Sell in May and Go Away...to China?

Its the time of the year when i usually do a re-assessment of my investment strategy and capital allocation in order to stay ahead of market cycles. I am guilty of holding onto some counters for way too long even after they have reached my target price. It seems most brokerage houses keep upgrading stocks and shifting their target higher and higher. One such example is Singtel, now its target is $4.20? sure, maybe but not in the short term. I had to take profit early and trust me Singtel will come down eventually to find support at a lower level before the final push to the $4 region. All of my REIT holdings are also above target prices, Genting seems to be under the bus at the moment so i shall have to wait longer for it to reach my target price.

Anyway in order to do capital relocation, i need to free up some money. Chinese stocks look super attractive at the moment, with such valuations one cannot resist. I am going to pick individual counters which are growth stocks and play the broader index to diversify. 

Another point, I know for a fact, battery technology we currently use is outdated (over a century old). Cant wait to say goodbye to the pencil batteries. Having worked on Lithium-Air batteries myself, next generation battery technology is headed towards leaner, paper thin, Lithium Ion batteries with a greater capacity and recyclability than any existing alkaline or lithium cadmium ion battery. Therefore, i invested in BYD, manufacturers of next generation lithium ion batteries, PV cells and Electric cars. They are registered on the HKSE since 2002. Even Warren Buffet himself bought a huge stake for himself, however i must say, his timing was way way off. But you know what, this is a long term play and he knows it. Small retail investors just dont have the sort of capital to throw around so our timing has to be at least accurate. 

*Additional note: Interestingly fellow blogger WealthBuch also started taking profits. Refer to posted link below:
http://wealthbuch.blogspot.sg/2013/05/taking-little-profit-off-table.html

Disclaimer: Same as usual, dont just take my word for it. Perform your due dilligence before making an investment decision.     

My Past Performance

Being a small-time retail investor and actually quite inexperienced, its vital to keep track of your investments so that we can learn from our mistakes. 

I want to share my past performance, and the kind of lessons it has taught me.

Below is a table of my recent trades. As you can see, some trades were closed at a loss...this is because i really did not see the counter moving higher anytime soon(6-18months), therefore would not justify holding on to a losing stock/unit. 

SMART TIP #1: Its important to cut your losses early and shift the capital elsewhere.

SMART TIP #2: Always stick to your target price and get out of the trade. (No point regretting later, like for example: why did i close Starhub @ $3.14 when now its trading at $4.20! That just was not my target, i never anticipated or valued Starhub at anything more than $3.20) So i don't regret my decision.

SMART TIP #3: Shift your capital around as you see fit during the fiscal year. Financials do well from Oct to Feb. Telecom and Consumer Goods are defensive plays and good to hold from March to Sept. Pharmaceuticals generally do well from May to Sept.

***Following fiscal cycle (business cycle) is one thing, trying to match with general Market cycle and trend is another. Therefore you need to match business cycle with Market cycle and trend. I will talk about Market cycle in another post.