Customer Reviews

Dividends Still Don't Lie: The Truth About Investing in Blue Chip Stocks and Winning in the Stock Market

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I purchased Dividends Still Don't Lie on Kindle. The concepts are clearly explained, and the rationale for investing in high-quality blue-chips is solid. The data are convincing, as presented in the text. The major flaw, and why I suggest buying the book in print rather than on Kindle, is that the figures and tables are virtually unreadable owing to the tiny size of the print. Even increasing the font size does not help, because the tables and figures are "photographs", not print, so it will not magnify.

I phoned Kindle Help-Desk and they were unable to resolve this difficulty. I tried downloading the Kindle version to my desk computer, only to find out that I could not print the tables or graphs for portable reference, e.g., beside a newspaper or a stock screen on the computer. Very frustrating!!! Kindle staff admitted that this was a problem that, to date (March 2011), has no solution. So yes, the content is good, but the Kindle version has major drawbacks.

Kelley Wright knows his stuff and he gets it right with this book. He is at his best when he discusses how to create your own investment plan. In plain English, he shares how to follow the straightforward system of investing in stick-to-quality blue-chip stocks with reliable dividend histories. Individual investors and professionals alike will value the many examples that the author provides. The book will find wide appeal because of its down-to-earth and practical approach as well as the time-tested quality of the information. It is a great gift for anyone who wants to better understand investing as well as obtain solid value for their investment and retirement dollars.

As a public service to my fellow hapless investor, who may be thinking of reading (if not actually buying, you cheap ------d!) this gem of a little book, I have a few brief words of sage advice to impart to you.

First, read the book, cover to cover. Thankfully, it is a light, fast read, that at times is a bit on the repetitive side, but nonetheless very informative. Then set it aside for a week, during which time you allow your first impressions of the book to subside, and then read it again. After the second reading, put the book aside but in a prominent place, such as facing out to you on your bookshelf or on your desk, where you can see the title almost beckoning to you. Then, and this is the hard part, do the following:

Do what you normally would do when investing. If you are like most people, you'll lose money. That's OK, after all, you are only human and this state of affairs not only confirms that but also confirms that like your fellow man (or woman- it pays not to discriminate), you have absolutely no idea what you are doing. Then, one day, after having lost a tidy sum of money, this book will beckon you, and then, maybe, just maybe, you will see the light, and glean from it its carefully gathered wisdom over some four decades or so. You might be so taken aback by its very simplicity that you take the heretical step of subscribing to the Investment Quality Trends newsletter.

OK, all jokes aside now- for those of you who are sick of losing money in the stock market, or just plain tired of middling results in return for all of your effort and study of the market, this is the book you need to read and ultimately use in your quest to 1) preserve your limited and precious capital, 2) generate a respectable income and 3) grow your investment account. Whether you are in retirement and looking to protect what you have amassed, or you are young (or young-ish) and looking to invest for an eventual retirement (in this economy?!? Good luck with that.), this is the book you need to buy, read, understand, and use- repeatedly.

For seasoned investors like myself, the book may read a bit too simple and too basic (this I suspect may be due to the fact that the book is pitched moreso to the novice or beginning investor that is unsure of him- or herself vis-a-vis stocks). More than a few of you will take issue with how restrictive the stock universe that it inhabits is. All of you need to trust me on this one thing: using this book will keep you out of serious trouble (by minimizing your risk in stock investing and protecting your modest grubstake), and for those of you who find the book to be too restrictive in terms of the number of stocks to choose from, pay very close attention to Chapter 4 of the book, modify Chapter 4 a bit to suit your needs, and broaden the list of likely stock investment targets.

The method espoused in the book really is as simple as the author makes it out to be. In passing, I have found this book, along with The Future For Investors by Jeremy J. Siegel (author of Stocks For The Long Run), to be good, strong, positive reinforcement.

Here are a few final free-bies: Using this book as a guide (and perhaps a subscription to the IQT newsletter- no pressure from me here), screen for the truly indispensable outfits. Then, dollar cost average into them. Do this preferably via some tax-advantaged account (IRA of some sort in a pinch, but ideally a 401-k type deal if you have it available to you). And for the coup-de-gras, I noticed that more than a few of the outfits that make the Wright-Weiss cut for quality and value offer direct stock purchase plans with optional cash purchases of as little as 50 bucks in some cases (some even offer IRAs). The truly intelligent and astute small investor would take advantage of this wherever possible (in a pinch, a Sharebuilder account would suffice)- just be mindful of the paperwork, which will require the use of a spreadsheet and a modicum of organization. Oh, and one more thing, since the outfits chosen are indispensable, you never have to sell them (unless of course, their investment quality has fundamentally eroded) and you can value-cost-average (buy on the dips) at your leisure as well. Check out Craig L. Israelsen's lovely little book, The Thrifty Investor (an older and somewhat dated but nonetheless very relevant text), for further enlightenment on these free-bies.

In sum, you can either work for your money, or you can put your money to work for you. Granted, if you are like most of us, you have to work for- that is to say, earn- your money, so it behooves you to put your hard-earned money to work using a safe and sound strategy that thankfully, this book provides.

As always, caveat emptor people. Caveat emptor.

After the feds announced that there would be no increase in interest rates for two years, I knew I had to move forward with the portfolio of dividend paying stocks I was working on. Waiting for an opportunity to invest in treasuries obviously wasn't in the cards for a 68-year-old. I had already begun choosing stocks based on S&P's Dividend Aristocrats when I mentioned to my husband how influenced I had been decades ago by Geraldine Weiss' "Dividends Don't Lie." He asked, "Where do you suppose she is now?" So I went to the internet, found out IQ Trends was still publishing, ordered a sample subscription and downloaded "Dividends Still Don't Lie" on my Kindle. The market tanked and I used the opportunity to cross check my Dividend Aristocrats with IQ Trends and filled out my portfolio using Kelley Wright's strategies with the help of IQ Trends. I have always believed in dividend stocks but thought in terms of buy and hold (which I am not comfortable with in modern times). Kelley Wright explains how, when and what not only to buy but how, when and what to sell. All the data is there for the last 40 years, showing how to make capital gains, earn income and have a solid total return. You understand how yield defines value, how to use dividends to buy and sell in profitable trading ranges and how to choose stocks that fit your own goals and objectives. If I were buying the book today, I would buy a pbook since the charts and graphs are useless on the kindle. I even tried using a magnifying glass. Nevertheless, the text without the tables gave me everything I needed. I am earning income, have a very good chance for an excellent total return and sleep well in the confidence that by buying when a blue-ribbon blue chip is undervalued, selling when it is overvalued and re-investing in a newly undervalued stock I have a well thought out plan with reasonable safety.

I bought this book after hearing Kelley Wright give a talk about investing in stocks that pay dividends. He explained how his system of finding undervalued stocks that are paying a high dividend works. I was so impressed with him and his approach to investing that I decided to try it for myself. As he says in the book, buy quality blue chip stocks at a discount (when the dividend is the highest) and that way a person can build an income stream that will sustain him in retirement.

This book does not translate to kindle well due to the inability to read the charts. It takes away from any positive information offered. The charts are so small, as to be unusable. It is frustrating! I feel it was a waste of time and money to purchase on a kindle and it will color future purchases of this nature.

The book is a fast read for me bcoz most of the points in the books are already made in other dividend strategy books. I would recommend "Single Best Investment" & "The Ultimate Dividend Playbook" for better understanding of the concept.

But what I find useful in this book is chapter 7: BARGAINS STILL COME IN CYCLES

I liked the presentation of the undervalue (UV) and overvalue (OV) dividend yield concept. It is much better in print to better understand the charts with the UV & OV yield based price range. But a reader has to understand that this is hard to do for all blue chip stocks. Eg: coca-cola (KO) & Johnson & Johnson (JNJ). The 1990s yield on these stocks are so low so we cannot get a meaningful UV & OV yield based price range.

Example: JNJ yield was around 1-1.5% during the 90's. Now dropped to 3.5ish in 2011. But JNJ is not undervalued now but fairly valued and the yield is more realistic now for such a big company. Just going by the UV yield, one should load up on JNJ now but due diligence is required.

Overall, its a good read for dividend investing strategy. Not a whole lot of new ideas but reinforces certain valuable concepts.

I would advise to get it from local library if possible. If not, 20 bucks is not a bad deal. You would get your moneys worth.

This book provided a clear plan to make buying and selling decisions. It is updated to provide a list of blue chip securities to follow and an easily followed structure to decide on buy and sell points. It is going to be very helpful in analysing my future decisions.