Buy and hold, hopefully forever…
I have just read William N. Thorndike’s brilliant The Outsiders, which identifies the traits and techniques of the CEOs that ran (or run) some of the best-managed companies of the last fifty years. A few of these names I had heard of (Buffett, John Malone, and Katharine Graham), and some I hadn’t (Bill Anders, Bill Stiritz, […]
It has been a while since my last portfolio update, so I thought I would post a quick page about what I have been up to. In terms of total return, I certainly can’t complain as the portfolio has brought in +5.7%. While that is pleasant enough, on the other side of the coin, I […]
The Most Important Thing, by Howard Marks, is a thought-provoking book. Rather than focus on rules, formulae, metrics, or ratios, he concentrates on the psychology of investing. While a lot of investment books leave you with a feeling that a combination of discipline and rules will do the trick, Marks’ book leaves you asking questions and thinking […]
Shares in Alliance Trust, we are told, are the sort of thing that gets passed down from generation to generation; much like a Patek Philippe or the Grandparents’ silver teaspoon collection. Another thing that gets passed down is complaints about the trust’s performance and the ensuing promises of better to come. So, what has been the problem this […]
Terry Smith is a man who uses words like a sniper uses bullets and, if you want to read something worthwhile, then his latest report is worth investigating. Of course, nothing beats the original and so any (fortunate) Fundsmith investors (or prospective investors) should obviously go straight here and look for the “Short Form Report For Period Ended […]
The Voya Corporate Leaders Trust Fund was founded on one simple piece of logic – companies that prospered in the Great Depression could prosper in all economic and market conditions. The Trust’s founders therefore picked 30 of the strongest American corporations of that fairly grim time (1935) and bought them in equal amounts for their fund. The rule […]
There was much popping of corks and clinking of glasses in the City last week when the FTSE–finally–managed to surpass its previous closing peak of 6930, which was remarkably set on the last of 1999. Peaks being surpassed and earnings records being beaten should of course be something that happens with smooth regularity as economies advance […]
Paul Polman must be an ambitious man; not content with the mundane business of attempting to nudge Unilever’s earnings higher, he wants to reduce global poverty and address climate change into the bargain. In addition, according to this piece in the Telegraph, he also takes other business leaders to task for blindly chasing profits – […]
I have a soft spot for GSK; it was the first serious investment I made after I set up my ISA. It seemed to offer everything I was looking for: relatively cheap starting valuation, steady, predictable growth, a juicy dividend (paid quarterly, which is even better), global operations, and long track record of shareholder friendliness. We are […]
With Neil Woodford announcing earlier this week that he has sold out of Reckitt due to its rich price and now Hugh Yarrow at Evenlode Income reducing his position, I thought that I should take a quick look to see whether I can see what all the fuss is about. Reckitt Benckiser, for anyone who doesn’t know, makes cleaning and […]