Portfolio management strategy revealed by Stockhouse member coffintrader.
Today in Portfolio Spotlight we welcome Stockhouse community member coffintrader, who agreed to answer a host of questions regarding his public portfolio for the benefit of Stockhouse readers.
Don’t forget that if you have comments for coffintrader or for the community at large, you can post them in the comment box below. The comment box is also a great place to leave suggestions for future interview questions or other interview topics that might be interesting to the community.
Now on to the interview…
SH: How would you characterize your investing style?
CT: In a volatile market like we are in today, I don’ like to get too attached to any one particular stock unless I really know the deal and feel very comfortable with management and the properties. Lately volumes have been transferring from sector to sector, golds to solar to potash to coals etc. The cycle always continues and when you have big discoveries, many area plays start to move at the same time. The markets are hungry for the next best thing so I try to evaluate the markets and see what’s being ignored, overbought, oversold and try and move and get positioned before the massive rush begins.
SH: Where do you get your investing ideas from?
CT: I am subscribed to 4 high profile newsletter writers and I like to read them all and gather up information taking the better ideas and using them in my trading tactics. Reuters and Google news also interest me to see what is happening with the rest of the world and to see what type of major deals are closed. I am a big phone person, so most of the day I will be on the phone either talking to companies or to trading partners to see what they are looking at and exchange ideas.
SH: Explain what’s in your public portfolio on SH and why those securities are there; why did you choose those stocks?
CT: The longest deal I have been in would be Pediment Exploration (TSX: V.PEZ, Bullboard), I got in last July and have rode the bumps all the way up. They were lucky enough to hit a major gold discovery in Mexico so the stock soon took off and it marked new highs. I believe that company will do well over time and possibly be taken out by a major. Most of the bigger companies are hungry for acquisitions right now being well cashed up as they watch supply decline. I believe many of the juniors with proven goods in the ground will get acquired in the near future.
Goldsource Mines (TSX: V.GXS, Bullboard) has been a big success as I was able to get in early right when it started to run up, I had always been interested in coal but didn’t see the volume move to the sector until they hit some nice numbers causing a major spike in share price.
Goldquest Mining (TSX: V.GQC, Bullboard) is another favorite that has been hammered in today’s market and is not getting any value for their major copper/gold discovery months ago. I believe that will change soon with more drilling.
My newest to the portfolio would be G4G Resources (TSX: V.GXG, Bullboard). Believe it or not, iron ore has outperformed gold in the past year jumping 65%. Teck Cominco (TSX: T.TCK, Bullboard) formed a jv [joint venture] with GXG and I believe that is a brilliant move in the vicinity of world class producers in Sweden. Their technology to convert iron ore to steel is impressive and should garner a higher share price in the coming weeks.
SH: Does your portfolio indicate your true holdings, or do you use it more as a watch list?
CT: Yes these are my true holdings within my portfolio but some stocks like Pediment and a few others, I got in at a much lower prices as I had started up my public portfolio during the site change over.
SH: What kind of performance have you had in your portfolio? Up, down, sideways?
CT: I have been very lucky with my trading lately. Most of it has been up but nothing ever goes straight up of course so when you are over a double it’s nice to zero your cost holdings and make sure you are not losing money.
SH: How do you feel about your portfolio performance?
CT: I feel my performance has been great but there is always room to try and do better. I am sitting on over 50% cash right now waiting for bottom feeding during the summer doldrums. We should see stronger markets in August so until that time comes, I will be looking for bargains and new trends.
SH: Do you plan on making any changes to your portfolio in the near future? Addition or subtraction?
CT: I have been watching the uraniums very closely. They appear to be very oversold, so whenever the spot price does a reversal and starts to move ahead, that could be a buy signal to jump on board many of the better ones that have proven pounds in the ground with a lot of exploration upside or near term production.
SH: Do you see a value in having a public portfolio on SH? Do you find it helpful when judging a member’s contributions to the site?
CT: I think it’s nice to be able to publicly post what stocks you are following because it gives a general idea of what someone’s trading style is like and it can also give some investors good ideas and possibly entry points on dips.
SH: Is your portfolio weighted toward a particular sector / commodity / service / trend etc.? Why is that?
CT: I like the resource sector like the golds and silvers because I believe they are undervalued, as the bigger hedge funds have been shorting some of the better ones. But I believe that will change because when the rush comes in and people become comfortable with the juniors that are lower risk and have proven drill holes suggesting that they could move higher, then those shorts will get squeezed and these stocks could catapult much higher in the coming months.
SH. What do you think about the performance of the junior mining sector over the past year?
CT: I think the juniors have been beaten up to ridiculous levels. Some have made nice discoveries and soared to new highs. The main thing is that there are approximately 5000 companies out there that say they have the goods but when it comes down to it, they have nothing more than moose pasture according to me. When it becomes a lot harder to close financings and raise money, I believe that those companies that say they have the goods and are unable to make discoveries will de-list and more focus will be onto the near term producers or companies with great exploration potential, top notch management and good properties. I don’t believe the rush to the junior golds and silvers or uraniums has begun yet. I think we are going to be in for a real surprise when these juniors start to move at full throttle.
SH: Are there any new trends that you’re following that might influence your portfolio in the future?
CT: I believe that there is going to be a market crash before the elections this fall and that could affect many holdings and provide cheaper entry points, so of course I will trade some out before and stay on cash to be ready for bottom feeding.
SH: Are there any Stockhouse members you like to follow to help you with your due diligence?
CT: dinesguy is a trading partner who I would have to say is much more successful at trading than I am, but we trade together and run deals with other partners in the business from Toronto to Vancouver so it works great. I also talk with citeguy once in a while; I am from Canada and he is from the USA so it’s nice to network and find out what’s going on down there and exchange ideas and stocks that we are both watching, buying or selling.
SH: What has been your best investment to date?
I would have to say Goldsource has treated me very well with 1400% gains. Hathor Exploration (TSX: V.HAT, Bullboard) was also a big success for me when they announced discovery-type drill results from the Athabasca Basin.
SH: What has been your worst investment to date?
CT: A couple otc deals in the US didn’t do very well for me a few years ago and I lost around 45% of my holdings in that certain company so I have learned to stay away from US markets and trade fully in Canada and ever since I have done fine.
SH: Any parting advice for new members joining Stockhouse?
CT: Don’t believe everything you hear on the boards because many guys are full of it and they don’t even own stocks that they are either pumping or bashing. There are some very smart investors out there though and I think it’s a great way to network and make good friends or trading partners and get into deals as they become increasingly cheap.
SH: Would you care to share your outlook for the global economy in the next few years?
CT: Well I think the US is pretty much bankrupt and in a recession. I have maintained this thought for quite sometime now but Bernanke likes to slow the rate cutting and pretend that the economy is strengthening but anyone who believes that is out to lunch really. Nothing goes straight up or straight down so the dollar will bottom from time to time but I believe that it is headed lower in the long term as the housing market keeps posting record numbers of foreclosures and cash infusions by the Fed to banks. I think it is ridiculous to print money out of thin air while the US dollar is turning into toilet paper and becomes unattractive to investors.
SH: Is there anything I didn’t ask that you’d like to add?
CT: Happy reading, good luck, and don’t forget to take profits now and then!
That’s all for our interview! Again, feel free to leave comments, criticisms and suggestions in the comment box below, and look for another Portfolio Spotlight coming soon.
Special thanks to coffintrader for participating.
