On Friday, 5/11/12, I BTC 4 VLO Jan13 $20 Covered Calls and STO 4 Jan14 $22 Covered Calls for a net deposit of $65.87 in an IRA account.  My basis for these VLO shares is now $31.92, excluding dividends received.  This transaction represents a simple return of about .51% and an annualized return of about .30% on my prior basis.

I made these transactions last Friday and then got busy with something else and forgot to write this post.  That happens from time to time. 

I rolled out the Jan13 Calls because I was a little concerned about being called away next week by somebody wanting to capture the dividend, as little as it is.  I am still underwater with VLO and would prefer not to be called away just yet.  However, if I am called away now I will gain an additional $2 per share as a result of this roll out and up.

VLO is volatile enough that I may be able to roll the Jan14 Calls in and down one day.  I will certainly be watching for that chance to pick a little more fruit from the option tree.

Since 2009, I have received $380 in total dividends from VLO.  VLO reduced its dividend to .05 from .15 with its Mar10 payout.  It finally resumed the .15 payout with the Dec11 payout, not a great dividend at my basis but a reasonable 2.70% at the current market price.

S&P currently has a 12-month price target of $31 and a Strong Buy recommendation.  MarketEdge has a price opinion of $24.14 and an Avoid recommendation.  The 13 Yahoo Analysts have a mean 12-month target of $30.15 and a recommendation of 2.3 where 1.0 is a Strong Buy and 5.0 is a Strong Sell.

Many of the stocks that I own and write Covered Calls upon also pay dividends.  Dividends occur on a regular basis and add significantly to my annual investment income.  Year to date I have received a total of $2,785.01 in dividends in my various accounts for 2012.  My year to date average monthly dividends received is currently $928.34.  The year-to-date dividends currently represent about 30.84% of my average monthly investment cash flow and about 2.49% return on my current basis value.

My YTD dividends are up by $140.42 on a monthly average from last year.  That represents a 17.82% increase to date year over year.  I attribute the increased dividends to a few companies raising their dividends and to my purchasing additional dividend paying stocks.  During February, I received notice of the following dividends paid in various accounts for a total of $1,006.79.

Please notice that PGF is an ETF and pays dividends monthly.  The annualized dividend yield for PGF is based upon the simple and false assumption that it will pay the same dividend each month for the next 12 months.  The actual annualized dividend yield may be more or less than illustrated here.

The DCIX shares are ones I received as a split off from Diana Shipping (DSX).  I had thought about just selling them but there are so few and the trading cost would chew up so much relative to what I would receive that I decided to keep them, at least for now, and collect the little dividends that they throw off.

I use my basis per share to determine the simple and annualized percentage return because I feel that it gives me a better representation of the value of the dividends as they relate to my portfolio.  My basis may be above or below the market price which causes my return to be lower or higher than published yields for a stock.  I calculate my basis per share as my acquisition price less any option premiums received on those shares.  I do not use dividends to reduce my basis.

Many of the stocks that I own and write Covered Calls upon also pay dividends.  Dividends occur on a regular basis and add significantly to my annual investment income.  Year to date I have received a total of $9.454.95 in dividends in my various accounts for 2011.  My year to date average monthly dividends received is currently $787.91.  The year-to-date dividends currently represent about 28.59% of my average monthly investment cash flow and about 2.14% return on my current basis value.

My YTD dividends are up by $183.64 on a monthly average from last year.  That represents a 30.39% increase to date year over year.  I attribute the increased dividends to a few companies raising their dividends and to my purchasing additional dividend paying stocks.  During October, I received notice of the following dividends paid in various accounts for a total of $832.89.

Please notice that PGF is an ETF and pays dividends monthly.  The annualized dividend yield for PGF is based upon the simple and false assumption that it will pay the same dividend each month for the next 12 months.  The actual annualized dividend yield may be more or less than illustrated here.

The DCIX shares are ones I received as a split off from Diana Shipping (DSX).  I had thought about just selling them but there are so few and the trading cost would chew up so much relative to what I would receive that I decided to keep them, at least for now, and collect the little dividends that they throw off.

I use my basis per share to determine the simple and annualized percentage return because I feel that it gives me a better representation of the value of the dividends as they relate to my portfolio.  My basis may be above or below the market price which causes my return to be lower or higher than published yields for a stock.  I calculate my basis per share as my acquisition price less any option premiums received on those shares.  I do not use dividends to reduce my basis.