Share prices are all shown in pence. A website link for each company is given below. This is primarily a reference thread for myself. Discussion of an individual stock should ideally take place on its own existing discussion thread please, where its followers can readily find it.

The stocks displayed here are not recommendations - merely ones that I have chosen to run with. Most have already risen precariously, and some may collapse.

This is an aggressive portfolio being constructed between 10 July and 30 July 2017. On 10 July it comprised small stakes in four stocks I already owned (SOM,RST,TPF,ANII) representing in total 8.6%, and 91.4% cash. Stakes in those four were increased and a dozen other stocks bought. By 24 July, 65% stocks, 35% cash. Mostly held within a stockdealing ISA. The cash element is not earning interest; it will at times be used to temporarily boost stakes in one or other of the stocks or to buy another. I pay an ISA fee of £5 per quarter in total, and a brokerage fee of £9.90 per trade..

Initially I aim to run it for 5 months till 31 Dec 2017, by when I am hoping to be up 15%. This portfolio was funded by proceeds from the sale of a flat, the rent from which was generating 7%pa. The aim is to convincingly better that return. At 31 December I shall consider withdrawing a sum equivalent to what would have been 5 months rent, and to possibly do the same each six months thereafter (though I shall reassess that plan at Dec 31). Stocks that fail to maintain good performance will be reduced or ditched along the way (can't afford passengers) a few others might be bought. Fast ones that get too big might be topsliced to keep the portfolio in balance. I expect the initial setting up costs (brokerage fees on 16 stocks, and buy/sell price spreads of up to 4%) to be a drag on overall valuation in the opening weeks.



##################################################
PORTFOLIO 69 ENDS AT POST 191, DETAILING A GAIN OF 79.64% BETWEEN
JULY AND END-OF-2017. PART OF THE TOTAL HAS BEEN CASHED IN AND
WITHDRAWN. THE START OF PORTFOLIO 70, RUNNING 3 MONTHS FROM
START OF 2018, IS DETAILED IN POST 192
##################################################

thanks .... got my days/dates mixed up ..... all that travelling :-)

My overnight orders got filled this morning, bought shares in Cheltenham-based Versarien (VRS) at various prices below 15.75p

Chart and company website link added to header above.

I stayed out of the 'graphene goldrush' in the past few years. In any such new industry there are many dozens of companies purporting to be at the forefront of development and production; some genuine but many not. Many investors have seen money creamed off by shysters who claimed to be making progress when making nothing. Others have marketed what they claim is graphene but is merely a thinnish (not thin enough) variant of graphite that fails to perform well and gets graphene a bad name.

On Friday 8 September, the International Standards Organization (ISO) published a document defining terms and conditions that will apply in preparing an ISO standard for graphene. Customers will be able to insist on compliance with that standard when fully published. It appears that around 90% of what is currently being marketed will not qualify as graphene. The graphene being produced by Versarien (Nanene) is expected to qualify.

Earlier on the same day, Versarien announced a contract awarded to its Total Carbide subsidiary by "a leading aero engine maker", which investors have since twigged is Rolls Royce.

Neither news item has yet been commented on by analysts or brokers. The company's agm is this week (Wed 13 Sept).


It is by no means a safe stock. It's a small company that has yet to build a strong regular customer base. It has yet to make a profit. It doesn't have a cushion to accommodate any untoward incidents. So any investment is made with fingers crossed. But it does have great potential if pieces of the jigsaw continue slotting into place they way they have been. They haven't splashed out on a flashy London HQ; the boss flies economy class everywhere. It seems carefully managed. Lombard Odier fund has been winding down its large stakes in various small companies lately, including this one, as part of a strategic policy change. That ongoing disposal will likely depress the share price awhile.

PDL
first ACA and now this ...... tanzania is obviously intent on grabbing all for itself - sorry; its governing families

small short at 83.35

....... END-OF-WEEK-UPDATE
....... Friday 15 September

....... Portfolio back to starting level!

Like I said last Friday - need to be ahead enough to accommodate an occasional kicking; This week I took enough of a hit on key holdings to knock my gain back. Right back to where I started! Both IQE and my newly acquired VRS took a bit of a bashing, as did MND. RST did nicely after publishing its results, but not nicely enough to compensate for the fallers. Hey ho. One bad week.

It was an unpleasant week.

But you can't take anything with you!

8-(

I have decided not to go.

Good results published this morning by Learning Technologies Group (LTG)

"Strong start to H2 2017 with trading ahead of management's expectations and order book significantly ahead of the prior year on a like for like basis."

Ditched the remainder of my North Midland Construction shares (NMD) at a loss. Should have been more ruthless earlier instead of just selling half.

Superb timing for Cheltenham based Versarien (VRS). The company announced this morning that it has won a UK government contract, the day before boss Neil Ricketts is due to address an audience of 500 bigname potential customers and investors, in Silicon Valley, California.

Versarien's Chief Financial Officer Chris Leigh bought 150,000 shares today. Usually a good sign! He now holds 315,000 shares.

....... END-OF-WEEK-UPDATE
....... Friday 22 September

....... Portfolio 1.65% in the red!

Another lousy week. Currently 1.65% down on where I started!
That is not nice. Biggest disappointment so far is not the slippage of price at IQE and VRS, both of which I remain content to hold, but Taptica (TAP) whose results are due Tuesday 26 Sept.

i think i was probably slightly ahead on the week, but neither sure nor concerned

PURP (and IQE) was very annoying today with its sudden excitement after an initial dump, but happy to remain short ........ the company and its ethics smell worse than 3-week-old fish

TLW came up bright and shiny, as did AHT and even AGK to a lesser extent
a late venture into DOM also did not disappoint
FEVR recovered some poise, so it'll be interesting to see what next week brings

DAX long was very fruitful though i have banked that juicy profit and am now short ...... i think a consolidation is o'due; perhaps some selling on the news of an expected german election result; chart resistance not far ahead; DOW stumbling a little

Perhaps, Surströmming!

so then, the far right in germany has done even better than predicted
the ramifications of this are hard to judge, though for sure merkel's tenure will be more fragile, and perhaps significantly so ..... nor should the implication for the eu and the brussels "cosy club" be forgotten ..... perhaps some interesting and uncomfortable times ahead there


anyway, all the above cannot augur well for DAX at least for the short term
as i sit here in boston airport, i'm happy to be short

Not a lot to worry about in my view Merkel's still safe.

she still has to form a coalition ...... try some arithmetic

As I say.. don't worry about it.

good morning all ...... now in portugal
DAX indicating a weak opening, rather as i thought it would :-)

I am likely to be out of signal tomorrow and next week, so might not post my usual weekly performance figure on those two Fridays.

........ I don't have full net access today so cannot do a proper weekly update.

Got a wifi signal momentarily - able to report end-of-week status for Friday 6 October:

....... END-OF-WEEK-UPDATE
....... Friday 6 October

....... Portfolio up 2.2%

Portfolio has recovered from last week's dip and is back into profit - albeit only 2.2% at present - but holdings looking OK.

Shorters of IQE resorted to making a play of their case in the popular press last week - and it was pretty feeble. I wasn't too concerned before, and am now not concerned at all. they seem to have got it into their heads that IQE's fortunes are dependent on sales of Apple's latest phone - and they aren't. They came up with no other logic for their big gamble. I remain happy to hold.