Easy Peasy #51: 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

Markets lose steam after Powell ducks September rate cut commitment

U.S. stocks spent most of Wednesday in a tight range before slipping after the FOMC decision.

The Dow dropped 171.71 points (-0.38%) to 44,461, while the S&P 500 dipped 7.91 points (-0.12%) to 6,362.

The Russell 2000 shed 10.56 points (-0.47%) to 2,232, while the Nasdaq bucked the trend, adding 31.38 points (+0.15%) to close at 21,129, boosted by tech earnings optimism.

Investors initially took comfort in the Fed holding rates steady at 4.5%, but risk appetite faded as Chair Powell avoided giving any clear signal on a September cut.

Futures now price just a 50% chance of a cut in September, down from 68% before the press conference. Sector-wise, tech and utilities led, while industrials and materials cooled off. After-hours focus shifted to earnings from META, MSFT, and QCOM.

📊 Economic Data

• ADP Employment Change rose 104K vs. 75.5K expected, recovering from a prior -33K; signals resilience in private hiring despite macro headwinds

• Q2 GDP (advance) came in hot at +3.0% vs. +2.4% est., driven by +6.3% final sales and +1.4% consumer spending; inflation gauges came in softer with GDP deflator at +2.0% vs. 2.1% est. and core PCE at +2.5%

• Pending Home Sales fell 0.8% MoM, missing est. for +0.3%, while down 2.8% YoY; suggests continued housing market softness

• U.S. Treasury Refunding plan: $125B total through October to raise $35.2B in net new cash; auctions include $58B 3Y, $42B 10Y, $25B 30Y; Treasury also hinted at adjusting short-term bill sizes to manage seasonal liquidity swings

💰 Commodities, Currencies & Treasuries

• WTI jumped $0.79 to $70.00/bbl, and Brent rose $0.73 to $73.24/bbl as traders priced in tighter supply on new tariffs and a shortened Russia deadline

• Gold dropped $28.40 to $3,352.80/oz, pressured by a stronger dollar and pre-FOMC positioning

• EUR/USD fell 0.0129 to 1.1417, while JPY/USD strengthened 0.96 to 149.40 as investors rotated into the greenback

• 10Y Treasury yield rose 4.2bps to 4.37%, then cooled post-FOMC after Powell’s “wait and see” stance and historic dual dissent

🔩 Autos

• POAHY dropped after Porsche slashed its 2025 return on sales forecast to 5–7%, down from 6.5–8.5%, citing rising input costs and tariff exposure

• MBGYY fell after Mercedes warned of a ~1.5pp hit to core margin in Q2 (~$420M) due to new U.S. tariffs

• CAR slid after Avis posted just $5M in net income vs. $14.5M a year ago; revenue per day declined 1%, and Americas revs dropped YoY despite beating consensus

🛒 Retail, Consumer Staples & Restaurants

• VFC soared after Q1 revenue of $1.76B topped estimates of $1.70B; EPS loss of ($0.24) was narrower than expected ($0.34), driven by strong demand for The North Face

• ADDYY slumped after Adidas warned tariffs would add €200M (~$231M) in 2H costs, mirroring Puma’s recent concerns

• SHOO tumbled after swinging to a Q2 loss of $39.5M from a $35.4M profit YoY; revenue of $559M missed the $579M estimate; guidance withdrawn

• MDLZ slipped after volume/mix weakened in Q2 despite meeting top-line expectations; blamed on U.S. de-stocking and EU heatwaves

• HSY beat with Q2 EPS of $1.21 (est. $1.00) and revs of $2.61B (est. $2.52B), but cut FY25 EPS guide to $5.81–$6.00 from $6.00–$6.18

• KHC gained after beating sales estimates as pricing traction improved among cost-conscious consumers

• FDP rallied on earnings beat (details not disclosed)

• SBUX rose despite Q3 EPS miss (**$0.50** vs. est. $0.65) as comps and U.S. transaction trends improved for a third straight quarter

• WING soared after raising its 2025 global unit growth guide to 17–18%, up from 16–17%, driven by Q2 beat and higher royalty and franchise fee income

• CAKE edged higher on solid Q2 earnings; comps in line, but margins improved

🎰 Leisure, Gaming & Lodging

• HOG reversed early losses and surged after announcing a $5B loan sale from its finance arm to KKR and PIMCO, despite missing on Q2 profit and revenue

• RRR jumped after Las Vegas revenue hit $513.3M vs. est. $479M, and EBITDA margins expanded to 46.7%

• CZR gained as digital revenue finally broke through the $500M target; Street cautious on Strip health and regional margins

• BKNG dipped after Wedbush downgraded to Neutral on weak Q3 guidance despite a solid Q2 print; room nights, revenue, and EBITDA all guided below consensus

⚡ Energy, Industrials & Materials

• AEP hit record highs after Q2 profit topped estimates and the company unveiled a $70B long-term capital plan

• EXE climbed after reporting Q2 volumes at the high end of guidance; cut FY25 capex by $100M, but boosted FCF outlook by $425M for FY25 and $500M for FY26

• NXT jumped after beating on earnings and raising both revenue and profit guidance; announced new acquisitions in robotics and AI

• NOV fell after JPM downgraded to Neutral, citing macro headwinds like deepwater project delays, weaker drilling activity, and softer capital equipment orders

• SEDG rose after signing a supply deal with Solar Landscape

🏦 Banks & 💳 FinTech

• V dipped despite Q3 EPS of $2.98 topping expectations on 14% revenue growth; investor disappointment over lack of FY25 guidance raise and Q4 deceleration outlook

• SOFI dropped from 52-week highs after a 71.94M share secondary offering priced at $20.85

• COIN rose after announcing JPM credit cards will be accepted on Coinbase this fall

• MARA surged after Q2 revenue hit $238.5M (+64% YoY) and EBITDA margin jumped ~970bps to 22.2%; revenue per bitcoin mined hit ~$101K, setting up for strong Q3

• VRSK rallied after acquiring Acculynx for $2.35B cash; expects deal to be accretive by 2026

• FRSH beat Q2 expectations driven by +22% YoY growth in enterprise segment; large customer base expanded 22% in >$50K ARR

• AON upgraded at Jefferies on margin expansion, favorable growth outlook, and M&A rebound potential

• LC gained on Q2 beat driven by higher revenue, lower provisions, and originations above guidance

🏥 Healthcare

• GEHC popped on Q2 EPS beat and raised outlook; order growth slowed to 3% from 10% prior quarter

• HUM rose after raising FY25 EPS forecast to $17 from $16.25 (est. $16.38) as it reins in medical costs; Q2 medical cost ratio at 89.7%, inline with estimates

• TDOC slumped after cutting FY25 EBITDA guide to $263–294M (from $263–304M) and guiding Q3 to $56–70M (vs. est. $76M); cash-pay behavioral health pressure, plus –$3M tariff hit

🧪 Biotech & Life Sciences

• REPL soared after FDA reversed position on SRPT’s gene therapy hold, seen as a bullish sign ahead of REPL’s own FDA talks

• BIIB rose after 4-year data showed LEQEMBI slowed Alzheimer’s progression by 1.75 pts on CDR-SB vs. natural history

• CELC priced a 1.837M share secondary at $38.00

• IONS raised FY25 revenue guidance to $825–850M from $725–750M; Tryngolza sales expected at $75–80M

• NAMS gained on optimism from BIIB’s Alzheimer’s pipeline; hopes cholesterol drug may provide crossover benefit

• SUPN upgraded to Overweight at Cantor, price target raised to $42, citing upside in Qelbree

• TEVA jumped after Q2 profit beat on +26% branded drug sales and said it’s well-positioned to absorb potential U.S. tariffs

• VRDN spiked after licensing Veligrotug and VRDN-003 to Kissei for $70M upfront, up to $315M milestones, and 20–35% royalties

• VYNE crashed after phase 2B trial in vitiligo missed both primary and key secondary endpoints; company halting development unless external partner is found

🚂 Transports

• ODFL slipped after Q2 net income and sales missed as freight volumes declined; LTL tons/day fell 9.3%, revs fell 6.1% to $1.41B

• WERN jumped after Q2 EPS of $0.11 beat est. $0.05; operating income at $16.56M on $753.15M revs, margin at 2.2%

• LSTR missed with Q2 EPS below est. $1.28; revenue was also under by 100bps, impacted by weaker van/platform equipment sales

• GNRC beat on Q2 EPS (**$1.65** vs. est. $1.32) and raised margin outlook (to 39.3% from 37.6%); narrowed full-year sales guidance to +2–5%

📰 Internet, Media & Telecom

• META scheduled to report after the close

• ETSY rallied on Q2 beat: revs at $672.7M vs. est. $647.2M; gross merchandise sales down 4.8%, better than Q1’s –6.5%

• AAPL led U.S. smartphone shipments in Q2 with 49% share; total U.S. shipments grew 1% YoY to 27M units, India share rose to 44%, China’s dropped to 25%

🔌 Semiconductors, Hardware & Software

• MSFT reports earnings after the bell

• EA rose after Q1 bookings topped estimates ahead of major game releases

• PANW jumped on $25B deal to acquire CYBR, offering $45 cash + 2.2005 shares of PANW (a 26% premium)

• VRT surged after Q2 EPS of $0.95 vs. est. $0.83; revs of $2.64B crushed estimates; raised FY25 EPS to $3.75–3.85, revs to $9.93–10.08B

• AMBQ debuted at $38 after IPO priced at $24.00

• FIG boosted IPO price range to $30–32, targeting $1.18B raise, up from earlier $25–28 range

• MRVL rose on Fubon report saying MSFT favors its Maia300 chip over own Maia200

• QRVO soared after June quarter and Sept guidance both beat on strong Apple content gains

• STX slipped despite earnings beat (**$2.44B/$2.59** vs. cons. $2.42B/$2.45); SepQ guide inline but warned on EPS dilution from convert

• TER jumped on Q2 EPS of $0.57 vs. est. $0.54; guided Q3 revs to $710–770M vs. est. $753M, citing strong AI test demand

🧠 What’s Next?

• Thursday’s spotlight is on PCE inflation data, a key Fed input before the September meeting.

• AAPL and AMZN headline the after-hours earnings roster.

• Friday closes the week with nonfarm payrolls and potential fireworks from wage inflation metrics.

• Investors will be laser-focused on rate-cut odds and sector rotation signals as July wraps up with a bang.

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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 #51: Pre-Selected Dividend Growth Stock Sets