Began contributing approx. 50SGD monthly to Doctors without Borders.
Another very meaningful organisation trying to improve the lives of people who need it the most. It is an international medical humanitarian organisation providing medical help to populations in distress, such as to victims of natural or man-made disasters and to victims of armed conflicts.
In 1999, the organisation received the Nobel Peace Prize.
80% of their funding comes from private donations like ours.
So our contributions are very important for them to sustain their operations
Do check it out if you agree its meaningful =)
He's on his way home
Tuesday, January 21, 2014
Monday, January 13, 2014
Fraser Centrepoint Ltd
Took a small position at SGD1.60.
On Economic Moat:
This is a familiar (its most famous building probably being Centrepoint at Orchard Rd) property giant which is newly listed (due to change in owner), who develop as well as own both residential, commercial & hospitality properties in Singapore, Australia, China & other countries.
They are also planning a Hospitality REIT listing in near future which will be great.
I see this as a blue chip and a play on the property sector.
In terms of market capitalisation, it is only slightly smaller than Keppel Land.
I am generally confident of their existing business model and track record, especially their ability in developing properties to generate high yield and then pass them onto their REITs to recycle their capital for new projects.
However there is some uncertainty concerning how the new owner Charoen will perform compared to the previous owner F&N who have been consistently growing its profits and assets as well as a possible management change in the near future as well.
Margin of Safety:
Based on NAV of SGD2.12, at current prices, we are talking about a 25% discount to book. 25% is quite a comfortable margin of safety for me, since I considered this a blue chip. If we compare to other blue chip property counters like CapitaLand and Keppel Land, their current discount to book is only approx. 20%. Most property counters are trading at a discount due to the current gloom over the property sector. If Fraser should trade at 20% discount too, their current fair price will be around SGD1.70. So if you think they are comparable in terms of quality of assets,buying Fraser below SGD1.70 makes sense (note that I "discovered" this a little late, only during the weekend when I read THE EDGE, it was only about SGD1.50 on Friday).
Dividends:
While there are no established dividend policies, they have already declared a 1.7 cents dividend, which works out to approx. 1%, and if I extrapolate this to be on a quarterly basis, then we are looking at potentially a 4% dividend pay out, my wild speculation of course...
On Economic Moat:
This is a familiar (its most famous building probably being Centrepoint at Orchard Rd) property giant which is newly listed (due to change in owner), who develop as well as own both residential, commercial & hospitality properties in Singapore, Australia, China & other countries.
They are also planning a Hospitality REIT listing in near future which will be great.
I see this as a blue chip and a play on the property sector.
In terms of market capitalisation, it is only slightly smaller than Keppel Land.
I am generally confident of their existing business model and track record, especially their ability in developing properties to generate high yield and then pass them onto their REITs to recycle their capital for new projects.
However there is some uncertainty concerning how the new owner Charoen will perform compared to the previous owner F&N who have been consistently growing its profits and assets as well as a possible management change in the near future as well.
Margin of Safety:
Based on NAV of SGD2.12, at current prices, we are talking about a 25% discount to book. 25% is quite a comfortable margin of safety for me, since I considered this a blue chip. If we compare to other blue chip property counters like CapitaLand and Keppel Land, their current discount to book is only approx. 20%. Most property counters are trading at a discount due to the current gloom over the property sector. If Fraser should trade at 20% discount too, their current fair price will be around SGD1.70. So if you think they are comparable in terms of quality of assets,buying Fraser below SGD1.70 makes sense (note that I "discovered" this a little late, only during the weekend when I read THE EDGE, it was only about SGD1.50 on Friday).
Dividends:
While there are no established dividend policies, they have already declared a 1.7 cents dividend, which works out to approx. 1%, and if I extrapolate this to be on a quarterly basis, then we are looking at potentially a 4% dividend pay out, my wild speculation of course...
Thursday, January 2, 2014
Sponsoring a Child
While my primary purpose in investing is to derive passive income to support my family financial needs after I retire, but I also believe in giving back to humanity as part of my responsibility.
Whenever I reflect, I see an interdependent world that we are living in. For example, when I reflect the rice that I just put into my mouth, I realise that in order to put this rice into my mouth, so many people have worked hard to make it possible. From the shopkeeper that sold me the rice, to the people transporting the rice, to the farmers. How about the indirect conditions that made this possible, like the tractor that someone made so that the farmer can farm, the ship that someone built so that the rice can be transported and the shop-house that was constructed by another builder. The list of causes and conditions can go on forever =P
As an ordinary middle income Singaporean and being the sole bread winner, somehow there seems to be always only "just enough money" to support the everyday needs of the family, after setting aside a small sum for travel and luxuries as well as setting aside a sum to invest for retirement needs.
But I remind myself that my "first world worries (financial or otherwise)" are really insignificant when compared to some other places where people do not even have access to food, clean water and other basic human needs. And that my worries are also peanuts when compared to those struggling with poverty and/or critical illness.
With this bigger perspective in mind, I make it a point to fix and set aside, on a monthly basis, a sum for charitable donations such as to the Singapore Cancer Society amongst others.
And one meaningful donation that I have began donating more recently is to "sponsor a child" from an area facing poverty and struggling with basic human needs. Each month, I donate approx. S$50 to each child, to which currently I have sponsored two.
I find this especially meaningful as without our support, the children may not even live to see adulthood. And with our support, not only will their basic needs be met but they will also receive a proper education. Hopefully that will help lift their family out of poverty. Specifically our donation will provide the child:
This type of donation reminds me of the story about a man walking along the beach throwing starfish back into the ocean. Someone asked him why he bothered to as there are so many beaches with so many starfishes all over and he cannot possibly save them all. He replied as he threw another one into the ocean, "I made a difference to that one!"
If you google online, you will find a few organisations doing this, e.g. compassion & world vision, do your part if you think its meaningful too =) It has another meaning for me as well, as I think it has educational value for my toddler son, who when able to read and write, will be able to write the letters to those children...
Its a new year, hence I thought its most meaningful to write this to remind myself of the bigger picture in life, and not get overwhelmed or lost in the petty concerns of my everyday life situations =)
Whenever I reflect, I see an interdependent world that we are living in. For example, when I reflect the rice that I just put into my mouth, I realise that in order to put this rice into my mouth, so many people have worked hard to make it possible. From the shopkeeper that sold me the rice, to the people transporting the rice, to the farmers. How about the indirect conditions that made this possible, like the tractor that someone made so that the farmer can farm, the ship that someone built so that the rice can be transported and the shop-house that was constructed by another builder. The list of causes and conditions can go on forever =P
As an ordinary middle income Singaporean and being the sole bread winner, somehow there seems to be always only "just enough money" to support the everyday needs of the family, after setting aside a small sum for travel and luxuries as well as setting aside a sum to invest for retirement needs.
But I remind myself that my "first world worries (financial or otherwise)" are really insignificant when compared to some other places where people do not even have access to food, clean water and other basic human needs. And that my worries are also peanuts when compared to those struggling with poverty and/or critical illness.
With this bigger perspective in mind, I make it a point to fix and set aside, on a monthly basis, a sum for charitable donations such as to the Singapore Cancer Society amongst others.
And one meaningful donation that I have began donating more recently is to "sponsor a child" from an area facing poverty and struggling with basic human needs. Each month, I donate approx. S$50 to each child, to which currently I have sponsored two.
I find this especially meaningful as without our support, the children may not even live to see adulthood. And with our support, not only will their basic needs be met but they will also receive a proper education. Hopefully that will help lift their family out of poverty. Specifically our donation will provide the child:
- Food and clean water
- Medical care
- Educational opportunities
- Important life-skills training
This type of donation reminds me of the story about a man walking along the beach throwing starfish back into the ocean. Someone asked him why he bothered to as there are so many beaches with so many starfishes all over and he cannot possibly save them all. He replied as he threw another one into the ocean, "I made a difference to that one!"
If you google online, you will find a few organisations doing this, e.g. compassion & world vision, do your part if you think its meaningful too =) It has another meaning for me as well, as I think it has educational value for my toddler son, who when able to read and write, will be able to write the letters to those children...
Its a new year, hence I thought its most meaningful to write this to remind myself of the bigger picture in life, and not get overwhelmed or lost in the petty concerns of my everyday life situations =)
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