The Investing Weakness That’s Holding You Back

A real investing strategy details how you’ll build your wealth.

| More on:

The content of this article was relevant at the time of publishing. Circumstances change continuously and caution should therefore be exercised when relying upon any content contained within this article.

When investing, your capital is at risk. The value of your investments can go down as well as up and you may get back less than you put in.

Read More

The content of this article is provided for information purposes only and is not intended to be, nor does it constitute, any form of personal advice. Investments in a currency other than sterling are exposed to currency exchange risk. Currency exchange rates are constantly changing, which may affect the value of the investment in sterling terms. You could lose money in sterling even if the stock price rises in the currency of origin. Stocks listed on overseas exchanges may be subject to additional dealing and exchange rate charges, and may have other tax implications, and may not provide the same, or any, regulatory protection as in the UK.

You’re reading a free article with opinions that may differ from The Motley Fool’s Premium Investing Services. Become a Motley Fool member today to get instant access to our top analyst recommendations, in-depth research, investing resources, and more. Learn More.

Laid-up with an ankle injury a few weeks back, I spent a week on the sofa, catching up on my reading.

To be sure, I also dipped into a pile of my favourite investing books: David Dreman’s Contrarian Investment Strategies, Howard Marks’ The Most Important Thing, Anthony Bolton’s Investing Against The Tide and Benjamin Graham’s The Intelligent Investor.

But from a wealth-building point of view, it turned out that one of the most thought-provoking reads was a book that wasn’t actually about investing in the first place. The words ‘investment’ and ‘share’, for instance, don’t even appear in the index.

It’s a book that has certainly given me pause for thought – and I reckon that its central message will probably help you in your investing, too.

Tactics not strategy

I’ve written before about how I’ve doubled my pension by switching to a low-cost SIPP stuffed with a few well-chosen index trackers and recovery stocks.

I’ve also written about my ISA portfolio of solid dividend-paying picks, and the low-cost Vanguard index trackers doing very nicely in yet another ISA wrapper.

But I’m the first to admit that a number of my moves have been more tactical than strategic – responding to the investment environment and opportunities of the day, for instance, rather than a bottom-up attempt to build the wealth that I’m counting on to fund my lifestyle in retirement.

Up 135%

And to be sure, the cracks are starting to show. Over the past year, for instance, engineering company GKN (LSE: GKN), is up over 60%, versus the FTSE’s more modest 12% rise.

At 350p, versus 149p when I bought it, GKN is up an impressive 135%, and consequently offers a forecast yield of just 2.3% on a P/E of 17.

So what on earth is it still doing in my income portfolio?

Double your income

A more rational approach would surely be to sell the stock, bank the gains, and pile into higher-yielding dividend stalwarts such as GlaxoSmithKline or AstraZeneca.

Or even battered pasty retailer Greggs (LSE: GRG), if I wanted to play the same ‘recovery stock’ game that got me into GKN in the first place.

Currently unloved by the stockmarket – year to date, Greggs is down 13%, versus the FTSE’s rise of 12% – the company has nevertheless managed to raise its dividend for each of the last 28 years.

Put another way, for every £10 of income I currently receive from GKN could be doubled to £20 by selling GKN and moving the proceeds equally into Greggs, Glaxo and Astra.

And that, for a purported income investor, should be the smart thing to do.

Good strategy, bad strategy

All of which takes me back to that book I mentioned.

Published in 2012, Good Strategy, Bad Strategy by Richard Rumelt has apparently become something of an instant classic in business circles.

An American professor who’s been retained by some of America’s largest companies to advise on strategy, Rumelt has a handy knack for explaining insightful strategic thinking. Why Apple went on to become the world’s most valuable business, for instance, while any number of other computer makers also named after fruit didn’t. (Anyone else remember Apricot Computers?)

But the real nub of the book is his unerring eye for picking out what makes a good strategy, and what makes a bad one.

No punches pulled

Eloquently picking to pieces corporate disasters such as Enron, Lehman Brothers and International Harvester, Prof Rumelt ruthlessly savages sloppy ‘strategic’ thinking – which is precisely the sort of thinking that I’ve been guilty of at times, I’m afraid.

Top of the list: leaders who mistake goals, objectives and exhortation for strategic thinking.

Real strategy, in short, is how you’ll do something, recognising the challenges and resources constraints ahead. Strategy is most definitely not wishful thinking, aspirations or ‘stretch goals’.

Plan, don’t hope

For investors – even though Prof Rumult wasn’t explicitly addressing you and I – his message can perhaps best be summarised something like this:

  • Know what you’re aiming for;
  • Understand why you’re aiming for it;
  • Understand your strengths and weaknesses relative to that goal, and;
  • Have an achievable, thought-through plan for getting there.

As you’ll have gathered, he’s not keen on hope, luck, wishful thinking, wilful blindness or cheerful optimism as alternatives to this approach.

And he’s especially not keen on aspirations followed by a misdirected set of floundering steps that confuse activity with progress.

Action time

For myself, I’ve resolved to do something about a number of investing decisions that seemed alright at the time, but which no longer suit my objectives as I get closer to retirement.

With GKN, for instance, I suspect that I’ll either sell soon, or nominate a future price at which I’ll sell. What I won’t do is continue to drift.

And as well as correcting past errors – although I’m not sure ‘error’ is the right word for a gain of 135% – I clearly need to do some serious thinking about recent developments such as the brand-new ability to invest in AIM stocks inside an ISA.

Not to mention my almost complete lack of exposure to fixed-income bonds and gilts.

One that I didn’t get wrong

You’ll have your own thoughts about actions to take, I’m sure, prompted by the above. But let me leave you with a final thought…

As you probably know, the ace team of investors at Motley Fool Share Advisor constantly scour the stock market to unearth what they believe to be the best investment opportunities for members.

But what you may not know is that the picks they make are divided into two different recommendation types – growth and income.

In other words, Share Advisor neatly complements two of the most popular investing strategies out there: generating growth, and generating an income.

And taking a quick peek at the team’s current picks, I was pleased to see many of them matched the stocks already in my own portfolio!

You can see every pick selected by Motley Fool Share Advisor for yourself by clicking here and joining the service today. I believe you will then discover many superb recommendations that could lead to significant income and growth.

> Malcolm owns shares in AstraZeneca, GKN, GlaxoSmithKline and Greggs. The Motley Fool owns shares in Apple and has recommended shares in GlaxoSmithKline.

Should you invest, the value of your investment may rise or fall and your capital is at risk. Before investing, your individual circumstances should be assessed. Consider taking independent financial advice.

More on Investing Articles

Investing Articles

Could the JD Sports Fashion share price double in the next five years?

The JD Sports Fashion share price has nearly halved in the past five years. Our writer thinks a proven business…

Read more »

Bus waiting in front of the London Stock Exchange on a sunny day.
Investing Articles

If interest rate cuts are coming, I think these UK growth stocks could soar!

Falling interest could be great news for UK growth stocks, especially those that have been under the cosh recently. Paul…

Read more »

Investing Articles

Are these the best stocks to buy on the FTSE right now?

With the UK stock market on the way to hitting new highs, this Fool is considering which are the best…

Read more »

Petrochemical engineer working at night with digital tablet inside oil and gas refinery plant
Investing Articles

Can the Centrica dividend keep on growing?

Christopher Ruane considers some positive factors that might see continued growth in the Centrica dividend -- as well as some…

Read more »

Smiling family of four enjoying breakfast at sunrise while camping
Investing Articles

How I’d turn my £12,000 of savings into passive income of £1,275 a month

This Fool is considering a strategy that he believes can help him achieve a stable passive income stream with a…

Read more »

Person holding magnifying glass over important document, reading the small print
Investing Articles

2 top FTSE 250 investment trusts trading at attractive discounts!

This pair of discounted FTSE 250 trusts appear to be on sale right now. Here's why I'd scoop up their…

Read more »

Smiling young man sitting in cafe and checking messages, with his laptop in front of him.
Investing Articles

3 things that could push the Lloyds share price to 60p and beyond

The Lloyds share price has broken through 50p. Next step 60p? And then what? Here are some thoughts on what…

Read more »

Young female business analyst looking at a graph chart while working from home
Investing Articles

£1,000 in Rolls-Royce shares a year ago would be worth this much now

Rolls-Royce shares have posted one of the best stock market gains of the past 12 months. But what might the…

Read more »