📅 On This Day
Buffett Seals a $55.3M Deal on His Birthday With a Handshake
On August 30, 1983 — his own birthday — Warren Buffett bought Nebraska Furniture Mart for $55.3 million without a single investment banker or lawyer in the room. Founder Rose Blumkin, the legendary 'Mrs. B,' accepted his one-and-a-quarter-page offer without changing a word. The store remains a Berkshire Hathaway subsidiary to this day, quietly generating the cash flow that supports the conglomerate's dividend and buyback capacity.
A birthday deal sealed on trust: no bankers, no lawyers, no fine print — just Buffett and Mrs. B.
BRK-B — Berkshire Hathaway Inc
🇺🇸 US
Source: Begin To Invest; Berkshire Hathaway
🌍 Around the World
Switzerland's 35% Dividend Tax Demands Patience — and Paperwork
Switzerland levies a 35% withholding tax on dividends upfront — even when a tax treaty reduces the effective rate to 15%. Foreign investors must then navigate a complex, multi-year reclaim process with the Swiss Federal Tax Administration to recover the 20% difference. The burden is so formidable that many retail investors simply absorb the loss, and several global ETF providers have shifted to synthetic replication specifically to sidestep it.
Switzerland's dividend reclaim process is so grueling that many investors forfeit the refund rather than fight for it.
🇨🇭 CH
Source: Swiss Federal Tax Administration; Bogleheads international tax guide
🔥 Dividend Streak
Kimberly-Clark Turns Wartime Bandages Into 53 Years of Dividend Growth
During World War I, Kimberly-Clark's Cellucotton material served military field hospitals — then surplus stock inspired nurses to repurpose it, giving birth to Kotex in 1920 and Kleenex in 1924. Both became names so ubiquitous they define entire product categories. Since 1973, the company has raised its dividend every single year, a streak that now stretches to 53 consecutive annual increases.
From gas-mask filters to grocery staples — KMB's dividend streak is built on one of history's great industrial pivots.
KMB — Kimberly-Clark Corporation
Source: Smithsonian Magazine; Snopes
💡 Did You Know
Microsoft's $32 Billion Special Dividend Rewrote Tech's Relationship With Income Investors
In July 2004, Microsoft announced a $3.00-per-share special dividend — roughly $32 billion — in a deliberate signal that it was stepping toward the world of income investing. The move was designed to broaden its shareholder base to include investors seeking lower-risk dividend income, a striking departure for a company long defined by growth. It remains one of the most consequential identity shifts in dividend history.
When a tech titan hands $32 billion back to shareholders, it stops being just a growth stock — and everything changes.
MSFT — LS 1x Microsoft Tracker ETP Securities
🇺🇸 US
Source: Microsoft News; The New York Times
💡 Did You Know
Microsoft's $32 Billion Special Dividend Rewrote Tech's Relationship With Income Investors
In July 2004, Microsoft announced a $3.00-per-share special dividend — roughly $32 billion — in a deliberate signal that it was stepping toward the world of income investing. The move was designed to broaden its shareholder base to include investors seeking lower-risk dividend income, a striking departure for a company long defined by growth. It remains one of the most consequential identity shifts in dividend history.
When a tech titan hands $32 billion back to shareholders, it stops being just a growth stock — and everything changes.
MSFT — Microsoft Corporation
🇺🇸 US
Source: Microsoft News; The New York Times
💡 Did You Know
Microsoft's $32 Billion Special Dividend Rewrote Tech's Relationship With Income Investors
In July 2004, Microsoft announced a $3.00-per-share special dividend — roughly $32 billion — in a deliberate signal that it was stepping toward the world of income investing. The move was designed to broaden its shareholder base to include investors seeking lower-risk dividend income, a striking departure for a company long defined by growth. It remains one of the most consequential identity shifts in dividend history.
When a tech titan hands $32 billion back to shareholders, it stops being just a growth stock — and everything changes.
MSFT — Microsoft CDR (CAD Hedged)
🇺🇸 US
Source: Microsoft News; The New York Times
💡 Did You Know
Microsoft's $32 Billion Special Dividend Rewrote Tech's Relationship With Income Investors
In July 2004, Microsoft announced a $3.00-per-share special dividend — roughly $32 billion — in a deliberate signal that it was stepping toward the world of income investing. The move was designed to broaden its shareholder base to include investors seeking lower-risk dividend income, a striking departure for a company long defined by growth. It remains one of the most consequential identity shifts in dividend history.
When a tech titan hands $32 billion back to shareholders, it stops being just a growth stock — and everything changes.
MSFT — 1X MSFT
🇺🇸 US
Source: Microsoft News; The New York Times