5 stars – Jenny Harrington’s Dividend Investing is a great book! The author explains the rationale behind employing a dividend investing strategy which she freely admits isn’t for everyone. Many people believe that dividend investing (DI) is best for those just about to retire or those already retired. I disagree and think the idea has merit for a portion of your total portfolio. As I write this, the US stock market is in an incredibly volatile period with the second Trump presidency and I, like many other retail investors, am reacting to reduce my losses almost daily. Companies are not, rightly so, releasing annual forecasts and roughly 60% of CEOs are anticipating a recession.

In any event, the book is laid out into three sections: DI theory, DI practice and DI Implementation/personal stories. In the first two, the author illustrates how her firm identifies and selects stocks. She also explains her portfolio construction process which is interesting and helpful. Section three, the author’s personal stories, is my favorite. I enjoyed reading about practical implementation of the strategy and the effect on people’s lives.
In summary, the book is a quick and easy to read guide to dividend investing.

A big thank you to Harriman House and NetGalley for an ARC.

I loved the detail and approach to dividend investing. Defintiely a book with lots of notes and step by step to choose the companies.

Great intro book for dividend investing newbies. I would have loved this book to be available when I first started down my knowledge spiral about dividend investing.

“Dividend Investing,” by Jenny Harrington, provides valuable insights on how to become an effective dividend investor and is ideal for those who need a steady and reliable source of income (e.g., retirees). To produce this income, the author recommends establishing a portfolio comprised of stocks with meaningful dividend yields. The overall portfolio should seek an average annual yield of 5%.

The first part of the book covers dividend investing theory. It conveys how a dedicated dividend income philosophy can lead to solid long-term returns, encourage good investment behavior, and offer emotional comfort. Despite stock price fluctuations, investors can rely on fixed dividend amounts that will generally receive favorable tax treatment when invested in taxable investment accounts.

The book then transitions to dividend investing practice. This includes screening, research, and portfolio management. For example, the author regularly screens U.S. publicly traded companies with dividend yields over 3.5% and market capitalizations over $150 million to produce a list of companies to research. Once you complete your screening process and create your own research list, the author proposes initially choosing 30-50 stocks to invest in (for meaningful diversification)—with each stock representing about 3% of the portfolio. The author also suggests periodically repeating these screening and research processes. This is to assess whether replacing an existing dividend stock with a new one can improve the overall yield and return potential of the portfolio. The author also discusses how to manage dividend cuts and reductions, and establish a sell discipline divorced from emotion.

The final part of the book presents numerous client, company, and personal stories. Each story emphasizes certain points, such as taking sensible risk to minimize significant long-term risk and avoiding value traps (i.e., companies with attractive dividends, but that are actually in a state of decline).

“Dividend Investing” is a worthwhile read that offers a sensible approach to help you become a successful dividend investor. The book has a light tone, is easy to understand, and is suitable for those seeking a steady and reliable source of dividend income or wishing to add dividend income to their portfolio.

[My special thanks to Harriman House and NetGalley for an advance reader’s copy of this book.]

Overall I found this book provided a great insight into dividend investing with an abundance of information and tips from an incredibly knowledgeable author.

The book perhaps isn't aimed at beginner investors like me but I still found the content very informative and useful. The theory section of the book was difficult for me to get to grips with but when it came to the case studies everything fell into place and made sense. The case study section in itself is a gold mine of information and through this I learnt that behaviour and emotions play a huge part in investor's success.

The book was well written and easy to read and I would recommend to anyone interested in the field of investing. I'm now keen to put all I've learnt to good use in my investment journey!

Thanks to NatGalley for the ARC of this book.

Great book regarding investing that gives advice for anyone who is beginning to invest or has started and need a little more help.