Tuesday, January 24, 2012

The Tiny Publicly Held Fund That Has 5% of It's Assets in Facebook

A big thank you to a sharp reader. I had never heard of these folks.

The fund is only $86 mil. on the balance sheet foots, that's small.
And MarketWatch named them in this Dec. 18 article: "These fund managers get a Lump of Coal Award".
All the caveats, emptor and otherwise, apply.
Enough with the mystery, here's the story:
Firsthand Technology Value Fund Reports Additional Social Networking Investments
San Jose, CA, January 23, 2012 — Firsthand Technology Value Fund, Inc. (NASDAQ: SVVC) announced that Facebook is now the fund's largest holding, representing more than five percent (5%) of the fund's net assets. Yelp, another social networking company, is also among the fund's top five holdings. "Our focus continues to be on high-quality, late-stage technology companies," remarked Kevin Landis, portfolio manager of Firsthand Technology Value Fund. "We believe the combination of rapid growth and the prospect of timely realizations presents a compelling opportunity for investors." As of December 31, 2011, total net assets of the fund were approximately $84 million. The fund is currently exploring additional investments in the social networking, semiconductor, solar, and other industries. Complete financial statements and a detailed schedule of investments will be made available with the fund's annual report filing on Form 10-K in March 2012. 
The stock is up 53 cents at $16.00. Here's the last 10Q, quarter ended Sept. 30, 2011 (31 page PDF)

Here's why MarketWatch included them in the downbeat story:
Chart forFirsthand Technology Value Fund (SVVC)




Splits: none

As my favorite analyst would say, "A trend is emerging".
One more caveat, note the short history.