DGI for Europeans

[DutchDiv]

Hello all,

New to the forum, new to DGI. I just started and bought my first 4 stocks. However, I was wondering. I'm Dutch and most good stocks are in the US. I don't have a problem with buying US stocks, but I do have a problem with the current dollar / euro conversion rate. This means I will lose quite a lot of money if I transfer my Euro's to Dollars now and the Euro becomes stronger again...

Ofcourse I can invest in European stocks while the conversion rate is bad, but I have a hard time finding good ones in Europe. Are there other people with the same problem? How do they cope with this?

Looking forward to hear from you.

Thanks!

[Rasec]

Curious why you say that, between the CAC, FTSE and DAX (check Ireland as well) you should easily find 20/30 solid companies to invest in. I honestly don't know much about the Dutch Euronext but would have no problems investing in the top 20 DGI companies in Europe while waiting for a more favorable €/$.

I live in the US but I'm European and have some money back home in an ETF focused on European Div. Aristocrats and it's not doing bad.

[DutchDiv]

Thanks for your reply!

The reason I'm saying that it's because it's much harder to find the good companies at good valuations for the following reasons:
- Many US bloggers with analyses on US Stocks, not many in Europe
- European companies don't have a long history of dividend payments
- European companies cut dividend faster than the American counterparts

It's probably me, but I have a hard time finding good companies against good value.

I do have a couple of companies, but they are overvalues in my opinion at the moment. For example:
- Unilever
- l'Oreal

Than there is Shell, but I'm hesitant to invest in oil. Cylclical, bigger risks, doesn't feel right...

Like I said, it's probably me, but most companies I do find only have a history of 5 to 10 years max and almost all of them have cut the dividend or kept it the same in that period for at least one of those years. US stocks just look like a better deal.

[Rasec]

I get what you say about resources. But I went doing a bit of reserach on less companies paying dividends:

"We observe that distribution rates in Europe are higher than in most other regions," he said. "Other companies in other cultures are more concerned with either building up cash on the balance or growing the business."

"Many of these European companies have double-digit increases every year over 20- and 30-year periods," said Wallington. "That's not something that's ever talked about. If you reinvest those dividends, the compounding you can get is phenomenal."
http://www.cnbc.com/2015/04/09/a-contrar...funds.html

I honestly don't care about the sector, to me it's more about "do I use it, do I understand how it makes money", if yes, then I tend to be interested. So oil, tobacco, drinks, etc, it's all the same.

Start here (if you haven't yet): http://www.topyields.nl/Top-dividend-yie...end-30.php

Some ideas: Diageo, Eaton Corp, Total, RDS, BP, Deutsche Bank, Sanofi, Rio Tinto, Allianz, Vodafone, etc. I'm not talking about valuations, you'd have to check, these are just ideas thrown out quickly that I know pay solid dividends but I haven't studied any of them, don't know their pay out ratios, div increases, P/E, etc.

---

PS: How could I forget VW!! This is the greatest of times to buy this amazing company!

some other ideas: Siemens, Nestle

[Dividend Watcher]

First off, welcome to the forum, DutchDiv!

I invite you to add a post to the Introductions section so we can know a little more about you and what you're looking for -- age, goals, type of investment accounts you're using. For example, I don't know if you have the equivalent to the Individual Retirement Account (IRA) like we have in the U.S.

Next, I'd suggest you get an idea of what exchange rates would be acceptable to you if you were to add some U.S. stocks. I understand the hesitation in investing with the US$ close to all-time highs. Just checked the long-term chart on Yahoo Finance for USDEUR exchange. Looks like the $1.25-$1.30 range to the Euro is a reasonable median. The put the portion aside you want to invest in U.S. stocks aside in something safe and start buying once it gets to your range.

In the meantime, do your research and investing Europe. Like your choices of Unilever and L'oreal. Rasec had some good suggestions to which I would add Novartis to the research list. Looks to me like your exchange rate with Canada is in your favor here recently. May want to look at the Canadian banks, rails & telecom there too.

Glad you dropped in.

[DutchDiv]

Thanks for the reactions so far! I have some research to do. Lot's of great suggestions.

I never even thought about Canada. I hear the Canadian banks are greatly valued at the moment, but never thought of investing in Canada. No specific reason for that, so also something to consider.

I'll create a post in the Introduction section of the forum.

Thanks for the tips. I'll keep the progress up to date!

[crimsonghost747]

Hey, I'll throw in some more stuff on your introduction thread but now onto the topic here.
Yes, I have the same problem. I find that Europe is lacking good options... yes there are some but it's not even close to what we can find across the pond. So yeah, pretty much 100% of my investments have lately gone to the USA or Canada.

Yes, it was much easier when I got $1.40 with 1 euro but I think that Europe is going downhill pretty damn fast and the USA seems to be the economic giant it has always been... that and the FED probably finally touching their rates within 1 year... well I don't speculate with currency but if I had to choose, I'd say it definitely feels like the dollar could be getting stronger compared to the euro. But that is a just a guess.

Anyway, I'm still buying stocks from USA/Canada. In the long run it's the quality of the companies you choose, not the currency they are trading in, that matters. By all means look at other options (Canada, Australia, Asia) but if you find good opportunities in the USA then don't stop simply because you think the currency conversion isn't too great right now.

[rayray]

Welcome to the forum!

My foreign exposure in stocks: SWIR, TD, ACE, BMO, BNS, BBL, CM, DEO, RY, RDS.A/RDS.B and UL.

I realize that most are Canadian and of course this doesn't include my U.S. stocks that have oversea exposure.