Easy Peasy #44: Build Your Dividend Portfolio & Live Off Dividends with Pre-Selected Stock Sets

Dividend Growing Stock Sets – Start with $300, $500, or $1,000 Weekly

MaxDividends Mission: Helping & Supporting Everyone in Building a Growing Passive Income, Retiring Early, and Living Off Dividends.

In this section, we share ready-made sets of promising dividend growth stocks with strong future dividend potential.

We also track performance and provide portfolio links for each set, so you can monitor past results and real-time updates.

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Intro

CPI Cools, but War Jitters Keep Wall Street on Edge

The S&P 500 dipped -16.57 points to 6,022 (-0.27%), the Nasdaq slid -99.11 points to 19,615 (-0.50%), and the Dow was flat at 42,865. The Russell 2000 lost -8.18 points to 2,164 (-0.38%).

Markets initially bounced on cooler-than-expected CPI data, stoking hopes for a September Fed cut. But geopolitical nerves took the wheel by late afternoon after headlines of possible U.S. evacuations in Iraq, Bahrain, and Kuwait hit the wires. That flipped the tape red despite early gains in Tech, Healthcare, and Discretionary. Energy stood alone in the green as oil surged on the news.

📊 Economic Data

May CPI came in light across the board. Headline +0.1% m/m (vs est. +0.2%) and +2.4% y/y (vs est. +2.5%). Core CPI rose just +0.1% m/m (vs est. +0.3%), while core +2.8% y/y matched April but undershot the +2.9% estimate. Gasoline fell -2.6%, new cars -0.3%, while food and housing each rose +0.3%.

The May U.S. budget deficit narrowed -9% y/y to $316B, helped by a record $23B in customs receipts (vs $6B last May) as Trump tariffs began to bite. FYTD customs revenue now sits at $86B, up 60%.

💰 Commodities, Currencies & Treasuries

• Gold rose just $0.30 to $3,343.70/oz (+0.01%), giving up earlier gains as tariff progress and risk-on headlines capped safe-haven demand.

• WTI crude soared $3.17 to $68.15 (+4.88%), touching 8-week highs on Middle East evacuation headlines and Iran tensions.

• 10-year Treasury yields fell 5.9 bps to 4.413% on soft CPI. A lukewarm auction (bid-to-cover 2.52) showed modest demand drop from May (2.60).

• EUR/USD up 0.0066 to 1.1489, while JPY/USD slipped -0.36 to 144.46.

🛒 Retail, Consumer Staples & Restaurants

• PLAY dropped on weak Q1 comps (-8.3%) and soft EPS, but shares rebounded after Q2-to-date comps showed signs of recovery (-2.2%).

• PZZA spiked after Semafor reported a buyout bid from Apollo and Irth Capital valuing it at $2B.

• URBN upgraded to Outperform at Oppenheimer, citing strong execution.

• JILL sank after Q1 sales fell -4.9% y/y, comps -5.7%, and outlook suspended.

• VSCO beat on Q1 EPS ($0.09 vs est. $0.04) but guided Q2 and FY below consensus.

• GME fell as Q1 sales plunged -17% y/y.

• CHWY gave back gains despite beating EPS/rev; gross margins slipped to 29.6%.

🎠 Leisure, Gaming & Lodging

• UBER initiated at Buy, PT $110, by Stifel as a "super app" play.

• DASH started at Hold, PT $198, on valuation.

• CCL PT raised to $33 at Stifel ahead of earnings on strong booking trends.

⚡ Energy, Industrials & Materials

• TLN popped after expanding its nuclear power deal with Amazon to supply 1,920 MW through 2042.

• OKLO rose on Pentagon notice for small modular reactor contract.

• FSLR upgraded to Buy at Jefferies, PT $192, citing upside in contract pricing.

• RUN downgraded to Underperform, PT $5, on residential solar headwinds.

• BRO priced a 39.2M share offering at $102.

• BY launched a 4.28M share secondary at $24.75 from Goodwin estate.

• VOYG IPO opened at $69.75, far above $31 offering.

• CLF, NUE, STLD fell on reports of U.S.-Mexico steel tariff rollback talks.

• AU added to Russell indexes.

• GLNCY declared force majeure on cobalt shipments from DRC.

• Airlines dropped (AAL, DAL, UAL, LUV) as oil surge hit sentiment.

🏦 Banks & 💳 FinTech

• BILL downgraded to EW at Morgan Stanley on weak macro, no clear catalysts.

• CHYM priced 32M share IPO at $24–$26 range.

• IREN priced $500M 3.5% convertible notes due 2029, boosted from $450M.

• AB AUM rose to $803B (+2.8% m/m).

• APAM AUM at $170.9B.

• TROW AUM at $1.62T, net outflows $4.4B.

• VCTR client assets hit $293.1B.

• VRTS AUM reached $169.7B, with ETF flows leading gains.

🏥 Healthcare

• NVAX said Phase 3 combo flu/COVID vaccine matched existing products.

• SMMT initiated at Underperform, PT $12, citing unrealistic market share goals.

• VXRT reported strong antibody response from new gen vaccine; Phase 3 set for 2026.

• Hospital operators (THC, UHS, HCA) fell on Medicaid payment reform fears; Fuzzy Panda shorted THC, citing accounting red flags.

🚁 Aerospace & Defense

• LMT fell after DoD cut F-35 orders from 48 to 24 jets.

• VOYG IPO beat range, opening at $69.75.

📰 Internet, Media & Telecom

• ETSY slipped after announcing $650M convertible note offering.

• SFIX jumped on surprise Q3 revenue growth.

• RGTI, IONQ, QUBT, QBTS, QMCO rose after NVDA said quantum applications are nearing practical use.

• NBIS delivered Europe’s first Nvidia Blackwell chips.

• ANET downgraded at BNP Exane on increasing AI network competition.

• INGM downgraded to EW; Morgan Stanley prefers SNX.

• OUST jumped after DOD approval for lidar tech.

• ORCL earnings after the bell.

• GTLB fell on narrow beat; Needham flagged soft momentum.

• SAIL beat and raised FY guide; FY26 ARR now +25%-26%.

• MSFT on Citi 90-day catalyst watch for underpriced Azure estimates.

🛠️ Semiconductors, Hardware & Software

• AMSC fell after pricing 4.125M share offering at $28.

• NVDA to build AI cloud for industrials in Germany, per Jensen Huang.

🧠 What’s Next?

PPI up next, followed by the Fed. With CPI cooler and oil hotter, traders are left juggling inflation hopes and geopolitics. Stay buckled.

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But none of this news really matters to MaxDividends members. We're focused on growing the cash flow that lands in your pocket every month—not stressing over price swings or stock market noise.

At MaxDividends, we focus on a dividend growth strategy, perfect for investors seeking capital appreciation, solid safety, and a steadily growing income.

A rising dividend is a strong sign that a company is thriving—and wants its shareholders to thrive with it.

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This week, we’ve rolled out a fresh batch of ready-to-go Stock Sets 💪.

Easy Peasy #44: Pre-Selected Dividend Growth Stock Sets