City Of London Investment Share Discussion Threads

[north sea boy] 15/12/2017 19:02

Hi Tim 3.

I bought my holding in November 2016 as part of a portfolio I created from my 25% tax free pension drawdown. So essentially I bought these primarily for income to supplement my private pension.

So far these have been a steady performer that has delivered me 4.375% annual income from my initial purchase price, and circa 10% in capital growth on top of that, although I have absolutely no intention on selling them for foreseeable future.

The price does not increase as dramatically as other investment trusts (e.g FRCL or EIT) as it pays out a higher proportion of profit as a regular (as so far dependable) dividend.

Hope this helps?

North Sea Boy

[tim 3] 15/12/2017 11:51

Thanks damanko Yes I must admit am surprised there is not more interest here with such a consistent record.What I particularly like is they try to smooth things out so you get a steady performance in the good and bad times and of course the dividend remains consistent so you get the advantage of a steady yield and the potential for growth.Although they look high they have not grown anything like some of the others like Edinburgh trust which I think is more vulnerable if things get ugly.

[damanko] 15/12/2017 10:38

Tim,

You're right - it is a little toppy, with good reason.

I.E. because it has an excellent long term record, and always pays a decent dividend. Unless the market goes into freefall like 2008/9, CTY's performance is likely to remain on a gentle upward trend, with steady dividend uplifts.

Thinking long term?

Here's an example: I bought CTY in 1994, and still hold. By always reinvesting the dividend, my 'buying price' is now a little under 60 pence per share.

If you do go ahead and buy now, happen you can post in 2040 and let us know how your investment has performed...

Good luck & regards

D

[tim 3] 15/12/2017 10:10

Hi guys.

Thinking of buying here as a long term income investment.

Have done a fair amount of research and these seem to fit very well with my needs which is basically a medium-lower risk investment which while not giving anything spectacular should give a consistent,if boring performance!

Do you think it is a little toppy here I notice it trades at a premium nav currently might it be best to wait a while?.

TIA.

[damanko] 03/11/2017 22:13

Remarkable, a post on this thread. Money I put into this & Witan in the 80's & 90's has increased several fold, and the dividend received (still reinvested until such time as I go on a spending spree) is well over 20% on the original investments. As I mentioned a few years ago, it's a funny old world.

[sharesoc] 03/11/2017 17:05

There is a detailed blog post on On-Line AGMs and City of London IT available here:

[brahmsnliszt] 09/9/2015 15:11

Snapped up some here on the pull back last week. Let's see.

[rrr] 20/3/2015 21:27

Bought these for the first time today, seems a good income and growth prospect.

rrr

[bigwilly1986] 19/12/2014 17:16

Good choices. If I had a child I would buy the same trusts as you!

[rech] 19/12/2013 16:59

I filled my youngest child's first year Junior ISA allowance with CTY. His second year saw me buy AAS, which has been poor timing. I suspect that the third purchase will be targeted towards USA - perhaps F&C US Smaller Companies.

Sorry, OT post!

[gregmorg] 13/12/2013 13:23

Problem is the asset value grows so so slowly! Really this year it has been tedious. Also they keep issuing equity on which a dividend then has to be paid and on a quarterly basis this can be costly to the established shareholders in the near term but constantly!

I have held this Trust for ten years or so now. The dividend keeps going up although the actual increase in Dividend in recent years is seriously minuscule. Seems to me this Trust just keeps under performing the overall market and needs a bit of a shake up.

[damanko] 28/11/2013 20:22

Quite rightly.

Your children will benefit - eventually. Things of course go up and down, and CTY has had many bad periods, but the income has been paid throughout, and as your kids probably don't need the cash right now, one day their (increased) holding will reflect your intelligence in stock picking.

I guess you're 55 ish, though I'm often way off base when picking someone's age...

Regards,

D

[slaphead240] 27/11/2013 20:54

It's great to see a new entry on this thread and I agree 100%. Perhaps a bit later than I had hoped I have started to put some funds in this IT for my retirement in a little over 10 Years. I have got my kids doing the same thing and they will have a 30 year head start on me. I went with my son to the recent AGM and I was impressed with Job Curtis and the board.

[damanko] 27/11/2013 20:14

An unusually quiet thread for such a quality Investment Trust, indicative I suppose of many private investor's radar when it comes to longer term stuff. But I know some of us are still around.

In 1994 (stay with me here .......) a friend had £900 spare, and asked for advice in what to do with it. I suggested that City of London IT might be worth a punt (as an even longer term holder). Her £880 is today worth £4,750 or so. She has done nothing except leave it alone and reinvest dividends.

Funny old world, as many say. On her original investment, Dame Ruby receives a little short of 20% income. In current terms, she receives several per cent more than leaving any money in a bank.

I'm (almost) minded to start a new thread on CTY, as this one is so underused and definitely under read. We'll see. Jolly good luck to holders, old - younger and just sensible investors............

D

[topvest] 28/5/2012 13:43

It deserves to be on a slight premium given its 45 year consecutive dividend increase record...now that's some record!

[beardmore] 28/5/2012 12:13

A profound insight, arja.

[arja] 28/5/2012 11:09

why does this trust trdae at a slight premium to NAV - unusual ? Could mean a big dip in share price if markets tank .

[northernlass] 11/5/2012 13:44

Moningstar Tips City of London Investment Trust (CTY.L)

Investment Trust Picks for Income-Seekers

Morningstar's Szymon Idzikowski explains why income-seekers should consider investment trusts and highlights a few of his favourites

Extract:

COOK: So for an investor who is looking to ramp up the income portion of their portfolio, are there any investment trusts that jump to mind that could be suitable for them?

IDZIKOWSKI: We actually even rated a couple of income funds. So, one of them is, for example, City of London Investment Trust (CTY). It has been rated Gold. There is a number of things we like about this fund. Its fund manager is Job Curtis, very experienced fund manager, over two decades of experience. He has been actually at the helm of this fund also for 20 years. That's a tenure that is rare to see actually, and what it means is that this tenure and the longevity of the tenure adds a lot of stability to the way he runs the funds.

So when you look on the process there have not been that many changes in the process. He was following the same consistent process over the time...and it paid back. I mean, the fund has generated progressive dividends for over 45 years.

COOK: That's some record.

IDZIKOWSKI: This is actually a record that has yet to be matched by any other funds.

COOK: So that's a great tip for investors.

Here is the link to the video and transcript:



P.S.

Here's a couple of links about SCLP, one of the hottest stocks at the moment:

[gregmorg] 19/1/2012 09:47

Topvest. Have you plotted RPI or even CPI over the last five years and compared that with the so called increase in dividend on this one? Management needs to sharpen up.

[asmodeus] 12/1/2012 13:09

And its recommended by Redmayne Bentley in today's Newsletter.

[topvest] 12/1/2012 12:43

I am holding and buying more on weakness - why? because it's been going since 1891, and has a 45 year record of increasing it's dividend. It's a quality play for growth and income over the medium term. How many other companies do you have that much confidence in...not many!? Anyway not a get rich quick company, but certainly not a get poor quick company!!

[gregmorg] 12/1/2012 12:35

I have held this stock in reasonable quantity since 2004 and must admit they are tedious and the growth in div is miserable. And that was why I bought it! Just hadn't realised how poor they are until recently.I suppose compared with various UK trackers they measure up but that is a lousy comparative. Why on earth am I holding this?

[chairman2] 16/5/2011 10:39

cash out for the summer doldrums

[beardmore] 16/5/2011 07:56

Well I've had 29% appreciation since buying (late 2008) and the dividend is a comforting 4.2%. It doesn't quite match up to Temple Bar and doesn't offer the possibilities of PIGITS Warrants (PLIS), but it seems a dependable old horse. Where would you re-invest?

[chairman2] 15/5/2011 17:23

weighing up lightening here