Portfolio up ~40% for 2010 : Good or mediocre ?

tony2toes

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ChiefGrasscutter

Well, with an investment performance like that and a mixed and clearly significant portfolio of shares and options I suppose you won't be too bothered about how much it costs you to phone the DWP/Job seekers hotline on one of their 0845 numbers when you had been laid off work as per your post during 2009.

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/1989705

Derivative

Bit unfair I think. I have a modest portfolio and wouldn't be happy to call an 0845 number, having no land line.

jimjames

40% on an overall portfolio is pretty good performance this year when the FTSE 100 is up around 9%. I think I'm up just under 20% overall but that ranges from some that are up around 60% and one down almost 40%.

PS I also find 0845/0870 numbers incredibly frustrating when I can't use them out of my free call allowance!

bobbyj_2

40% in grand scheme of things pretty poor, should have been able to quite easily double your pot at least this year.

chris_m

I started "playing" the stock market in May and have drip-fed more capital in as I've had it, roughly adding the same amount that I started with over the seven months. My target is 3% for the year, which is what I could have got in my ISA had I left the money there.

I've done a fair bit of buying & selling, in many cases trying to "follow the bounce" as prices fluctuate. That's worked pretty well with several stocks where I've been able to buy/sell several times. Other stocks have been ones I've seen mentioned here and elsewhere, mainly AIM stocks, most of which have done pretty well. I did catch a nasty cold on DES but more than made up for it with XEL and especially with BEM, which I bought as long-term speculative hold at 4.85p and sold at 26.75p. They did reach around 36p and I held on to see where they were going but they suddenly dropped one afternoon to 29p IIRC. I logged in and sold as fast as I could before they went down even further ;-)

Overall, though, I can't complain. At the close of 2010 I was 95% up on my original capital !!! Somewhat lucky, I think, for an amateur who will freely admit he's still got a lot to learn ;-)

thenudeone

jimjames wrote: »

PS I also find 0845/0870 numbers incredibly frustrating when I can't use them out of my free call allowance!

There is nearly always an alternative number, either listed by the company as "the number to call from abroad" or listed on https://www.saynoto0870.com

tradetime

There isn't really an answer to that question, since it would depend on your objectives at the outset, your tolerance for risk, how you capital was deployed throughout the year etc. The S&P500 was up about 12 - 13% for the year so if you are predominantly invested in S&P500 companies, then that would be your benchmark and thus you would have done quite well.

Credit_Jake

Sorry to sound stupid, but when you are saying you're up '95%' this year does that mean you've effectively turned £1000 into £1950?

chris_m

Credit_Jake wrote: »

Sorry to sound stupid, but when you are saying you're up '95%' this year does that mean you've effectively turned £1000 into £1950?

Yep, that's it ;-)

Actually, most of the gain was made on less than my current invested capital, since some went in quite recently and the shares I bought with it have yet to make much gain, but it's easier to think along those lines.

Credit_Jake

I guess its hard to do or everyone would be doing it, would make me reach my target faster though lol. Where do you suggest I start?