Investment Strategy for 2015

2015 is expected to be more or less the same as 2014, at least according to experts out there. GDP growth will be muted and the S'pore economy will experience growth but not a lot. In this environment, it will be difficult to have a board based kind of rally we have experienced a few years back after the financial crisis, but rather stock picking on selected stocks which might outperform others in this market.

Therefore, my portfolio strategy for 2015 will be as follows:

1. Look for deep value stocks and overweight them. This strategy has served me well in 2014 and I will continue with this strategy. I have not avoided the downturn in commodities and oil related counters in 2014, but the overweight and focus on value stocks had somewhat allowed me to reduce the volatility of my portfolio. Many stocks in the property sector, finance, retail and hotel stocks are in this category.

2. Reduce/Eliminate underperforming and overvalued stocks. I will adopt this new strategy for 2015 as I need to reduce some of these stocks and realize some cash and also reduce the number of stocks in my portfolio. Of course, it must make sense to sell underperforming stocks such that I don't pay high brokerage as some of these stocks might not be meaningful to sell, since you would end up paying brokerage only and left with nothing. For overvalued stocks, it will be on a case by case basis as not all overvalued stocks in my portfolio need to be sold. Some of these are growth stocks and they might be able to outperform the market even with their high valuation. Of course, I will continue to monitor the progress of these stocks and will not eliminate them immediately. Rather, I would short-list them first and monitor well before taking action. I might adopt a strategy of reducing my holdings in them first before selling them off completely, if I am not sure whether it makes sense to eliminate them completely.

3. Reduce the number of AGMs, EGMs etc. I have been a full-time investor for 3.5 years now and had attended quite a number of AGMs since I turned full-time. Therefore, I had a good idea on how some companies in my portfolio will perform as I am quite comfortable with their business model and the main people behind those companies. There is no need for me to attend a company's AGM and EGMs every year and I would rather focus more time on my portfolio. Having said that, attending AGMs is still an important part of my overall investment strategy and I will not discard it. However, due to the fact that I am working alone and it is sometimes quite hectic travelling from one AGM venue to another in a single day, I would have to reduce the number of AGMs that I will be clocking for one year. I will not have an official target on how many I will attend this year, but it will be definitely lesser than the previous few years.

4. Keep healthy. I have fallen sick a few times last year and that resulted me in missing a few AGMs. I will go for quality rather than quantity this time round, with ample rest in between AGMs. As you might have known, AGMs sometimes come together especially during the period in April whereby there are so many companies holding it. I would have to pace myself better this time round so that I won't get to miss some interesting AGMs that I wish to attend. Investment is a marathon, not a sprint. It is ok to miss some meetings but I must take care of my health so that I can last this journey. The medical expenses for falling sick will also reduce my investment capital so it is not worth it.

5. The usuals. I will be interacting with my investment groups, read up on investment books/periodicals, participating in scrip dividend schemes and rights issues, look out for M&A deals etc. Yes, the usual activities that had served me well throughout my years as an investor. I will also attempt to attend some investment seminars this year.

All said, I wish all of you readers out there many more returns and a profitable 2015.