Time for an Easter Clean?

It's holiday time, which of course means lots of nice days off! So, is this the ideal opportunity to give your portfolio a good spring clean? After all – the lack of market action gives investors the chance to sit back and have a good look at their shares.

What do I normally do about this time of year?

Well, first of all I usually reduce holdings, especially spreadbets. This is because it's simply harder to make money from May to September than during the winter months. Historically, markets just don't perform as well during the summer period.

This may sound odd but I do like to enjoy my summers and every open position needs a bit of looking after, and time spent on it - even if it's just to look at the share price a few times a day!
So, in the summertime I feel lazier and don't want to have so many (especially volatile) positions open. But what should you reduce and what should you hold onto?

Well, here's what I do. I go through every share I own whilst pretending that I’ve never seen or owned that share before and ask myself: "Would I buy the same share today?"
If the answer is "no" - then why am I holding? Isn’t it time then to bank the profits! But if the answer is "yes" and I would still be a buyer I'd hold on.

Of course it's not quite as simple as that. With some shares I'd think: "I MIGHT buy that one now but I'm not sure..." If undecided, I generally have a good look at the company's last 2 to 3 statements. Are they all positive? Are there any negatives creeping in?

So I'm looking for question marks. And if I find any - I think about selling.

Easter also gives you time to research shares whilst things are a bit on the quiet side. So, as well as giving your portfolio a good clean out it’s also the perfect time to find the odd gem!

Have a great Easter by all means, relax, have fun and eat loads of chocolates - but I really feel it's worth spending a bit of time having a good look at your portfolio.

I’ve just recently bought a few shares that I think I can leave to run over the summer without worrying about them too much, as they are all good cash generating businesses. These include North Midland Construction (NMD), Carter and Carter (CART) and McBride (MCB).

Have a great Easter - and a good spring clean!