At times we feel embarrassed to be learning so much at a mature age. But we are grateful for the energy to attempt to improve what we are doing. Here we discuss developments in our portfolio management theory and practice.

One. Recently we figured out that one of our investment themes may benefit from a 1% position in a more speculative holding than we usually want to own. (By that we mean that 1% of a client portfolio could be invested in this company.) While failure could cost a dollar per dollar invested, success might return multiple dollars back, in our opinion.

We believe this makes sense because success might come at the expense of our other holdings. So one investment may serve to offset losses in another. No guarantees, of course.

We also realized that the 1% idea might help us in another way. Value investors have trouble buying exciting growth companies that have yet to develop large earnings, or dividends, or book value. But taking a smaller position in companies with solid prospects for growth can more easily be justified than buying a more sizable position. Perhaps this will let us participate with more comfort in the ownership of faster-growing companies.

Two. The next portfolio development came from our research into the biotech industry. The biopharmaceuticals each have their own specialties, and new products in various stages of development. Based on current earnings and prospects for growth, we wanted to gain exposure. It was too difficult to choose one over another, even among the larger and established companies. So we decided to buy 2% positions in each of four large players.

Three. We reduced our core position size from 5% to 3% for mainstream holdings. After 2015 we became interested in avoiding excessive portfolio volatility. Owning smaller pieces of more companies lets us be more diversified. We will also have more flexibility to let potential successful companies grow into larger fractions of the portfolio over time.

We are excited about the evolution in our thinking about the best ways to put portfolios together. Combined with the development of our trading protocols, we hope to put money to work faster than ever before—and in new ways. We still research carefully and come to conclusions only after thought and study, of course.

If you have questions or comments about how your portfolio is affected, or any other question we might help you with, please call or write.

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The opinions voiced in this material are for general information only and are not intended to provide specific advice or recommendations for any individual.

Stock investing involves risk including loss of principal.

Because of their narrow focus, sector investing will be subject to greater volatility than investing more broadly across many sectors and companies.