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February, 2006: 14 22
Disclaimer - IMPORTANT - Read this first!
| Investor's Journal is a diary focused strictly on investments and personal finance issues, primarily from a contrarian and retiree point of view. Follow along with an average guy's failures and successes as he learns, by trial and error, the fine art of value investing. |
2/14/06-Since the last entry, a second position in GFR has been in the Classic Value (CV) portfolio for a year and so will be sold at the market price early tomorrow and added to the CV record of closed positions. As of close of trading today, it is up 31.19% since purchase on 2/14/05. Also since the prior entry, MTLM has been in the Leapin' Lizards (LL) portfolio for a little over a year and so will be sold at the market price early tomorrow and added to the LL record of closed positions. MTLM is down 1.36% since purchase on 2/7/05.
My top-ten equities for mention this week are: AEOS; CC; EME; FIX; FTO; HOC; KSWS; PCR; UNTD; and VSEC.
The focus for the current entry is on another Leapin' Lizard asset, VSE Corp. (VSEC) (recent price $51.00). VSEC's P/E is 21.42. It has a market cap of $119.90 million. VSE Corp. has a 0.50% dividend (with a dividend payout ratio of 0.09). Its price to sales ratio is just 0.44. It has positive free cash flow, a return on equity of 22.41%, zero debt to equity, a current ratio of 1.48, and a price to book value ratio of 4.14. Its shareholder equity to total assets ratio is 0.39. It's year-to-date increase is 20.11%. Relative to the S&P 500 Index, it is up 98.76% in the past 12 months. It's absolute gain is 103.46% over the last 52 weeks. VSEC will be added to the LL tracking portfolio as of the early market price tomorrow.
2/22/06-Since the last entry, AE, a Leapin' Lizard (LL), has been held for 12 months, and so will be sold at tomorrow morning's early trading price and its info added to the closed positions record. As of the close of trading today, it is up 7.85% since a 2/22/05 purchase.
My top-ten equities for mention this week are: AEOS; ANF; CLE; INTC; MAT; MTEX; NUE; RDS/A; SCHW; and UNTD.
The focus for the current entry is on a Yummy Yielder (YY), Royal Dutch Shell, Class A (RDS/A) (recent price $61.52). RDS/A's trailing P/E is 6.90. It has a market cap of $125.2 billion. Royal Dutch Shell, Class A, has a 3.60% dividend (with a dividend payout ratio of 0.23). Its price to sales ratio is just 0.40. It has a return on equity of 30.60%, debt to equity of just 0.08, a current ratio of 1.10, and a price to book value ratio of 2.50. The low risk asset meets Benjamin Graham value plus safety criteria, based on low debt, low trailing P/E and P/S, and a high dividend. RDS/A will be added to the YY tracking portfolio as of the early trading price in the morning.
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This diary is intended for personal interest and general information only. You are advised to do your own research (as well as to consult highly compensated professionals) before spending money on anything.
I know of no reason anyone should take my financial musings seriously. At best I am a dedicated amateur providing a bit of investment-related insight and entertainment, at worst an amusing diversion.
My wife, Fran, and I may at times own shares of some of the assets mentioned here. But neither of us receive any benefit from reference to them, unless you count the mutual misery when we get it wrong, or the opportunity to gloat when we get it right.