Author: Cornerman

Portfolio news – July 2016 additions

This month I have added some to an existing position again, first off Ahold Delhaize, which has finalized the merger in July and had an reverse split, there are now less stock available and I got extra dividend. Also less shares. In order to balance this out again I added to this position. I remain very positive about this stock.

I also added to the vanguard dividend appreciation ETF, It’s an product that is composed out of stocks that generate dividends, I do this when I have small amounts of cash left and it’s a low cost way of getting invested and be diversified at the same time. It’s ideal for everyone who doesn’t view finance and investing as a hobby. Because it’s low cost and maintenance free you really don’t have to pay attention and just add on a regular basis. Research shows it’s one of the best if not the best way to be invested, just buy an ETF that follows the index or is based on generating income.

Since I enjoy this as a hobby I tend to buy stocks rather than just ETF’s or other things like mutual funds and index funds. But if you are not, index and income ETF’s are a very good way of investing without having to do all the research into individual securities. And over time the ETF’s probably do better than my hand-picked selection. For me it’s also about the fun of doing the research. Time will tell.

The last addition to the portfolio is Bayer, which is a German company that is active in Healthcare and Agriculture , life science as it is described. It has a history of excellent growth and dividend keeps on going up, it has a good cash flow and isn’t high in debt. It’s maybe a bit on the expensive side at the moment, but I thinks that is generally the case in today’s markets.
Since this is a portfolio for the long term I am not to concerned about the price, and this stock is near it’s year lows so it’s not way too high.

So that’s it for this month, now on to the research for the next additions.

Audion – Alpha

Last week I started listening to the new Audion album, Audion is the Techno alter ego of Matthew Dear. With his new album Alpha he has produced a good Techno album for home listening. Sounds a bit strange , but it’s true. It’s very well produced and has all sorts of cool twists in the tracks, yet maintaining a nice groove.
Even if your not into Techno as much this album can be very enjoyable.

Top tracks are Bob the builder, Sucker, Traanc and Suppa. Give this album a try or 2 , you’ll love it.

July 2016 – Dividend

Another month gone and it’s time for the dividends, Ahold had a special dividend of 1,20 Euro per share due to the reverse split. This was because of the merger with the Belgian supermarket chain Delhaize. A bit of a slow month dividend wise. Keep you all posted on the progress.

01 July 2016 COCA-COLA COMPANY EUR 4,01
02 July 2016 WHOLE FOODS MARKET EUR 1,03
06 July 2016 UNIBAIL-RODAMCO EUR 4,85
15 July 2016 W.P. CAREY INC. REIT EUR 7,48
21 July 2016 AHOLD EUR 12,14
25 July 2016 GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY EUR 1,76
27 July 2016 CISCO SYSTEMS INC. EUR 5,56
28 July 2016 WALT DISNEY COMPANY EUR 0,54
29 July 2016 DOW CHEMICAL COMPANY EUR 3,51

36,41

Results Neuro-Psychological tests

Yesterday I got the test result from the neuro pshycological examination. Which wasn’t all that good. My ability to remember, process and react to information has been sharply reduced.
This is the short version of what has come out of these tests. I will receive the full report later on and reflect on it some more then.

What does this mean ? It mostly confirms what I already knew, I am very slow with all tasks that require fast processing and reacting. And it takes a lot of energy. You’re just hoping it would be a bit better. The changes of a full recovery are somewhat diminished now. Or it will take longer I am not sure about that part as of yet. It was a lot of information to take in at once.
The Psychologist said this in the beginning and we can come back as often as we want if we have questions or just want to talk about it. The people at the revalidation centre are all very nice, professional and knowledgeable people and give you all the time and space which is great.

How does it affect me ? Well I need some time too digest this, It’s very good to have a base camp of sorts and being able to climb the mountain with a better route. Up until now I didn’t have a measured set of problem areas, rather I was just experiencing them. This is a good thing as we can now focus on these areas and try and improve them. It had been easier to further recover if the results were better. I have too start and taking even more care of planning my energy, cutting up activities in smaller tasks and make sure I prepare more. In retrospect I was chewing off bigger chunks of cookie than I should have. Shifting the gears back.

One important thing is that I keep exercising, running is great for the brain and being in a good condition helps your overall energy level and ability to cope with this. For now I am off for a run !

Graffiti until July

Last few months I have been walking a lot , and most of the time I walk under an overpass. It’s been made a legal wall some time ago and people can take their time creating cool pieces.
And they do 🙂 , I love this art form. Most date from early February until last month or so.

So a few pieces for you to enjoy. And many thanks to the artists for putting them up.

Portfolio news – June 2016 additions

June has seen 2 additions to existing positions. First I added to the position of K+S AG , simply to balance the position in line with the rest of the portfolio. It is still a very solid investment in my opinion. Second I added to my position General Electric , pretty much for the same reasons as my initial purchase. Solid earnings, good dividend and a back to basics strategy.

For the most part I am happy with my portfolio at the moment. In the coming months I will add new company’s to the portfolio the last months were pretty much about balancing things out and buying at lower share prices. Which is always good.