The Stock Ranks system provides us with a framework and tool set for disciplined, cool headed investment. Like the office Christmas party we would all like to forget, I suspect many of us have some legacy (i.e. pre-Stockopedia) investments that don't quite fit this logical, ordered world but which we can't quite bring ourselves to sell (at a loss!) or which we hold onto in the expectation (blind faith?) that they will one day come good.
As an alternative to some of the Stock Rank driven NAPs portfolios that many of us (including me) are running in 2016 - either as shadow or real portfolios - I am planning to run a high fat, high cholesterol, ugly duckling portfolio of non-politically correct, guilty pleasure stocks to see how these perform against my own NAPs portfolio. I am charitably calling this a "Special Situations Porfolio", although it might be more appropriate to call it a "Special Needs Portfolio"... My one rule is that I have to own all of these stocks in my wider investment portfolio (albeit not in the size that I may shadow in this partcicular portfolio - now that would be stupid!). Not very scientific, but like the start of an AA meeting its the oportunity for me to say, "Hello, I'm Gus and I have invested in ,,,,,," as a means of starting the process of breaking some of my previous bad habits. Those of a tender persuasion please look away, as some of this may shock you. Defnitiely not one for widows or orphans....
Like my NAPs portfolio, I've invested - in this case a notional - £50,000 but in 15 initial positions (rather than the 25 in my NAPs). Some of these stocks I have held for over 7 years, others are relatively recent acquistions. Most have a "story" behind them; one or two are even the product of dipping into a dreaded bulletin board and taking a punt. Some of the recent ones have paid lip service to at least looking at the Stock Rankings, although by and large I've gone into these positions based on an "artistic" rather than "scientific" interpretation of the analysis. I will run the portfolio as of (offer) price levels of 24th December, 2015 and mark to the bid side of the market plus £9 buying commission and stamp duty where appropriate. I am not running the positions on an …
