Sunday 30 October 2016

[Sunday Update] Clickity Clicks

Happy Sunday! Trouble continues to brew on the political front. I am not only talking about South African politics. We have the US election around the corner. These captains of society make life interesting. The only lesson I am learning is "You can't trust a politician". Luckily, we know better. We know that dividends are things that truly matter. On the dividend topic, Clicks (CLS) was kind enough to give us a 16% increase in DPS. You can read the SENS announcement here.

I have also added five companies to the share list. They are:
  • KAP
  • SNV (Steinhoff)
  • TKG (Telkom)
  • LEW (Lewis)
  • PFG (Pioneer Food Group)
The list now contains 46 companies. I need to add a few more but the ones left are "funnies". I need to make some adjustments for currencies. For example, Mediclinic now reports in GBP instead of ZAR.

If you want to go to a page where you can copy and paste the share data then go here.

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Nothing on this website constitutes financial advice. All content is mere opinion and is not based on anyone's specific circumstances and/or needs. It is based on factual data and does not contain any recommendations. Use of any information on this website is at your own risk.

I have tried my best to ensure that all data and information is accurate. Errors and Omissions are Excluded (E&OE).

Tuesday 25 October 2016

[Book] Empire of the Fund

I have added Empire of the Fund: The Way We Save Now to my reading list. It was recommended from an economist article. I'll reproduce some of that article here:

"AMERICANS who want a comfortable retirement, and who work in the private sector, have to look after their own interests these days. No longer can most rely on their employer to pay a pension linked to their final salary; such defined-benefit promises are too expensive.

Instead, workers are promised something called a defined-contribution (DC) pension which, truth be told, isn’t a pension at all. It is a savings pot to which employers and employees contribute, with some tax advantages. How big that pot will be, and what kind of income it will provide, is unknown.

Most of those savings will probably be invested in mutual funds. Yet as William Birdthistle, an academic lawyer, writes in an entertaining new book, small investors need to become better informed about the way mutual funds work."

Forget the Noise is about helping the small investor and I look forward to reading Willaim Birdthistle's insights to see how they fit in my "Forget the Noise" World.

Link to Economist article.

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Monday 24 October 2016

[Article] Who cares when the next recession comes

When is the next recession going to hit? Who cares. This is a great Bloomberg article by Barry Ritholtz.

"You have to hand it to economists -- they say the darndest things.

In a Wall Street Journal survey, a group of economists “put the odds of the next downturn happening within the next four years at nearly 60 percent.”  Oh no.

Today, we will make another entry in the catalog of how worthless predictions tend to be, and more specifically why economists’ long-term forecasts are so uniquely useless."

http://bloom.bg/2en17ey

#Investing #ForgetTheNoise #Recession #Economics

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Sunday 23 October 2016

[Sunday Update] An accountable government

I am not much of a political commentator but I hope all the protests and court cases looming in South Africa is the beginning of an accountable South African government. Maybe I am optimistic instead of realistic. As an investor, my comments last week stand. Keep living your life but make sure you have a backup plan.

There was no news on the dividend front. Distell did publish a trading update on SENS (which is one of the few news sources you should monitor :) ).

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As always, here is your weekly table:


Wednesday 19 October 2016

[Wednesday Wisdom] Dividends are tangible

"A stock dividend is something tangible — it’s not an earnings projection; it’s something solid, in hand. A stock dividend is a true return on the investment. Everything else is hope and speculation."

Richard Russell (July 22, 1924 – November 21, 2015) was an American writer. He was famous for writing the Dow Theory newsletter.

#ForgetTheNoise #Dividends #Invest #Investing #Money

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Sunday 16 October 2016

[Sunday Update] What a week. What next?

It was challenging to "forget the noise" this week. This is why I spent a whole chapter on Risk in my book. Instead of share price volatility, I discussed risks such as inflation, confiscation and devastation. State Capture in South Africa is a risk. With this risk comes possible confiscation of land/property. I think it is an unlikely risk as I hope the rule of law triumphs and those who break the law end up in prison and those who are trying to build a better future do not end up in court. That is all I will say about that. More importantly, what should an investor do?

I believe you should have an "insurance policy" in place. Not a real insurance policy but have hard currency investments/cash (think GBP and/or USD). Every few months send some money offshore to an offshore bank account. Ensure you have enough cash on hand to pay a deposit to rent a flat and a few months rent while you look for a job. You should also have some hard cash on hand to pay for food and day-to-day expenses. Any excess cash should be invested. You can use a trading solution like Interactive Brokers. The important thing is to make sure the money "lives" offshore. There is no point in investing in SA-based investments linked to offshore markets (unless cost is a real issue for you).

The above strategy does have a couple of roadblocks. One is that it can be costly (I call this your "insurance premium"). The other is you need the right to live overseas somewhere.

Now before you call me a prophet of doom, I think it is unlikely that the above insurance policy will be needed. It is, however, prudent to have one in place. I will also continue to build my SA investment portfolio and focus on dividends (no surprise there!).

Here is your updated table:




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Wednesday 12 October 2016

[Wednesday Wisdom] Gold vs Dividends

"Gold is a commodity; over the long run, as we look back, it has not been a good investment. You can't look at the intrinsic value of gold as you can a business. Gold doesn't give you cash flow, and, at the end of the day, cash flow is what is important. Gold doesn't give you dividends."

Michael Lee-Chin, OJ (born 1951) is a Jamaican business magnate, investor, and philanthropist. He is the founder and Chairman of Portland Holdings Inc., a privately held investment company which owns a collection of diversified operating companies in sectors that include media, tourism, health care telecommunications and financial services. Among other positions, he was the Executive Chairman of AIC Limited (a Canadian mutual fund), and, as of December 2014, the Chairman of the National Commercial Bank of Jamaica. Canadian Business has named him as one of the richest people in Canada and one of the richest Jamaicans, and estimates his wealth to be over CAD$2.0 billion.

#ForgetTheNoise #Investing #Dividends #Gold

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Sunday 9 October 2016

[Sunday Update] Woolies buys Politix

G'day. Woolies (WHL) announced that they are buying Aussie retailer, Politix. Politix sells Australian designer menswear with 75 stores across Australia. It had FY2016 sales of A$56 million (c. ZAR 588m). Former Liverpool FC and Socceroo star, Harry Kewell is a brand ambassador. For information please see the official SENS announcement.


Other than that, it has been a relatively quiet week. Here is your updated table:



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Wednesday 5 October 2016

[Wednesday Wisdom] Praise for dividend investing



"Dividends may not be the only path for an individual investor’s success, but if there’s a better one, I have yet to find it"

Josh Peters is the editor of Morningstar DividendInvestor, a monthly newsletter that provides quality recommendations for current income and income growth from stocks.Josh manages DividendInvestor's model dividend portfolio, the Dividend Select Portfolio.

#Dividends #ForgetTheNoise #Investing

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Sunday 2 October 2016

[Sunday Update] Rain and dividends

Hello from a rainy Durban. This week saw some dividend news from Capitec Bank. Shareholders will be pleased with the 20% interim dividend increase (see SENS here).

Other interesting news involves both Remgro and Distell. SAB owns 26% of Distell but has to sell its stake in order to complete a merger with Anheuser-Busch InBev NV. Together they will form the largest brewer in the world. Competition authorities are, of course, not ecstatic about it. They have attached conditions to the deal. One condition is that SAB sells its stake in Distell. Remgro has first right of refusal on SAB's 26%. See this link for more details.

As usual, here is your weekly dividend information:



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