Selling the covered call on VZ (see last post) will bring the uninvested cash to $278.72. We will add that to our typical $250+ investment.
This week, six of the portfolio holdings ranked in the Top Ten.
| Ticker | Account Value |
| BDX | 3,730.27 |
| CMCSA | 2,432.12 |
| HTO | 3,369.27 |
| PEP | 2,444.26 |
| PPG | 3,442.56 |
| VZ | 7,164.96 |
The lowest amount belongs to CMCSA which last traded at $29.66. With the additional cash mentioned above, I will acquire 18 shares on Monday. See the post from 2025-11-01 for a more in-depth look at CMCSA. Below, is the purchase history and average cost calculation.
Sometime after close of trading on 2026-01-02, shareholders of CMCSA as of the 2025‑12‑15 record date will receive one share of Versant Media Group Inc. (VSNT) for every 25 shares of CMCSA they hold1. Based on current when‑issued trading, I expect those VSNT shares to open on 2026-01-05 around $47 each2 immediately after the spin‑off.
That said, the price may soften afterward. It’s common for funds and portfolios to sell newly received shares that don’t meet their requirements for inclusion—and Royal Dividends follows the same discipline. I’ll post instructions on the day the VSNT shares hit our accounts.
Further, this week’s upcoming addition to the CMCSA position in the Portfolio for the Ages, brings the total number of shares to 100. We are now capable of supplementing the $0.33 quarterly dividend3 with covered call premium and we will not hesitate to do so.
CMCSA is seen by the market as a company with lower than historical growth prospects going forward, but I and others believe it has been oversold at this point. We should see a drop on Friday, January 2nd because it is the ex-dividend date. We should see a sharper drop of perhaps 7% on the following Monday, reflecting the spin-off of VSNT. The strike of any options contracts should automatically adjust for that event.
Regardless, this is a chance to bring in more income from a stable stock that will not likely shoot up overnight.
Look for the post detailing the covered call trade to follow.
- There will also be cash in lieu of fractional shares. The cash will likely land in accounts on 2026-01-07. ↩︎
- Versant Media Group Inc had been trading under the temporary when-issued ticker VSNTV since 2025-12-15. It’s a great proxy to see where VSNT will trade at market open on 2025-01-05. Who knew? ↩︎
- CMCSA has already declared the next quarterly dividend with the ex-dividend date falling on 2026-01-02. It is consistent with the last three quarters at $0.33. However, we cannot yet be certain the spin-off of VSNT, which is estimated to be approximately 6-7% of the value of CMCSA, won’t be a reason behind a future dividend reduction. This is yet another reason for selling a covered call right now – as a hedge in the event management uses the spin-off of VSNT as an excuse to cut the dividend. ↩︎