namely, the FANG (Facebook, Amazon, Netflix and Google). This index is overvalued today (Amazon and Netflix trading at over 230-times earnings). We continue to participate in this market with one of our holdings.
Dividends account for 49% of the above returns. If you qualify for the Dividend Tax Credit, be prepared to tack on another 1 percentage point.
Investing is all about patience. A good portfolio should not have to be monitored on an ongoing basis. The investor should be able to glance at their statements to watch the dividends roll in and not have to worry about the capital. Boredom should also accompany a good portfolio because one should be able to buy and hold a stock, hopefully forever, resulting in very little to do once the company is found.
Our strategy of buying and holding companies with a history of stable dividend increases is boring, but it works. A stable dividend will place a natural floor below a share price. As the dividend increases so does the floor. We continue to outperform the market year-over-year.