New Dozens Purchases
(TMF Sheard)
LEXINGTON, KY. (July 31, 1998) -- Today's downbeat session closes out July, which means that it's time to choose the eighth stock for each of the Dozens portfolios at today's close. Since we have a new database as well today, the brand-new rankings are used to make those choices.
Let's start with the Dow Dozen, which uses the Foolish Four rankings to make its choices. Because of the recent flip-flop for the position of lowest-priced stock in the High-Yield 10, International Paper <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: IP)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: IP)") end if %> is the Dow Dozen top-ranked stock for this month, but since it's already in the model portfolio, we must drop down and pick up the next stock in line. So Philip Morris <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: MO)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: MO)") end if %>, no longer in the hot seat for having the highest yield and the lowest price, will be the addition to the Dow Dozen for our next $1,000 hypothetical deposit.
For the Dow Racers Dozen, which chooses the Dow stock with the highest total return over the past 26 weeks, the top two stocks, Wal-Mart <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: WMT)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: WMT)") end if %> and McDonald's <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: MCD)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: MCD)") end if %>, are already holdings in the group, so we pick up the third-place stock this month, American Express <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: AXP)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: AXP)") end if %>.
The Keystone Dozen already owns top ranked America Online <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: AOL)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: AOL)") end if %> and Dell Computer <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(Nasdaq: DELL)") else Response.Write("(Nasdaq: DELL)") end if %>, so the highest-ranking newcomer is Equitable Cos. <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: EQ)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: EQ)") end if %>, which becomes stock number eight for the model.
The Low Price-to-Sales Dozen and the 26-week Relative Strength Dozen will both be picking up top-ranked newcomer Recoton Corp. <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(Nasdaq: RCOT)") else Response.Write("(Nasdaq: RCOT)") end if %>.
The Formula90 Dozen, because it already holds Dell, will be adding Nokia Corp. <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: NOK.A)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: NOK.A)") end if %>. And the IBD version of the Relative Strength Dozen will also pick up Nokia, because it already owns the top three stocks in the current rankings: America Online, Best Buy Co. <% if gsSubBrand = "aolsnapshot" then Response.Write("(NYSE: BBY)") else Response.Write("(NYSE: BBY)") end if %>, and Dell Computer.
In the AOL Workshop message board, there were a number of questions regarding the process one might use to start a Dozens portfolio if one has enough to buy all twelve positions now, rather than funding them one per month as we have been doing in these models. For one possible way to do this, please see today's Foolish Four column, where I outlined such a scenario.
And last, but in my mind anything but least, I'll be away next week on vacation. Unfortunately, that means next week's Workshop rankings and database won't be updated until Sunday. I'm sorry for the inconvenience. I'll be back with you on August 11.
Check out the latest file updates for the Workshop:
New Rankings
| 1998 Returns
| New Database
[Robert Sheard is the author of the The Unemotional Investor (Simon & Schuster, 1998) available now at Amazon.com and your local bookseller.]