Taking Stock of My Stocks - Part 3

Taking Stock of My Stocks

I have run my faithful readers this Christmas break through my twenty largest holdings. Now let us look at the best and see if I saved the best for last.  One thing I think about at times is how many stocks/securities should I own?  I feel best having between 20 and 30 that I have picked and then my MFI portfolio, which would top out at 20 after it is mature. I do have some intersections, as I own Apple and Microsoft both in my MFI portfolios and my dividend portfolio.

Here are my holdings:

Index	Stock	Shares
1	AAPL	187
2	CSCO	4,292
3	JPM	1,673
4	GNW	10,000
5	glre	2,500
6	CSQ	5,444
7	SDS	1,000
8	SAI	4,680
9	HFC	1,117
10	KMF	1,845
11	VIVHY	2,296
12	MSFT	1,640
13	PGR	2,092
14	PRE	536
15	PVD	427
16	INTC	1,974
17	JQC	4,192
18	SD	6,000
19	FCX	1,100
20	MPC	582
21	BHK	2,240
22	SLCA	2,060
23	FSC	2,802
24	OIBAX	3,925
25	STO	1,040
26	NSU	5,524
27	KFY	1,436
28	O	556
29	ABC	500
30	VIAB	405
31	WU	1,570
32	LPS	840
33	DLB	580
34	uis	1,001

BHK - This is another of my closed end funds. These have all worked out very very well.  At some time, I need to go through closed end funds again and see if there are any standout buys.  BHK is pretty fairly valued, trading at a minimal discount.  It is mostly bonds, such as corporate investment grade.  It pays monthly dividends and has a 5.7% yield. You know, you are not going to get rich with a holding like BHK but I do think all portfolios need some relatively safe core holdings like this.  I did buy them at a very good price in 2011 when this stuff was a bit out of favor, so I am actually up 29%.  But if Treasury yields start going back up, I could give a lot of that back. 

SLCA - this is a company that is a play on the natural gas and oil boom going on in the states (a bit like the refiners and pipeline plays).  They are a pure play on silica, which is in demand for fracturing natural gas. They are not as "cheap" as many of my stocks (earning yield around 10%), but I like their growth opportunities.

FSC - This is a finance company that steps in when businesses can not get traditional financing from banks.  As credit is very tight right now, they have quite a few opportunities.  As banks start to lend more and more down the road, FSC will likely be forced to lend to businesses with lower credit quality.  They pay a monthly dividend and yield a rich 11%.  There is risk in this stock in that if we hit another downturn, there could be defaults on loans above expectations. So FSC needs the economy to walk a fine line, where things are not great nor terrible. They have been a solid performer for my, up 13+% since I bought in the spring.

OIBAX - this is an Oppenheimer Intl Bond Fund.  It yields about 5%.  I have owned them for about a decade, and while unexciting, they are relatively safe.

STO - this is Norwegian Statoil.  I originally wanted them as they have a safe source of oil in the event the Middle East heats up (i.e. Israel and Iran).  They still seem relatively cheap to me and they have a lot of expertise in drilling near the Artic. They pay a 4% annual dividend.  They have been a so-so performer for me, but I will hold for the same reasons I bought them.

NSU - the first of my Magic Formula stocks.  They are a small miner, with a single mine.  They have no debt and quite a bit of cash and they pay a decent dividend.  So really it all depends on how the single mine does.  Not a stock for the faint-hearted, but in my mind a decent risk/reward profile.

KFY - This is my 2nd MFI stock. Korn and Ferry are on of the premier executive recruiting agencies.  These types of companies are a play on unemployment improving.  Again, I like the risk/reward trade-off, but like NSU, these MFI stocks do have downside risk potential.

O - I have owned this stock for a long time and my only regret is that I did not buy a bunch more back in 2001!  So even though they have more than doubled for me, they are still pretty far down my list.  This is a REIT for commercial properties.  I was always worried about the commercial real estate market crashing like personal real estate, but it has held up well.  They pay a monthly dividend and are a poster child for the power of just reinvesting dividends in a good company. They are up 179% for me, while the broader market is up 68%

ABC, VIAB, WU, LPS, DLB and UIS are all MFI stocks.  ABC is drug distribution company. VIAB is Viacom and brings us entertainment content like MTV and Cartoon network. WU is Western Union, which seems old-fashioned, but to me solid. LPS is a company that services mortgages and got in a lot of trouble post the Financial Crisis. Bu I think that is behind them and if housing picks up they could benefit.  DLB is dolby, which all audiophiles know.  They seem pretty cheap to me and have a strong balance sheet that just allowed a $4 dividend without blinking. Finally, UIS is Unisys.  The more I look at them, the less I like them.  But MFI says hold for a year, so hold for a year I shall

I think that is it. I am sure my portfolio is not perfect. But it seems to work pretty well for me.  My watch list includes WBK, LNC, LXFR, SBS, PM, DELL and KSS.  I have buy orders for all those stocks at prices 5 to 15% below where they stand today.