Dividend Chaser on Value Investing

(From Article)

Value Investing has been proven to be the best investing method, as can be seen with the phenomenal growth of Berkshire Hathaway, Warren Buffett's company. 

Many people buy stocks after hearing good news about the stocks. They are just buying something which is selling at a higher price in the hope of selling it later at an even higher price, which doesn't make sense to me. 

Value Investing is like shopping for stocks on sale. It would be more logical to buy stocks when they are at a discount and not when they have become pricier. This is about buying something at a price lower than its intrinsic value.

Another thing which is important to remember is to invest in companies which have some kind of competitive advantage over their peers. These companies tend to have a larger market share, and are more profitable in the long run. Therefore, they are likely to continue growing in years to come.

For someone who is new to investing, I would suggest being more cautious. What do I mean?

I tested some strategies through paper trading prior to real investing. When I started paper trading, I was more emotional and often closed my trades too early. Now, I hold on to my investments for a much longer period which has proven to be more profitable than short term trading. 

Being stronger financially now also means that I am able to weather larger drawdowns to my investment portfolio without feeling too emotional. 

I will end by sharing this quotation:

"Your goal as an investor should simply be to purchase, at a rational price, a part interest in an easily-understandable business whose earnings are virtually certain to be materially higher five, ten and twenty years from now."Warren Buffett

Dividend Chaser on Minions coming to Singapore Happy Meal from 11Jul

Dividend Chaser on HPH target price 0.82 USD

(From Article)

DBS Vickers analyst Suvro Sarkar says the worst is over for Hutchison Port Holdings Trust and now is a good time to buy the stock.

“HPHT share price has corrected significantly in line with market sentiment, and we believe it has more than priced in lower DPU expectations. Maintain BUY in light of healthy yield promise amid the uncertain macro environment. A trade recovery by 2H13 could provide an additional cyclical leverage boost to the stock price,” says Suvro.

Volume growth at the Trust’s HIT terminals in HK has been below par so far in FY13, with the port workers’ strike in April adding to the woes. HIT volumes could be down more than 10% y-o-y in 2Q13, with the high base in 1H12 – arising from higher transhipment activities between newly formed liner alliance partners – further skewing the comparison.

Yantian Port volumes though remain on course for mid-single digit growth as expected, but overall volumes in FY13 could be flattish, despite contribution from newly acquired ACT terminals in HK. But the worst should be over and even though Europe trade remains weak, US volumes show relatively positive signs and upcoming peak season should provide more visibility for investors. This was the key message that HPHT communicated during our Pulse of Asia investor conference in Singapore recently.

US payrolls data came in better than expected recently, and while unemployment rate didn’t fall, consumer sentiment is improving and US inventory to sales ratio has maintained its upward momentum, giving the analyst some confidence that trade flows in 2H13 will improve.

“In line with lower volume estimates, we moderate our FY13/14 DPU expectations by about 7%/6% to 5.3UScts/ 5.9UScts. Our TP is adjusted down to US$0.82,” says the analyst.

As on 10July, HPH stock price is USD 0.75.

Dividend Chaser on Singapore Childcare teacher abuse child

(From Article)

SINGAPORE — A 51-year-old part-time childcare teacher at NTUC My First Skool has been arrested after a video of her roughly handling a three-year-old boy — causing him to fracture his shin — went viral online, with Acting Minister for Social and Family Development (MSF) Chan Chun Sing pledging to investigate the incident “thoroughly”.

The arrest yesterday came as NTUC First Campus, which runs My First Skool, acknowledged at a press conference that the boy’s injury was caused by “mishandling by his teacher”.

The incident took place on Friday at the My First Skool centre at Toa Payoh Block 192. In a two-minute clip uploaded by the boy’s parents, the teacher is seen forcefully dragging the boy to a corner and pushing him hard onto the ground.

NTUC First Campus said the teacher and the centre’s principal took the boy to the KK Women’s and Children’s Hospital, where it was discovered that he sustained a hairline fracture.

Speaking on the sidelines of a community event yesterday, Mr Chan said the MSF is taking this case of alleged child abuse “very seriously” and that results of the investigations, which will involve the induction and training of staff, supervision and incident management by the centres, will be shared with other operators in “due course.”

At the NTUC First Campus press conference, Chief Executive Officer Chan Tee Seng apologised for the teacher’s conduct and said she has been suspended.

“We will continue to extend all help to the child and his parents, including covering all medical expenses. The parents of the child have requested for a transfer to a nearby My First Skool centre and we have already made arrangements for this,” he said.

He added that the teacher’s conduct was “totally unacceptable” and that he was “very disturbed and saddened” after watching the video.

The teacher, who has 16 years of experience and is a diploma holder, has been teaching part-time at My First Skool since 2009. The school said it has never received complaints about her. It also said that no other teachers witnessed the incident.

NTUC’s Mr Chan said it was “too early to say” if the teacher will be dismissed as a “due process” must take place. A “face-to-face” meeting with the management is expected today.

The parents of the boy — who cannot be named to protect his identity — said they were shocked when they saw the video. The father, 32, said he had not suspected abuse at first and assumed the injury could have been due to “negligence”.

He said he visited the school on Saturday and asked to see CCTV footage of what happened, but the request was turned down as the centre said it wanted to view it first. The school relented after the police intervened.

The boy is recovering but is “not able to sleep peacefully” because of the pain, said his father. His mother, 30, wants a psychological assessment done on him.

When asked why the parents were not allowed to view the footage at first, NTUC’s Mr Chan said: “Every allegation is taken very seriously because there is both the welfare and well-being of the child and also the reputation of the teacher. So, we would like to be able to review the CCTV usually within a reasonable amount of time.”

Since 2011, NTUC First Campus has had CCTVs installed at all its centres.

Mr Chan said it is “inevitable” that NTUC, which takes care of 10,000 children, receives allegations of mishandling and abuse “from time to time”, but declined to give figures. Sometimes these complaints are found to be true and other times “unfounded”, he added.

An NTUC First Campus spokesperson said that potential teachers, during their course of obtaining the necessary qualifications, would have been taught about classroom management which covers “appropriate handling of children”. Teachers are also taught different approaches to manage children appropriately.

Mr Chan Chun Sing said that while there are frameworks in place for the conduct of any activities and lessons and how teachers are inducted and trained, improvements could be made to give parents a sense of assurance.

Asked whether there is a need to make CCTVs compulsory at all childcare centres, he said: “Going forward, there are various considerations in the implementation of such technology across the sector. But more important than technology is the quality of teaching, the kind of values that we impart to the teachers ... so technology is an enabler, but technology should not be seen as the solution.”

Childcare operators TODAY spoke to said that there are clear guidelines for teachers on handling children.

“Our teachers are to be respectful, which means they do not manhandle the child and they watch their tone when speaking with the children. When a child is challenging, the teacher will sit with them and speak calmly to them and give them a “time-out” to compose themselves,” said Senior Principal Jacqueline Chung of St James’ Church Kindergarten, adding that teachers are to excuse themselves when they feel “overwhelmed” and are encouraged to speak to the principal or other staff.

In a Facebook post yesterday, Speaker of Parliament Halimah Yacob said she was “horrified” at the incident and “very concerned” for the child involved, as she called for patience pending the outcome of the investigations.

“Above all, please do not judge and view all childcare teachers negatively as many joined the profession not just because it is a job for them but because of their love for children, and we do not want to dampen their spirit and weaken their resolve,” she said.

Dividend Chaser on 2 options when investment goes bad

(Personal Sharing)

There are 2 options to take when an investment goes bad.

Option 1
We could cut our losses. This would mean believing that either the income producing investment is no longer able to produce the income that it has been producing or the market price of the investment is going to decline even more significantly in future.

Option 2
Stay invested. This would mean believing that the income producing investment is still able to produce the income that it has been producing or even more. It could also mean believing that the market price of the investment has stabilised or could even appreciate.

For people who have not overpaid for their investments, of course, option 1 would be more a question of protecting any capital gains. 

I did option 1 lately when I sold all my silver in my uob silver account and terminated the account. It was done at a loss equivalent to half of the original capital. There was a charge incurred even when I closed the account.

I felt there was no point holding on to my silver investment because the future looked bad for silver these few years. Furthermore, there is no return at all from the silver investment. This is unlike stocks which can give dividends to shareholders.

Once the decision was made, there was no turning back. The money from the sale of silver was transferred back to my uob bank account.

I have not decided yet how to make use of the money but I know it would not be silver or gold again.

Dividend Chaser on Housing Loan new guideline

Dividend Chaser on Cirque du Soleil performer died during performance

(From Article)

A Cirque du Soleil performer has died after falling about 15 metres from the show's stage during a performance of Ka in Las Vegas.

Sarah Guyard-Guillot, from Paris, was taken from MGM Grand in an ambulance and pronounced dead at the University Medical Center at 11.43pm local time.

Witnesses told the Las Vegas Sun the accident occurred near the end of the production at the MGM Grand.

Visitor Dan Mosqueda of Colorado Springs, said the 31-year-old acrobatic performer was being hoisted up the side of the stage when she appeared to slip from her safety wire and plummeted to an open pit below the stage.

"Initially, a lot of people in the audience thought it was part of the [show]," he told the Sun. "But you could hear screaming, then groaning, and we could hear a female artist crying from the stage."

The show continued for a moment, then stopped. Minutes after the accident, a recorded announcement informed audience members that refunds or vouchers to future shows would be offered, and the crowd was dismissed.

Cirque du Soleil founder Guy Laliberte issued a statement on Sunday praising Guyard-Guillot, a mother of two children. She had been with the original cast of Ka since 2006, and had been an acrobatic performer for more than 20 years.

"I am heartbroken. I wish to extend my sincerest sympathies to the family. We are all completely devastated," Laliberte said. "We are reminded with great humility and respect how extraordinary our artists are each and every night. Our focus now is to support each other as a family."

Guyard-Guillot's death is the first fatal accident during a live performance in the show's 30 year history.

Jason Nious, a fellow performer who was almost paralysed working on the same show in 2009, wrote of his grief in a lengthy post on Facebook.

"Sasoun [her stage name], your life was an inspiration. You came, you showed, you proved and you passed it down to the next generation," Nious wrote.

"You have united a community of individuals who have had very divided thoughts about the company which feeds us. Your life was not in vain. On the contrary, your life brings perspective and meaning to a mass of artists, technicians, managers, coaches, CEOs, owners, and audiences during these turbulent times. Thank you for shining your light so brightly while you were here in our presence."

Nious wrote that he had spent the day crying and thinking about what Guyard-Guillot's last thoughts would have been.

Guyard-Guillot also taught children circus performance through CirqueFit in Las Vegas and parents took to Facebook to praise her kindness and patience.

"Sarah was a wonderful teacher and a great mom to her beautiful children. We celebrate your life and you will be greatly missed ... fly Sarah!," Julie Garrick wrote.

Another parent of a student of Guyard-Guillot, Dee Trevino, posted: "Such an amazing, talented women doing what she loved and teaching her passion to other. I was so blessed to have known her and she was such an amazing teacher for my daughter at Cirquefit!"

Cirque du Soleil officials were working with authorities investigating the accident and had offered their full co-operation, Laliberte said. Performances of Ka have been cancelled until further notice.

The MGM Grand said in a statement: "Our company is deeply saddened by the loss of one of the talented Ka artists Saturday night. The thoughts and prayers of our employees are with the performer's family, the cast of Ka, and the entire Cirque family during this difficult time."