My Dividend Portfolio. Month 28, Week 2 (+Video)

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Hi partners — Max here!

It's been a great week for quite a few reasons!

👉 Dividend Score: A MaxDividends Study of U.S. and International Dividend Stocks

Oh, and I almost forgot to mention one thing! Guess who's paying for our entire week at the beach?

That's right. My dividends! 💰🌴

Below, you'll find the usual detailed breakdown of what I bought this week, how the portfolio is positioned today, and what I'm planning for next week and beyond.

And this time, you'll also find the complete video review with my personal commentary and the full investment process behind this week's decisions.

My portfolio is a fully transparent, real-time journey — no polishing the numbers and no adjusting results after the fact.

It’s a path anyone can follow with the right system, such as the MaxDividends Income System, and the MaxDividends Platform.

Alright — let’s get to today’s buys. So grab a coffee — let’s dig in ☕💪

What I Bought, How Things Look

Every Friday, I put $3,000 plus dividends to work with one clear mission: reach $12,000 a month in dividends within 120 months.

But the real reason this works isn’t willpower or motivation. It’s the system — and the technology behind it.

The MaxDividends Income System defines what to buy, when to buy, and what to ignore. The MaxDividends Platform keeps the compass steady — tracking income, scores, risks, and signals whether I’m at my desk, out walking, or fast asleep.

The portfolio doesn’t need me to be “on.” It doesn’t care if I’m busy, tired, traveling, or doing absolutely nothing. The process keeps running.

What I enjoy most is watching the portfolio do its job — seeing which positions keep quietly compounding, and which names stay on the watchlist until the data finally lines up.

That’s how the snowball really builds. Just repeatable decisions, steady dividend deposits, and a system that keeps stacking progress week after week.

When you step back and look at the full picture — essentials, lifestyle, family needs, small trips, and a buffer — dividend income stops being a theory and turns into a practical roadmap.

Here’s where the journey stands today:

Freedom Bar:
█████████████░░░░░░░░░░░░░░ ~39% complete (+1% vs last week)

(based on current projections)

My dividend income is now running at about $1,254 per month. It’s not a headline number. It won’t trend on social media. But it does matter.

Because this is what real progress looks like when income is built the right way. Quiet. Measurable. The income base keeps rising.

Every reinvested dollar tightens the structure. Every dividend hike raises the floor. And over time, that turns into momentum you can actually feel.

Badger Meter is a global water technology company headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The company develops smart water meters, flow measurement equipment, monitoring systems, and software solutions that help utilities and industrial customers measure, manage, and conserve water.

Its BlueEdge portfolio combines connected hardware, advanced metering infrastructure, and software to help water utilities detect leaks, reduce water losses, and improve operational efficiency.

The business operates in an essential industry where aging infrastructure, water conservation, and the modernization of utility networks continue to drive long-term investment.

Why today?

Water utilities continue investing in infrastructure modernization, leak detection, and smart metering technology, supporting long-term demand for Badger Meter's solutions.

The company's second-quarter revenue declined 7% year-over-year to $222.3 million but improved 10% sequentially as order rates recovered and previously awarded utility projects began moving into deployment. Additional projects are expected to ramp up during the second half of 2026.

Badger Meter also recently introduced its OneNetwork software platform, expanding its water management capabilities. In August, the company increased its quarterly dividend by 10%, continuing its long history of dividend growth.

Community Trust Bancorp is a regional bank holding company headquartered in Kentucky. Through Community Trust Bank and its wealth management operations, the company provides commercial and personal banking, lending, trust, and investment services across Kentucky, West Virginia, and Tennessee.

It’s a traditional regional banking business with a long operating history, a strong deposit franchise, and an established dividend record — giving me another way to build exposure to the Financials side of the portfolio.

Why today?

The company reported record second-quarter earnings of $29.6 million, up approximately 19% year-over-year. Net interest income increased 12.7%, while both loans and deposits grew around 9% compared with a year earlier.

At the end of July, CTBI announced a 22.6% increase in its regular quarterly dividend, from $0.53 to $0.65 per share, with the higher payment taking effect on October 1.

The company's next earnings report is expected later this month, offering another opportunity to assess profitability, lending activity, and credit quality as interest-rate conditions continue to evolve.

That puts another ~$3,098 of fresh capital to work this week, continuing my regular weekly investing rhythm.

🔗 View the live portfolio: MaxDividends $12K in 120 Months Strategy Portfolio

The snowball keeps rolling — heavier every week.

Each raise locks in more lifetime income and lifts my yield on cost. Quiet, steady, automatic.

This is what a real dividend roadmap looks like. No guessing. No spreadsheets. Just a clear plan — tracked, forecasted, and executed inside the MaxDividends Platform.

Here’s a look inside my portfolio this week:

Passive income now covers ~55% of my grocery expenses. The snowball keeps getting bigger every week.

All of this is tracked inside the MaxDividends Research Platform | Portfolio Tracker — my roadmap and compass. It shows payouts, raises, and exact progress toward the $12K/Month’ finish line.

If you’re not using it yet, you’re leaving a serious edge on the table.

10/09 Update — email me anytime: [email protected]

Alright partners, there’s quite a bit to talk about this week.

This week, my portfolio added another $9 per month in passive income, and I've officially crossed the $15,000 mark in annual dividends!

Just two years ago, my dividend income was only $3 a month. Today, it's a meaningful $1,250 per month. And here's what matters most. Time has passed. That's it. There's no getting it back.

But thanks to the journey I've been on over these past two years, that time has turned into $1,250 landing in my pocket every month.

And the best part? I can simply start spending that money every month, and my dividend income can still keep growing year after year. The MaxDividends strategy and the businesses I've chosen make that possible.

Next week, I'll take another look at the portfolio's sector balance and see where it makes sense to add. I'll also be looking for interesting opportunities, whether that's something new or a business I already own.

And of course, I'll record a detailed video review for you.

Oh, and yes — we're heading off on vacation, paid for by dividends! ☀️🌴

The system stays the same. Capital stays disciplined. We keep building. Steady steps. Clear roles. Long horizon. That’s the rhythm.

The MaxDividends Income System — combined with selecting high-quality dividend companies using our 5-step secret formula, and supported by the MaxDividends Platform — allows me to build my own path toward financial freedom.

Every week I place another brick into the foundation of that future freedom. And today those bricks are already hard to miss. The results are becoming visible. They are becoming tangible.

The most remarkable thing about this seemingly simple formula for success is that it’s repeatable. I invest in businesses I genuinely like. I choose companies I trust. And my passive dividend income keeps growing.

Live off dividends on your terms! 💪💰

Over the past few days, we’ve been doing a lot of testing, and we’ve just rolled out another interesting update for the Dividend Tracker on the MaxDividends Research Platform. It’s currently in beta, and it’s called Co-Pilot.

Co-Pilot lets you set your own rules for when to sell.

For example, you can set a rule to sell if a company cuts its dividend or stops paying it altogether. Or if the company’s Dividend Safety Score falls below a safe level.

Instead of keeping track of all these events yourself, you can automate the process with Co-Pilot. It will monitor the conditions for you and flag a company when it meets the sell rules you’ve set.

This is a new feature inside the MaxDividends Research Platform, available in your portfolio settings.

You can turn it on to automatically monitor for events that may signal it’s time to sell a company.

For example, a classic DGI strategy says that if a company cuts or suspends its dividend, you sell the stock. With this new setting, you can now automate the monitoring of that event.

If any company in your portfolio cuts its dividend, Co-Pilot will flag it for you and send you an email notification.

This isn’t gambling or chasing hype. It’s a proven system:

That’s why the income snowball keeps rolling — heavier each month, stronger each year.

Every quarter I put $300 into each of my three kids’ portfolios — building generational wealth one brick at a time.

Kids’ Portfolios:

Donaldson is a global leader in filtration systems used across industrial equipment, transportation, aerospace, and life sciences. The company benefits from a large installed base and recurring replacement demand, supporting steady cash flow and consistent long-term growth.

IDEX manufactures highly engineered products used in healthcare, industrial, water, and scientific applications. Its portfolio of niche market leaders, combined with disciplined acquisitions and strong margins, has made IDEX a reliable long-term compounder.

Lindsay is a leading provider of irrigation equipment and transportation infrastructure solutions. The business is supported by long-term demand for water efficiency, agricultural productivity, and infrastructure investment, providing a solid foundation for future growth.

Aptar specializes in dispensing and packaging solutions used across healthcare, beauty, and consumer products. The business is supported by recurring demand, innovation, and long-term customer relationships, creating a solid foundation for steady growth.

Gorman-Rupp designs and manufactures pumps used in water, wastewater, construction, industrial, and municipal applications. The company serves essential infrastructure markets, generating resilient cash flow and supporting steady long-term dividend growth.

This is where the long game plays out. Beyond the weekly $3,000 experiment, my family’s core portfolio is the real backbone — built for high-yield dividend growth, steady compounding, and financial security for years to come.

Here I’ll break down where things stand today, how the plan for this quarter looks, and why this portfolio is designed to cover every family expense while still growing stronger over time.

I’ve spent the past 20 years building businesses. That’s where most of my capital came from. But now, at 40 and with three kids, I want to stay involved in business and investing on my terms.

My goal? More time with family, freedom to focus on what matters, and a portfolio that pays me whether I’m working or not. That’s why in 2025, I’ve started transitioning to fully living off dividends.

The mission hasn’t changed: build a high-yield, dividend-growing portfolio that delivers steady cash flow and strong long-term returns.

With the MaxDividends Concept, my team and I scan markets across the U.S., Europe, and Asia to find financially strong companies with a track record of raising dividends. This way, I’m not just chasing price growth — I’m building a paycheck that grows by itself.

(*Dividend totals vary slightly due to exchange rates.)

This portfolio alone now pays over ~$8,006/month in dividends. Every dollar is reinvested, fueling even faster growth.

Last week, I received a notification in my family portfolio that one of the companies — Skyworks Solutions — had suspended its dividend payments.

Yesterday, I sold my shares in the company, freeing up around $60,000. I then reallocated those funds across three companies: I added more shares of Accenture (ACN), increased my position in Zoetis (ZTS), and added Community Trust Bancorp (CTBI) to the family portfolio.

✅ 90% High-Yield Dividend Growth Stocks – These names pay me consistently and raise dividends year after year.

✅ 10% Capital Growth Stocks – A smaller bucket for faster-growing companies. When I sell, half the profits go into new growth stocks and half into high-yield dividend payers.

Each hike locks in more income for life — steady raises with zero extra work.

My plan for 2026 is simple: keep adding new money and keep reinvesting every dollar of dividends.

A new quarter means it’s time to update the plan.

For Q2-Q3 2026, my goal was to cross $8,000 per month in dividend income.

Now that the third quarter is officially behind us, it’s time to look at the results. Overall, it was a very good quarter. I reached the goal I had set, and my monthly dividend income is now firmly above the $8,000 mark. Depending on currency exchange rates, it currently fluctuates between roughly $8,020 and $8,070 per month.

For Q4, I’m setting a much more conservative target - crossing $8,100 per month by the end of the year.

Why so conservative? Because we’re planning a couple more family vacations before the end of the year, and the dividends will help pay for those trips. So for the next few months, I’m not planning to invest as aggressively. Instead, my family and I are going to vacation aggressively. :)

But here’s the part I really like. Even while using some of that dividend income to enjoy life today, I still expect my passive income to finish the year higher than where it is now. That’s one of my favorite things about building passive income through dividend-paying stocks. The portfolio can keep moving forward while the income it produces is already helping us live the life we built it for.

That’s how this works: steady contributions, rising payouts, and the snowball doing the rest.

The strategy doesn’t change. I’m looking for stable, undervalued Dividend Eagles that start with solid yields and have the strength to keep paying and raising over time. Dividends are my lever — I collect them, reinvest them, and let compounding do the heavy lifting.

I won’t lock in specific tickers right now — opportunities shift as the quarter unfolds. What matters is scanning the best markets worldwide: the U.S., Canada, Japan, Australia, the U.K., and Europe, and picking financially strong companies that fit the MaxDividends Income System.

And for my kids? The playbook stays the same: $300 each, every quarter. Three kids, three portfolios, one steady strategy to build generational wealth.

The mission stays the same too: steady income, steady growth, and the freedom that comes from reinvesting.

Right now, it’s all about speeding up the cycle — dividends keep rising, capital keeps compounding, and every reinvested payout brings us closer to true financial freedom.

By 2033–2035, I expect my Core Portfolio alone to generate $16K–$18K/month in dividends. Combine that with my $12K-in-120-months experiment, and the total passive income goal is $30,000/month.

That’s full financial independence: family expenses covered, reinvestment rolling, and freedom secured.

That’s all for today’s update.

Wishing you steady growth and financial peace,
Max

💌 Questions or thoughts? Reach me anytime at [email protected]

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