Barring a market meltdown in the second half of December, it looks like 2024 will be a very successful year for the Mickleboro ASX share portfolio.
As things stand, I am poised to record a return of over 40% for the 12 months.
How did I get here?
My exposure to high-quality companies in the tech, retail, and healthcare sectors helped my portfolio outperform this year.
The star of the show was undoubtedly my overweight position in Life360 Inc (ASX: 360). At the time of writing, the location technology company's shares are up 200% year to date.
The now departed Altium also gave me significant funds to reallocate elsewhere after being taken over by Renesas this year. I didn't stick around to see the takeover complete. Instead, I locked in the gains in April and reinvested them back into the tech sector through Pro Medicus Limited (ASX: PME) and TechnologyOne Ltd (ASX: TNE).
Both of these ASX tech stocks have rocketed in value since then, compounding the funds even further.
I like to buy high-quality companies when an opportunity presents itself. This proved successful with ResMed (ASX: RMD) and Universal Store Holdings Ltd (ASX: UNI) last year.
ResMed's shares were down heavily because of weight loss wonder drug concerns. They have returned approximately 50% this year. Whereas doom and gloom in the retail sector dragged youth fashion retailer Universal Store to very inviting levels. Its shares are up approximately 85% in 2024.
Also contributing to the good performance were ASX share portfolio holdings such as Lovisa Holdings Ltd (ASX: LOV) and Xero Ltd (ASX: XRO), Westpac Banking Corp (ASX: WBC), and the Betashares Nasdaq 100 ETF (ASX: NDQ).
I also took advantage of a sharp pullback in the Walt Disney Co (NYSE: DIS) share price. This high-quality company's shares have rallied over 30% since then.
It's not all sunshine and rainbows
I would love to say that all portfolio holdings performed well in 2024, but that isn't the case. And will almost never be the case. This is why portfolio diversification is so important.
I was let down by Endeavour Group Ltd (ASX: EDV) and Domino's Pizza Enterprises Ltd (ASX: DMP), and CSL Ltd (ASX: CSL) underperformed the market.
Nevertheless, I believe the quality of these companies remains high (certainly CSL!) and I expect them to perform better in 2025. I may even take advantage of this weakness to add to positions in 2025.
There were also plenty of missed opportunities. Goodman Group (ASX: GMG) and Qantas Airways Ltd (ASX: QAN) shares are two that I planned to buy and never did. They are up in the region of 45% to 70% in 2024.
Another one I missed was Starbucks Corp (NASDAQ: SBUX). I had intended to purchase the coffee chain giant's beaten down shares the same day I bought Disney shares. But the announcement of a new CEO that day saw Starbucks rocket 30% before I could and left me wondering what could've been.
What's the plan in 2025?
I'm confident in my ASX share portfolio as we head into 2025.
But as always, I will look for opportunities to buy high-quality companies when they are trading at fair (or cheap) prices.
I will also continue to stay clear of speculative stocks that promise the world and deliver nothing but losses.
After all, it's just as important to avoid bad stocks as it is to buy great ones.
