At buysellkeep.com, we love a good “freebie.” But we’re not talking about those stale samples at the grocery store. We’re talking about Free Stock—the kind that pays you a dividend while you sleep, with absolutely zero of your own money left at risk.

Today, we’re breaking down a masterclass in the Up 40% Free Stock Strategy using a stock that isn’t a Silicon Valley darling, but a salty sea dog: Nordic American Tankers ($NAT).

The Setup: Buying When the Ships Were Down

Back in 2023, the world was obsessed with AI models that could write bad poetry. We were obsessed with Suezmax tankers that could move 1 million barrels of oil.

• Step 1: On July 07, 2023, we took a “nibble”—30 shares at $3.6695.
• Step 2: On October 05, 2023, we saw the opportunity and pounced, buying 375 more shares at $3.9891.

Total Skin in the Game: $1,606.00 (405 shares).

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The Math: Turning Oil into “Free” Cash

The strategy is simple: Collect dividends and sell just enough principal to get your initial $1,606.00 back. Anything left over is a “House Position.”

1. The Dividend Rain (2023-2026): NAT is a dividend machine. Between October 2023 and March 2026, we collected 9 consecutive payments.

• Total Dividends: $328.05

2. The Exit (March 03, 2026): The stock price climbed as tanker rates hit multi-year highs. We sold 255 shares at $5.7197.

• Cash from Sale: $1,458.52

3. The Final Tally:

• Cash Back: $1,458.52 (Sale) + $328.05 (Dividends) = $1,786.57
• Total Profit (Free Cash): $180.57
• FREE SHARES REMAINING: 150 Shares

We have our original $1,606 back in our pocket, an extra $180 for a celebratory dinner, and 150 shares of NAT that cost us exactly $0.00.

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Why NAT Was a “No-Brainer” in 2023

Some call it “luck.” We call it looking at the numbers while everyone else was looking at ChatGPT.

1. The “Stupid Cheap” Valuation

In October 2023, NAT was trading at a P/E ratio of just 7.5x. To put that in perspective, the broader market was trading at double that, and tech “growth” stocks were in the stratosphere. You were buying a company with a massive physical fleet for the price of a lemonade stand.

2. The Dividend Yield Trap (That Actually Worked)

At our buy price of ~$3.98, NAT’s dividend yield was a staggering 12.39%. Usually, a yield that high is a warning sign of a dividend cut. But in NAT’s case, it was a reflection of the Suezmax Scarcity. There were almost zero new tankers being built, which meant charter rates stayed high, and the cash kept flowing.

3. The AI “Physical” Play

AI needs power. Power needs energy. Energy needs to be moved. While everyone was buying $NVDA, we bought the “pipes” of the global energy market. Growth in oil transit reached 1.31M barrels per day by late 2025, pushing our NAT shares to the $5.70+ exit target.

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The Bottom Line

We now own 150 shares of a company that is currently yielding roughly 8% on its current price, but for us, the yield is infinite because our cost basis is zero. This is how you build a portfolio that survives market crashes—by playing with the house’s money.