SIF Folio: Can Severfield build on strong results?

My SIF portfolio delivered a gain of around 20% during the first half of 2021 - double the 10% increase delivered by the FTSE All-Share Index. While I’m happy with this result, I’m aware that the market conditions we’ve seen over the last year are not exactly typical. 

For example, two weeks ago I sold Volex for a gain of 170% after just 10 months. 

Of the 16 stocks which remain in the SIF portfolio, five have risen by between 50% and 100% in less than nine months. 

Making money from shares isn’t always this easy, at least not in my experience. While I’d like to take all the credit, in reality I think I’ve simply profited from a broader re-rating of good companies which looked cheap in autumn 2020.I wouldn’t be surprised to see a more mixed performance from the market over the next 6-12 months. In this context, I’m a little concerned about the portfolio’s lack of exposure to defensive stocks:

Being underweight defensive stocks has been a recurring problem throughout the portfolio’s life. Put simply, they’ve usually been too expensive - and sometimes too slow growing - to pass my...