SC, Are you completely out of your remaining long positions? Can't say I blame you, since after almost 9 years, the odds are against it continuing too much longer.
While the market averages have steadily put in highs, more than a few of the stocks I follow have fallen by the wayside, so I'm growing less enthusiastic about stock picking. TEVA is one I had on the radar for years as a potential core holding in the pharma sector, but last year they got cut in half, and this year in half again -- so from 70 all the way down to 16, yikes. They are the 800 lb gorilla of the generic drug sector, which seemed like a conservative area, or so I thought.
TIS was another one, in what seemed like a conservative area (paper products), but they got demolished too - from 30s to 8.
So for the remaining long side, I'll probably just stick to the Vanguard High Dividend ETF (VYM). It has the advantage that you can add small amounts incrementally each month, and with no commissions, and it's well diversified, plus a good dividend, and very low expense ratio.
Btw, my dad's portfolio is 30% stocks, with the rest in bonds (65%) and cash (5%). He's in his 80s, and that conservative allocation has done very well over the years, with minimal angst. He rode right thru the 2008 collapse without making any changes except adding modestly to some positions near the bottom. He has a full service broker, and he said my dad's portfolio did the best of all his clients. So there's something to be said for the traditional buy/hold approach.
AI
