Top Stocks Blog Book Strategy Portfolio Newsletter Resources About

The UK Dividend Stocks Portfolio

Launched in 2011, the UK Dividend Stocks Portfolio holds a diverse collection of around 25 high-quality UK dividend stocks, mostly from the FTSE 100 and FTSE 250. You can follow every holding and every trade in the UK Dividend Stocks Newsletter. 

A Portfolio of Quality Dividend Stocks

The UK Dividend Stocks Portfolio is (as the name suggests) invested exclusively in UK-listed stocks. At least 80% of its holdings are members of the FTSE 100 or FTSE 250, with the remainder invested in stocks from the FTSE Small Cap, FTSE Fledgling or AIM UK-50 indices.

In most cases, these companies have long track records of progressive dividend growth and at least 20% of them operate in defensive industries.

Although this is a virtual portfolio, the vast majority of my real-world portfolio is invested in exactly the same stocks with approximately the same position sizes.

I also want this portfolio to be as realistic as possible, so it takes account of all real-world expenses including trading fees, stamp duty and the cost of an annual subscription to The UK Dividend Stocks Newsletter.

A Systematic Dividend Investing Strategy

I manage the portfolio using an updated version of the strategy detailed in my 2016 book, The Defensive Value Investor. If you don't want to read the whole book, you can read a summary of my investment strategy in this blog post: 

You can also download my investment checklist from the Dividend Investing Resources page.

Performance Goals

The portfolio has two performance goals, one for the accumulation phase (where investors are reinvesting dividends to build up their retirement pot) and one for the decumulation phase (where investors are withdrawing dividends to boost their income from pensions):

  • Accumulation goal:
    • Total return higher than the FTSE All-Share over 5+ years
  • Decumulation goal:
    • Dividend yield higher than the FTSE All-Share

Performance Results

The charts below show the portfolio's performance since inception in March 2011, in both percentage and absolute terms. 

Notes: (1) All dividends are reinvested; (2) the UK Dividend Stocks Portfolio and its FTSE All-Share benchmark portfolio were launched in March 2011 with a virtual starting value of £50,000 each.

UK Dividend Stocks Portfolio - Total value
UK Dividend Stocks Portfolio - Total Return
UK Dividend Stocks Portfolio - Dividends per year
UK Dividend Stocks Portfolio - Dividend Yield
Performance to July 2024UKDS Portfolio FTSE All-ShareDifference
Dividend yield5.5%3.7% 1.8%
Annualised total return from inception6.5%6.5% 0.0%
Annualised total return over 10 years5.0%5.9% -0.9%
Annualised total return over 5 years3.6%5.6% -2.0%
Annualised total return over 3 years1.6%7.5% -5.8%
Total return over 1 year5.8%13.2% -7.4%

Portfolio Diversification

This is a defensive dividend portfolio, so the portfolio is broadly diversified by company, country, industry and sector.

The portfolio is managed in line with the following diversification rules:

  • Aim for 25 holdings and an average position size of 4%
  • Maximum position size of 6%, minimum position size of 2%
  • At least 80% of the portfolio must be in either the FTSE 100 or FTSE 250
  • At least 20% of the portfolio must operate in defensive industries
  • No more than 20% of the portfolio can operate in highly cyclical industries
  • No more than 20% of the portfolio can be invested in any one industry
  • No more than 10% of the industry can be invested in any one sector
  • On average, holdings must generate at least 50% of their revenues outside the UK 

Interim and Annual Portfolio Reviews

I review the portfolio at least twice each year. These reviews cover performance, recent changes to the portfolio's holdings and any other relevant news:

You can find earlier reviews on my old website:

Buy and Sell Reviews for Past Holdings

The portfolio follows a long-term investing strategy so there is relatively little in the way of trading activity on a day-to-day basis. 

In a typical month, there might be one new holding added to the portfolio, or one existing holding removed. With around 25 holdings, this means that each holding usually remains in the portfolio for at least several years. 

When companies are added to or removed from the portfolio, a detailed review (typically around ten pages) is published in the monthly UK Dividend Stocks Newsletter and you can download these buy and sell reviews for all past holdings below.

This website provides information, education and tools for investors. It does not provide financial advice or recommendations to buy or sell any specific investment. If you're not sure if an investment is right for you, you should speak to a regulated financial adviser. Please read the disclaimer for more details.