Taking a Look at Berkshire and Baupost

Three of my favorite investors are Charlie Munger, Warren Buffet, and Seth Klarman.  So I thought I would pull up their current investments and recent changes to their portfolio.  It occurs to me that I should be checking what these legends are doing more frequently.

Here is the latest from Bershshire Hathaway:

Stocks I have in common with Berkshire are:

• WFC, AAPL, KO, PSX, GE, JNJ
• I hold 4 of his top ten, and sold IBM at a high last year, which I bet Warren wishes he had done
• I note they own three airlines, which surprises me a bit.  Warren has been very negative on airlines throughout his career...."the quickest way to $1M in the stock market is to invest $2M into an airline stock...."
• I own one airline, ALK, and have been quite happy with it's performance.  
• BH also owns 6 financial stocks, including Visa and Mastercard.  Worth more analysis
• There are a few on the list I'm not familiar with, I'll check them out soon.

Now for Baupost, taking the data from this SA article:  https://seekingalpha.com/article/4073081-tracking-seth-klarmans-baupost-group-holdings-q1-2017-update

I own fewer of these names, and only QCOM in my Chump IRA.  I own ABC, ESRX, and MCK in my taxable account, but these pay small or no dividend.  Interestingly, I owned FOXA as well, but sold it recently after the loss of Roger Ailes and Bill O'Reilly.  This list gives me plenty to evaluate.

Best,

Chump

Adding to KIM, and Starting a Position is SKT

REITs continue to get hit today due to some bad news in the sector, and in retail.  Some of the high quality REITs I already own are selling at a great discount, and Tanger Outlet REIT (SKT), is really at a great price.  I'm adding to my existing position in KIM, and starting a position in SKT.

Here is a FASTGraph for SKT:

Here are the reasons I like SKT:

• Great price, undervalued
• 5% dividend yield
• Steady, consistent growth in cash flow the past 20 years!
• Excellent credit rating

I really like REIT investments for my IRA.  The high dividends are not taxed, and I reinvest them directly.  This creates a compounding machine for the portfolio.  As a % of the overall portfolio, REITs now account for 17.2% of the portfolio.  Here are my REIT holdings:

• O
• OHI
• STAG
• DLR
• KIM
• SKT
• SPG

I'm still looking to add at least one more REIT in the healthcare or storage spaces...I like PSA and HCA, but both are still above my buy point.......

Best regards,

Chump

Adding DOC (Physicians Realty Trust), Selling Lexington (LXP)

Here is an article on the REIT from Brad Thomas....

https://seekingalpha.com/article/4063591-physicians-realty-just-doctor-ordered

I've wanted to increase my ownership of healthcare REITs, with OHI as my only holding here.  I looked at Ventas (VTR) and HTA, both good candidates, but both a bit too pricey for me today.  DOC is trading at a nice discount to fair value, so that is my pick.  I bought a 1/2 position in the stock today at a price of $19.12 per share.  The yield today is around 4.7%.

Here is the FASTGraph for DOC:

Regarding Lexington... they are having some issues financially, and while their long term prospects seem fine, I think it will be a year or two before the price really starts to appreciate.   I've closed the position, and redeployed to DOC above.

Best regards,

Chump

Good Article from Brad Thomas on STAG

https://seekingalpha.com/article/4070428-bet-stag-feels-like-always-dreaming?v=1494269483&comments=show

Still a buy in his mind.

Best,

Chump

Adding in the REIT space - More Realty Income (O), and Simon Property Group (SPG)

REITs as a group are down today due some bad news for a triple net REIT that I don't own.  But the entire sector is getting punished.

My position in O is smallish, at 3/4 of normal.  The reason for this is that I trimmed O back from an oversized position to this undersized position on 6/26/2016 at a price of $68 and some change.  At the time, I was worried about the size of my O position, and the high valuation.  Here is a chart showing O's price from that day to today:

Selling at $68 was a good move.  Buying back in at $54.97 could be a good move, we'll see.  But one thing is certain, buying back the 110 shares I sold at $68, for a new price of $54.97, has saved me over $1,430, less dividends.  The buy back gets me back to a full position.  If O drops further, I'll build it back to where it was, which was a 5/4 position...

I'm also adding SPG today, good stock, good price, good dividend.

Best,

Chump

Sold KMI (finally), Added to TROW, KR

I finally closed my position in KMI....still overpriced, cut the dividend, prospects are a bit bleak for the near term future, and I could do better with the money.

Added to my positions in TROW and KR.  Kroger is a value play, and TROW has some nice momentum after a good earnings report.  Both are now 2/3 sized positions in the portfolio.  As an FYI, TROW is in my Chump IRA, while KR is in my taxable account due to the smallish yield.

Best,

Chump

Priceonomics: Craft Brewing in the USA

San Diego is a respectable 14th on the list!

https://priceonomics.com/where-is-craft-beer-most-popular-in-america/

Best,

Chump