I Hope You Listened

My last two blogs were written on February 13 and February 29. In the former I wrote:

“It is not time to panic. Things are not nearly as dire as they were leading up to the crash in 2008. Outside of the negative consequences of a too-strong dollar, corporate revenues, profits and balance sheets are in very good shape. It is part of the normal and natural part of the stock market cycle that after a prolonged period of gains that we must experience a year or two of negative returns. Then, when the gloom and despair have peaked, it will be time for the next rally to begin.

So stick with your plan. In the world of virtually zero interest rates, owning a diverse basket of blue-chip, dividend-paying stocks, returning an average yield of at least 2%, is your best way to secure your financial future. So buckle up and prepare for a bumpy ride. I’ll try my best to guide you along the way.”

As it turned out, my message was particularly well-timed as the market had hit bottom only two days earlier. Since closing at 15,660.18 on the 11th, the #DJIA has surged 12.4% in only 25 trading days. Over the same period, the #S&P500 has gained a similar 12.0%. Even better, the Dow Jones Transportation Average (#DJTA), which suffered mightily on the way down, has jumped a stellar 17.3%, leading the way for the rest of the market.

On the 29th, I wrote the following two points (out of a much larger blog):

• I would substantially overweight, or even limit, your investments to blue-chip, dividend paying, U.S.-based equities as most of the rest of the world is a mess and income is at a premium.
• When times get scary, and you aren’t sure what to do, it’s ok to do nothing. Outside of some family accounts, in which I bought some stocks during the downturn in January (which proved too early), I have made next to no trades in 2016. And that’s just fine. Sometimes the best trades are the ones you don’t make.

Again, I believe these suggestions had, and still have, a lot of merit. I basically have done next to nothing so far this year, other than make a few acquisitions to round up existing positions that had been unfairly beaten down during the correction. More to the point; I sold nothing! Now, virtually every stock that had been down has rallied and recouped most, if not all, of the earlier losses. By doing nothing, buy ignoring the noise from the media and the panic of traders and nervous investors, we experienced no losses and have been made whole again. And the stocks we sat with continued to pay us a steady stream of above-average dividends while we waited.

So where are we today and what’s my current thinking? The #DJIA remains 750 points below the high of 18,312 set almost exactly 10 months ago, so there is still room for growth. The central bankers of the world, including our own Federal Reserve, remain highly accommodative, lowering rates to at, or in some cases even below, zero. These policies basically force investors into equities as investing in government bonds guarantees little or no income whatsoever.

I would continue to overweight your investments in primarily blue-chip, dividend-paying, quality U.S.-based companies. Look for businesses with strong brands, pricing power and competitive advantages and a history of paying dividends through good times and bad.

I believe that market will remain positive for at least the next two months, before we head into the traditional summer selling season, and into the Republican and Democratic conventions. I’ll comment more on the election cycle later. For now, let’s rejoice that Spring has arrived and, at least for now, the market is coming up roses.