Benchmarking Portfolio
Discussion
Have you looked at Google Portfolio: https://www.google.co.uk/finance/portfolio
you can compare the portfolio against indices etc.
you can compare the portfolio against indices etc.
tali1 said:
Is there a website where i can benchmark my portfolio? (I mean inputting my specific amounts,and years invested )
If you are serious about investment, then to monitor your performance properly, simply treat each calendar year separately. Compare your overall portfolio percentage change from each 1st January, against the (benchmark) FTSE All-Share Index percentage change also from 1st January.
Cheat slightly like me if you want to, by including dividends as they are received within your portfolio total.
There was some discussion about this recently within the topics, 'Generating Income From 200k?' and 'Pensions Investment - Gilt Funds'.
Use a basic spreadsheet and also link the data to a simple Powerpoint graph if you wish.
Once set up, you only have to enter your share prices at the end of each week. I then print one page showing the holdings in league table order. That instantly shows your winners and losers, as the year goes along. Ignore the detail and concentrate on just the overall portfolio total percentage.
When you have got the basic spreadsheet working, you can always add to it to show extras, but don't make it too complicated. Mine will display P/E, Yields, and Div. totals for each holding, Percentage change Week and Year for each company. It all works using just a single sheet. As they say, keep it simple.
I suspect that many, possibly most private investors, could not even say how their overall portfolios are performing in relation to the stock market average.
My opinion is that it is vital to know this information, otherwise how do you even know whether your portfolio (fund) contains holdings in good businesses?
I know my precise numbers once every week.
Week ending 4th March: +3.75%.
FTSE All-Share Index: -1.13%.
OK so far this year, but will that continue?
Nobody knows.
Good luck.
Edited by Jon39 on Monday 7th March 22:55
Jon39 said:
tali1 said:
Is there a website where i can benchmark my portfolio? (I mean inputting my specific amounts,and years invested )
If you are serious about investment, then to monitor your performance properly, simply treat each calendar year separately. Compare your overall portfolio percentage change from each 1st January, against the (benchmark) FTSE All-Share Index percentage change also from 1st January.
Cheat slightly like me if you want to, by including dividends as they are received within your portfolio total.
There was some discussion about this recently within the topics, 'Generating Income From 200k?' and 'Pensions Investment - Gilt Funds'.
Use a basic spreadsheet and also link the data to a simple Powerpoint graph if you wish.
Once set up, you only have to enter your share prices at the end of each week. I then print one page showing the holdings in league table order. That instantly shows your winners and losers, as the year goes along. Ignore the detail and concentrate on just the overall portfolio total percentage.
When you have got the basic spreadsheet working, you can always add to it to show extras, but don't make it too complicated. Mine will display P/E, Yields, and Div. totals for each holding, Percentage change Week and Year for each company. It all works using just a single sheet. As they say, keep it simple.
I suspect that many, possibly most private investors, could not even say how their overall portfolios are performing in relation to the stock market average.
My opinion is that it is vital to know this information, otherwise how do you even know whether your portfolio (fund) contains holdings in good businesses?
I know my precise numbers once every week.
Week ending 4th March: +3.75%.
FTSE All-Share Index: -1.13%.
OK so far this year, but will that continue?
Nobody knows.
Good luck.
Edited by Jon39 on Monday 7th March 22:55
tali1 said:
Thanks -I'm a passive unsophisticated long term investor - so weekly updates are not my thing. this year will be handy reference point as it will be 6 and 4 years precisely since my investments.
How many different "investments" are you trying to track? Are they shares or funds?tali1 said:
Thanks - I'm a passive unsophisticated long term investor - so weekly updates are not my thing. Think will use Google finance or Trustnet to see if i have kicked Warren Buffett's ass or whether the neighbourhood cat was better at picking funds! May of this year will be handy reference point as it will be 6 and 4 years precisely since my investments.
You are welcome.
Like you, I also am a passive, long-term investor.
No need for weekly updates, you can just do annual with this system if you wish. Weekly just keeps me more informed as each year goes along, and can create more detailed annual graphs.
'Passive' - my last significant buying was early in 2009. Prices of some very good businesses were then so obviously very cheap, unless as the majority seemed to be expecting, 2,000 years of commerce really was about to end.
March turned out to be the market low point. I was a bit early, but hindsight is always too late.
'Long-term' - Over 25 years ago the capabilities of spreadsheets caught my attention, so my monitoring system outlined above began. From the beginning, it very clearly indicated that I was somehow beating the market index (average). Being in possession of that information, made it easy to decide to leave the core of my portfolio unchanged. That is how I became a long-term investor. Without the discipline of the spreadsheet, I would probably have continued buying and selling, thinking I was making money, but not really knowing what the overall performance was. Instead, with minimal effort, I have always had complete details of performance, and am amazed at just what has been possible with long-term equity investment.
Obviously if the performance monitoring indicates that you are trailing the market during most years, your portfolio has the wrong holdings, or the holdings proportions are creating problems.
For a passive, long-term portfolio to be successful, it needs to contain steadily growing businesses, that are resilient during economic downturns.
'Warren Buffett' - Sorry to disappoint, but by having your year end in May, you won't know whether you have beaten Mr. Buffett. He uses the calendar year. I don't know what the anniversaries of particular purchases, has got to do with investment portfolio performance monitoring.
Edited by Jon39 on Tuesday 8th March 20:18
Ozzie Osmond said:
tali1 said:
Thanks -I'm a passive unsophisticated long term investor - so weekly updates are not my thing. this year will be handy reference point as it will be 6 and 4 years precisely since my investments.
How many different "investments" are you trying to track? Are they shares or funds?Jon39 said:
tali1 said:
Thanks - I'm a passive unsophisticated long term investor - so weekly updates are not my thing. Think will use Google finance or Trustnet to see if i have kicked Warren Buffett's ass or whether the neighbourhood cat was better at picking funds! May of this year will be handy reference point as it will be 6 and 4 years precisely since my investments.
You are welcome.
Like you, I also am a passive, long-term investor.
No need for weekly updates, you can just do annual with this system if you wish. Weekly just keeps me more informed as each year goes along, and can create more detailed annual graphs.
'Passive' - my last significant buying was early in 2009. Prices of some very good businesses were then so obviously very cheap, unless as the majority seemed to be expecting, 2,000 years of commerce really was about to end.
March turned out to be the market low point. I was a bit early, but hindsight is always too late.
'Long-term' - Over 25 years ago the capabilities of spreadsheets caught my attention, so my monitoring system outlined above began. From the beginning, it very clearly indicated that I was somehow beating the market index (average). Being in possession of that information, made it easy to decide to leave the core of my portfolio unchanged. That is how I became a long-term investor. Without the discipline of the spreadsheet, I would probably have continued buying and selling, thinking I was making money, but not really knowing what the overall performance was. Instead, with minimal effort, I have always had complete details of performance, and am amazed at just what has been possible with long-term equity investment.
Obviously if the performance monitoring indicates that you are trailing the market during most years, your portfolio has the wrong holdings, or the holdings proportions are creating problems.
For a passive, long-term portfolio to be successful, it needs to contain steadily growing businesses, that are resilient during economic downturns.
'Warren Buffett' - Sorry to disappoint, but by having your year end in May, you won't know whether you have beaten Mr. Buffett. He uses the calendar year. I don't know what the anniversaries of particular purchases, has got to do with investment portfolio performance monitoring.
Edited by Jon39 on Tuesday 8th March 20:18
Anyway, on the 20 funds ,i'm up 14% in total( the best 43%, the worst -42% -although i assume costs have to deducted aswell
tali1 said:
Ah i thought anniversaries sort of related to cumulative and discrete performance ?
Anyway, on the 20 funds ,i'm up 14% in total( the best 43%, the worst -42% -although i assume costs have to deducted as well.
Anyway, on the 20 funds ,i'm up 14% in total( the best 43%, the worst -42% -although i assume costs have to deducted as well.
How can I put this?
You are up 14%, but I could say I am up 10,000%, simply because I started 28 years ago.
It means nothing, because that does not provide the right information, for us to know how we are actually doing.
The simplest way that I would suggest (lets forget the spreadsheet), is to write down your fund values and the overall total for 1 Jan 2015. Also note the FTSE All-Share Index which was 3532.74.
Do that again for 1 Jan 2016 (Index was 3444.28), then your calculator will tell you the percentage changes.
You will then know properly how your funds and your overall total investments performed in 2015.
Just the two overall percentages are the key numbers, and then you really know what has happened.
My own result for 2015 was +7.56% (the Index was -2.50%).
When you have your pair of numbers for several years, then you have a good picture of how you are doing.
You can find historical prices and index numbers on the internet, but pen, paper and calculator are all you need, particularly as you say, you only want infrequent valuations.
I have noticed that the fund industry seem to use a variety of strange end of year statement dates, but I presume they probably publish daily prices. You should therefore be able to obtain your fund values for each 1st January.
The year(s) in which you made your purchases, will obviously mean there was a part year to the next 1st January. Note your purchase values, then make a note of the FTSE All-Share Index at the close of business for the day you made your purchases. You should be able to find the Index number here;
https://uk.finance.yahoo.com/q/hp?s=%5EFTAS .
Even though it will be a part-year, you can do exactly the same percentage comparison, between your investments and the Index.
The beauty of this comparison system, is that it can tell you whether you have invested well. You cannot beat the market every year, but if you never beat the market, then your holdings, or holding proportions are completely wrong. Hopefully with some market wins, you can leave your investments alone.
Edited by Jon39 on Thursday 10th March 19:55
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