What I Am Buying Today.

[rayray]

(07-20-2024, 07:51 AM)NilesMike Wrote: While I enjoy reading of everyone's recent purchases and researching some of them as well, I am curious about some of the purchase criterion.

Many are bought on the dip, clear reasoning.
Many are not dividend growers or even dividend payers, unclear reasoning given the purpose of the forum.
Some, like O above, are bought as they are heading into a resistance level after making nice up move, confusing reasoning.

Trying to learn and understand like everyone else here.

Over the years I evolved as an investor, at one time I was strictly MF/ETF type investments mostly through a kplan. I did have a couple of DRIPS way back when commissions were on the high side. Those DRIPS were cashed out when I bought my first home back in the mid to late 1990's. In 1998, I opened up a ROTH through Vanguard, again with MF/ETF type investments. Eventually, I got into individual equities, mostly focusing on dividend growth equities. It was an easy concept to follow and it seemed reasonable, of course there ended up being gobs of financial blogs and a FIRE movement that a lot focused on these dividend growth equities. After a bit, I changed my focus on more growth, low to no yielding stocks and it has worked out well. I would not have been able to accumulate what I have if I stayed with a strict DGI philosophy, with investing one has to have their eyes and mind wide open and not pigeon-hole themselves into on e type of style, which many do, even the pro's. As I slowly started to move in another direction, I noticed if I mentioned something that didn't follow the rules of DGI, it was not uncommon to get attacked, that was a big red flag for me, it felt like there were certain people trying to protect their "service". It was also a red flag when these bloggers or posters (at other sites/blogs/services) talk a whole lot of percentages but no dollar amounts, it's too easy to play games and fool people with percentages, but dollar amounts is a different story.

I have some stock screeners that I use within my Fidelity account, I don't follow the DGI formula and in fact I don't even use yield/dividend as a search criteria, I leave it blank. What I found is that dividend producing equities still end up on the stock screen search, I don't buy a stock concerning the dividend, but I do buy stocks that give dividends, but I have also accumulated shares of companies that never paid a dividend that started paying a dividend such as META and GOOG/GOOGL. While I was accumulating GOOG/GOOGL, gawd forbid if you mentioned GOOG/GOOGL on certain pages, they attacked you, it was crazy! Well, after with time accumulating over 1500 shares of GOOG/GOOGL, guess who initiates a dividend, guess who now wants to buy GOOG/GOOGL? What some people don't understand is that while a company is growing, one can sell shares (I know TABOO!!) to create their own dividend. I bought, and sold GOOG/GOOGL along the way to it paying a dividend, I didn't sell it to create income, I sold to diversify into another equity, but I could have easily sold to create a income stream but I'm still in the accumulation phase so I don't, not yet anyways. Anyways, I bought, sold all the way to 1500 shares of a non-dividend payer that ended up being a dividend payer.

I like my strategy, at 53 and if I retired today I would have 3.8 million. I'm going to work another 6 years until age 59, it was originally 62 but decided on 59. I've been gifting some stock to some loved ones, and I'm also saving up for a total home remodel, hence why I'll work till 59, plus to get away from any IRS game rules to access those retirement dollars. I prefer things simple as possible.