Phil Oakley’s new book, How to Pick Quality Shares, details a three-step process for selecting profitable stocks. It’s the kind of investment book I like because it’s mostly focused on numbers and ratios, and it approaches the topic of investing … [Read more...] about How to Pick Quality Shares: A book review
Who is the heavyweight dividend champion?
One argument against investing in mega-cap dividend stocks is that elephants don’t gallop, and it's true; they don’t. However, as a dividend-focused investor I’m not necessarily looking for companies that can grow at ten or twenty percent each … [Read more...] about Who is the heavyweight dividend champion?
My journey to a million pound portfolio
One million pounds is a lot of money. It’s more than enough for most people to retire on, and becoming a millionaire remains a long-term dream for many. That’s why I’ve chosen one million pounds as the new long-term goal for my defensive value … [Read more...] about My journey to a million pound portfolio
Is Diageo still an attractive dividend growth stock?
In recent years, Diageo's dividend growth and capital gains have been outstanding. But Diageo's share price has already gained more than 200% since the financial crisis, so is it too late to jump on board? In this blog post I try to decide if … [Read more...] about Is Diageo still an attractive dividend growth stock?
Can KCOM Group maintain its 6% dividend or is it a yield trap?
KCOM Group's dividend yield is currently more than 6%. That makes it attractive, but it also puts it squarely in yield trap territory. For a high yield stock, KCOM is interesting because it's a company of two halves. The first half can trace … [Read more...] about Can KCOM Group maintain its 6% dividend or is it a yield trap?
Sold: BAE Systems returns 141.5% over six years
After almost six years BAE Systems, one of the first companies to join the UKVI model portfolio, has been sold. In terms of raw numbers, the results look like this: Purchase price: 308p on 21st June 2011 Sale price: 643.5p on 8th May … [Read more...] about Sold: BAE Systems returns 141.5% over six years
S&P 500 valuation and projection: 2017 Q2
In this post I’m going to do a valuation and projection for the S&P 500 using Robert Shiller’s CAPE ratio. I think this is worth doing on a regular basis because it gives you a good idea of where a particular market is in its valuation cycle … [Read more...] about S&P 500 valuation and projection: 2017 Q2
5 Dividend champions with high returns on capital
Consistent dividend growth is something that many dividend investors look for, and dividend champions are companies that have achieved it for 25 years or more. However, it's an extremely difficult feat to achieve and as a result there are very few … [Read more...] about 5 Dividend champions with high returns on capital
Some more questions to help you avoid yield traps
Last month I outlined six questions designed to help investors avoid potential yield traps. This month I’ll cover four more. These four questions, plus the six from last month, look for a variety of warning signs including: bad management … [Read more...] about Some more questions to help you avoid yield traps
Defensive value portfolio review: 2017 Q1
Another quarter has flown by and so it’s time again for a review of the defensive value portfolio’s progress against its primary goals. As well as just talking about performance, I’ll try to highlight areas of my approach to investing which you … [Read more...] about Defensive value portfolio review: 2017 Q1