General

In October of 1863, Major James Lide Coker is injured and captured by Union forces at the Battle of Chickamauga. After his release, and less than two years later, an undeterred Coker delivers food supplies to Confederate forces stationed in Richmond, Virginia. Upon his return home to Hartsville, South Carolina, he learns General Sherman has destroyed his family farm. When there is nothing else left in your life but land and seed, your path forward seems narrow but clear – and it isn’t tripling down on the Confederate cause. Coker borrows an old mule and a pair of oxen from an uncle and sews 100 acres of farmland with corn seed and cotton seed and the fruits of that labor and land net him a small fortune.

Fast forward 30+ years, through several successful business launches, and Major Coker is struggling to get a paper making business off the ground in his hometown. He and his namesake son have overcome a number of problems, but one sticky one remains – resin-heavy pine trees gum up the machines and make unusable paper. Eventually they perfect the process but find a lack of customers to be financially crippling. Nearly bankrupt, Major Coker makes another great pivot, replacing the cumbersome and expensive wooden cones on which yarn for textiles is threaded, with paper cones.

The entity founded in 1899 and originally known as the Southern Novelty Company would begin paying dividends in 1925 and it hasn’t stopped. And though they would deny it, they just raised their quarterly dividend for the 50th straight year.

All hail Sonoco Products Company!

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Coronation! [SON]Read More »

Today, Somnigroup International Inc [SGI] and Leggett & Platt Inc [LEG] announced that they have signed a definitive agreement pursuant to which SGI will acquire LEG in an all-stock transaction valued at approximately $2.5 billion based on SGI’s closing share price of $78.06 on April 10, 2026.

However, the price on Friday is of no interest to shareholders of LEG. Under the terms of the agreement, LEG shareholders will receive 0.1455 shares of SGI in exchange for each share of LEG they own.

LEG is up over 12% and SGI over 2% as of the time of this post. But the real question is what does this mean for the largest position in the Portfolio for the Ages?

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LEG to be Acquired by SGIRead More »

This marks the first time since inception that every position, and the portfolio has never had more positions, declined on the same day. This was a genuinely rare event for a 24-stock portfolio well-diversified across all 11 sectors. And while SPXEW’s 1.29% drop was hardly mild — that’s a legitimately rough day by any historical standard — it still wasn’t the kind of broad‑market capitulation one would normally associate with a complete sweep across every holding.

It’s infuriating, and in my view, unmistakably tied to the reckless geopolitical decisions made less than a month ago and still unfolding today.

Five colleagues left Litton Industries in 1966 with a plan to go it alone and sell high‑altitude research balloons. The balloons didn’t sell. So, they tried vacuum‑forming plastic canoes. The canoes didn’t sell either. Then came computer software and then, naturally, leather footwear. By 1968, one cofounder had died, three had bailed, and the lone survivor—staring down bankruptcy—brought in an outside investor and bought a failing paper mill, mostly because at that point, why not.

Against all odds, good management actually turned the paper business around, and those profits fueled a long run of acquisitions. Paper eventually gave way to power tools, which gave way to industrial equipment, which gave way to pumps and valves. Today, the whole enterprise has reinvented itself yet again—this time as a focused water‑technology company.

Founded in Minnesota, later headquartered in Switzerland, then incorporated in Ireland, with tax residency in the United Kingdom, yet still keeping its main U.S. office right back in Minnesota, this company of product pivots and postal codes apparently has the financial stability and discipline required to raise dividends for 50 consecutive years.

All hail Pentair plc!

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Coronation! [PNR]Read More »

On 2025-12-31, the equally weighted S&P 500 Index [SPXEW] closed at 7,763.92, up 9.3% for the year excluding dividends. To assess the performance with dividends, it is convenient to look at the total return of the Invesco S&P 500 Equal Weight ETF [RSP].

The dividends yielded 1.8%. The real question: How did the Portfolio for the Ages do?

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Performance Update [6]Read More »

Two adjustments have been made to the weekly ranking process, prompting a refreshed presentation of the investment plan. The modifications are minor refinements; eight stocks remained consistent across both the previous and revised methods applied to this week’s Top Ten.

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Going Forward [3]Read More »

As of market close on 2025-11-10, the ten largest tickers by market capitalization within the S&P 500 Index [SPX] represented a staggering 43% of the entire index. That’s a first in the history of the index which goes back to the late 1950s. That’s right, never before has just 2% of the tickers comprised over 43% of the Index value.

What does that concentration actually look like?

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Concentration RiskRead More »

To the casual observer, it would appear that FMCB just paid a smaller dividend than the one previous to it, a disastrous event for a Dividend King. However, that $5.00 dividend was the first quarterly dividend in FMCB’s long history. That’s right, on 2025-08-13, in conjunction with the declaration of that $5 dividend, FMCB announced that the Company is changing its dividend policy related to the frequency of cash dividend payments from semi-annually to quarterly.

This news, in addition to the announcement of a massive increase to their share repurchase program can only help put FMCB on the radar. These announcements make FMCB a more attractive investment and that in turn should help the stock close the gap between where it trades today and a fair value that is closer to $1,500.

It’s after dusk in Madison, Wisconsin, July 19, 1855. Legislators have just gaslit the public and about 2,000 people have marched to the steps of the Capitol. When they get there, a few of the area’s more notable politicians deliver a series of impromptu speeches. Were it not for a hard rain that came during the fourth speech, resulting in the dispersal of the crowd, things could have gotten dark – but thankfully, the lights stayed on.

Gaslighting wasn’t always a bad thing. Back in 1855, the Madison Gas Light & Coke Company had just been granted exclusive rights to illuminate the city’s streets with gas-powered lamps. The 2,000 people who marched to the Capitol that evening weren’t duped by months of political deceit—they were genuinely thrilled. Their gathering wasn’t a protest, but a celebration of progress: the arrival of streetlamps that would finally light up Madison’s nights. In that moment, “gaslighting” meant something entirely different—it meant turning darkness into light.

Over the next 170 years, the Madison Gas Light & Coke Company would evolve—changing names, expanding its footprint, and adding a constellation of related businesses. Its modern incarnation has paid uninterrupted cash dividends for more than 110 years. On August 15, 2025, it marked a milestone few companies ever reach: 50 consecutive years of dividend increases. With that announcement, a new Dividend King has officially joined the Royal Dividends Empire.

All hail MGE Energy Inc!

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Coronation! [MGEE]Read More »

On 2024-11-29, the equally weighted S&P 500 Index [SPXEW] reached an all-time high of $7,612.31. SPXEW found itself down 20% from the all-time high on 2025-04-07. Since then, the market has climbed nearly all the way back and is now down just 2.5% from the high. In fact, just three days ago, the market weighted S&P 500 Index [SPX] reached a new all-time high. But that’s essentially all because of Nvidia [NVDA] which has doubled since April 7th.

The Portfolio for the Ages turns three today. It has not doubled since April 7th. Let’s talk about that.

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Performance Update [5]Read More »