Tag Archives: IND
(Late) Review of My first years investments
My end of first calendar year investing review and yes its very late! I had written but not published. I thought it might still be of interest to some so hear it is….with a couple of updates clearly marked.
I will try and keep this to an analysis of my trades in 2012. The good, the bad, the ugly. I only really started 5 months ago but it’s a new year and seems appropriate to look back.
Update: Ive since sold two thirds of my position as the court case didnt end early. Result is due in two months and i expect a slow drift downwards during the vacuum.
UPDATE: mining stocks rose along with other shares during the last 3 months, Frontier are back at the level I bought them hoorah. I continue to hold.
UPDATE: idid sell NBI for a small profit but held THAL after further analysis…. Great decision they have tripled on new contracts 🙂
Nostra Terra – NTOG – A recent buy on the tip of a well known private investor/blog owner BrokerManDaniel. Recent well results wre good and he obviously believes that well results due soon for nearby wells have positive read across. It all sounds plausible and im happy to take a small punt with near term catalyst. Ill tell you what i’ve learnt from this once well results are out :-p UPDATE: results were good and I sold out on a rise. Decent profit.
ViaNet – VNET – A paulypilot favourite. Software developer for restaurants/bars who want to track drinks sales from the tap. Fairly easy idea to understand. Definately scalable. The company has undergone a transformation away from petrol forecourt systems in previous years so i think this company is somewhat misunderstood but will be re-discovered by investors if it can start producing good results. UPDATE: Underwhelming full yr results have pushed the SP lower. I continue to hold.
CarpetRight – CPR – Short – How can somethign so right be so wrong? Daring feats of levitation by Caprpetright keep its on a P/E of somethign like 50. Ridiculous. I’m even on this at present and wondering how much patience i have left. Recent results were in my view disappointing, they still make bugger all profit and Europe has worsened for them. Perhaps at some point some owners will wake up to the ridiculous magic carpet ride and sell leading to a re-rating.
This has reminded me that the market can defy logic, and of the famous phrase attributed to Keynes i think that the market can stay wrong longer than you can stay solvent.
JPR – Johnston Press – Short – I lost money as this rose and hit my stop following a results announcement that i took as fairly negative considering their significant troubles (debt, newspapers, cash flow etc) Obviously the market disagreed and i lost a small amount of money quite easily. I havnt researched this company further sice but at the time i don’t remember thinking this company has a great chance of survival. Nevertheless am i prepared to disagree with the market in the short to medium turn, risking untold losses if im wrong? No. Another trade that reminded me of the importance of market sentiment. Focusing on company fundamentals alone is not enough (in the short or medium term at least).
Falkland Island Oil and Gas – FOGL – A short term trade. Massive interest in this as results for the potentially massive Loligo well were due imminently. The market took a sudden drop just as results were expected. I speculated that this might be a news leak. Who knows but the drill result was disappointing and the share price dropped.
FGP – FirstGroup – Large company with debt expecting to maintain the dividend which was something silly over 10%. Maybe it was 13%. I bought prior to trading update and expected the price to rise once dividen guidance was maintained. Well the price didnt really react. Normally high yields are a sign that the market believes the dividend will be cut. It was only a short term idea so i sold out for about evens.
SRT – Software Technology – Very small loss. I tried to buy in before a results statement and the results weren’t as great as we all hoped. They still have a great product and the market is potentially huge but orders aren’t coming in . Could be great investment but its been a bit of a let down for past couple of years.
I’ve been reminded that buying in advance of results may or may not work. It helps if you have an insight the market doesnt – i remember years ago seeing SuperDry clothing everywhere and planned to buy in before the following results announcement….i wish i had!
SnoozeBox – ZZZ – Highlighted on Paulypilots blog. very intereting idea about portable temporary accomodation in refurbished shippig containers. It rallied well following positive trading updates. Rebooking rates are high but i sold once the value of the company started to look high for an unproven company still in its first year i believe.
Chariot Oil and Gas – CHAR – Message board rumours persuaded me to take a small position. Nothing happened. Price drifted. Only buy on your own conviction i no tell myself.
Aurelian Oil and Gas – AUL – Looked attractive in that last RNS said management were about to come to a decision about the companies future. Without going into the whole story this was likely to be a good strategic decision for the company. Made a small profit.
IndigoVision – IND – Another Paulypilot highlighted company. Very bullish trading statement about growth rates in its markets and wanting to match or exceed this. Following RNS was less enthusiastic and the share price reflectd this. Without such 20% growth promise i sold at a loss.
PV Crystalox Solar – PVCS – I’ve writen this up previously on my blog and on the Motley Fool message boards. I still hold at a paper gain and expect this to rise further until management disclose the restructuring terms and most importantly the cash return. 90m euros in cash. 50m euro mkt cap even after recent gains.
All in all I have learnt a lot and I am enjoying my new ‘part time job’.