My Portfolio

01 January 2023
By Maynard Paton

Happy 2023! I hope you survived last year’s tough market and continue to find my blog useful.

A summary of my portfolio’s 2022:

• Total return of -23.3% (Q4: +0.2%)*;
• 2 holdings recorded a gain while 9 holdings recorded a loss;
• Returns ranged from up 23%, for Bioventix, to down 67%, for System1;
• One share was topped-up: City of London Investment, and;
• No new shares were purchased and no shares were sold.

(*Performance calculated using quoted bid prices and includes all dealing costs, withholding taxes, broker-account fees, paid dividends and cash interest)

I publish a portfolio review after every quarter (Q1, Q2 and Q3), and this post recaps my October/November/December activity as well as my 2022 performance.

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30 June 2022
By Maynard Paton

Happy Thursday! I trust your shares continue to perform better than mine during 2022.

A summary of my portfolio’s progress:

• Q2 return: -2.9%*.
• Q2 trades: None.
• YTD return: -15.7%* (FTSE 100: -1.0%)
• YTD winners/losers: 2 winners vs 9 losers.

(*Performance calculated using quoted bid prices and includes all dealing costs, withholding taxes, broker-account fees and paid dividends)

My portfolio’s 2.9% Q2 drop leaves my shares 15.7% lower this year and nursing their worst half-year decline since I commenced this blog at the start of 2015. I think I have to go right back to the second half of 2011 to find a similarly underwhelming six-month performance.

At least Q2 did not reveal any major RNS disappointments. Andrews Sykes, Mountview Estates and M Winkworth in fact lifted their ordinary dividends while S & U and Tasty disclosed promising progress despite the uncertain economy.

But the market’s disillusionment towards smaller companies is leaving many of my shares marooned at best.

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01 April 2022
By Maynard Paton

Happy Friday! I trust your shares have performed better than mine so far this year.

A summary of my portfolio’s first quarter:

• Q1 return: -13.2% loss* (FTSE 100: +2.9% gain).
• Q1 trades: None.
• Q1 winners/losers: 0 winners vs 11 losers.

(*Performance calculated using quoted bid prices and includes all dealing costs, withholding taxes, broker-account fees and paid dividends)

My portfolio’s 13.2% Q1 drop is sadly my worst three-month performance since I commenced this blog at the start of 2015. My largest three-month declines prior to this year were 11% during August, September and October 2018 and 8% during January, February and March 2020.

The primary cause of my Q1 reversal was a profit warning from (by far) my largest holding, System1. Not helping matters were underwhelming results from (what was) my second-largest holding, Tristel.

The rest of my portfolio seems to have suffered from the market’s general unease towards smaller companies.

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01 January 2022
By Maynard Paton

Happy 2022! I hope you profited from last year’s strong market and you continue to find my blog useful.

A summary of my portfolio’s 2021:

• Total return of +24.5% (Q4: +4.6%)*;
• 8 holdings recorded a gain while 3 holdings recorded a loss;
• Returns ranged from up 104%, for System1, to down 20%, for Bioventix;
• Two shares were topped-up: System1 and M Winkworth, and;
• No new shares were purchased and no shares were sold.

(*Performance calculated using quoted bid prices and includes all dealing costs, withholding taxes, broker-account fees and paid dividends)

I publish a portfolio review after every quarter (Q1, Q2 and Q3), and this post recaps my October/November/December activity and my 2021 performance.

Read more

30 September 2021
By Maynard Paton

Happy Thursday! I trust your shares are flourishing and that you still find my blog useful.

A summary of my portfolio’s third quarter:

• Q3 change: +5:1%*
• Q3 trades: none
• YTD change: 19.0%*
• YTD winners/losers: 9 winners vs 2 losers

(*Performance calculated using quoted bid prices and includes all account fees, dealing costs, withholding taxes and paid dividends)

I am pleased the portfolio gains recorded during the first half of the year were extended during Q3.

Newsflow from my shares has been generally encouraging, and I hope boardrooms will remain optimistic as the pandemic subsides.

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01 July 2021
By Maynard Paton

Happy Thursday! I trust your shares are thriving and that you still find my blog useful.

A summary of my portfolio’s progress:

• Q2 change: +7:4%*
• Q2 trades: System1 and M Winkworth
• YTD change: +13.2%*
• YTD winners/losers: 9 winners vs 2 losers

(*Performance calculated using quoted bid prices and includes all dealing costs, withholding taxes, broker-account fees and paid dividends)

I am pleased the portfolio gains recorded during Q1 were extended during Q2. Recent RNSs from my portfolio have been mostly encouraging, and I anticipate boardrooms will remain optimistic as the pandemic subsides and social restrictions ease.

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01 April 2021
By Maynard Paton

Happy Thursday! I trust your shares have enjoyed a positive start to the year.

A summary of my portfolio’s first quarter:

• Q1 gain: +5.4%* (FTSE 100**: +5.0%).
• Q1 trades: None.
• Q1 winners/losers: 6 winners vs 3 losers (and 2 non-movers).

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01 January 2021
By Maynard Paton

Happy 2021! I hope you survived last year’s volatile market and you continue to find my blog useful.

A summary of my portfolio’s 2020:

• Total return of 16.9%*;
• Eleven holdings recorded a gain while one holding recorded a loss;
• Returns ranged from Daejan, up 43.5%, to System1, down 9.6%;
• Two shares were topped-up: S&U and System1, and;
• One share was sold entirely: Daejan.

(*Performance calculated using quoted bid prices and includes all dealing costs, withholding taxes, broker-account fees and paid dividends)

I publish a portfolio review after every quarter (Q1, Q2 and Q3), and this post recaps my October/November/December activity and my 2020 performance.

Read more

01 October 2020
By Maynard Paton

I trust your shares have performed well during the last three months.

A quick summary of my portfolio’s third-quarter and year-to-date progress:

• Q3 gain: +4.4%*
• Q3 trades: None.
• YTD gain: +3.4%* (FTSE 100: -20.2%**)
• YTD winners/losers: 4 winners vs 8 losers 

(*Performance calculated using quoted bid prices and includes all dealing costs, withholding taxes, broker-account fees and paid dividends. **Includes reinvested dividends.)

The news from my shares during Q3 was generally satisfactory in the circumstances. 

Among my holdings releasing results during the quarter, two reported lockdown-lowered profits that were complemented with promising director recovery talk. One holding meanwhile lifted its dividend 11% and another announced a very unexpected special payout.

After making no trades during the second quarter, I did not buy or sell during this latest quarter either. Never before since starting this blog during 2015 have I refrained from adjusting my portfolio for six months.

How companies will fare as the pandemic continues is still impossible to predict. I remain 25% in cash and hope a few obvious bargains may one day appear. 

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31 March 2020
By Maynard Paton

I always like to start my quarterly portfolio reviews with a happy welcome. But not this time.

The country faces a national emergency. Lives are at risk, supermarkets have empty shelves, jobs are being lost…and the finer points of individual shares no longer seem that important.

I have nonetheless decided to maintain this blog through these difficult times — although future posts may be sporadic.

I hope you will find my updates useful. One day I will look back at what I have published to remember how I coped (or not!) with the crisis. I may even emerge from these events a much wiser investor.

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