The REITS and IPOs Buzz This Week (First REITS, Lippo REITS, Saizen REITS, Jumbo Group)

Time wait for no one, we are at the last day of the month again and in a short 2 months' time, we are celebrating the most celebrated festival aka Christmas and then, there goes 2015. Throughout the 10 months, I am sure we have been through some hits and misses in our investment journey as well as life in general, that's part and parcel of life, we just need to keep going. 

Last week, if you are not oblivion to the local market, I am sure you have heard (or participated) in the buzz about the upcoming "crabby" IPO (Jumbo Group), the potential delist of a couple of well known REITS (First, Lippo Malls and Saizen REITS). Some of my financial bloggers friends have even took the opportunity and profit quick bucks out of these news. Talk about opportunist ;-) Being a small Lippo Malls Reit unit holder, it will be interesting to see how it pan out (this being my very first stock/Reit that involved in such news).   

So, the questions in many investors/potential investors' head are :

Is the Jumbo Group IPO "full of crap"? (pun intended)

If you are the unit holder of First, Lippo Malls or Saizen REITs, how should you react? 

I know a couple of my financial blogger/friends have written great stuff (with in-depth research for some) on these stuff, so, I thought by re-sharing their blogs here would benefits those readers who are interested too :

On Jumbo Group IPO:

1. Jumbo Group IPO – The Best Chilli Crab in Town? (by The Finance)

2. Jumbo Group IPO - Good buy or Goodbye? (By Bully The Bear)

3. The Jumbo Group IPO – Delicious Enough? (By Investment Moat)

4. Jumbo IPO - Should You Be Getting This? (By A Path To Forever Financial Freedom) 

On First, Lippo Malls and Saizen Reits :

1. Possible delisting of Saizen REIT, First REIT and LMRT (By ASSI)
2. First REIT and Lippo Malls possibly moving to Indonesia? (By Investment Moat)
3. Saizen REIT Accepts Acquisition Offer for Residential at NAV (By Investment Moat)

 

Cheers!

Keep The Fun Movement Going! Click To View The Video

The Walk - This Is How We Should Walk Our Dream

The Walk (directed by Robert Zemeckis, starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt) is the second movie that I've watched this month, after The Martian (click here for my brief post of the movie). If The Martian is about SURVIVAL, then The Walk is about DREAM! Equally inspiring and engaging movies. 

Initially, I thought a movie with such a theme : a man walking on the immense void between the World Trade Center towers doesn't sound interesting to me, especially it is based on a true story/event. It really happens in 1974 where the World Trade Center Towers still standing tall. But I was pleasantly proven wrong, it is quite a fast moving movie with tinge of humor and intense thrills at the final 30 minutes or so. If you are scared of height, you have been warned! ;-) 

I quite like the movie and I am giving it 4.5 (out of 5 stars). Following are a few key messages that I've learnt from the movie and I think they are applicable to our investment journey (in fact, life as a whole) :

1. Be prepared, as early as possible - Philippe Petit (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) is from France, as soon as he discovered the dream of his life, he starts to speak English to whoever he is speaking to. The reason? He knew that one day he will be in New York and he is preparing for the visit. This is the kind of preparation and vision that we should have in our investing journey. Keep learning and exploring proactively in the field of our interest and one day we will be doing our own Walk at our own version of World Trade Center Towers.

2. Never give up - Similar theme to The Martian. This time round, it is more on achieving the dream instead of for survival. Philippe could have given up when he stepped on the nail and seriously injured his foot one week before the planned walk, or when a couple of his team members made a u-turn half-way through their plan. But he didn't! Same thing for our investment journey, or life as a whole, we should practice more perseverance and NEVER GIVE UP!

Have you watched the movie, The Walk? What is your review?

Cheers! 

Keep The Fun Movement Going! Click To View The Video

The Martian - The Important Message That Is Applicable To Our Investment Journey

At the beginning of the month, I've blogged about one stock (Wee Hur) and one movie (The Martian) that I've determined to get/watched in the month of October amidst my busy work schedule (click here to see more). So far, I am just half way there.  

I managed to catch The Martian in IMAX 3D on 16th Oct 2015 (Friday). It literally blown me away, not from the special effect, but from the sterling performance of the casts (especially Matt Damon, he owned almost 80% of the screen time in soloist and yet the audience is yearning for more). I dare to say that this is one of the most inspiring movie of the year.

As I usually do share my personal review on the movies that I've watched in Facebook, thought it might be worthwhile to re-hash it here for friends who are interested to know more about the movie (don't worry, it is spoiler free) : 

The Martian - Finally, my turn to save the smartest man on the planet and he is worth saving, man!

Three cheers from me:

1. There is no single moment of dullness in this almost 2 1/2 hours thriller. The pace of the movie is great and even though it is a one man show for 70 to 80% of the movie but you just want more of it.

2. One of the most inspiring movie of the year... The positive energy and the wittiness emitted from Mark is very contagious, countless time of laughter can be heard from the theatre, mainly from what he has done or said.

3. The performance from the casts, especially Matt Damon are spectacular. Oscar-worthy performance.

My only small complaint is the finale rescue mission is not as intense as what I hope it to be. Overall, I am still pretty happy with what I've seen.

My rating : 4.5 (out of 5 stars)

The main theme of the movie is about survival, it brilliantly show how Mark Watney (Matt Damon) managed to survive so many days in Mars alone (which is about 140 millions miles away from planet, by the way). For me, there are two key messages that I managed to extract from the movie :

1. Knowledge can save life! Imagine if the one that being stranded on the planet is not Mark Watney, whom happens to be a botanist and mechanical engineer knew all the relevant surviving skill on an alien planet, the outcome could be quite disaster. Same thing for investment, knowledge can means a whole lot of difference between make or break.

2. Never give up! If you've watched the movie, you can really feel sorry for Mark Watney about the dire situation that he need to go through and almost every following step seems impossible to achieve. Just like one of the famous slogan by Adidas, Impossible is Nothing! Same thing happens to our investment journey, I am sure we will experience some dark and doubtful moment in the our investment portfolio's future, the key is Never Give Up!

As for the stock, Wee Hur, I am still monitoring it, I still have one more week to make my decision ;-)

October is coming to an end and it's time for me to think about one stock and one movie to get/watch in November ;-) 

Stay tuned!

Cheers!

Finding Our Own Coney Island In The Stock Market

Ever since the opening sesame of Coney Island to the Public one week ago, there are quite a buzz (both online and offline) about this tiny little natural gem. Lucky for me, I am staying nearby (Punggol area) and hence decided to pop-by this much talked about little island on last Sunday. 

Amidst the hazy weather, I walked about 30 minutes from my house and reach the West Entrance of the Coney Island in one piece. I must say that NParks has done a great work in preserving the original state of the island with minimal modern facilities, that explains why all the signboard are made of woods. 

I spent about 2 hours there and walk from one end of the island to the other end (East Entrance) . I am happy with what I've seen, which are green, green, green and sea, sea, sea. If you are a nature lovers, you should pay a visit there before it get too congested with the visitors. 

Wait, why is Coney Island appearing in the personal finance blog like this? To me, Coney Island is a gem (from natural park perspective) been there for as long as Singapore exists. It is just waiting for the right time to get into the main stream. I have a feeling that it will soon become one of the popular tourist attraction (at least to the tourist from the neighbouring countries). 

So, if we relate it to the Singapore Stock Marker, which counter is deemed as your Coney Island in the Singapore Stock Market? For me, it is UMS (click here for my rationale). What about yours?

Oh, by the way, if you are planning to pay Coney Island a visit, do take note of the following :

1. The gate will be opened from 7am to 7pm

2. Do bring mineral water and walking/running shoe (the walking path is quite sandy/dusty).

3. Make sure to turn off the auto-roaming of your phone or else you might be automatically roamed to the Malaysia mobile service providers and incur unnecessary data charges

4. You can check out National Parks site for more details about what you can see/do in Coney Island.

Cheers!  

Where To Learn CNAV Analysis?

If you have been following my blog, you would know that my investment strategy is more towards Value and/or Income Investment. Also, occasionally I will share my CNAV (Conservative Net Asset Value) Analysis on the stocks of my interest. 

Following are some CNAV Analysis that I've done in the past :

King Wan

Fu Yu Corporation

Lippo Mall Indonesia Retail Trust

Occasionally, I also received query from my readers on..

How do I calculate the CNAV of the stock?

Is it very difficult to calculate the CNAV?

Can I share more on how to calculate the CNAV on my blog? 

I've learnt this not-difficult-to-do calculation from the Value Investing Mastery Course (Big Fat Purse) last year. Immediately after the one day course, I am on my own to calculate the CNAV myself. With the help of the idiot-proof spreadsheet (provided free after the course), it makes calculating the CNAV a breeze.

Come and think of it, I've known the founder of Big Fat Purse, Alvin, for more than a year now. I am still constantly keeping in touch with him and his young and energetic team (including himself) through chat and gathering at his office. He is one of the most "no air" (you know what I meant) and witty entrepreneur that I've met so far. 

Oh, by the way, they are still conducting the one-full-day Value Investing Master Course at $98, which is unbelievable. From what I know, most of their classes, which usually happen on the weekend, are fully booked. So, if you are interested to learn more about Value Investing and how to calculate the CNAV, you should find out more from the horse's mouth! 

Click here for more details of their course.

Happy learning.

Cheers! 

My Chilling Out Staycation

The term Staycation was coined only a couple of years ago but I think it must be one of the most popular term in 21st century.  Last weekend, I have a great weekend-get-away staycation with my mrs at one of the hotel.

The nua-ing (chilling out) at lounge...

The free flow champagne....(even though not a drinker)

The live-band singing....(even though half the time can't catch what the singer is singing)...

The resting at the pool side...(and jumping into the pool made it even more splendid!!!)

All these are priceless moment, especially with your loved one!

Occasionally, I think it is important to take a moment out of our routine life and truly living the moment. Of course, there are many ways to achieve the same thing. For me, staycation fits the bill perfectly. 

Many a time, we are too caught up with the money, work, career and future stuff, we forgotten that PRESENT is the only time we can live. Don't get me wrong, I am not asking everyone to splurge, what I am trying to say is that when the time to enjoy life (whatever it means to you), please do so as we cannot guarantee which one will come earlier, tomorrow or death. 

Cheers!

4 Ways to Invest in Singapore’s Stock Market (Guest Post)

Interested in investing in the stock market? Although it’s high risk, stock investing is one of the most effective ways to increase passive income, fund your retirement, or boost capital since it offers a very high return.

In Singapore, you have four ways to invest in the stock market:

1. Stock Brokers

Stock broking firms are composed of licensed brokers whose job is to constantly monitor the ever-volatile stock market. This is, however, necessary since they make the toughest decisions for their clients such as:

• Stocks to invest
• Whether to hold, sell, or buy stocks
• Best time to trade
• Best techniques to boost returns at the least possible capital

It is also their responsibility to provide regular updates to their clients through reports, transfer earnings to bank accounts, and, most of all, educate their clients about stock markets and investing so they too can actively participate in the decision making.

Here are some of the recognised stock broking firms in Singapore.

2. Online Brokerage Account

If you want to have more control over your investments, you can open your own brokerage account online and access almost the same tools used by the traditional stock brokers.

Many new investors prefer this method because:

• It’s convenient – They can keep track of their trading account anytime and anywhere, even when the market is already closed (of course, they can’t trade at these hours).
• It’s cheap – They can start investing for as low as $1,000.
• It’s a great learning experience – Since they are the ones who make the decisions and trade, they are forced to learn as much as they can about the market. Online trading companies, meanwhile, provide reports, market updates, and other information that can be used during analysis and decision making.

Know more about how to apply in an online account and invest in your first stock.

3. Mutual Funds

A Forbes article has compared buying mutual funds to riding a limousine since you have a proficient driver taking the lead. In mutual funds, various investors pool their money. Then a dedicated fund manager identifies, takes care, and monitors a diverse portfolio, which can include bonds, money markets, and, yes, stocks.

Investing in the stock market through a mutual fund is ideal if you don’t want to be an active trader, you don’t know much about the market and you’re not willing to learn more about the details, or you believe somebody else can do a better job than you.

4. Investment-linked Life Insurance Policies (ILP)

Newer types of life insurance policies are investment linked, which means a part of what you’re paying as a premium goes to investments such as stocks or bonds. This way, you not only financially protect yourself and your loved ones protection during an illness (depending on the rider options of your coverage), you also grow your money, which you can then use for retirement.

MoneySense has an in-depth discussion about ILP.

More Tips :

1. Work closely with a financial adviser if you don’t have sufficient knowledge about stock investing.

2. Don’t have enough money? Apply for personal loan in Singapore. You can actually use the loan to start trading or investing in the stock market. Certain banks offer share financing options, in which you pledge a portion of your shares to your loan. But be careful. Read the fine print and learn more about the offers as these loans can be quite tricky.

With all this information, may your introduction to stock investing be less difficult and complicated than you think. 

This article is contributed by Allyson of SingSaver.com.sg

One Stock And Movie I Determined To Get/Watch In October 2015

For the last couple of days, the stock markets (in general) seems to be rebounded quite well, so are we out of the grizzly bear market? Amidst the impending interest rate hike, it might be too early to say for sure but hopefully the upward trend continues.

We are already in the last quarter of 2015 and it seems that I've missed quite a number of good movies and maybe stocks along the way.  Anyway, to continue from my previous post, I intend to make this as one of my monthly blog series (click here to see my stock/movies in September 2015)

This month, I determined to get/watch the following stock/movie :

STOCK/REIT : Wee Hur (E3B.SI)

I have written a post about Wee Hur in May 2015 (click here to see) but decided not to get into the stock at that time for the reason(s) stated in my earlier post. So, I am closely monitoring the stocks and might nibble a bit this month since it is almost at its 52-weeks low at the moment.

MOVIE : The Martian

The movie that I am so-gonna watch this month is The Martian, I've been seeing great reviews about this Cast Away-meet-Appollo 13 super-inspiring blockbuster from Ridley Scott. Can't wait to witness how Matt Damon pull off yet another impossible saving stunts (from "Saving Private Ryan" and "Interstellar"). ;-) 

If you are not sure what movie I am talking about, check out the movie poster and trailer below:

It seems to be one of the best film by the great director, Ridley Scott. Also, it is a star-studded movie starring Matt Damon, Jessica Chastain, Kristen Wiig and Jeff Daniels. Oh, by the way, it will be in 3D too.

What do you think about the stock and movie that I've just shared? 

Cheers!

3 Reasons Why Singaporeans Say Goodbye to Employment (Guest Post)

Fact: many Singaporeans want to quit their jobs.

According to the recent World of Work Report by global recruiter Randstad, more than 60% of the city-state’s workforce are planning to resign within the next 12 months. Not only are they quitting, but they are also job hopping, with as many as 21% of the workers eyeing at least three jobs.

But why?

1. Long Work Hours

According to Ministry of Manpower, typical working hours is 44 hours per week, which may be 8 to 9 hours a day, depending on how many days you work each week. But we know that’s not exactly true. In fact, we have one of the longest working hours in the world!

Working for many hours can be detrimental to one’s health and productivity. It often results to poor work-life balance, and as they love to say, all work and no play can certainly make anyone dull. It’s close to saying that the extra hours you put in at work might be useless as your motivation and efficiency levels are already low.

2. Bossy Bosses

Although not all bosses are straight from hell, some are, and they can be one of the biggest motivations to say bye-bye to the workplace. They may even be the reason why many are forced to work long hours. They micromanage, demand and expect a lot while shortchanging you, and worse disrespect your worth as an employee and as a person. Certainly, nobody wants to deal with this type of person for another minute.

3. Missing Career Growth

In the same Randstad report, more than 39% of the respondents consider quitting because of lack of career growth and opportunities. Being able to move up the corporate ladder, receive promotions, and grow skills are just some of the intangible ways companies can show recognition for the employee’s contribution. Who doesn’t like to be appreciated and recognized, right? Besides, these opportunities mean the possibility of landing better work and pay.

How Quitting Affects You Financially

Everyone is entitled to quit and find another work if it means escaping from the burnout and chronic stress, which can take a toll on the physical, mental, and social health.

But before you even start heading out the door permanently, remember this: quitting your job can affect your finances. For one thing, you may not be able to take advantage of the best credit cards in Singapore.

Credit cards can be helpful in many ways including covering for immediate or big expenses you can’t pay fully in cash yet since you’re not working.

But issuers such as banks have strict requirements before you can apply for a credit card including a stable job. After all, you still have to repay your dues, whether you’re currently employed or not. Although this doesn’t mean that those out of work temporarily won’t be able to apply for a credit card, terms may not be favorable.

Maintaining a job you’re beginning to hate is difficult, but life becomes worse if you don’t plan quitting properly. Be smart.

This article is contributed by Allyson of SingSaver.com.sg