Two Year Performance Review

It's been two years since I purchased my first stock as a value investor, so I figured that it's time for a performance review. Don't put too much weight into this review, as I feel that it doesn't mean much until I've been investing at least 5 years. Although, if you really want to send me your money, you can leave a comment with your contact information and I'll let you know where to mail the check.

Below are the annualized returns that I've made since April 21, 2005:

• 24.6% annual return excluding stock purchases made within the last 6 months
• 23.2% annual return for Harley-Davidson (first stock purchased as a value investor)
• 33.0% annual return including purchases made within the last 6 months (not very meaningful given the short time that I've held recent stock purchases)
  

My goal has been to earn a 15% return, so I'm extremely pleased with these results. Especially considering in two years I've only purchased 7 stocks; of which I purchased 3 stocks within the last month. (The recent activity is due to a 401k rollover that I now control versus only being able to invest in a limited number of mutual funds or company stock.)

I haven't had to spend all of my time day trading, and I haven't lost any sleep at night worrying over my portfolio. Value investing is definitely the style of investing that suits my time (limited) and risk level (even more limited). Don't get me wrong, value investing takes time to research annual reports and other material and there is always risk associated with investing; however, I find that it makes the most sense and the most cents for me.