How Can I Look Up What I Did, When I Did It and for How Much in a BMO InvestorLine Account?

There are stocks you buy and hold and never think about. But then there are other stocks that you buy, sell high, buy again low, get paid dividends or distributions from, sell part of your position, enjoy the benefits of a stock split, buy some more and sell for a killer profit. And then you do it all over again. Although I’m sure you keep meticulous records of these varied transactions, you can also use InvestorLine’s history function to take a look at what you’ve done with that one stock over the past 24 months. Here’s how.

How to Check the Transaction History for a Specific Holding in your BMO InvestorLine Account

  1. Sign in to your account/s.
    1. Go to https://www.bmoinvestorline.com/
    2. In the User ID or Account # field, type your account number or if you have grouped your accounts under one User ID, type your User ID.
    3. In the Password field, type your password.
    4. Click on the Go button.
  2. From the drop-down list at the top right of the screen, select which account for which you want to save the history.
  3. From the My Portfolio tab, select Transaction History.
  4. For example, say you wanted to know everything you’ve done with TD.
    1. In the Symbol: field, type TD
    2. In the From: field, select the earliest possible date.
    3. In the To: field, make sure the most recent possible date is selected.
    4. Click on the Refresh Transactions button.
  5. The screen will display all of the available transactions during that time period for that stock. So if you made some purchases and sales and received some dividends, they will all be reported.
  6. You can then Save this information to your own computer using the same procedure described in the article: How to Save your Account Transaction History for a BMO InvestorLine Account.
  7. When you’ve finished your review,
    click on the Sign Out link.
  8. For extra security, close your Browser session.

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The Secret Weapon of Stocks that Pay Dividends: Staying Power Support

Everyone has their own reason for buying dividend-paying stocks. Some investors buy dividend stocks for the income. Others buy them for the benefit of enrolling in a Dividend Reinvestment Plan. I buy them for various reasons, but for me one of their best benefits is their secret super-power: supporting willpower.

Bank of Nova Scotia, BNS, and the Best Benefit of a Strong Dividend for the Investor

A couple of years ago, I bought some stock in the Bank of Nova Scotia, often called ScotiaBank. It had room to increase its dividend and was already paying a pleasant 3.7% per share, miles above the rate then offered by GICs. Given that it is one of the “big 5” Canadian banks to many minds, including mine, it had about the same security as a GIC, admittedly without the benefit of CDIC backing.

Anyway, BNS had a minor pullback of about $5 so I gleefully logged on and bought some shares.

You’ve all read this book before: the stock promptly plummeted.

In fact, it fell as much as $12 a share during the course of its following rollercoaster value ride.

But each quarter, that handsome dividend popped into my account. And in fact, it grew. In the short time I’ve held the stock, the yield is now 3.81% based on the price I paid for the shares. UPDATE: Now it’s 4.1%!

Dividends Can Encourage Patience and Support Staying with a Stock

That steady, rising dividend provided me with the patience to stick with my purchase even through the dropping share price.

On paper, I had lost 20% (!) of my investment. If I had sold the BNS shares, that would have been a real, irretrievable loss. Since this investment was in a registered account, I could not even have claimed the loss against another capital gain to mitigate taxes. It would have been a real permanent loss.

However, bolstered by the dividend, I stuck to my investing plan. I still believe that the Bank of Nova Scotia was a decent investment at a decent price. I expect in the long term it will appreciate in value. And it was purchased as a long term investment.

Now, the price of Bank of Nova Scotia stock has gradually climbed back up to where I bought it. By not panicking and selling an investment I believed and believe has merit, I did not experience a capital loss. In fact, I am slightly ahead because of the dividend.

Staying with a Stock Should Depend on the Future Prospects for the Company

I’m not saying you should stay with every stock that plunges. Anyone who invested heavily in Yellow Media, YLO, knows that sometimes, no matter what the yield, you have to man the life rafts and watch it sink.

However, if you’ve looked again closely at what a company is doing, and maybe sounded out the opinions of others on the same stock, and you still believe the company is worthwhile then you may just need to grab your willpower and hold on.

Should You Only Invest in Dividend Paying Stocks?

No. I wouldn’t say that. I do think there’s nothing wrong with investing in only dividend stocks, but neither is there anything wrong with investing purely for capital gains. It depends on your investing goals, philosophy and style.

Stocks that Pay No Dividends Must Cover Inflation before Making a Profit

However, I will say it has been much harder to sit tight and wait for an investment in a resource stock to rebound. This stock does not pay any dividends. It has been caught, like most petroleum stocks, in the world-wide sine-wave cycle of oil consumption and prices. Just as Suncor and Imperial Oil have had their low spots in the past two years, so has this one.

I intend to hold and wait as I still believe the company is sound and it will rebound. But knowing that the money invested in that stock is stagnant, earning nothing while I wait, is annoying. Next time, I think I would probably not invest in a similar stock if it didn’t offer at least a small dividend.

As it stands right now, this stock has to rebound about 6% above what I purchased it at, just to cover off the cost of inflation since I bought it. The BNS stock, on the other hand, covered inflation with its dividend.

When Practical Buying for Capital Gains and Dividends Makes a Great Combo

Not every stock offers both the potential for capital gains and a good dividend.  But stocks that do offer both make a great combo deal. If you spot one, give it a really serious look. You might make a delicious little profit, with a side order of less stress!

Further Information
If you’re holding onto a dividend paying stock for the long term, you might also consider a dividend reinvestment plan. For more info, you may like to skim

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Do you prefer to invest in stocks that pay a dividend? How much does the dividend help support your decision to hold on to the stock? Please share your experiences with a comment.