January Performance Of My High Growth Dividend Portfolio

My Concentrated High Growth Dividend Portfolio was up 1.4% in January, outperforming the S&P 500 which was down 0.2% in January.
There was no turnover in the portfolio.
The top 5 winners for the month were VRSK, NDAQ, MSFT, ICE and ROP.
The top 5 losers for the month were CDW, AMP, UNH, MKTX and TXN.
Two companies announced dividend increases in January: MKTX and NXST.
The Portfolio Grew 1.4% in January Before Dividends
For the month of January 2020, my Concentrated High Growth Dividend Portfolio (CHGD) returned 1.4%, excluding dividends. The S&P 500 returned -0.2% over the same time period. The portfolio also outperformed the Dow Jones Industrial Average, which returned -1.0% in January. As an additional benchmark I also compare the portfolio's returns to the Vanguard Dividend Appreciation Fund (VIG), which returned -5.0% in January.
It should be noted that this article is being written at a time when the impact of the coronovirus pandemic is rippling through the equity markets. While the portfolio's January performance is completely in line with my expectations, given the coronovirus shock factor on the economy and the markets I cannot predict how the portfolio will perform in February.
The following exhibit outlines the Concentrated High Growth Dividend Portfolio's summary performance for January 2020. The dollar weighted percent change shows the actual change in the dollar value of the portfolio.

Source: Yahoo Finance, CapitalIQ
As a refresher, my strategy for CHGD has been built over many years based on criteria that I have honed over time. In general, for this portfolio I focus on low-yielding, high growth dividend stocks that have strong industry tailwinds. My overall criteria for the portfolio have evolved slightly over the last fifteen years, but in general (with a few exceptions) are as follows:

The characteristics of my portfolio changed little in January, with the average dividend yield approximating 1.2%... Read more