Millions of Americans could be getting stimulus checks of $2,000 or more, according to President Donald Trump. While the new stimulus checks are not official, they could serve as relief for higher prices and macroeconomic uncertainty and also serve as future stock investments by some consumers.
Here’s a look back at how consumers who chose to invest their three stimulus checks from 2020 and 2021 into stocks previously did.
Trump Promises Tariff Dividend Checks
The future stimulus checks have been given many titles, including Trump referring to them as “tariff dividend” checks, related to income from tariffs charged on other countries for goods they export to the country.
Trump recently said the $2,000 checks could come to Americans by mid-2026 or after.
“Probably the middle of next year, a little bit later than that,” Trump said on Monday.
There are few details about who will be eligible for the checks, with Trump saying that Americans who are of “moderate income, middle income” will receive the payments.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent recently said the dividend checks will be paid to “working families,” with eligibility also determined by income.
“We will have an income limit,” Bessent said.
Bessent also previously suggested that, instead of payments being made by direct check, they could be made via tax relief.
While Trump said the payments would be made using tariff revenue, some experts are against the payments and instead want tariff revenue to go towards the national debt. The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget estimates the payments could come with a price of around $600 billion, or twice what tariffs are expected to bring in.
The stimulus checks, or dividend checks, will need congressional approval, according to Bessent. Congress previously approved three stimulus payments in 2020 and 2021 related to the COVID-19 pandemic to help with rising costs and job losses.
In 2020, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Act (CARES Act) was signed into law. Under the law, Americans received three rounds of stimulus payments. While some used the money for bills and to boost their savings, others chose to invest in stocks and cryptocurrencies.
The CARES Act paid out $1,200 to eligible adults and $500 more for those with qualifying children for its first stimulus payment.
The subsequent Tax Relief Act of 2020 paid out an additional $600 per eligible adult and up to $600 more for those with qualifying children in December 2020. The American Rescue Act of 2021 provided an additional $1,400 payment to eligible adults and up to $1,400 for those with qualifying children.
Here’s a look at the return a consumer would have if they put their stimulus checks ($1,200, $600 and $1,400) into the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (NYSE:SPY), which tracks the S&P 500 or into shares of Apple Inc (NASDAQ:AAPL), NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA) or Tesla Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA), three of the most well-known publicly traded companies.
Prices are split-adjusted. While the same returns below can not be promised with future stimulus checks, investors who put the money they don’t need from the payments into the stock market could see their investments grow over time.
Stimulus Checks into SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust
Investing in the broader market, such as the S&P 500 index, may have been a popular option for anyone who invested their stimulus money. Here’s what that looked like:
- $1,200 Check: 4.33 SPY shares, now worth $2,865.07, +138.8%
- $600 Check: 1.60 SPY shares, now worth $1,058.69, +76.4%
- $1,400 Check: 3.58 SPY shares, now worth $2,368.81, +69.2%
At today’s price of $661.68 for SPY, the $3,200 invested in the ETF would be worth $6,292.57.
Stimulus Checks into Apple Stock
Apple is one of the most popular stocks and could have been a popular choice from investors looking to park their $3,200 into one company. Here’s what that looked like:
- $1,200 Check: 17.89 AAPL shares, now worth $4,849.62, +304.1%
- $600 Check: 4.32 AAPL shares, now worth $1,171.07, +95.2%
- $1,400 Check: 11.55 AAPL shares, now worth $3,130.97, +123.6%
Based on today’s price of $271.08 for AAPL, the $3,200 invested in the stock would be worth $9,151.66.
Stimulus Checks into Nvidia Stock
Back in 2020, Nvidia was worth less than $500 billion and known most for gaming GPUs and not known as the AI giant it is today. Investors who loved gaming or saw the future growth of AI may have invested in Nvidia. Here’s what that looked like:
- $1,200 Check: 184.33 NVDA shares, now worth $34,206.12, +2,750.5%
- $600 Check: 45.91 NVDA shares, now worth $8,519.52, +1,319.9%
- $1,400 Check: 108.61 NVDA shares, now worth $20,154.76, +1,339.6%
At today’s price of $185.57 for NVDA, the $3,200 invested in the stock would be worth $62,880.50.
Stimulus Checks into Tesla Stock
Tesla was an incredibly popular stock with retail traders back in 2020 and 2021 and likely saw some new investments from the stimulus checks. Here’s what that looked like:
- $1,200 Check: 30.50 TSLA shares, now worth $12,253.68, +921.1%
- $600 Check: 2.69 TSLA shares, now worth $1,080.73, +80.1%
- $1,400 Check: 6.04 TSLA shares, now worth $2,426.63, +73.3%
At today’s price of $401.76 for TSLA, the $3,200 invested in the stock would be worth $15,761.04.
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