This website has been offline for about 12 months whilst I focused on some personal changes and my main Businesses.
This Post is a potted catch-up, triggered by my visit to the London Investor Show / Mello yesterday. Some great speakers, including Lord Lee, who I had heard of but never encountered – but someone I will now look out for & seek out Podcasts & books. Very similar investment philosophy to mine.
The other main change is that I have inherited some money that I have put to use into my Portfolios. Having used up my ISA and SIPP allowances I needed to open a regular Trading account. This unfortunately means I will need to pay CGT on any gains here, but so be it. I plumped for an AJ Bell Trading Account due to its good reputation and low fees. Been very happy to date.
That was then – Holdings as of July 2023
This is now (2 November 2024)
Total return includes Dividends received since purchase. Apologies for non-pretty formatting. Airtable is good, but there are some parts of Stockmarket Eye that are sorely missed. I’ll work on this.
Changes since June 2023 and commentary
Commentary
Macro changes – I received an inheritance in a couple of lump sums. Normally the number of shares I have held has been in the mid-teens. I could have carried on, but just making my minimum holding larger, however as I started to use Stocko more, more shares came up as suitable candidates. Again, realising my limitations in that I am an armchair investor, not someone that can or wants to spend all day analysing I decided to widen my Portfolio, which spreads the risk from investments on the edge of my sphere of competence. The number of different Companies I hve invested in has shot up from mid-teens to just under 50!
Towards the summer of 2024 I’d had some decent runs with some of my Property shares and, whilst not unhappy, some had really shot up and I decided to sell a few down as the prospect of a Labour Government loomed – and materialised.
Changes since June 2023 then:
Buys
- EPWN – Epwin 72p. Window Manufacturer. Decent DY with cover. Seems a solid enough Business.
- VP. – VP 5.79. Tool hire Business, poised for any investment in Housing benefits.
- BRCK – Brickability 54p. Makes and sells bricks. Same philosophy as above.
- NWG – NatWest Bank 208p, then a second tranche with it dipped to 178. No brainer really. Bank, solid figures and earnings with low PER.
- BATS – BATS 2299p. Solid Divi payer, topped up.
- STB – Secure Trust Bank two tranches around 700p. Again low PER, plenty of asset backing.
- SFOR – S4 Capital 43p – Ad Agency set up by Maurice Saatchi after he left Saatchi. I think it will get absorbed into something larger one day.
- CLI – CLS Holdings 91p – Property investment. Super yield, benefit from decreasing interest rates.
- GTLY – Gately Holdings 125p. Professional and Legal Services/ Seems a solid Business.
- HSS – HSS Hire. 8p. Bit of a Boom or bust punt here. Might multiply – or go to zero. Meh.
- FDM – FDM Holdings 350p – Software house providing consultants. Decent PER and DY
- RWS – RWS Holdings 193p & top-up at 131 – AI Software. AI is everywhere and it has a fistful of Patents. Possible takeover candidate. Topped up after a profit miss, but only just, this seems so undervalued right now.
- JUP – Jupiter Fund Management 88p – Fund Managers seem particularly cheap at the moment
- IMB – Imperial Brands 1687p – topping up a stalwart dividend payer
- CRST – Crest Nicholson 188p – Topping up an out of favour Property stock
- Sidenote. CRST was subject to a takeover bid and I normally sell using my ‘Gift Horse’ principle. I didn’t and subsequently the Bid was dropped. The shareprice fell back to its purchase level again. D’Oh.
- EVOK (was 888) – Evoke/888 82p + top-up at 72p. Another Boom or bust share. If it can tackle its debt there is a greatly underpriced business.
- MNG – M&G 202p – See earlier comment about Fund Managers
- AVAP – Avation 145p – Bought after it was highlighted on Stocko. A lot of buried value here, especially in Aircraft purchase options, that other can buy to jump the queue. Some say it’s undervalued by about 50%.
- STJ – St James Place 497p – See above, but this was also bittersweet as SJP managed the funds that were used to grow the Portfoilo. ‘Managed’ being a generous term as it managed a paltry 4% pa return. This was my way of getting my own back from the bombed-out share price and SJP Associates’ lack of care.
- LGEN – Legal & General 228p – A stalwart that I should really have held anyway. Undervalued, decent dividend payer.
- PRU – Prudential 696p. Been under pressure because of the China / Hing Kong connection. I have hopes that when China recovers, som Chinese Financial Business will take an interest in it. Until then, lie back and think of the Dividends.
- PHNX – Phoenix 477p – Another High Yield player.
- WPP – WPP 743p – A big player fallen on hard times.
- TATE – Tate & Lyle 598p – no longer into sugar, but some interesting businesses in its portfolio.
- RWA – Robert Walters 381p / 339 + top-up on a dip – Recruitment. Out of favour decent Company. Price dipped on what was perceived as a profit warning but I’m not convinced.
- SDR – Schroders 341p – See above…
- OSB – OS Bank 375p – Low PE, excellent yield.
- KGH – Knights Group 128p – Professional Services
- LIO – Liontrust Asset Management 581p – you know the pattern by now…
- IOM – Iomart 88p – nice solid recurring revenues
- HEAD – Headlam 130p – Flooring Company, fallen on hard times, but if Labour’s drive for more property builds takes off…
- GSK – Glaxo – One of those I’ve been in and out, catching the cycles. Back in. Big, but not that big it couldn’t be swallowed up.
Buys and subsequent sells
- VOD – Vodafone 63 / 70p – Trading the volatility whilst waiting for my existing holdings to turn a profit. One day, Rodney…
- SSP – SSP Group 143 / 160p – Sold as it was in profit and I couldn’t actually see the reasoning as to why I had it anyway.
- BT.A – BT Group 105 / 145p – Caught this just right when it surged after Results. Sold as I saw it as fairly valued and could better deploy my money elsewhere.
- HFD – Halfords 149 / 146p – is it me, or do they never seem to be busy? Got my money back once you include dividends.
Sells
- CEY – Centamin – one I have been trading on and off. Missed out on a takeover bid, unfortunately
So there you have it 12 or so months of catch up. Hopefully going forwards I’ll be more timely with my reporting. Off to buy Lord Lee’s Book.