The 2020 notch was Covid. Companies slashed or paused dividends and there was nothing we could do about it.

The 2026 notch is on us. We deliberately moved from 100 % dividend stocks to roughly 70 % dividend / 30 % growth. That was the plan. The dividend line was never going to like it. If everything goes our way, 2026 will match 2023’s total.

I still hate looking at it.

Bars for 2017–2025 show full-year dividends.

The 2026 bar is a snapshot as of August 31.