Special Situations Real Money Portfolio 2007 Review
The Special Situations Real Money Portfolio weathered the market turmoil of 2007 beautifully and managed to return a whopping 47.7% annualized rate of return. Since inception on October 19, 2004, my special situations portfolio has generated a 27.1% annualized rate of return. This performance has far and away exceeded my expectations for this unique little portfolio that I manage for my son’s education. Sadly, past performance does not not guarantee future results.
The portfolio started 2007 off with a balance of $7,529.78. I then contributed the maximum amount for a Coverdell Educational Savings Account for the year ($2,000) on February 9th. At the market close on December 31, 2007, this account ended with a balance of $13,950.10. That means this account earned $4,420.32 this past year. Since I last reported on the Special Situations Portfolio November closing balance, this account is also up $775.42, a 5.9% gain, for the month of December.
There are only a few new actions to report on for December. On December 4, 2007, I received $368.31 as a result of a class action lawsuit regarding my first going private transaction investment, ASA International (ASAL). I wasn’t even aware that there was a class action lawsuit, so this was a rather nice surprise. It was basically found money in my mind. Even after doing some searching, I can’t seem to find any information about this class action.
On December 17th, I also bought shares of AF Financial Group (ASFE). This company was conducting a tender offer in order to go private. Shareholders holding less than 99 shares would be eligible for the tender offer, so I immediately thought that this was going to be a great offer since the company was tendering shares at $20.00 per share and also offering a $50.00 bonus for tender offers received by February 15, 2008. I picked up 99 shares right away for $13.25 per share. Then a short while later a member of Contributor’s Corner alerted me to an important detail that I overlooked. You had to have owned the AFSE shares on December 13, 2007 in order to qualify for the tender. I quickly placed a sell order and my shares were luckily sold for a small profit at $14.00 per share on December 18th.
Thankfully, the incentive system at Fat Pitch Financials Contributor’s Corner rewards members for making such alerts. You won’t find a member rewards system at any other financial newsletter or database that gives members subscription credit for alerting members about errors, late breaking news, or new opportunities. That’s the advantage that you will get by subscribing to Fat Pitch Financials Contributor’s Corner’s amazing community and special situations reporting service. You’ll also be able to review the current holdings of the Fat Pitch Financials Special Situations Real Money Portfolio, the account’s complete transaction history, and get alerts regarding any trades.