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.



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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WITHDRAWN.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
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you have certainly done very well in just a few months

Thank you. I shall not feel comfortable with this portfolio until the percentage gain is into double figures, so that I can accommodate a hit or two without that pushing me back down to where I started. My 5-month year-end (Dec 31st 2017) target remains 15%.

IQE - rocking along once more and 149 as i write :-)

Indeed. And Versarien looking a tad better now. Looks like being a very good month for IQE with so much related newsflow scheduled from its customers.

Yesterdays rise in the share price of Versarien is followed by a significant collaboration announcement this morning -

Versarien plc (AIM: VRS), the advanced materials engineering group, is pleased to announce that it has entered into a collaboration with Israel Aerospace Industries ("IAI") to enable both groups to work together to develop and test Versarien's proprietary Nanene few layer graphene nano-platelets in aerospace composite structures.

IAI is a world leader in both the defence and commercial markets, delivering state-of-the-art technologies and systems in the domains of: air, space, land, sea, cyber, homeland security and intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance.

IAI has agreed to purchase Nanene from Versarien, in a variety of forms, which will then be incorporated into composite panels for testing and evaluation, with a view to developing commercial applications for the technology. The collaboration is additionally expected to incorporate discussions and work with IAI's supply chain.

Moshe Medina, EVP and General Manager of IAI's Engineering and Development Group, commented: "IAI looks forward to collaborating with Versarien on graphene based composites, which we believe will help us create stronger and multi-functional materials. It is an ongoing challenge to harnesses the excellent micro-properties of graphene for enhancement of our composites."

Neill Ricketts, CEO of Versarien, commented: "We are delighted to be working with IAI, a global leader in aerospace technologies, to incorporate our graphene into a variety of composite structures. We will be working closely with the teams at IAI and their suppliers to test and evaluate the benefits of adding graphene to a variety of composite structures.

"The agreement with IAI is a significant step forward for Versarien, our first graphene collaboration in the aerospace sector, but it is just one example of the global relationships we are developing. There is increasing interest in the benefits that high quality graphene, of the types manufactured by Versarien, can add to material properties and we look forward to announcing further collaborations in due course."

Two months away from my five month Dec 31st target of 15%, I ended October at 13.35% up. I think that could slip back a little though. The strong rise in VRS share price helped.

FERG (formerly WOS) - had a little nibble at this yesterday, not least because it is a strong $-earner ..... a good move so far


IQE - flying off the shelves again this morning

12:30pm today might see further movement of IQE price. That (I think) is when latest trading update from key customer Lumentum is due. Lumentum in turn are a key supplier of components to Apple.

Another upcoming diary date - 8 November, half-year results due from cyber security firm Sophos (SOPH). (chart above)

IQE - i had a successful in/out o'night - not big but a nice little profit for all that - since which time sp has fallen back to ~146 .... fingers x'ed

Portfolio progress yesterday I thought was a bit peaky and might slip back. Instead it reached 15.1% by close today - which is my five month Dec 31st target two months early !!

Still possible it might slip back from there of course - any overstretched stock can implode.

....... END-OF-WEEK-UPDATE
....... Friday 3 November

....... Portfolio now up 20.17%

Versarien (VRS) was a significant contributor, and looks like continuing to be so. They launched a two-day fundraising at 5pm today, and it was fully subscribed in under one hour. I tried to get some at the offer price of 18p but wasn't quick enough!


I have gone back through the thread standardising the format of my weekly updates, so I can find them more easily. They are now displayed the same way as this one.

interesting about VRS ..... perhaps i need to pay some attention to it despite the spread :-)

cynic - VRS trading statement yesterday evening indicated we should expect a further update alongside the interim results on 29 November. That I guess might name one or both of the "two of the world's biggest consumer goods companies" who are expected to be agreeing a deal this month. Neither that/those nor the Israel Aerospace deal will actually contribute much to revenue anytime soon, so turnover stats are going to look low in relation to whatever ongoing rise in market capitalisation the rising share price creates. The share price is going to be reacting to the significance of the customer names and what it means for future prospects - and in pure financial terms is going to look unbalanced for now in the eyes of some analysts.

It does sound like the Israelis are keen to get beyond testing and into production as fast as they can, so I presume that the imminent scaling up of graphene output at Versarien will all go to them over the coming quarter, and the consumer goods companies, whoever they are, will be satisfied with test samples for most of next year. But that's purely my guess. I certainly expect enough newsflow over the coming 6 months to drive interest in the company among investors.

FEVR
bear bums bitten badly - hohoho!
fy trading forecast materially ahead of expectations

A lot of the VRS shares that got bought at the weekend at 18p will be in the hands of traders seeking to make a fast profit by selling at a higher price as soon as the opportunity arises. The shares that were issued don't become available for trading until Friday 10 November. Their intentions will presumably colour the behaviour of the share price this week.

Good half-year results from Sophos (SOPH) this morning. Some profit-takers might knock it back a little, but prospects look good. Though the price is maybe well up with latest expectations already. Market cap around 7x turnover.

hey MrJ, bet you're happy you hold IQE as well as VRS :-)

Sure am ;-)

....... END-OF-WEEK-UPDATE
....... Friday 10 November

....... Portfolio now up 27.76% since July