Interesting article, Les.
In what is likely to remain an unsettled market for the rest of the year, conservative investors like Ammon who never abandoned diversification and the search for undervalued stocks are keeping their cool. Staid companies like Caterpillar, ConAgra, ExxonMobil, and 3M have helped Ammon's retirement portfolio gain around 2 percent since the Nasdaq composite index peaked in March 2000 and then began its 65 percent slide. "These are good, solid blue-chip companies," says Ammon, 60, though admittedly "not the subject of much dinner-party conversation." About the only sex in his portfolio was one share of Viagra maker Pfizer.
Considering over the past few years his shares of Caterpillar took a 56% plunge from top to bottom and ConAgra dropped 54% from its top to bottom, it's good he had 3M and Exxon to help make up a little difference (as well as that one share of Pfizer).
Take a little look at a chart that goes back to capture the bull run and a good chunk of the bear from 96 to present to see how his conservative investments have done next to some of those profitless new economy stocks.
Here's one up against three internutz of AOL, Amazon and eBay:
siliconinvestor.com
Good thing he's floating in his pool and avoided those.
How about some wacky tech's like EMC, Dell and Microsoft?
siliconinvestor.com
Why not toss in Brocade, Siebel and Cisco?
siliconinvestor.com
"In what is likely to remain an unsettled market for the rest of the year, conservative investors like Ammon who never abandoned diversification and the search for undervalued stocks are keeping their cool."
Maybe the next 5 years will be as equally compelling for Mr. Ammons with his ConAgra, 3M, Caterpillar, Exxon and 1 share of Pfizer. ;-)
BB |
