Earlier this year, just for kicks, I shared some financial predictions for 2014. Here’s a recap of what I predicted and what has come true year-to-date:
- The Dow Jones Industrial Average will finish the year at 16,700.
It opened the year around 16,441. It is now about 16,026.
- The S&P/TSX Composite will finish the year at 14,200.
It opened the year around 13,594. It is now 14,257.
- Our Canadian Dollar will finish the year at $0.90 compared to the US Dollar.
It opened the year around $0.94. It is now $0.91.
- Fortis (FTS) will increase their dividend.
Well, back on February 6th Fortis increased its dividend to $0.32 per share starting March 1. They raise their dividend like clockwork.
- Telus (T) will increase their dividend.
This was an easy one. Back in May 2013, Telus announced it will extend its semi-annual dividend growth program into 2016. In February, Telus gave shareholders a 12.5% raise. The dividend is currently $0.36 per share and it will probably go up again later this year.
- Walmart (WMT:US) will increase their dividend.
Also back in late-February, Walmart bumped their dividend by 2%. The dividend is now $0.48 per share.
- AT&T (T:US) will increase their dividend.
In December 2013, AT&T increased their quarterly dividend by 2.2%. You and I will probably need to wait until December 2014 to see if they do it again.
I also intend to giveaway more stuff on my site later this year, stay tuned and share this article with friends.
Mark
My name is Mark Seed - the founder, editor and owner of My Own Advisor. As my own DIY financial advisor, I'm looking to start semi-retirement soon, sooner than most. Find out how, what I did, and what you can learn to tailor your own financial independence path. Join the newsletter read by thousands each day, always FREE.
I am not sure what the purpose of these predictions is, other than, maybe, inflate the ego of the person who makes them in case they come true. In case they don’t, then, well, “it was a joke (or just for kicks)”.
There is another blog where the guy loves to make predictions and then give himself slaps on the back and say “I told you!” each time when one of them comes true. The name of the author is Garth Turner.
To me, trying to predict anything about the markets is a waste of time. Staying invested in a balanced portfolio is much easier (although it’s true, it doesn’t give me the chance to boast).
My predictions are just for fun Cristian, although with some predictions like stocks that pay dividends, there is a case to be made that there’s not much guesswork here. These companies are pretty predictable.
If I’m correct with any predictions, great. If I’m totally wrong, on all of them, that’s fine too.
I’m not trying to inflate or deflate any egos, just have some fun.
Mark
Looks like your’e on track for most of your predictions. Guess we’ll see what happens throughout the year, since so much can change in a handful of months!
Yeah, although I forgot (I’m not sure how?) about Fortis. Anyhow, they raise their dividend like clockwork. We’ll see how close my market predictions are…those are the tough ones. Time will tell!
I like your predictions. I think the Dow will finish below 17,000 as well. Here is to hoping WMT finds a way to bump that dividend by more than a penny this year.
Dow has been doing well in recent years, for sure. I hope the same for WMT 🙂
Nice! Good predictions. Really nice for people who own these stocks and see their dividends increase.
For sure!
Absolutely. I enjoy the predictability that comes with many dividend stocks. There is a trade-off though, you might miss some growth.