For the conservative portfolio we sold our 5% position in the Northern Income Equity (NOIEX) fund. We originally added this fund in April 2002 and the fund was up 13.5% over that time period. Convertible bonds benefit from upward movements in stock prices as the value of the conversion feature increases. Convertible bonds yield less then comparable risk corporate bonds because of this upside potential. As stock prices are back to fully valued, we think the below average yield will hold back portfolios going forward. ...read the rest of this article»

With a larger equity stake then the safety portfolio, the conservative portfolio was up 1.42% in January. Utility stocks were strong, as they usually are when interest rates fall. The American Century Utility Income fund (BULIX) was up 1.8% for the month. ...read the rest of this article»

In December the Conservative portfolio climbed 3.45% to end the year up 19.2%. More conservative stocks were hot in December, of the ilk found in the Vanguard Dividend Growth fund (VDIGX) – the fund was the best performer in the portfolio, up just over 6%. ...read the rest of this article»

Japan was weak in November as a category, giving back a little of its strong recent gains. The Growth Portfolio’s T. Rowe Price Japan fund was down just under 5%. One question in the great recovery in long downtrodden Japanese equities is this: how well can a primarily export driven society do if our dollar keeps falling making their goods more expensive? ...read the rest of this article»

October was strong for stocks and weak for bonds. The Conservative portfolio was up 1.76%, not bad given its large bond stake. Stocks are just a 30% allocation here, so investors shouldn’t expect big upward movement just because stocks are hot. ...read the rest of this article»

Stocks were down slightly in September while bonds rebounded strongly. The Conservative portfolio, being mostly bonds, was up smartly, logging in a 2.8% gain for the month. Over the last three months the portfolio was up 2.46%, while over the last year it has risen 17.4% ...read the rest of this article»

August saw the Conservative portfolio move up just shy of 1%. The bigger movers included the Vanguard Dividend Growth fund, up 2.35% and the newly added Pictet International Small Company fund, up 5.7%. This latter fund is a bit risky, but the relatively small position keeps it from generating too much risk to the portfolio. ...read the rest of this article»

For the month of July the Conservative portfolio slipped 1.25%. our worst showing of any of our model portfolios. The culprit: one of the lousiest months on record for bonds (the conservative portfolio is bond heavy). Most of the punishment was in longer-term government bonds, which were down almost 10% for the month. We don’t own much of these types of bonds, so the damage was somewhat blunted for us. ...read the rest of this article»

Our Conservative portfolio was essentially flat, up just .36% in June. The weak link was international bonds, which have been among the strongest asset classes over the last year or so. ...read the rest of this article»

The Conservative portfolio was up 5% in May, beating April’s return of 3.31%, which had been the largest return in a month since we started the portfolio. The Portfolio is now up 9% since its April ’01 inception. We’re pleased with this return considering the fact that the stock market as a whole is down 20% for the same period. ...read the rest of this article»