Dividend Investing System

The 22-Point Dividend Stock Buying Checklist

My personal system for picking dividend stocks — refined over years of investing. Inspired by The Naked Trader, adapted for long-term buy-and-hold income investing.

Not financial advice. Personal investing system only. I am not a financial advisor. Always do your own research.

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22 criteria laid out on one clean A4 page
Print and fill in for every stock you research
Built for dividend investors — not traders
Completely free — no credit card needed
22
Criteria to check
18+
Score needed to buy
3
Versions available
£0
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Years of dividend investing distilled into one page

I started building this checklist after losing money on stocks that looked great on paper but failed basic tests I wasn't running at the time. High yields. Thin dividend cover. Too much debt. The painful lessons that every dividend investor eventually learns.

The checklist is heavily influenced by Robbie Burns — The Naked Trader — whose systematic approach changed how I invest. But Robbie trades. I buy and hold. So over the years I've adapted it: more focus on dividend sustainability, more weight on long-term chart performance, stricter on balance sheet quality.

I run every stock through these 22 criteria before I commit a penny. My threshold is 18 out of 22. Below that, I walk away — no matter how tempting the yield looks.

This is not financial advice. This is my personal system, used for my own money, in my own ISA. I am not a financial advisor.

All 22 criteria at a glance

Every criterion name is shown below. Full descriptions of what each means and what a good result looks like are included in Tier 2 and Tier 3.

01
Market cap < 15x profit
Am I paying a fair price for the whole business?
Full detail in Tier 2 & 3
Value
02
Dividend cover 2x
Can the company afford to keep paying its dividend?
Full detail in Tier 2 & 3
Dividend
03
Debt < 3x yearly profit
Is the balance sheet strong enough to survive a tough year?
Full detail in Tier 2 & 3
Health
04
Dividend rising
Is the company growing its payout year on year?
Full detail in Tier 2 & 3
Dividend
05
PE ratio below 20
Am I paying a reasonable price relative to earnings?
Full detail in Tier 2 & 3
Value
06
ROE above 17%
Is management using capital efficiently?
Full detail in Tier 2 & 3
Quality
07
PEG ratio below 2
Is the price fair given the growth on offer?
Full detail in Tier 2 & 3
Value
08
EPS growing
Is the company becoming more profitable each year?
Full detail in Tier 2 & 3
Growth
09
Profit margin growing
Is the business getting better at turning sales into profit?
Full detail in Tier 2 & 3
Quality
10
Cashflow increasing
Is real cash backing up the dividend payment?
Full detail in Tier 2 & 3
Health
11
Profit up over 5 years
Is there a genuine multi-year growth track record?
Full detail in Tier 2 & 3
Growth
12
Sales up over 5 years
Is the top line actually growing or just costs being cut?
Full detail in Tier 2 & 3
Growth
13
Chart up 1 year
Does the market broadly agree with my thesis?
Full detail in Tier 2 & 3
Chart
14
Director buying
Are insiders putting their own money in?
Full detail in Tier 2 & 3
Sentiment
15
News positive
No profit warnings or red flags in recent months?
Full detail in Tier 2 & 3
Sentiment
16
Good annual reports
Does management communicate clearly and honestly?
Full detail in Tier 2 & 3
Quality
17
Strong company website
Does the IR site reflect professional management?
Full detail in Tier 2 & 3
Quality
18
Chart up 3 years
Is the medium-term trend genuinely positive?
Full detail in Tier 2 & 3
Chart
19
Chart up 5 years
Has the business created real value over a full market cycle?
Full detail in Tier 2 & 3
Chart
20
Bid/ask spread below 4%
Am I not losing too much just getting in and out?
Full detail in Tier 2 & 3
Practical
21
Target price set
Have I decided what I think it's worth before buying?
Full detail in Tier 2 & 3
Discipline
22
Chart up 10 years
The ultimate long-term test for a buy-and-hold stock.
Full detail in Tier 2 & 3
Chart

Three ways to use the checklist

Start free. Upgrade when you're ready for more detail.

Tier 1 — Free
£0
The Checklist

The complete 22-point checklist on one clean A4 page. Tick boxes and write in your own notes. Print one off for every stock you research.


All 22 criteria
Clean A4 print layout
Score box and notes section
PDF download — instant
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Tier 3 — Premium
£24 one-time
The Full Investor Guide

A dedicated page for each of the 22 criteria — what it is, why it matters for dividend investing, what good and poor look like, and how five real stocks score on it right now.


24-page professional PDF guide
One full page per criterion
Real stock examples throughout
My personal notes on each criterion
Buy for £24

Simple as it gets

The free checklist takes 30 seconds to get. The paid guides arrive instantly by email on purchase.

01

Pick your version

Free checklist for email capture, or buy the Tier 2 or 3 guide directly. No subscription, no recurring fees.

02

Get the PDF instantly

The free version arrives in your inbox straight away. Paid versions are delivered automatically by Gumroad the moment payment clears.

03

Print and use it

The checklists are designed to be printed on A4 paper. Fill one in for every stock you're considering buying.

04

Score your stock

Aim for 18 out of 22 before you buy. The checklist keeps you honest when a stock looks tempting but the numbers don't stack up.

Watch the full walkthrough on YouTube

I've made a complete video explaining every criterion in this checklist — where it came from, why it's there, and how I use it to pick dividend stocks for my own ISA. Free to watch.

Watch on YouTube

Important disclaimer

Everything on this page and in these guides reflects my personal approach to investing my own money in my own ISA. I am not a financial advisor and nothing here constitutes financial advice or a recommendation to buy or sell any security. All stock examples and data shown were correct at time of publishing but will have changed — always verify before investing. Past performance is not a guide to future results. Investing in stocks carries risk and you may get back less than you invest. Always do your own research and consider speaking with a qualified financial advisor before making investment decisions.