How much money to make $50,000 in dividends?
If, for example, your portfolio gets to a value of $1.5 million, you could invest in a fund or multiple investments that yield an average of 3.3%. At that rate, you could generate $50,000 in annual dividends.
This broader mix of stocks offers higher payouts and greater diversification than what you'll get with the Invesco QQQ Trust. And if you've got a large portfolio totaling more than $1.1 million, your dividend income could come in around $50,000 per year.
Stocks in the S&P 500 index currently yield about 1.5% on aggregate. That means, if you have $1 million invested in a mutual fund or exchange-traded fund that tracks the index, you could expect annual dividend income of about $15,000.
The truth is that most investors won't have the money to generate $1,000 per month in dividends; not at first, anyway. Even if you find a market-beating series of investments that average 3% annual yield, you would still need $400,000 in up-front capital to hit your targets.
Assuming the average annual dividend yield to be 7%*, you would need to invest INR 85,00,000 to get approximately INR 50,000 per month. *The average dividend rate is calculated from the top 15 dividend-yielding stocks.
With a 10% yield and monthly payout schedule, you can get to $500 a month with only $60,000 invested. That is, $6,000 per year paid on a monthly basis. Unfortunately, most stocks don't have yields anywhere near 10%. Many do have high enough yields to get you to $500 a month with diligent savings, but don't pay monthly.
If you were to invest in a company offering a 4% annual dividend yield, you would need to invest about $900,000 to generate a monthly income of $3000. While this might seem like a hefty sum, remember that this investment isn't just generating income—it's also likely to appreciate over time.
| Stock | Trailing annual dividend yield* |
|---|---|
| Crown Castle Inc. (CCI) | 5.9% |
| Pfizer Inc. (PFE) | 5.9% |
| Boston Properties Inc. (BXP) | 6.2% |
| Kinder Morgan Inc. (KMI) | 6.2% |
Historically, the stock market has an average annual rate of return between 10–12%. So if your $1 million is invested in good growth stock mutual funds, that means you could potentially live off of $100,000 to $120,000 each year without ever touching your one-million-dollar goose. But let's be even more conservative.
The latest round of 13Fs, which features trading activity for the December-ended quarter, detailed a handful of moves made by successful billionaire investors in ultra-high-yield dividend stocks. I'm talking about publicly traded companies whose yield is at least four times higher than the benchmark S&P 500.
How to make 5k a month in dividends?
To generate $5,000 per month in dividends, you would need a portfolio value of approximately $1 million invested in stocks with an average dividend yield of 5%. For example, Johnson & Johnson stock currently yields 2.7% annually. $1 million invested would generate about $27,000 per year or $2,250 per month.
Earning $2,000 in monthly passive income sounds unbelievable but is achievable through dividend investing. However, the investment amount required to produce the desired income is considerable. To make $2,000 in dividend income, the investment amount and rate of return must be $400,000 and 6%, respectively.
Dividend investing can be a great investment strategy. Dividend stocks have historically outperformed the S&P 500 with less volatility. That's because dividend stocks provide two sources of return: regular income from dividend payments and capital appreciation of the stock price.
In reality, dividends are not “free money.” Dividends are an inflexible, tax-inefficient way to receive investment income while reducing the diversification in a portfolio. Focus less on passive income (dividends) and more on passive wealth (capital gains + dividends).
You can draw dividends monthly, quarterly or even annually.
- Verizon Communications VZ.
- Johnson & Johnson JNJ.
- Philip Morris International PM.
- Altria Group MO.
- Comcast CMCSA.
- Medtronic MDT.
- Pioneer Natural Resources PXD.
- Duke Energy DUK.
| Name | Price | Analyst Price Target |
|---|---|---|
| CVX Chevron | $156.71 | $183.60 (17.16% Upside) |
| EOG EOG Resources | $132.59 | $146.71 (10.65% Upside) |
| ET Energy Transfer | $15.21 | $18.33 (20.51% Upside) |
| HESM Hess Midstream Partners | $34.74 | $37.50 (7.94% Upside) |
| Stock | Market Capitalization | 12-month Trailing Dividend Yield |
|---|---|---|
| Gladstone Investment Corp. (GAIN) | $500 million | 6.9% |
| Modiv Industrial Inc. (MDV) | $112 million | 7.7% |
| LTC Properties Inc. (LTC) | $1.3 billion | 7.2% |
| Realty Income Corp. (O) | $44 billion | 6.4% |
If you want to bring home an average of $100 per month ($1,200/year) in super safe dividend income, simply invest $13,800 (split equally, three ways) into the following ultra-high-yield stocks, which sport an average yield of 8.71%!
For example, if you invest $300 a month into an investment earning 10% annually (around the average stock market return), you'd become a millionaire in 36 years. Increase your investment rate or the rate of return, and you can become a millionaire even faster.
Can you live off of dividends?
It is possible to achieve financial freedom by living off dividends forever. That isn't to say it's easy, but it's possible. Those starting from nothing admittedly have a hard road to retirement-enabling passive income.
| Dividend Stock | Current Dividend Yield* | Analysts' Implied Upside* |
|---|---|---|
| Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) | 3.1% | 25.3% |
| Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK) | 2.4% | 10.6% |
| Chevron Corp. (CVX) | 4% | 30.8% |
| Coca-Cola Co. (KO) | 3.3% | 18.1% |
Dividends are typically issued quarterly but can also be disbursed monthly or annually. Distributions are announced in advance and determined by the company's board of directors. Companies pay dividends for a variety of reasons, most often to show their financial stability and to keep or attract investors.
However, not a huge percentage of retirees end up having that much money. In fact, statistically, around 10% of retirees have $1 million or more in savings.
Summary. $1 million should be enough to see you through your retirement. If you choose to retire early, you may need additional savings and amend your desired retirement lifestyle to live a little more frugally.
