Well, here I sit at the keyboard with nothing specific to write about. I haven't come across any interesting news stories that report on any portfolio holdings. Or any other stories catching my eye.
I've also been swamped with non-blogging duties and projects this week. So I haven't had time to write anything much at all.
My plan is to be writing more pieces like How to Research Foreign Stocks and How to Buy Stocks Listed on Foreign Exchanges. Not all about international investing, of course, but more original pieces. I get a lot of positive feedback from readers when I produce that type of content. And I think it gives Controlled Greed.com its own place in the sun.
That said, this blog is about my stock picks.
And its worth rests on the overall long-term performance of the stock picks made here.
Speaking of which, I did glance at my brokerage account this afternoon after the market closed. Everything seems to be doing well -- except Takefuji and Media General, of course -- but I imagine most portfolios have done fine lately.
And, I remain cautiously optimistic that Takefuji and Media General will prove to be profitable investments. But they will take some time to work out.
Look for me to add one or two more new positions to the portfolio in the coming weeks. I want to get the portfolio up to 25 holdings, and I'm not there yet. I've got three candidates that I'm checking out. Two based in the US and one foreign.
Let's what, if anything, happens.
John,
Is there a reason why you want to have 25 stocks in your portfolio? Joel Greenblatt has written in both his books that a portfolio of eight stocks in different industries can eliminate almost all of your non-market risk and that if you've done a lot of research and know the companies in which you've invested inside and out (which you obviously do), adding additional companies doesn't really help you diversify any better. Furthermore, knowing 25 companies well takes longer than knowing 15 companies well and wouldn't the extra time spent finding, say, 10 additional investments be better spent increasing the understanding of those top 15 investments?
Posted by: Alex | October 25, 2006 at 11:49 AM
Alex: I see it as personal comfort level. And for me that's 20-25 positions. I could perhaps go as high as 30, but don't think I'd be able to keep up with more than that.
Buffett wrote in his "Superinvestors of Graham-and-Doddsville" that some value managers held hundreds of stocks, others concentrated among a few.
Seth Klarman said you could hold 10 to 15 stocks. The guys at Tweedy Browne own 100 or so. Longleaf Partners Fund owns 20 stocks when it's fully invested. I don't think there's any magic number. For me, I feel comfortable with 20-25. :-)
Posted by: John | October 25, 2006 at 11:57 PM
"My plan is to be writing more pieces like How to Research Foreign Stocks and How to Buy Stocks Listed on Foreign Exchanges. Not all about international investing, of course, but more original pieces."
John,
These are my favorite posts as well. I look forward to seeing more of this type of thing on your blog. I'm sure the response will be very positive.
Posted by: Geoff Gannon | October 26, 2006 at 10:57 AM
Geoff: I appreciate that and thanks. Now if I can just find the time! ;-)
Posted by: John | October 27, 2006 at 12:27 AM