HAPPY EASTER EVERYONE

The month of May is almost upon us and the old adage springs to mind:

SELL IN MAY AND GO AWAY

Have we ever adhered to this? I don't think so.

LAST MONTH:

We sold 50% of our holding in Croda, this was a good decision as it has fallen a further 10% since we sold. Croda was one of our first investments over 25 years ago. It's always a difficult decision to sell any share holding, especially when we've held this share for so long. In this case is was the right move.

INVESTMENTS:

COSTAIN:

Purchased on the basis of a future rise in the house building trend in the UK, we were initially pleased with our decision to invest in this company. The share price increased substantially in the first few months. However, recently it has fallen back.

At the time of writing the share price is 103p.....we have an average purchase price of 108p - so slightly on the downward side.

Regardless of our small loss, we are holding.

BAE:

BAE share price keeps on rising.

Clearly the current world-wide political situation is  reflected in this increase.

A summary on HL website: “BAE Systems delivered a strong set of full-year results.

At its core, BAE Systems manufactures heavy-duty military equipment like fighter jets, aircraft and submarines. While global tensions remain elevated, many governments are expected to keep raising their defence budgets over the coming years, and BAE looks well-placed to capture some of this extra spending. 

Despite being a UK-based company, nearly 50% of its sales come from the US, making it the largest single contributing region. On an absolute basis, US military spending trumps any other country in the world, so having large exposure to this market is proving very beneficial”. (excuse the "trump" pun!)

The China Dolls started to invest in this company almost three years ago and have gradually increased our holding over the years. We are currently showing a 91% return on our holding at the time of writing, we have no intention of selling. A definite HOLD.

BHP:

This share is a slow burner.

We invested in this company over 3 years ago, around the same time as our initial investment into BAE.

Our average purchase price is 1750 and the share is currently sitting at 1751.......having risen to over 2813 during that period before dropping back down.

Ian Cowie, of the Sunday Times, recommends a buying opportunity during the current dip.

We continue to HOLD this share.

RELX:

RELX reported strong revenue and profit growth for 2024, with revenue reaching £9.43 billion, up 7% on an underlying basis. The company's focus on analytics and decision tools is driving this growth, and they continue to leverage AI and data to enhance customer value. Additionally, RELX's LexisNexis Risk Solutions recently acquired IDVerse, an AI-powered document authentication and fraud detection solutions provider. 

The share price is currently sitting at 3939 showing us a paper profit of just 8% at the time of writing. However we feel positive about the future of this company and decided to invest a further £1000 this month.

SIMEC ATLANTIS ENERGY COMPANY:

As any of you who read this blog regularly will know, the China Dolls have over 80,000 shares in this company! It actually reached the heady price of 2.45 last week!

Analysts and brokers still recommend it as a strong buy with target price of 45p!

This is 1856.52% above today’s price of 2.30. The name stands for Shipping, Infrastructure, Mining, Energy and Commodities. 

We are holding in anticipation!

TAYLOR WIMPEY:

We are still at a loss to understand why this company share price is still falling.

It is down another 5% this month.  Share price now 106p. We purchased at 165p, showing us a paper loss of 32% at the time of writing.

Taylor Wimpey's latest news focuses on its 2024 full-year results, which saw a decline in profit and revenue, despite a strong sales rate. The company is also reducing its dividend. 

However some analysts are predicting a 39.77% increase in the share price over the next 12 months.   

This is a relatively new share to our portfolio, so for now we are hoping for an upturn in the housing market later this year and are holding.

ENJOY THE EASTER HOLIDAYS.

We will not be holding a meeting in May. We will be celebrating our 25th year as an investment club, lunching at The new Ivy restaurant in Bournemouth.

DISCLAIMER

The China Dolls is a group of private individuals who meet regularly to discuss investment strategy and make investments based on the collective opinion of the the group.

The China Dolls is not in the business of offering any form of advice on investing or other financial matters.

The content of this blog is not to be considered an inducement to trade as we trade and is offered for illustrative purposes only.

Any use you may make said content is entirely your responsibility and The China Dolls will not be held liable for any losses you may incur as a result of using this blog to help you trade.