Post title

A list of authors whose posts do not appear in your feed

Blocked authors

Check out the public investment portfolio of {{username}}. Track asset allocation, dividend income, and performance in real-time.

{{username}} - Investment Portfolio & Dividend Tracker | Snowball Analytics

Benchmarks

 Outstanding nominal value as of the current date

Average price of a bond, in % of face value

The current yield indicates the ratio of the accrued coupon to the current market price of the bond. It can be used in cases where attachments are considered for a short period of time. In this situation, the change in the market price can sometimes be neglected.

Bond duration is a way of measuring how much bond prices are likely to change if and when interest rates move.

Effective yield to maturity. It considers both coupon income and profit/loss due to the difference between the purchase price and the repayment price. Effective yield shows the investor the return on invested funds with reinvested coupons and depreciation.

Listing level — stock exchange assessment of securities reliability.

The ratio of the annual coupon to the "dirty" price of the bond, including the accrued interest. This type of yield can be used in the case of short-term investments, when the investment horizon is within one coupon period.

Average purchase price of a bond, in % of face value

Bond issue credit ratings from ACRA / Expert RA rating agencies. The higher the rating, the lower the estimated credit risk. A rating is not a guarantee and does not replace your own analysis.

Bond issue credit rating from rating agency <0>{{agency}}</0> dated <1></1>

Bond issue credit rating from rating agency <0>{{agency}}</0> — {{value}}

Up to 2 years - short-term, up to 5 years - mid-term, more than 5 years - long-term

Bond type - goverment, municipal or corporate

Coupon yield % per annum of nominal value (coupon amount per year/nominal value)

 Simple yield to maturity. It considers both coupon income and profit/loss due to the difference between the purchase price and the repayment price. Simple yield shows the investor the return on invested funds without reinvested coupons.

Stay updated with the latest market trends and discover new growth opportunities with our blog.

New and interesting articles

The fund expense ratio is the annual fee expressed as a percentage of a mutual fund or ETF's average assets, covering management, administrative, and other operational costs. It directly reduces investors' returns.

10 years

12 trailing months

1 day

1 month

1 year

3 months

5 years

6 months

1 week

all time

Choose a period

year to date

The income investing world is full of beautiful lies.

The most seductive one? "Higher yield equals better returns."

Here's reality: Most high-yield options ETFs are quietly liquidating your portfolio while disguising it as "income." You're getting taxed on your own capital being returned to you.

After analyzing the US options-based ETF landscape, I've found 12 funds that break this pattern: Zero NAV erosion while generating real income.

These aren't yield traps. These are wealth-building engines.

Two investors. Same $10,000 starting capital. Five years later, wildly different outcomes.

And most income investors don't see it until it's too late.

I don't buy any options-based ETF until it clears all five hurdles:

1. Sector Conviction I need multi-year bullish conviction on the underlying assets. No amount of yield matters if the sector is dying.

2. NAV Integrity The fund must maintain or grow its net asset value. Structural decay is non-negotiable... it disqualifies the fund immediately.

3. Proven Performance 10-20% total returns over time. Not just distributions, actual total returns that prove the strategy works in real markets.

4. Realistic Yields Below 40%. Anything higher is almost always unsustainable!! Either returning your capital, capping too much upside, or both.

5. Intelligent Options Strategy Out-of-the-money strikes, thoughtful expirations, dynamic management. Not weekly ATM covered calls that sacrifice all upside.

When a fund passes all five tests, you get something rare: income without destroying your future.

Here's the complete list, organized by provider:

The mechanics matter more than the marketing.

Bad funds cap 100% of upside and still erode NAV.

These funds capture 60-80% of upside moves while generating income.

There's a critical distinction most investors miss.

Your tech fund drops 15% because the Nasdaq corrects.

Your fund's structure systematically destroys value regardless of market direction:

When NAV decay is structural, no bull market saves you.

These 12 funds avoid structural decay entirely.

This has never been about maximizing yield.

It's about maximizing total wealth while generating income.

The High-Yield Trap (45% yield, -12% NAV):

More capital. More income. Actual compounding that works for you.

Four indicators separate winners from traps:

Before adding any options ETF to your portfolio, run it through this filter:

check_mark_button

 Sector conviction – Multi-year bullish thesis on the underlying assets 

 NAV integrity – Zero structural decay 

 Performance proof – 10-20% total returns demonstrated over time 

 Yield reality – Below 40%, sustainably earned 

 Strategy intelligence – Options mechanics that preserve meaningful upside

When all five criteria align, you get what these 12 US funds deliver:

Income that builds wealth instead of destroying it.

The US options-based ETF market is overflowing with wealth traps disguised as income solutions.

50% yields that turn $10K into $5K. Weekly distributions that are just your capital being returned. Funds that cap 100% of your upside to maximize short-term premium.

These 12 US tickers prove you can generate meaningful income while maintaining capital integrity.

Your portfolio and your future, deserve funds that actually work. 

crown

12 US Options ETFs With ZERO NAV Erosion

The average dividend yield in the S&P 500 Index remains low at 1.1%. As a result, income investors largely have to settle for less dividend income when buying stocks.

 with current yields well above the market average. Investors do not have to sacrifice income when it comes to quality dividend payers with competitive advantages and long-term growth potential.

 that combine a high dividend yield, with a low valuation multiple.

Amcor plc is one of the world’s most prominent designers and manufacturers of packaging for food, pharmaceutical, medical, and other consumer products.

The company emphasizes making responsible packaging that is lightweight, recyclable, and reusable.

Amcor reported its second quarter results for Fiscal Year 2026 on February 3rd, 2026. The company reported strong fiscal Q2 2026 results, with net sales of $5.45 billion, up 68% year-over-year, largely driven by the Berry Global acquisition.

Adjusted profitability improved significantly, with adjusted EBITDA rising 83% to $826 million and adjusted EBIT increasing 66% to $603 million, while adjusted EPS grew 7% to $0.86.

GAAP net income was $177 million ($0.38 per share) due to acquisition-related costs, and free cash flow totaled $289 million after approximately $69 million in integration and restructuring expenses.

For the first half of fiscal 2026, net sales reached $11.19 billion, up 70% year-over-year, reflecting $4.5 billion of acquired sales from the Berry combination.

Adjusted EBITDA increased 89% to $1.74 billion, while adjusted EBIT rose 77% to $1.29 billion. Adjusted net income totaled $848 million, with adjusted EPS of $1.83, up 14%, highlighting strong operational performance and early synergy realization from the acquisition.

Best Buy Co. Inc. is one of the largest consumer electronics retailers in North America with operations in the U.S. and Canada. Best Buy sells consumer electronics, personal computers, software, mobile devices, and appliances, and provides services.

At the end of Q3 FY2026, Best Buy operated 886 Best Buy stores and 18 Best Buy Outlet Centers in the U.S., 20 Pacific Sales Stores, 2 Yardbird Stores, 129 Best Buy stores in Canada, and 28 Best Buy Mobile Stand-Alone Stores in Canada.

Best Buy reported Q4 FY2026 results on March 3rd, 2026. Enterprise revenue decreased to $13,814M from $13,948M, and non-GAAP diluted earnings per share increased to $2.61 from $2.58 on a year-over-year basis. GAAP diluted EPS climbed to $2.56 from $0.54. Comparable enterprise revenue decreased 0.8%.

Domestic revenue fell 1.1% due to soft home theater and appliance sales. Sales were lower for 3 out of 5 categories: Computing and Mobile Phones (+5.4%), Consumer Electronics (-7.3%), Appliances (-10.5%), Entertainment (-0.3%), and Services (+4.6%).

Comparable domestic online sales decreased -2.3% compared to the prior year. Domestic online sales comprised about 39.0% of total domestic revenue.

For fiscal 2027 Best Buy expects revenue of $41.2 billion to $42.1 billion and adjusted EPS of $6.45 at the midpoint of guidance.

BBY has increased its dividend for 23 consecutive years and the stock yields 6.2%.

Franklin Resources is a global asset manager that offers investment management (which makes up the bulk of fees the company collects) and related services to its customers, including sales, distribution, and shareholder servicing.

As of December 31st, 2025, assets under management (AUM) totaled $1.684 trillion.

On December 17th, 2025, Franklin Resources announced a $0.33 quarterly dividend, marking a 3% year-over-year increase and the company’s 46th consecutive year of increasing its payment.

The company qualifies as a Dividend Aristocrat due to its history of annual dividend increases.

In the most recently reported quarter, total assets under management equaled $1.684 trillion, up $23 billion sequentially, as a result of $28 billion of long-term net inflows, and $6.1 billion from the Apera Asset Management acquisition. AUM growth was partly offset by $10.1 billion of net market change, distributions, and other, plus $1.2 billion of cash management net outflows.

For the quarter, operating revenue totaled $2.327 billion, up 3% year-over-year. On an adjusted basis, net income equaled $378 million or $0.70 per share, up 19% from $0.59 in Q1 2025.

During Q1, Franklin repurchased 1.8 million shares of stock for $42 million. Franklin ended the quarter with $6.2 billion in cash and investments.

For 2026, we expect BEN to generate EPS of $2.62.

Disclosure: No positions in any stocks mentioned

3 Cheap Dividend Stocks Yielding Over 5%

So you are running a Passive Income portfolio and want to retire on the income it generates.  BUT, you dont know how large a passive income portfolio you need to meet all your monthly living expenses - consistently - long-term sustained - and EVEN DURING BAD BEAR MARKET.

How Big My Income Portfolio Need to RETIRE?

Most income investors want the same combination:

Consistent income, strong long-term returns, and a good entry price.

The problem? High-quality investments are rarely cheap.

That’s why Main Street Capital Corporation has been on my watchlist for years. It’s one of the best Business Development Companies (BDCs) in the market—but almost always trades at a premium.

Now that the price has pulled back, the question becomes:

Is this just noise… or a real opportunity?

Let’s start with what matters most: income.

MAIN has one of the strongest distribution histories in the entire BDC space. But it’s slightly more complex than most.

Management sets the regular dividend at a level they believe can survive any environment—recessions, rate changes, or economic slowdowns.

That structure has delivered something rare: nearly two decades without a cut to the regular dividend.

MAIN is a Business Development Company that lends to middle-market businesses—but with more flexibility than a traditional bank.

The key differentiator is equity exposure.

MAIN allocates roughly 30% to equity, compared to a BDC average closer to 6%. That introduces more upside potential—and historically, it has paid off.

Even during events like the Global Financial Crisis and COVID, the core dividend remained intact.

That level of consistency is why investors are willing to pay a premium.

Minimal. Only about 4% exposure, with most loans secured in first-lien positions.

Lower rates can pressure income, but MAIN has offset this through diversified revenue streams. Net investment income still increased in 2025.

you’re not buying the highest yield—you’re buying reliability.

For me, MAIN becomes attractive at around 

I already have a small position, but if the price dips further, I’ll likely add more.

And sometimes, that combination is worth paying for.

Want to see how these funds fit into a real-world retirement strategy? I share my full portfolio and monthly updates for free, here: 

. If you want to learn from other Income Investors (I do!), check out the 

MAIN: 8% Yield & Monthly Income… Finally on Sale?

In the world of dividend growth investing, we often talk about royalty. We use terms like "Aristocrats" and "Kings" to describe companies that have achieved the holy grail of income investing: consistency.

But for the Snowball Analytics community—investors who care about data, visualization, and the actual mechanics of wealth compounding—simple definitions aren’t enough. You don’t just want to know who they are; you want to know 

Is a 50-year streak inherently better than a 25-year streak? Does the S&P 500 inclusion requirement of the Aristocrats provide a safety net, or does it limit your potential returns?

This guide investigates the nuance between Dividend Kings and Dividend Aristocrats, aiming to provide high information gain on constructing a portfolio that doesn't just survive inflation, but crushes it.

1. Defining the Royal Court: The Technical Distinction

Before we dissect the performance and strategy, let’s establish the strict criteria. Many investors conflate these two groups, but their inclusion rules creates two very different asset pools.

The "Aristocrats" are an index created by S&P Dow Jones Indices. To be knighted an Aristocrat, a company must clear three specific hurdles:

 The "S&P 500" requirement is the filter most people overlook. It means Aristocrats are exclusively large-cap, mature businesses. If a company has raised dividends for 40 years but its market cap shrinks too much, it gets kicked out of the Aristocrats, even if the dividend streak remains alive.

"Dividend Kings" is not an official index maintained by a major provider like S&P, but rather a distinguished list tracked by the financial community. The entry barrier is singular and brutal:

 There is no S&P 500 requirement. There is no minimum market cap. This means the list of Kings includes massive conglomerates (like Johnson & Johnson) but also small-cap utilities, regional banks, and niche industrial firms (like Tootsie Roll Industries or American States Water) that you will never find in the Aristocrats list.

2. The Survivorship Bias: The Hidden Risk of "Streaks"

When you look at a list of Kings or Aristocrats, you are looking at the winners. You are looking at the companies that survived the inflationary 70s, the crash of 1987, the dot-com bubble, the Great Recession of 2008, and the COVID-19 pandemic—without 

However, for the intelligent investor, a long streak can sometimes be a 

 rather than a green light. This is where we need to look deeper.

Once a company hits year 45 or 49 of a dividend streak, the management team becomes terrified of breaking it. They do not want to be the CEO who ended a half-century legacy.

This leads to a phenomenon where companies will artificially prop up the dividend to keep the title, even when the business fundamentals are deteriorating. They might:

 When analyzing Kings in Snowball Analytics, look closely at the 

. If the payout ratio is creeping above 80% (for non-REITs/Utilities) and FCF is flat, the "King" might be an emperor with no clothes.

3. Sector Exposure: Where the Growth Lives

If you simply buy an ETF of Aristocrats (like NOBL) or build a manual portfolio of Kings, you are making a specific sector bet, perhaps unknowingly.

Because they must be in the S&P 500, Aristocrats lean heavily toward:

You will find very little Technology here. Tech companies historically preferred buybacks or reinvestment over dividends. If you build a portfolio of only Aristocrats, you are likely underweighting the biggest growth engine of the last two decades (Tech) and overweighting slow-moving industrial giants.

Because Kings do not require S&P 500 inclusion, this list uncovers hidden gems in sectors that Aristocrats miss:

 If you want "Defense," the Kings often offer better stability because they include essential utilities. If you want "Market Correlation," the Aristocrats are closer to the broader market pulse.

4. Performance Wars: 25 Years vs. 50 Years

Does holding a stock for 50 years of dividend growth actually outperform one with 25 years?

Dividend Kings have displayed lower volatility (Beta)

 than the broader market and often lower volatility than Aristocrats. The reason is the selection of companies. A company that has paid growing dividends for 50 years usually has a "moat" (competitive advantage) so deep that it is nearly impossible to disrupt.

Aristocrats often offer higher Total Return potential.

 Why? Because companies hitting the 25-year mark are often still in their "maturity" phase rather than their "decline" phase. A company entering the Aristocrat list might be growing earnings at 8-10%, whereas a 50-year King might have saturated its market and is only growing earnings at 2-4%.

Many dividend growth investors argue that the "Sweet Spot" for total return is actually the 

 (10-24 years). These companies have proven their commitment to dividends but still have enough runway to double their size.

5. Metrics that Matter: Analyzing with Snowball Analytics

As a user of Snowball Analytics, you have an advantage over the passive ETF investor. You can cherry-pick the best of both lists. You don't need to buy the "zombie" companies just because they are on the list.

Here is the step-by-step filter you should apply when choosing between Kings and Aristocrats:

A King with a 2% yield and 2% growth is barely beating inflation. It is a bond proxy, not a wealth builder. Use the 

The magic of Kings is not what they pay today, but what they pay on your original capital in 20 years. However, if a company has slowed its dividend growth to 1% annually (common among aging Kings), your YOC will never skyrocket.

In Snowball Analytics, check the safety rating. This usually comprises:

 Be wary of the highest yielders on the Kings list. Often, the highest yield indicates the market believes the dividend is about to be cut (the "Yield Trap"). A King offering 8% while the rest of the sector offers 3% is usually a company in distress.

6. Portfolio Construction Strategy: The "Barbell" Approach

How do you mix these into a cohesive portfolio? A highly effective strategy for 2024 and beyond is the 

One side of the bar: The Fortress (Kings)

Allocate 40-50% of your portfolio to the absolute safest Dividend Kings. These are your foundational rocks.

The other side of the bar: The Accelerators (Young Aristocrats)

Allocate 30-40% to "Young" Aristocrats (25-30 year streaks) or high-quality Contenders.

The remaining 10-20% can be used for high-yield opportunities (REITs/BDCs) or growth stocks that haven't started paying dividends yet, to balance the taxation and income timing.

To make this practical, let's look at three archetypes you will encounter.

3M is a classic King. It has raised dividends for over 60 years. However, lawsuits and slowing growth have hurt the stock price for years.

The "Boring" King: American States Water (AWR)

This utility company has the longest active streak of any company (69+ years). It rarely yields more than 2%.

The "Growth" Aristocrat: Lowe's (LOW) or Cintas (CTAS)

These companies have 25+ year streaks but often raise their dividends by 15-20% in good years.

. They are the elite survivors. They are generally smaller, sometimes niche, and offer lower volatility. They are best for investors nearing retirement who cannot afford a drawdown.

. The S&P 500 requirement ensures you are investing in the blue chips of the American economy. They offer a better balance of capital appreciation and income growth.

 Don't just buy the list. The label "King" or "Aristocrat" is just a filter, not a buy signal.

By applying these quality filters, you eliminate the "zombie companies" that are just limping along to keep their streak alive, and you retain the true compounders that will power your Snowball for decades to come.

The Throne of Compounding: Dividend Kings vs. Aristocrats (The Ultimate Guide)

Most income portfolios don’t stay static.

Back in November 2025, I shared my Top 10 income investments. Since then, I’ve sold two positions, and one has dropped out of the top 10.

Time for an update—what’s working, what’s not, and what’s changed.

CEFS yields around 7.9% and remains one of my favorites.

It’s a fund-of-funds, which means built-in diversification across multiple income strategies. More importantly, it has a history of steady income plus occasional special distributions.

Even through major events—the pandemic, 2022 rate hikes, and recent volatility—it has consistently recovered.

QQQI yields about 14% and continues to deliver.

It uses covered calls on the Nasdaq 100 to convert growth into income. Distributions are stable, with only minor dips during volatility spikes.

The tradeoff is simple: slightly underperform in strong bull markets, but generate consistent cash flow.

Like QQQI, it uses options—but on the S&P 500. The key difference: more growth, less income.

PFFA yields ~9.5% and provides exposure to over 180 preferred stocks.

Compared to the larger PFF, PFFA delivers stronger total returns and more consistent income.

How Big My Income Portfolio Need to RETIRE?

Read also