Hefty profit-taking in Scotland's Smart Metering Systems and engineering giant IMI took the edge off another good all-round performance by our tips last week.
Shares in both companies had made a flying start to the new year, but went into reverse when IMI confirmed it was handing back 200p a share to investors and a major institution accepted a discounted price to place its sizeable holdings in Smart.
We believe that both shares should quickly resume their upward trajectory, but the price slide left our latest 2014 portfolio nursing a near 2% loss over the week.
The fall tempted us to refresh the portfolio by making a notional re-investment in energy efficient lighting group Dialight, one of our original selections which was ejected after its shares slumped to our published stop/loss target.
We believe the price has stabilised at current levels and now offer excellent prospects.
Investec and Can-accord are among those suggesting that the price could rise at least 50% over the medium term.
The loss on our previous holdings means we were only able to make a notional purchase of £850, rather than the usual £1000 investment.
Fortunately, the other three portfolios all managed small increases over the week.
Some of the best performances came from longstanding recommendations, including safety equipment group Halma and catering giant Compass, which both nudged their all-time highs.
Residential landlord Grainger gained when it announced a £110 million programme to build £1m-plus homes in Chelsea. The shares have now risen almost 90% in the past year. Equally pleasing was a 100p recovery for jewellery group Signet, which had appeared in danger of triggering a sell signal.
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