Anyway, it's time to have a closer look on the current state of my portfolio. This is my portfolio per end of March 2015:
Appreciation of the USD against the EUR has led to strong capital gains in my portfolio: Market value is 21% above historical cost. Average portfolio yield has significantly improved to 6.32%. At the time when I bought my US holdings the EUR was much stronger compared to the USD, so I was able to get those stocks at a cheaper price. As dividends are paid in USD I now benefit from the stronger USD which is pushing my overall yield well above the 6% level. In consideration of Seadrill’s recent dividend suspension (leading to 0% dividend yield) this is a good development.
On a stock-by-stock basis, Deutsche Post has further increased in value and represents my top holding with +110%. In the past months, Realty Income has also noticeably gained in value and has increased by 65% compared to its acquisition price. Seadrill is by far my biggest loss-making position with -70%. I have spent some time thinking whether I should dispose of this investment, but I decided to keep it and wait for better times. I believe the company could achieve a turn-around story in 1 or 2-years time, although the stock might never be able to return past dividend levels. On top of that I also do not believe that the oil price will stay at the present low level in the mid-term. So all in all, there are some potential upsides and I believe it’s too early to write this investment off.
It is also worth mentioning that I have added a new position to my portfolio: Global Dream REIT, a Canada-based office REIT with full exposure to the German office market. The purchase took place in March and a brief description will follow soon in the stock section.
Until then, keep on investing!
