Monthly report: September 2026

Weak Portfolio Month, but Underlying Dividend Growth Remains Strong

September was a mixed month for global markets, but a considerably weaker month for my dividend portfolio. That said, the income numbers once again show why one month rarely tells the whole story.

Global markets: a mixed September

Among the indices I track, IWDA performed best at +1.6%, followed by the AEX Total Return Index at +1.3% and the S&P 500 at +0.7%. Europe was weaker, with the STOXX Europe 50 declining -1.1%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Total Return Index fell -2.3%.

The US market environment was certainly not straightforward. On September 30, CNBC reported softer-than-expected inflation alongside higher Treasury yields, while the S&P 500 ended the month lower according to CNBC's measure.

Portfolio performance: semiconductor strength wasn't enough

My portfolio had a difficult month. The average price change across my 31 holdings was -0.9%. There were nevertheless some impressive winners:

• ASML: +11%
• Texas Instruments (TXN): +11%
• Monolithic Power Systems (MPWR): +10%

Interestingly, these same semiconductor stocks have demonstrated just how quickly prices can move. In my January 2026 report, ASML, TXN and MPWR were also my three largest gainers, at +23%, +22% and +20%, respectively.

At the opposite end:

• Realty Income (O): -11%
• Brookfield Renewable (BEPC): -11%
• HASI: -9%

APD, Ahold Delhaize, NextEra Energy, BHP and Aflac were also down 9%.

Winners versus losers

The breadth tells the real story. Just 7 positions increased versus 24 decliners, producing a winners/losers ratio of only 0.3.

The average winner gained 5.5%, while the average loser fell 5.1%. Consequently, the portfolio's -0.9% average price movement lagged the AEX, IWDA and S&P 500, but still performed better than the Dow's -2.3%.

This is almost the mirror image of my August report, when I had 18 winners versus 13 losers. It is a useful reminder not to draw conclusions from one month's price movements.

Dividend income: the headline is misleading

At first sight, September's dividend income looks terrible. At constant FX, income dropped from €3,377 to €696 (-79.4%). After tax, I received €608 versus €2,881 last year (-78.9%).

But there is one obvious explanation: Brink paid €2,680.99 in September 2025 and nothing this September. Excluding that exceptional payment, the underlying picture is much stronger. The other reason is that I sold my shares in TROW and CNI earlier this year. USD dividends only declined from $518 to $503 (-2.8%), despite receiving nothing from CNI and TROW this year.

More importantly, many continuing positions delivered excellent growth:

• NextEra Energy: +76.0%
• Visa: +70.3%
• BHP: +65.0%
• BIPC: +37.6%
• Shell: +12.4%
• Cummins and BlackRock: +10.0%

The higher BIPC income is particularly satisfying because I increased my position by 30 shares in April. My BIPC purchase update explains why I used the weakness to increase this income-producing position. Earlier this year I also highlighted how purchases helped boost the dividends from NEE and Visa.

Final thoughts

September wasn't a great month for share prices, and the headline dividend comparison is heavily distorted by last year's Brink payment. Underneath that noise, however, the portfolio continues doing what I want it to do: established holdings are increasing their dividends and recent investments are generating additional cash flow. That is ultimately what DividendDream is about.

“Don't judge a dividend portfolio by one payment or one month. Judge it by how much income it can produce five, ten and twenty years from now.”

Price is what the market offers me today. Growing cash flow is what I'm building for tomorrow.