There's no fighting the big trends ... I bought Fortis for 21.00 back in 09. I figured I would hold it forever. But in 2012, it was 34.00 and sitting at a p/e of 21, well over it's long term average of 17 . I decided there was nothing left on the table other than the dividend, and sold it for 34 and change. i bought Manulife for 10.29, which with a dividend of .52 was paying just over 5.00% , a full % and some over Fortis anyway. My Manulife has doubled sdince, and I've collected the dividend the whole way. So 18K Fortis proceeds has turned into 40K in two years. I would be break even if I had hung in there.
Its OK to view things as core holdings - but you should never fully take your eye off the ball - and you shouldn't be afraid to listen to your instincts.
The big trends matter - insurance co's suffered when yields hit historical lows, and income oriented stocks etc. ballooned in value. Making the switched put me in front of the trend - a bottoming of yields. Of course they would, eventually. It would have been a mistake to have sat in Fortis the last 2 years. Not because of Fortis - becasue of the macro trends.
You can get lost in bottom up anaylsis - the pros and cons of this company vs. that company - and miss the bigger picture. There was some luck in my switchover, and some analysis - but now I know for sure - asset classes matter more than individual securities when things are changing - you want to be in the right boat at the right time --