Monk (not to be confused with the obsessive detective of the USA television show) works for the Chicago Sun-Times. He picks stocks, and he reportedly has a winning track record over the past four years. He’s not obsessed with money. In fact, he works for peanuts…and bananas, among other things.
Monk happens to be a cerebus monkey, and he serves as the inspiration for the Sun-Times Monkey Manager stock-picking contest, “celebrating the wisdom of the everyday investor and primate.’
Monk’s a bit of a traditionalist in his stock-picking approach. At 35, he still crawls over newspaper stock pages and marks his five favorites with a pen. And, according to the Sun-Times, in the four years since Monk has chaired and inspired the Sun-Times stock-picking contest, his stocks have posted annual returns that beat the major indexes each time – earning 37%, 36%, 3%, and last year, 36%.
His picks for 2007? Health care looms large, he apparently has an eye on ladies’ fashions – and he even has an exchange-traded fund in the lot. However odd the apparent combination, it’s hard to argue with his track record.
Here’s the lot:
- Cygne Designs
Ticker: CYDS
Business: Women’s clothes - Fresh Del Monte Produce
Ticker: FDP
Business: Fresh fruits, vegetables - West Pharmaceutical Services
Ticker: WST
Business: Health care packaging, testing - American Medical Systems Holdings
Ticker: AMMD
Business: Urological disorder devices - Market 200 HOLDRS
Ticker: MKH
Business: Shares of 50 large-caps