Holiday Portfolio: A Welcome Break From a Difficult Tape

With Memorial Day and the beginning of summer on us, many investors are hoping the market will move in the direction of the mercury in the kitchen window thermometer. Concerns over energy prices, liquidity, the economic outlook and, as a result, earnings performance in 2008 have investors shell-shocked. Combine those long-term trends with the wild ride in oil prices in the past month, and market participants are saying thank goodness for a 4-day week.

However, that also means its time to take a look at the holiday portfolio, a group of five stocks that know all too well how volatile and hostile the market has been.

From January to December

Prior to that review, let's revisit the rationale for performing the exercise on these rare market holidays.

The concept behind the holiday portfolio is simple: I select a group of five stocks that I believe deserve watching over the next 12 months, and I follow them -- regardless of their performance -- throughout the year. I'll revisit the portfolio on each market holiday and, at times, make comments about the stocks in RealMoney's Columnist Conversation. The only way a stock is removed from the portfolio is if it merges with another company or ceases to trade on a major exchange.

The portfolio serves two purposes. First, it follows the fundamental progress of a group of stocks over a lengthy period of time. My hope is that the portfolio will serve as a forum for in-depth discussion of investment decisions and company strategy, and reinforce the importance of ongoing portfolio analysis. Second, it provides an opportunity to look at both short-term trading strategies and longer-term investment strategies with the same stocks.

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