March 2023 Investing Update

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For the month of March, the DOW gained 619 points. This puts the DOW up 0.42% for the year, and off by -4.72% in the past 12 months. Interest and dividend income was $2198 for the month. Withdrawals for living expenses came to $1044 in the past month. YTD my retirement account is up by +3.59% and down by -3.35% in the last12 months. I decided to sell my Proterra stock after they finally reported their earnings after a two-week delay. When a company says that they are not sure if they will be able to continue operations, it’s time to get out. They have since received an extension on their loans, but they reported supply chain and accounting issues that could affect operations in the near future. Very disappointing having to take a $3200 loss, but there was no point in continuing to hold a worthless stock.

I purchased 100 shares of US Bank Corp. (USB). The price had dropped from around $50 to $33 on negative news about banks last month. I felt that this was a good opportunity to get a discount on a well-managed company that pays a 5.4% dividend. With the Fed slowing interest rate hikes and letting banks borrow against low yield bonds, most banks should be able to get through this. I also added 50 shares of CVS Health Corp. The stock price has come down about 25% in the last quarter. CVS along with Walgreens have been hit with fines from their role in the opioid crisis. Their quarterly reports still show a profit, even as they pay millions in court judgements. I suspect that they are trying to get past this as soon as possible, while expanding into outpatient clinics and online prescription services.

In the coming months, the indictment of ex-president Trump will be making headlines. I’ve never been a fan of his and hope that his followers will begin to see him for what he is. Meanwhile, the war in Ukraine continues, tensions between the US and China are ever present, and countries like North Korea and Iran keep expanding their militaries with no regard. I guess it has always been this way, but in this modern world, it becomes more likely that a serious conflict among multiple countries could develop. If we can’t co-exist with our neighbors, how are we ever going to solve our other problems?

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