Inspired by Paul Scott and puzzled by the fact that despite my reading much the same reports and listen to the same webcast as so many subscribers, my portfolio looks so different. So here's my top 10 (50% of my portfolio) plus a quick rationale.

  1. Tristel (LON:TSTL) 7% held since the were 50p (now £6) and top sliced at various points. They always look expensive and always go up. antiseptic devices for hospitals. Positives UK dominance in the market segments and growing overseas, small consumables which are repeat purchased. Concerns: if some of the AIM market's tax benefits are removed then shares such as Tristel, highly rated growing dividend payers might come down to earth with a bump. They have hidden slower growth for several years by buying distributors and hence turnover and margin look improved. Will they ever make it into the US?
  2. Dekel Agri-vision (LON:DKL) 7%, held since they were 12p (now 4.75p) but averaged down at 2p so currently in profit. I don't do miners but in a sense, this is a near equivalent. Positives a determined management team built the business from scratch over the past 10ish years. Processes fruit bought from local small holders into crude palm oil (CPO) add sells it locally. CPO prices are at a multi-year high. CPO yield will improve as palms originally sourced from their nurseries reach prime fruiting age. A new project to process cashew nuts is nearing commissioning. This will be a much bigger and better margin business than CPO. A third commodity is in the planning stages. The third project will share the location of the original cashew nut facility and should provide economies of scale. Executive Director Lincoln Moore tries very hard to communicate with shareholders. Concerns not all of the expansion plans have worked. DKL was planning a palm oil mill at a second location but shelved it due to volatile CPO prices - which reached record lows during spring 2020 and are now near record highs. Unconventional management and governance arrangements, Operations are in Cote d'Ivoire, company is Cyprus registered, Aim listed, run by Israelis, plus an Aussie. This is a truly entrepreneurial company, they are to be admired but will they prove to be a great investment?
  3. Burford Capital (LON:BUR) 6% everyone knows the story here and the debates about cash flows/collection and whether…

Unlock the rest of this article with a 14 day trial

Already have an account?
Login here