My Mad Method: What Next To Buy And Why - February, 2013 [View article]
Hi, Joemento.
It depends on how the deal goes down (if it goes down; they've been talking about something like this for years). I bought VOD because of their 45% stake in VZ, and because they're UK-based, so putting a foot on both sides of the pond with one stock, if you will. If VOD sells its stake to VZ, and I get VZ shares, that'll be great. Would probably sell the VOD shares and keep the VZ shares at that point, and see what would be the best use of the funds liberated by the VOD sale. (VOD isn't doing so great in Europe (who is?), and a lot of its dividend umph comes from the big dividend VZ pays VOD. I'm a little miffed that they chose to buy back shares this last go-round, but the price has dropped, so hopefully they're getting bargins with their share buybacks. I would've preferred that they pass that big VZ dividend along to us shareholders, but, c'est la vie...)
Folks, in the future, if anyone would like the blank copy of the MyMM spreadsheet, please PM me here on Seeking Alpha (there's a button under my picture at the top of the article on the left), and please be sure to include your email address, as I don't get that from SA.
My Mad Method: What Next To Buy And Why - February, 2013 [View article]
Thanks, FinalAnalysis.
Yeah, there will be pullbacks, and there will be run-ups, and in the end the market will trend upwards, as it always does historically. I know a lot of folks who came close to picking up the stock they wanted, only to see the price get almost to their limit order price, but not quite, and then take off from there. I don't want to be in that situation, and realistically, with the small number of shares and dollars (relatively) that I'm dealing with, the difference in price by a few percentage points really isn't enough for me to sit on too much cash on the sidelines waiting for the right day when the market really tanks to jump in. I've had some lucky days where I got in when there was a big dip, when I'd been planning to get in anyway, but there have also been times when the market took a dive a day or two after I made some purchases. In the end, it pretty much all works out, and my goal, after all, is for this portfolio to generate enough income from dividends to replace my paycheck when I retire, and by then any price fluctuations that I may or may not have taken advantage of now shouldn't be a factor...
My Mad Method: What Next To Buy And Why - February, 2013 [View article]
Thanks, Viperman. My thoughts exactly, wrt mutual funds and DIY... I've been burned by mutual funds and so-called "professionals" in the past, and am much happier being in control of my destiny by picking my own stocks...
If my picks wouldn't be yours, what would some of yours be?
My Mad Method: What Next To Buy And Why - February, 2013 [View article]
Thanks for the detailed number, DM!
Yeah, HRS came on my radar after I took the time to comb through David Fish's CCC list and look for companies that had really good 5 yr dividend CAGRs and still had high yields. David now includes the CDR number in his spreadsheet, so I sorted the Champions, Contenders and Challengers by that in descending order, then scanned thru the list looking for potential gems, and added a bunch of new stuff to my watchlist, like CBRL and DRI, along with HRS. I went with HRS to keep the money from the sale of FTE in the communications sector (which I used to work in, and feel has become one of the essentials of life; not unlike electricity, folks will do without other stuff before they stop paying their cellular bills). CBRL has jumped up almost 18% since I first started watching it back on February 7th, so I'm kinda mad at myself for not giving it a shot. Oh, well, can't win 'em all...
My Mad Method: What Next To Buy And Why - February, 2013 [View article]
Hi, Joey.
Actually, I did buy CLX for my wife's account, and you're right, it's been on a charge. I'd been watching it for a while, and kinda felt like it was running out of reach, but I picked some up for the wife's IRA on a small dip, and am really glad I did!
My Mad Method: What Next To Buy And Why - February, 2013 [View article]
Thanks, Respirate.
Yeah, that's one of the reasons I've held off on LMT for so long, but their price has gone up and down and is now pretty much where it was a year ago, so they seem to be weathering that storm pretty well. Decided to go ahead and give them a try, since they were scoring so well on the MyMM Rankings, and see if my thesis for MyMM holds up, rather than just chasing yield, which is what I've been doing for months...
It was hard to let FTE go, but I just didn't see things getting any better any time soon. Europe seems to have stagnated, and no one knows when or in which direction they'll head next. FTE has some great exposure outside of Europe, but the dividend cut was the deciding factor.
My Mad Method: What Next To Buy And Why - February, 2013 [View article]
Thanks, Manny.
I've got LNCO and KMR in my wife's IRA, and I don't want to have the same stocks in both of our accounts, as I look at them combined as a single "household", and want to keep the exposure to any one taking a hit to a minimum.
Watching SO, will take a look at PPL and ETR. Thanks. However, with WEC and NGG, I'm pretty happy with my utilities exposure; I also consider T and VOD to be "utilities", because that's really what they are and how they behave. However, as I expand the portfolio to try to reach the magic 50 positions, I'll need more options, so I'll take a look at these two.
Yeah, the international dividend thing is kindof the reason I didn't go with DCM, again. They score really well on the MyMM Rankings, but I just have this uneasy feeling about them that's kept me from pulling the trigger. Their next ex-div date is March 29th, and they only pay twice a year, so it looks like I've missed the "window" to get into them again, but that's OK. I like having some international exposure, but on the other hand holding multinationals like KO & MCD (in the wife's IRA) and INTC (separate account) gives me a lot of international exposure with domestic company security, if you know what I mean...
My Mad Method: What Next To Buy And Why - February, 2013 [View article]
Thanks, Rob.
No, I haven't figured out my average beta. Beta isn't something that I'm too concerned with at the moment, which is one of the reasons it's not the MyMM spreadsheet. The price fluctuations don't concern me as much as a company's ability to continue to pay and grow its dividend at a rate that beats inflation...
Yeah, I don't want to give the impression that I'm a day trader, 'cuz I'm not, and I'd be terrible at it! But having the low commissions from Interactive Brokers makes it much more palatable to make small purchases (or sales), rather than having to wait until I've accumulated enough cash to justify a $7 commission...
My Mad Method: What Next To Buy And Why - February, 2013 [View article]
Thanks for the comments, folks.
If you've read any of chowder's comments or Instablogs, you'll understand why I have so many positions. And, yes, the goal is to get to about 50 positions, equally allocated, so that no one position represents more than about a 2% impact to the portfolio's value.
@Vikingsfan: If you get to the point where you only have 5 positions, what happens if one of them takes a big hit? 20% of your portfolio takes that hit. In my case, only 3.57% (presently) would be at risk, and at 50 positions, only 2%.
The reason for holding the #1 and #2 stocks in a given sector/industry is not a matter of indecision, but of getting the best exposure to that industry via the top 2 performers. I own KO, and I've got PEP on my watchlist and would like to hold it someday. MO and PM are another good example (although right now I have LO in my portfolio, but am keeping an eye on PM). Where there are 2 top players, everyone else in that industry is fighting over table scraps...
@rnsmth: Not sure if you saw it on the list, but I do own WEC. It's one of David Van Knapp's Top Dividen Picks for 2013, which is one of the reasons why I went with it over SO when I first picked it up (last month?).
As Viperman states in the comments further down, I don't like just owning a mutual fund because of the fees, the knee-jerking to try to get the "next best thing" after the horse is already out the barn door, and all the other stuff they hold that I'm not interested in. I'm happy being a Do-It-Yourselfer...
My Mad Method: Replacing The MLPs In My IRA, Part 2 [View article]
To whom are you addressing your comment, gman? I never mentioned PER nor SDR myself, but I recall someone mentioning SDR in an earlier comment... Don't have time to look through all the comments at the moment...
My Mad Method: What Next To Buy And Why - February, 2013 [View article]
My Mad Method: What Next To Buy And Why - February, 2013 [View article]
My Mad Method: What Next To Buy And Why - February, 2013 [View article]
It depends on how the deal goes down (if it goes down; they've been talking about something like this for years). I bought VOD because of their 45% stake in VZ, and because they're UK-based, so putting a foot on both sides of the pond with one stock, if you will. If VOD sells its stake to VZ, and I get VZ shares, that'll be great. Would probably sell the VOD shares and keep the VZ shares at that point, and see what would be the best use of the funds liberated by the VOD sale. (VOD isn't doing so great in Europe (who is?), and a lot of its dividend umph comes from the big dividend VZ pays VOD. I'm a little miffed that they chose to buy back shares this last go-round, but the price has dropped, so hopefully they're getting bargins with their share buybacks. I would've preferred that they pass that big VZ dividend along to us shareholders, but, c'est la vie...)
Hope that helps...
My Mad Method: New Metric Added [View article]
Folks, in the future, if anyone would like the blank copy of the MyMM spreadsheet, please PM me here on Seeking Alpha (there's a button under my picture at the top of the article on the left), and please be sure to include your email address, as I don't get that from SA.
Thanks,
J.D.
My Mad Method: What Next To Buy And Why - February, 2013 [View article]
Yeah, there will be pullbacks, and there will be run-ups, and in the end the market will trend upwards, as it always does historically. I know a lot of folks who came close to picking up the stock they wanted, only to see the price get almost to their limit order price, but not quite, and then take off from there. I don't want to be in that situation, and realistically, with the small number of shares and dollars (relatively) that I'm dealing with, the difference in price by a few percentage points really isn't enough for me to sit on too much cash on the sidelines waiting for the right day when the market really tanks to jump in. I've had some lucky days where I got in when there was a big dip, when I'd been planning to get in anyway, but there have also been times when the market took a dive a day or two after I made some purchases. In the end, it pretty much all works out, and my goal, after all, is for this portfolio to generate enough income from dividends to replace my paycheck when I retire, and by then any price fluctuations that I may or may not have taken advantage of now shouldn't be a factor...
My Mad Method: What Next To Buy And Why - February, 2013 [View article]
If my picks wouldn't be yours, what would some of yours be?
Best of luck!...
My Mad Method: What Next To Buy And Why - February, 2013 [View article]
Yeah, HRS came on my radar after I took the time to comb through David Fish's CCC list and look for companies that had really good 5 yr dividend CAGRs and still had high yields. David now includes the CDR number in his spreadsheet, so I sorted the Champions, Contenders and Challengers by that in descending order, then scanned thru the list looking for potential gems, and added a bunch of new stuff to my watchlist, like CBRL and DRI, along with HRS. I went with HRS to keep the money from the sale of FTE in the communications sector (which I used to work in, and feel has become one of the essentials of life; not unlike electricity, folks will do without other stuff before they stop paying their cellular bills). CBRL has jumped up almost 18% since I first started watching it back on February 7th, so I'm kinda mad at myself for not giving it a shot. Oh, well, can't win 'em all...
:-)
My Mad Method: What Next To Buy And Why - February, 2013 [View article]
Actually, I did buy CLX for my wife's account, and you're right, it's been on a charge. I'd been watching it for a while, and kinda felt like it was running out of reach, but I picked some up for the wife's IRA on a small dip, and am really glad I did!
Thanks again!
My Mad Method: What Next To Buy And Why - February, 2013 [View article]
Yeah, that's one of the reasons I've held off on LMT for so long, but their price has gone up and down and is now pretty much where it was a year ago, so they seem to be weathering that storm pretty well. Decided to go ahead and give them a try, since they were scoring so well on the MyMM Rankings, and see if my thesis for MyMM holds up, rather than just chasing yield, which is what I've been doing for months...
It was hard to let FTE go, but I just didn't see things getting any better any time soon. Europe seems to have stagnated, and no one knows when or in which direction they'll head next. FTE has some great exposure outside of Europe, but the dividend cut was the deciding factor.
Thanks again!
My Mad Method: What Next To Buy And Why - February, 2013 [View article]
I've got LNCO and KMR in my wife's IRA, and I don't want to have the same stocks in both of our accounts, as I look at them combined as a single "household", and want to keep the exposure to any one taking a hit to a minimum.
Watching SO, will take a look at PPL and ETR. Thanks. However, with WEC and NGG, I'm pretty happy with my utilities exposure; I also consider T and VOD to be "utilities", because that's really what they are and how they behave. However, as I expand the portfolio to try to reach the magic 50 positions, I'll need more options, so I'll take a look at these two.
Yeah, the international dividend thing is kindof the reason I didn't go with DCM, again. They score really well on the MyMM Rankings, but I just have this uneasy feeling about them that's kept me from pulling the trigger. Their next ex-div date is March 29th, and they only pay twice a year, so it looks like I've missed the "window" to get into them again, but that's OK. I like having some international exposure, but on the other hand holding multinationals like KO & MCD (in the wife's IRA) and INTC (separate account) gives me a lot of international exposure with domestic company security, if you know what I mean...
Thanks again!
My Mad Method: What Next To Buy And Why - February, 2013 [View article]
No, I haven't figured out my average beta. Beta isn't something that I'm too concerned with at the moment, which is one of the reasons it's not the MyMM spreadsheet. The price fluctuations don't concern me as much as a company's ability to continue to pay and grow its dividend at a rate that beats inflation...
Yeah, I don't want to give the impression that I'm a day trader, 'cuz I'm not, and I'd be terrible at it! But having the low commissions from Interactive Brokers makes it much more palatable to make small purchases (or sales), rather than having to wait until I've accumulated enough cash to justify a $7 commission...
Thanks again!...
My Mad Method: What Next To Buy And Why - February, 2013 [View article]
If you've read any of chowder's comments or Instablogs, you'll understand why I have so many positions. And, yes, the goal is to get to about 50 positions, equally allocated, so that no one position represents more than about a 2% impact to the portfolio's value.
@Vikingsfan: If you get to the point where you only have 5 positions, what happens if one of them takes a big hit? 20% of your portfolio takes that hit. In my case, only 3.57% (presently) would be at risk, and at 50 positions, only 2%.
The reason for holding the #1 and #2 stocks in a given sector/industry is not a matter of indecision, but of getting the best exposure to that industry via the top 2 performers. I own KO, and I've got PEP on my watchlist and would like to hold it someday. MO and PM are another good example (although right now I have LO in my portfolio, but am keeping an eye on PM). Where there are 2 top players, everyone else in that industry is fighting over table scraps...
@rnsmth: Not sure if you saw it on the list, but I do own WEC. It's one of David Van Knapp's Top Dividen Picks for 2013, which is one of the reasons why I went with it over SO when I first picked it up (last month?).
As Viperman states in the comments further down, I don't like just owning a mutual fund because of the fees, the knee-jerking to try to get the "next best thing" after the horse is already out the barn door, and all the other stuff they hold that I'm not interested in. I'm happy being a Do-It-Yourselfer...
Thanks again!
My Mad Method: New Metric Added [View article]
My Mad Method: Replacing The MLPs In My IRA, Part 2 [View article]
My Mad Method: Replacing The MLPs In My IRA, Part 2 [View article]