The Radio Girl

February Number$

Since the new year began, I've fallen out of the habit of posting my current stock holdings and monthly portfolio gains on the blog.  Not sure why that is.  

Have I become paranoid about tossing our personal financial details out into cyberspace?  

Or maybe I'm just a fragile, shy little bunny who doesn't want to brag when she has a good month in the markets.  Huh?  

"Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha haha haha haha haha hahahahaha... whew".  Okay, clearly that's not it.

Posting my monthly holdings and gains is the best way for me to stay accountable to myself and our investing strategy, which is, in a nutshell:

• saving mucho dinero to invest (30% to 50% of our annual income)
• buying solid companies at a low price and hanging on for the ride
• trading in/out of the more volatile stocks
• owning no more than 15 companies - the max # I can keep track of 
• chasing yield (which no one should EVER do)

This strategy is working for us and the proof is in the numbers:

• TFSA #1    Feb gain +3.27%    2011 Year to Date +2.94% (January was blah)
• TFSA #2    Feb gain +5.87%    2011 Year to Date +9.10%
•  LIRA        Feb gain +3.54%    2011 Year to Date +8.88%
•  RRSP       Feb gain +2.77%    2011 Year to Date +10.24%
•  non reg    Feb gain +2.77%     2011 Year to Date +8.03%    

Earlier this month I took profits on my two big trading stocks, so roughly 1/3 of the entire portfolio is now in cash***.  

Current holdings include:

• Student Transportation
• Alaris Royalty Corporation
• Chorus Aviation
• Inter Pipeline
• Pembina Pipeline
• Yellow Media

Yup, that's it.  Only six companies.  Which means if we hold 33% cash, then several of these equities must make up more than 10% of the entire portfolio.  That's another big no-no.  

The 'experts' (whoever they are) suggest that you should own no more than 5% to 7% of any one company for diversification sake.  I fully agree with this unwritten rule. Just like I agree with the 'Don't Chase Yield' rule.  

But I don't follow either of them.

Us shy and fragile Ninja Investor Bunnies usually ignore the rules  :) 

***  The Canadian loonie is at a three year high of $1.02955 against the US dollar. If/when it hits $1.05, some of our free cash will be buying a few American bucks in my US dollar account.

Loonie Update

FYI:  If you're a Canuck heading south anytime soon, the loonie just hit 0.99 (USD). 
Parity by the end of the day?

You can keep track of it here.

The CBC Meltdown Series

CBC has put together an excellent series documenting the recent worldwide financial crisis:  how it started, the greedy monsters who were at fault and all the mistakes made along the way. 

Each Meltdown segment is 45 minutes long, and explains our current world situation in easy-to-understand detail.  And the real life characters play out like a movie full of evil, money grabbing villains.

Definitely worth watching.

Part one:  The Men Who Crashed the World - greed and recklessness by the titans of Wall Street triggers the largest financial crash since the Great Depression.

Part two:  A Global Tsunami - The meltdown's devastation ripples around the world from California to Iceland and China.  Facing economic ruin, desperate world leaders are at each other's throats.

 Part three:  Paying the Price - In Iceland, protestors force a government to fall.  In Canada, ripped off autoworkers occupy their plant.  And in France, furious union members kidnap their bosses.

Part four:  After the Fall -Investigators begin to sift throught the meltdown's rubble.  Shaken world leaders question the very foundations of modern capitalism, while asking 'could it all happen again'?

In other news, My Fella and I are all packed up and ready to head south for the winter.  Only two more weeks...

We're ready for adventure!

Oh Canada

I am so sick of stupid stupid STUPID government decisions.

For the past 15 years I've personally been watching what I spend.  Cutting corners and buying generic instead of brand names.  Turning the heat down and putting on sweaters and socks.  And comparison shopping for bigger items.

Then I read this story about our Canadian government spending 2 million taxpayer dollars TO BUILD A FAKE LAKE IN THE MIDDLE OF TORONTO so G20 journalists have a pretty background for their media reports.

Does our so-called CONSERVATIVE government even know what the hell the word conservative means? 

Yup. I said hell.  I must be really mad.

ByeBye May: Don't Let the Door Hit Ya On the Way Out

What a crazy month for investors.

But crazy in a good way.  The big dips gave us lots of opportunities to buy... unless you're broke like me.  There wasn't much buying going on over here.

Our total portfolio is up overall on the year, but down for the month:

• RRSP  -2.9%
• LIRA   -6.7%
• TFSA  -3.4%
• non-reg  -3%

And our individual securities haven't changed.  In order of weighting:

• Student Transportation
• Alaris Royalty Corp.
• Superior Plus
• New Flyer Industries
• Crescent Point Energy
• Bonavista Energy
• Colabor Group
• Pembina Pipelines
• Artis REIT
• Yellow Pages Income Fund
• Inter Pipeline
• Avenir Diversified Income Fund
• Armtec Infrastructure
• Cash

It's probably going to be a nutty summer for investors.  If the current market volatility is freaking you out, it may be better not to look for awhile.  Volatility is your friend... until you start to panic and sell at the wrong time.

In the Biz News tomorrow:  The Bank of Canada will share its latest decision on interest rates, whether they go up or remain the same.

And in local news:  Our roma tomatoes are sprouting like crazy  :)

Mid May Stocks

Canadian Tire reported quarterly earnings this morning, topping analyst estimates at 0.63 cents per share (adjusted earnings before taxes).  I don't own any of the stock, but we've enjoyed excellent customer service at Canadian Tire over the past six months, and they seem to be improving both store layouts and stock availability, so I hope the company does well in the future. 

That being said, I have no interest in buying it. 

Just because you like a business or product, that doesn't automatically make it a good investment.  I have a very healthy interest in Coors Lite, but don't own Molson Coors (TAP) because the stock doesn't fit my portfolio strategy. 

It's really REALLY important to keep emotion out of your stock selection, something My Fella can tell you firsthand.  As an amateur goldpanner, he'd love to invest in every small cap miner on the Venture exchange.  Fortunately his financial advisor won't let him.  Just like she won't let him eat pork n' beans for breakfast.  Some things are just a bad idea  :)

No real changes in our portfolios this month.  I bought a teeny bit more YLO.UN when it dipped to $6 a couple days ago and now it's back up to $6.65.

Current holdings:

• Student Transportation
• Alaris Royalty Corp
• Superior Plus
• Crescent Point Energy
• Newflyer Industries
• Bonavista Energy
• Colabor Group
• Pembina Pipelines
• Yellow Pages
• Inter Pipeline
• Artis REIT
• Armtec Infrastructure
• Davis + Henderson Income Fund
• Avenir Diversified Income Fund
• CASH
• Morneau Sobeco

Our holdings are equally weighted and the bulk of the portfolio was purchased during the March '09 market lows.  I wouldn't be adding to any of these names at current prices, but there will be many more dips to come throughout the spring and summer, especially in the income trust area. 

And only two more sleeps 'til trust payday, our most favorite day of the month.  Even Shelbert loves trust payday.  Trust payday = more dog snacks!

 
Or maybe a sleek, new satellite receiver hat. 

She's been licking her front paws a lot so out came the always-stylish head cone.  According to the vet we saw yesterday, her paw pads might be a bit bruised. 

Shely-Belly is not used to getting out for so many daily walks (4 or 5 a day) on rougher terrain, out here in the country.  We've cut back on walks a bit and now she wears her cone when she's relaxing, at least until her pads harden up a little. 

She's still a happy little mutt, and mysteriously, we're getting much better TV reception.

Random Stock Talk

Edited at 8am PST:  The markets are up a bit this morning, as is the loonie, on news of the EU tossing a liferaft to Greece.  Overall the markets are lower than they have been since the beginning of the year and I'm hoping they stay low heading into the summer.

The stock markets are down and I'm relieved.

We needed this pullback.  And it wouldn't hurt to see another 5 - 8% decrease from here.

The Canadian dollar goes up and it goes down.  The price of oil goes up and down.  Real estate prices gradually rise and then every ten years-ish, prices correct.  We can't expect the stock markets to continually go up, up, up.  It's unrealistic and it certainly doesn't help folks who are waiting for a chance to invest new money. And if there are no new buyers, all the sellers are out of luck.

If you round up the nutty world events of the past few weeks (Greece tanking, the Goldman criminal investigation, Thursdays crazy market moves) it would be alarming if the markets kept rising.  In fact, at that point I'd probably start selling. 

Market corrections are healthy and necessary so even if you have a few positions in the red, be happy things have dropped off.  If you invest in solid, dividend paying companies, you shouldn't be too concerned about the day-to-day price anyway.

Just thought I'd throw in my two cents about what's going on.  Please note, I am NOT a licensed financial advisor, nor would I want to be.  I just play one on your computer :) 

In much happier news, the weather was gorgeous at our BC RV resort the past few days.   We were finally able to set up Shelbs new outdoor dog pad that we bought at Petcetera.

 

It was 70% off the regular price and we ended up snagging it for about $28.  In fact we bought Shelbert a whole bunch of stuff from Petcetera (dog food, dishes, snacks, dog bed, retractable leash, collar and a sqeak toy) for only $103 including PST/GST. 

It was hard to believe we got so lucky with that huge sale so I did a little research and it turns out Petcetera is seeking bankruptcy protection and prices have been slashed on almost everything in the store.  If you have pets, check out your local Petcetera cause I'm not sure when this blow-out sale ends, but they do have some excellent deals.

Back to the dog enclosure:  it's zinc coated, sturdy and very light - easy to store in the RV when we travel.  And it's super handy if I'm outside fiddling with the plants or we're in and out of JohnnyDisco and we can't keep a close eye on Shelbs. 

She likes it as much as we do.  But if I'm sitting in one place reading, she'd rather be a little closer, especially if she can find some sun...

Customer Service: Telus vs. American Express

Had a strange experience with American Express recently.

A month before my card was set to expire, I phoned American Express to make sure they had my correct mailing address.  Since I receive my statements and pay my bills online, I wasn't sure if they had our current address. 

Not to mention the fact that we've moved three times in the past three years and five times since 2005.  Kinda sounds like we're running from the law, doesn't it? 

Anyway, I made sure Amex had my current address, but they told me I had to phone back in ten days to request my new credit card.  I didn't know you had to phone them to get a new card after your old one expired (is that a new thing??) but it wasn't that big a deal, so I called them again around the middle of the month.  During call #2 they assured me the new card was on its way.  I called them a third time towards the end of the month, explaining again that I hadn't received my new card, and with only two days to go before month end I wondered where it was.  They reconfirmed my address and said, "Don't worry, it should be there in a couple days."

So three phone calls and five days after my old Amex card officially expired and I still hadn't received a new one, I phoned again - this time to cancel the card completely.

The first customer service guy was very polite and asked why I was cancelling.  I explained the whole story to him, including the three different agents who told me the card was on its way, and he apologized profusely and then asked if he could put me on hold. 

Without my knowledge, he transferred me to his supervisor who also apologized repeatedly for what happened.  I told her it wasn't her fault and that's when she uttered the magic words:  "Actually I'd like to apologize on behalf of American Express.  You've been a valued client for the past decade and we'd like to offer you a $50 gift card to Home Depot (or several other retailers of your choice) if you decide to stay with American Express."

Somehow she knew the exact four letter 'f' word that would warm the cockles of my frugal little heart:  free. 

I happily agreed to be bribed with a Home Depot gift card, and she in turn thanked me for staying on as a client of American Express.  It was win/win. 

Now if only Telus could get it together. 

We've only been with them for 5 weeks and they've already managed to send our very first bill to the wrong address, and THEN overcharge us for internet service.  Over the past 5 weeks we've had to phone them more than half a dozen times.

C'mon Telus, your first quarter results were nothing to brag about...and it's easier to retain current customers than try lure in new ones.

Bank of Canada Rate Unchanged

Haven't been posting much while we're gearing up for Mexico.

Lots of travel details to take care of plus we're both still working full-time. 

But I'm on top of the morning biz news/my portfolios and the non-reg account is humming along nicely.  Current holdings in order of weighting:

• Student Transportation
• Crescent Point Energy
• Altagas
• Armtec Infrastructure
• Superior Plus
• Bonavista Energy
• Inter Pipeline
• Pembina Pipeline
• First Capital Realty
• Killam Properties
• Artis REIT
• Davis + Henderson
• Colabor Group
• New Flyer Industries
• Morneau Sobeco
• Alaris Royalty
• Westcoast Energy preferreds
• Futuremed Healthcare
• Power Financial preferreds
• Sun Life Financial preferreds
• Cash

No big changes, but I have been slowly selling down my preferreds after nice 30% gains.

And big news this morning, the Bank of Canada has left the benchmark lending rate unchanged at 0.25%.  They've basically said they are leaving the rate the same until June 2010. 

Great news if you hold a variable rate mortgage or a personal line of credit.

And here's my daily random Mex pic  :)

Double Your Money

Bad news for US financial stocks.

 
Century old commercial lender, CIT Group, filed for bankruptcy tonight.  This isn't overly surprising but it IS a real kick in the pants to American citizens, since the US Government gave CIT $2.33 billion of TARP money (taxpayer money) in December 2008.  What a joke. 

US financials may be hit hard tomorrow.  Then again maybe not.  Who the heck knows what's driving market sentiment these days.  In the words of very smart money dude, David Rosenberg, "the stock market is divorced from economic reality".

On a totally different topic, I've been trying to remember the basic principles of compound interest, and how long it would take to double your money.  (Yes, this type of thing is fun for me  :)

After a bit of googling, I came up with this chart, which is based on a fixed annual rate of return:

• 5%: 14.4 years
• 6%: 12 years
• 7%: 10.3 years
• 8%: 9 years
• 9%: 8 years
• 10%: 7.2 years
• 11%: 6.5 years
• 12%: 6 years
• 15%: 4.8 years
• 20%: 3.6 years

So if you're earning 5% per year on your investments it will take 14.4 years to double your money, at 6% it would take 12 years, etc. etc.  Just thought you might like to know...

*And I made another $120 sale on Craigslist today.  Our house is emptying out really fast and My Fella has threatened to start duct-taping down everything he wants to keep. 

Silly Fella.  As if duct tape could stop me.