In the past five years, the stocks I have recommended have shown a performance increase of only 59% according to the wiki Global Champions. In contrast, the MSCI World index has recorded a remarkable 88.5% gain when measured in euros.
This discrepancy raises an important question: what factors contribute to this difference in performance?
A member of the Facebook group ‚Kleine Finanzzeitung‘ recently posed this question, prompting me to respond there before elaborating further on my blog, grossmutters-sparstrumpf. Another group member turned to ChatGPT for insights, but I found the AI’s analysis lacking. ChatGPT attributed the underperformance of my wiki to stocks like Chipotle and Intuitive Surgical, which is misleading.
Identifying the key factors
The primary reason for the lagging performance of my wiki Global Champions lies in the high fees associated with it. These annual fees range from 2% to 3%, which can accumulate significantly over time. Additionally, my personal portfolio benefits from dividends on American stocks, a feature not applicable to the wiki, resulting in a further loss of about 1% in potential returns. Consequently, while my wiki shows a 59% growth over five years, my personal portfolio reflects an impressive 88.5% increase as of August 14, 2025.
Impact of individual stocks
Several stocks that have negatively impacted my portfolio’s performance are no longer included in my holdings. Specifically, I have removed Disney, Starbucks, and Nike from my portfolio in the past year, which were once significant positions. These decisions were made gradually as their performances declined.
Currently, Novo Nordisk and Chipotle are undergoing significant corrections, adding to the challenges in my portfolio. Furthermore, I have several stocks that were intended for a turnaround, including Peloton, Docusign, PayPal, and Etsy. Although these stocks may have achieved some recovery, they still fall short of the anticipated performance.
Lessons learned from past investments
Reflecting on my investment choices, I recognize that I entered these turnaround stocks too early or bought additional shares prematurely. The recovery processes for these companies have taken longer than expected, creating a sense of risk. In hindsight, reallocating funds to established companies like Microsoft might have been a wiser decision with the information available today.
Individual stock performance analysis
The first significant underperformer in my portfolio was Disney. Fortunately, I recognized its declining trajectory early on and reduced my position, redirecting the capital into Netflix, a decision that proved beneficial. However, my prolonged investment in Disney ultimately did not yield positive results.
Starbucks also played a detrimental role in my portfolio’s performance. While I did make some adjustments by lowering my stake and investing in Chipotle, I still held on to Starbucks longer than I should have. Lastly, Nike stands out as my most significant loss among blue-chip stocks, with a staggering 28% decline over five years.
Evaluating the high-growth stocks
When it comes to high-growth stocks, such as Peloton, their performance has been a mixed bag. Despite a year-over-year increase of 170%, I did not acquire the stock at the ideal moment. Instead, I had to weather considerable losses during the past five years, making it challenging for Peloton to contribute positively to my portfolio.
Although Peloton has a strong brand and a loyal customer base, its journey to profitability has faced delays, resulting in leadership changes and restructuring efforts. Only with a revival in both revenue and user engagement will Peloton likely reach its target price of $23, which is necessary for it to align with the performance of a simple MSCI World investment.
Final reflections and future direction
In conclusion, I have learned valuable lessons from my experiences with high-growth stocks. While I have seen success with some investments, such as Crowdstrike, which has yielded a 340% return over five years, the overall results have been inconsistent. Moving forward, I plan to be more cautious in my approach to turnaround investments.
As for Nvidia, despite the mistakes made in purchasing this stock, I am grateful for the eventual decision to invest, which has led to a staggering 1,500% gain. This experience has taught me the importance of taking calculated risks and will inform my strategy in future stock selections.