Dividend Investor in Mid-50s Making $23,800 A Month Shares Portfolio, Says He Started with $3.50/hour

President Donald Trump‘s ongoing tariff policy changes have resulted in persistent market volatility and uncertainty. This has increased investors' appetite for stable, defensive stocks paying steady dividends. Dividend stocks have contributed significantly to overall market returns during the 1940s, 1960s, and 1970s, when average annual total returns were lower.

About seven months ago, a dividend investor shared his monthly dividend income details and portfolio on r/Dividends — a Reddit discussion board with over 700,000 followers. The income report shared by the investor showed his monthly dividend income was $23,800, with a projected annual dividend income of just over $300,000.

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The investor, in his mid-50s, said he had about 150 holdings in his portfolio worth roughly $4.4 million. Asked how he was able to accumulate wealth to build such a large portfolio, he said it took him years to reach this milestone:

"Started at $3.50 per hour. Went back to school in my early 30s as did my wife. Definitely no inheritance and student loans to boot. Just 35 years of investing."

The investor said over $2 million of his wealth came from "decades of trading" biotech company Immunomedics, which was bought by Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) in 2020 for $88 per share.

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Let's take a look at some of the biggest holdings of the investor.

BlackRock Science and Technolgy Term Trust

BlackRock Science and Technology Term Trust (NYSE:BSTZ) was the biggest holding of the investor. The closed-end equity fund invests in science and technology companies and also generates income by selling call options on stocks in its portfolio. It has a dividend yield of about 9%.

Nuveen Real Asset Income and Growth Fund

The Nuveen Real Asset Income and Growth Fund (NYSE:JRI) invests in companies related to infrastructure projects, facilities, and services, as well as REITs. Among the top holdings of the fund are Enbridge (NYSE:ENB), Energy Transfer (NYSE:ET), Gaming and Leisure Properties (NASDAQ:GLPI), Simon Property (NYSE:SPG) and Omega Healthcare Investors (NYSE:OHI).

DoubleLine Income Solutions Fund

DoubleLine Income Solutions (NYSE:DSL) is a closed-end fund focusing on income-generating fixed-income securities. It yields about 12% and pays monthly.

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Kayne Anderson Energy Infrastructure Fund

The Kayne Anderson Energy Infrastructure Fund (NYSE:KYN) invests in midstream, natural gas & LNG infrastructure, and power infrastructure companies. The fund has a dividend yield of over 8%.

Western Asset High Income Opportunity Fund

Another closed-end fund in the portfolio, Western Asset High Income Opportunity Fund (NYSE:HIO) primarily invests in high-yield corporate debt securities and preferred stocks for income generation and capital appreciation. The fund has a distribution rate of over 10%.

Voya Infrastructure, Industrials and Materials Fund

The Voya Infrastructure, Industrials and Materials Fund (NYSE:IDE) invests in companies in the infrastructure, industrials and materials sectors. Cisco (NASDAQ:CSCO), Verizon (NYSE:VZ), Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW), Uber (NYSE:UBER) and T-Mobile US (NASDAQ:TMUS) are among the fund's biggest holdings.

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