I'm not a very active stock trader, but my portfolio started to feel outdated recently. It was high time to collect profits from some longtime holdings, and to give up on a couple of unsuccessful ideas.

So I ran a late spring cleaning in my individual retirement account (IRA), closing out five stock holdings in their entirety and selling more than half of my shares in two other names. I tell you this not to necessarily mimic my actions, but more to perhaps learn something from them. Your mileage may vary, and I highly recommend doing your own research before taking any action in the stock market.

But for what it's worth, let me walk you through the decisions I made, one by one, starting with the partial sales.

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Source Fool.com