As featured in this month’s Master Investor Magazine. “To reduce risk it is necessary to avoid a portfolio whose securities are all highly correlated with each other. One hundred securities whose returns rise and fall in near unison afford little protection than the uncertain return of a single security.” – Harry Markowitz, 1968 Early Days…
GKN at 327p after last week’s good news on UK motor production figures… The GKN (Guest Keen & Nettlefold, as it used to be properly known when a steel production company) share price last seen was 327p. That is now 16% down on this year’s earlier peak of 389p. What prompts me to give it…
My brief analysis of the Greek war of Interdependence and what it means for equity markets. Even without the urging of Spartan women, manly Greek government officials have taken the war to the enemy. It is thrilling to see Greece invoking the spirit of its ancestors and living dangerously on the cliff edge of democratic…
Microsoft changed our lives. I couldn’t have written this article without their technology, and you couldn’t read it. Some say that Apple is the technological touchstone. Then again, so many seem to be drawn to Facebook, like moths to a flame. Many others swear by Twitter. Personally, there is one technology titan whose services I…
Centrica (CNA): at 270p last seen. The technical chart position looks inviting. Clearly something has to be done to put Centrica (CNA) back on the straight and narrow. A rights issue seems less likely to me than the better option of flogging off those expensive assets, on which it will be near impossible to make…
The company is now generating a lot of cash and has attractive dividend paying prospects. Given that and the fact that the share price is fifth lower than the 3,503p of last August, I rate the shares as highly attractive at this level. It is my opinion that Rio Tinto (RIO) shares at 2,769p (last…
Chocolate – indulgence, gift, comfort food the world over. The sweet treat is many things to many people, and a permanent part of the snack landscape – the snackscape if you will. Yet in a minor repeat of the infamous Kraft/Cadbury collision of 2010, the number of players in the chocolate world just declined by…
Since launching the JIC Portfolio in January 2012 the portfolio is up 114.5% as of Friday 19th June 2015. I have had some losses along the way but in general I have tried to cut losses before they inflict too much damage. The table below shows the nine worst losses in the JIC Portfolio since inception…
As a precursor to my Final Word article in the main magazine next month, I’ve been examining the firearms market in the US. One of the biggest names in guns, one that may even be the most famous name in the world, is now in voluntary Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. Colt. Heavily reliant on orders…
GlaxoSmithKline at 1370p. This company is undergoing considerable change in its strategic objectives. It looks attractive on both market consensus dividend estimates and on trading range grounds. Returning to the subject of Glaxo SmithKline (GSK), I see that the share price is at 1370p. I point out that is very close to the basement level of a year…
