Both the S&P 500 and Nasdaq started the week going down but rallied toward the end of the week to finish in the green. This was a slow week of investing for me. Sometimes it is okay to just let the accounts do their own thing. Overall, the total amount invested grew this week so I am happy about that. Let’s check out the details for how my week went.
Dividends
The following dividend was received in the Roth IRA this week:
- J.P. Morgan Equity Premium Income ETF (JEPI) – $0.54
This dividend was reinvested into the underlying position. The total amount of dividends received this week was $0.54.
Buys/Sells
The following buys were made in the 401k this week:
- DFA Global Real Estate Sector Portfolio – 0.2555 shares
- Vanguard Total Bond Market Index Fund – 1.475 shares
- Vanguard Total Stock Market Index Fund – 5.1833 shares
- DFA Commodity Strategy Portfolio – 0.3921 shares
- Vanguard Total International Stock Market Index Fund – 1.2679 shares
No sells were made this week.
Options Trading
The following option trade was made in the Traditional IRA this week:
- AT&T (T) – bought a closing transaction on a cash secured put expiring on October 08, 2021 for a premium of -$6.02 including fees.
That was it for options trading this week, so the total options premium received this week was -$6.02. The plan was to sell another cash secured put on Friday after closing out the put on T but the trades that I was interested did not have enough premium to make it worthwhile. Instead of forcing a trade, I decided it would be better to be patient and wait to find a trade I am comfortable with making.
Account Updates
The Traditional IRA finished the week at about $117,067. This is up $906 from the previous week.
The Roth IRA finished the week at about $890. This is even with last week’s total.
The 401k finished the week at about $9,165. This is up $185 from the previous week. This includes the bi-weekly contribution of about $177.
The taxable brokerage account finished the week at about $354. This was even with last week’s total.
The little bit of bitcoin (BTC) I have finished the week at $23.08. This is up $2.13 over the previous week.
The total amount invested is now up to about $127,499. This is up $1,092 over the previous week. All of the positions in my portfolio can be seen by clicking on “Portfolios” in the menu above or on this link: https://bluecollarbill.com/portfolios/
Wrap Up
The total amount of dividends and options premium received this week was -$5.48. It has been awhile since I have posted a negative number for dividends and options premium for a week. It is bound to happen from time to time. October is one of my low months for dividends, but the dividends received will be better next week. One of the harder lessons for me with investing is being patient. This week I left the accounts alone and did not force any trades. I expect to be more active next week, but we will have to see how it plays out. That wraps it up for this week. Thanks for following along!
On a side note, I have added a Recommended Resources in the menu. It currently is a work in progress. It will contain blogs and YouTube channels that I enjoy as well as some sites that I use. I hope you take the time to check it out.
*Disclaimer – I am not a financial professional. The information shared here should not be considered financial advice. I am just a factory worker sharing my experience as I strive to achieve financial freedom. Before investing or making any financial decision do your own research and due diligence or consider seeking the advice of a financial and/or tax professional.
Here are some of the businesses that I use that I thought some of you might be interested in.
Lolli has a variety of stores that it is affiliated with and offers rewards for shopping at these stores. I use Lolli when I shop on Chewy and I get bitcoin as a reward. Who doesn’t want free bitcoin! If you are interested in Lolli and want to help support the blog here is my referral link: https://www.lolli.com/share/XP7gxDgqC4
I use M1 Finance for my taxable growth account. M1 Finance offers promotions for signing up. At the time of writing this post, the promotion is for $30. These promotions vary from time to time but is usually a $10 bonus. If you are interested in M1 Finance and want to support the blog here is my referral link: https://m1.finance/ktIiFeOI5zDr
Varo Bank is one of the banks that I use. From time to time the bank will run promotions. Currently, you can earn up to 3% on your savings with Varo, if you meet certain requirements. If you are interested in checking it out, here is my referral link: https://bank.varomoney.com/signup?r=William360
I use the free version on trackyourdividends.com. This is a quick an easy way for me to track my estimated annual income from dividends.
If you use the referral links listed above I could receive compensation. Please take the time to read the terms and conditions before signing up.
I don’t trade options so I have to ask a newb question. Based on your experience, are you getting better returns trading options or do you think an ETF like QYLD, JEPI, or NUSI is the easier way to go?
I believe you can get a better return trading options for yourself. For example, I began selling covered calls on Kroger at the start of September and have collected almost $50 in premium so far. To put that in perspective, the 100 shares of KR would receive $84 in dividends per year. That said, options is not for everyone. There is risk involved. It is definitely easier to own a covered call ETF and let the fund manager make the options trades. I am not a fan of QYLD, see this post https://bluecollarbill.com/2021/04/22/should-i-invest-in-qyld/. I like JEPI and NUSI. JEPI tries to track the S&P 500 with less volatility. NUSI provides some downside protection because of the option strategy it uses. DIVO is another covered call ETF that I like.