Amanda’s Trading Diary: Off to the races… kind of

Master Investor’s Amanda Taylor updates on her latest trading exploits and an unexpected investment opportunity.

So, from the heady highs of 14% up in June, I’m currently now up just 4% [sad face].

Despite this fall from grace, I was having a conversation with my husband this morning and telling him all about my exciting plans to buy more now that things are on the blip.

He said to me, “You’re the only person I know that seems happy about everything doing so badly”. It made me wonder – am I wrong to be thinking this way?

I don’t think I’m alone in feeling this, but it made me consider the psychology behind investing. Of course, I would be super happy if my stocks had continued on the upward trajectory, but that might have made it harder for me to buy more.

As someone in the ‘build’ phase of my portfolio and not looking to day trade or sell in the short term, yes, I am happy that my stocks aren’t currently performing well because it means I can buy more at a discount and get ready to (hopefully) ride that wave.

I can’t deny that seeing my portfolio up by 14% felt good at the time but the way things currently are doesn’t feel too bad knowing that I now have a second chance to buy even more and if I’m lucky see an even bigger spike next time.

I’m sure you’re all sick of hearing people talk about the unusual times we’re in – but it is true. And for me, knowing that COVID-19 isn’t going to be around forever (fingers crossed!) makes me feel confident in the potential ability of the stocks I choose to bounce back post-pandemic.

I’m in the process of transferring an old ISA so I’m looking forward to a spending spree once that has completed. I’ve seen some quite good traction with AJ Bell’s own funds (I have the Adventurous and Global Growth funds at the moment) so will be looking to top these up and maybe add some new ones. More on this later.

In other news, I was approached about an opportunity this morning to buy ownership of a racehorse – it’s not as surprising as it sounds given that I live in Oxfordshire, nestled close to Lambourn, the valley of the racehorse. I know that this is straying into the realms of gambling and ‘how to spend it’ rather than pure investing, but the opportunity caught my eye.

I LOVE horses (I have two retired ponies and I loan a riding horse) and for me I want to invest in sectors that I am passionate about or have some understanding of, so it’s a nice fit and I can’t overlook the fact that it’s a perfect opportunity for me to add another horse to my herd without my husband noticing!

So I’m off to do my research on bloodstock investing and the costs of owning a racehorse. If any MI readers have any insights in this space or would like me to share my findings, pop a comment below or send me an email to let me know.

My July shopping list:

Load up on Disney (NYSE:DIS) and Carnival (LSE:CCL)
Buy Apple (NYSE: AAPL)
Physical silver and gold

A racehorse…