It’s been a quiet month with regard to posting for me, that’s for sure.  However, I’m still alive and kicking!  Life just got busy and blogging had to take the back seat for a bit.

Sadly, I’m not back in the full swing of things on blogging just yet, so don’t be surprised if this post feels a bit abbreviated.

I’m glad to be checking in on my Portfolio again with another installment of Portfolio Thoughts.  However, my Portfolio has felt a bit more distant this month with my lack of blogging.

I’m stilling working from home with no near-term end in sight.  The longer it goes the more normal it becomes… strange how that works.

The markets continued their roller coaster ride, but generally ended higher for me for a 3rd straight month.  I’ll take it!  However, stock bargains are a bit harder to come by.  Still… plenty of stocks to be had.

As usual, I’ll start by commenting on the movement within my top 10 with respect to Portfolio value.  That’s followed up by a quick review of any transactions during the month, a check of the stocks with the biggest price movement, and finally an update on my current watchlist.

Let’s check out my latest monthly edition of Portfolio Thoughts…

 

Value Movement

During the month, I had a couple of different stocks crack the top 10.  Yet, when the month was over, the top 10 remained the same… with some re-shuffling, of course.

It was no surprise to me that the top two stocks switched places again.  Qualcomm (QCOM) climbed into the #1 spot, while RPM International (RPM) fell to #2.  This swapping of positions has been the pattern for months now.

No change at #3 and #4, as Visa (V) and Procter & Gamble (PG) held on to their positions within the top 10.

After a strong debut last month, Skyworks Solutions (SWKS) continued its move up, landing at the #5 spot this time around.

That move up by SWKS dropped Pepsico (PEP) to #6.  PEP has faded a bit in the past couple of months while other stocks have climbed.

Rising a couple of spots to #7 was T. Rowe Price Group (TROW).  This was primarily due to poorer performances from surrounding stocks in the top 10.

Coming in at #8 was Union Pacific (UNP).  This reflects a decline of one spot.

After ascending one spot, Blackrock (BLK) settled at #9.    BLK has risen in price each of the past 3 months after falling significantly in February and March.

Rounding out the top 10 was Johnson & Johnson (JNJ).  There’s a chance of JNJ falling out of my top 10 again after posting price declines in back-to-back months.

Just outside the top 10 (hoping to move into the listing soon) are Fastenal (FAST) and Nike (NKE).  NKE could have been in the top 10 if it weren’t for the negative reaction to their earnings report this week.

 

 

From the table above, my top 10 holdings comprise 37.87% of my Portfolio value.  This is exactly the same as last month.  Interesting!

However, there was some weight movement within the top 10 despite no change in the group total, as QCOM saw the biggest surge in portfolio weight, while JNJ sank the most in that category.

As for the dividend weighting of the top 10, it slipped a bit to 30.27%, just 0.06% less than last month.  I’d say it was pretty much the status quo.

The top 10 looks like a strong group to me!

 

Transactions

I didn’t make a single transaction in June, so this section will be rather short.

With rising prices, I’ve been less inclined to purchase.  However, I’ve been eyeballing a few stocks, but just haven’t pulled the trigger on a purchase.  Maybe soon.

The number of stocks in my Portfolio remained at 50.

 

Price Movement

Note – my price changes cover closing prices from 5/22/20 to 6/26/20.

I can happily note that June resulted in the 3rd month of gains in a row for my Portfolio.  This has been a nice surprise after a dismal 2nd half of the 1st quarter.

For the 2nd month in a row, I recorded a 7:3 ratio of stocks with price gains compared to price declines (of the 50 holdings, 35 moved higher and 15 moved lower).  How odd is that?  The main difference I see for June compared to May is reduced price swings.

Of the 35 stocks that rose in price, only 1 was up over 15%.  Another group of 3 were up over 10% (the usual threshold I look to see crossed), while yet another 9 moved higher by over 5%.

The leading gainer this month was Kontoor Brands (KTB), which rose by 17.59% (KTB happened to be my biggest loser last month).  In this case, the nice gain was muted by the fact that KTB is my smallest position, so I didn’t get to benefit much from the upward movement.  KTB has had an awful year in terms of price movement, so this appears to be partial recovery of some seriously lost ground.

The 3 stocks that managed 10%+ gains for me in June were Realty Income (O), with a gain of 12.00%, QCOM which rose 11.84%, and Broadcom (AVGO), which climbed 11.12%.  Failing to reach the 10% mark, but coming in with a respectable 8.98% advance was W.P. Carey (WPC).

As you can see, a couple of technology stocks and a couple of REITs were leading gainers in my Portfolio in June.

Of my 15 stocks that fell in price, none reached a decline of 10%.  That’s a positive tidbit of information.  In fact, my worst June performer was Starbucks (SBUX), with a loss of 7.79%.  SBUX was followed closely by The Walt Disney Co. (DIS), which retreated 7.56%.  DIS continues to struggle with closed theme parks, closed movie theaters and production studios, and no sports.

My 3rd worst decliner in June was JNJ, at 4.54%.  Outside of that, no other stocks fell more than 2.54%.  So, the majority of my decliners this month were only off a percent or two for the most part.  Not a bad result.

 

Watch List

My watch list has been dwindling over the past few months as stock prices have been rising.  However, it seems there are still enough purchase candidates to scout.

I remain focused on adding quality companies (stocks with strong financial positions and a history of dividend raises) in the short-term.  This is because plenty of uncertainty remains in the marketplace as companies try to figure out how to navigate the choppy waters.

Within my Portfolio, here are some stocks that I’m watching for possible additions…

Similar to last month, shares of Automatic Data Processing (ADP) and General Dynamics (GD) are high on my watchlist right now.  I could see adding 5 or so shares of one or both, preferably a bit lower in price than they trade at today.  I’d like to get either below $140.

UnitedHealth Group (UNH) is a buy candidate for me.  I’d prefer to add below $275.  UNH had a nice dividend raise this month, which is a nice site to see in these times of escalated dividend cuts and suspensions.

While SBUX has some near-term issues to deal with in the midst of the pandemic, I’d consider adding 5-10 shares should the stock dip below $70.  SBUX is currently #20 for me in terms of Portfolio value, but a small purchase would give it a better chance to move up my rankings, which I’d like to see.

As for non-Portfolio stocks that I’m watching…

I’m still keeping my eyes on Waste Management (WM) and NextEra Energy (NEE), but neither seems ready to reach my respective price targets of $90 and $200.

Costco Wholesale (COST) is also on my radar, and it’s much closer to my target of $295 for it.  COST has come close to reaching this level several times over the past 3 months, but hasn’t closed there yet.  I’ll try to remain patient.

 

Thoughts?

It was quite the volatile 1st half of 2020.  I can only imagine what the 2nd half of the year has in store for us.  Any chance the 2nd half is more wild than the 1st?  Please share your thoughts!