Librarian Capital's Monthly Ranked Top Buys - October 2023

Portfolio Strategy

Introduction

This is the October edition of our "Monthly Ranked Top Buys“ series, designed to present a model portfolio based on a selection of our most-preferred stocks, which we call our “Select 15” model portfolio.

Performance Update

The “Select 15” model portfolio lost 5.6% in September, about 1 ppt worse than the S&P 500 and MSCI World indices. Year-to-date, our model portfolio is up 12.5%, slightly behind the S&P 500 but ahead of the MSCI World:

September was the worst month for the S&P 500 year-to-date, and most equity markets across the world fell. The reasons are hard to determine scientifically – inflation has been moderating and some central bank officials have signalled that interest rates have peaked, but the market has moved from worrying how high rates will be to how long they will stay high. The U.S. also faced the prospect of a new federal government shutdown for much of late September, ultimately postponed by a 45-day “continuing resolution” to November. There is also th…