I’m a big fan of dividend income. Not because I want to spend it on one-off treats but, instead, I like to use it to buy more shares. Take Kingfisher (LSE:KGF) as an example. It’s the parent company of B&Q and Screwfix. The group sells everything from sheds to kitchens. On Monday (15 April), a £20,000 investment (ignoring stamp duty and broker’s fees) would have bought me 8,025 shares. The declared dividend for its financial year ended 31 January (FY24) is 12.40p. Assuming this is repeated for the next 10 years, and I used the cash to buy more shares at their current price, I’d be able to purchase another 5,010 of them. After a decade, assuming no stock price change, my initial stake would have grown to £32,485. That’s enough to buy 73 of B&Q‘s cheapest wooden sheds! Unfortunately, dividends aren’t guaranteed. And looking at the recent history of Kingfisher’s earnings, it’s easy to see why. They’ve fluctuated significantly from one period to the next. And if profits are volatile, it’s likely that dividend payments will remain erratic. Financial year (31 January) Profit after tax (£m) Dividend per share (pence) 2020 8 3.3 2021 592 5.5 2022 843 12.4...