Screw the Stock Market...

[Green Monstah]

I don't deal in single stocks a ton, but during bonus season, I'll take 500-$1000 see what I can do with it.

Biggest gains:

Disney: bought at 89 sold at 140 18 months later.

Goldman Sachs: Bought at 120, sold at 190 a year later.

Washes:

Marathon Oil Corporation, Bought and sold in the 15s after holding forever.
Chesapeake: Bought and sold in the 8s, but only after a momentary spike of CHK's stock to break even

Loss:

This belongs in a sacrament talk, but I bought BUD (Anheiser Busch) thinking that it was in a trough, but I bought at 105 and its 76 today (still own it)

Current holdings:

Concho Resources: Bought at $68 last fall, currently at $80, although it was at $93 a month ago.
Coca Cola: Bought at 52 at the beginning of the year, currently at $59

The real problem I have with single stocks is that managing more than a half-dozen stocks takes a decent amount of time if done right. I've missed out on great sell opportunities just by being preoccupied.

[BigFatMeanie]

Holy crap.

We have some friends in Austin who worked for Dell in the early years of the company. One year they decided to cash in their stock options to buy a van. 1-2 years later those options would have been worth $1M+. They wistfully called it the “million dollar van”.

Hindsight is 20/20. It's so hard to predict what will happen in the future.

When I started working at my current employer I knew the company would be a good investment but I didn't realize how good:

stockprice.jpg

I started back in 2011 when the stock was around $24. It's over $360 today. If I had held onto all my RSU and ESPP shares they would be worth $2.3M today. My portfolio would also be terribly monolithic. Whenever I start to second guess decisions to sell and think "what if", the echoes of Enron ring through my head. There were folks in Enron that had their 401k and all other savings in Enron stock and lost everything.

[Applejack]

I am experienced at making short term calls and that is why I am an expert on "shit for brains". Nice little momentum right now, but if anyone can break it, it is Prez Obama. I am not going to do it, but if I was in one of my "shit for brains moements", I would consider puts on the market. Maybe the momentum will overcome him.

Great post!

[PaloAltoCougar]

I don't recommend buying Tesla at this point.

People who followed this advice will have avoided a near-20% single day loss at the moment.

[Scott R Nelson]

I sold a small position in Tesla around 18 months ago for around $320. It's trading today at over $900. Let me know if you need any stock trading advice.

I've only ever owned stock in companies that I've worked for. I achieved the status of "millionaire on paper" around 2000 when the stock I owned was in the $60 range. I held on through the dot.com bust and sold it in the $3 range. I was just glad that I had sold a few chunks of it earlier when it was up. Overall I still did pretty well.

I have a money manager handle my investments now and figure out what stocks to buy and sell. So far so good.

[Uncle Ted]

Hindsight is 20/20. It's so hard to predict what will happen in the future.

When I started working at my current employer I knew the company would be a good investment but I didn't realize how good:


I started back in 2011 when the stock was around $24. It's over $360 today. If I had held onto all my RSU and ESPP shares they would be worth $2.3M today. My portfolio would also be terribly monolithic. Whenever I start to second guess decisions to sell and think "what if", the echoes of Enron ring through my head. There were folks in Enron that had their 401k and all other savings in Enron stock and lost everything.

I haven't sold any of the RSU and ESPP shares that I have received/purchased from my current employer... It hasn't done bad.

[beefytee]

People who followed this advice will have avoided a near-20% single day loss at the moment.

Yep. We'll see how it does tomorrow. Now may be the time to buy!

[Clark Addison]

Lol at you guys buying individual stocks. Good luck with that.

As PAC said, I do it for fun. Currently 0.73% of my investable assets are in individual stocks (outside of stuff I am forced to hold because of things like RSUs).

Before my TSLA gains it was 0.62%!!

[Clark Addison]

I've made money the last two weeks. Limit buy low, limit sell high. CQB, BAC, and RRC, thank you.

You're welcome

[Sullyute]

...and daylight savings time, too.

That's all.

Bump

[Northwestcoug]

Senator Burr Dumped Up to $1.6 Million of Stock After Reassuring Public About Coronavirus Preparedness:

https://www.propublica.org/article/s...s-preparedness

I'm sure this was super ethical.

Lookey here:

Burr was one of just three senators who in 2012 opposed the bill that explicitly barred lawmakers and their staff from using nonpublic information for trades and required regular disclosure of those trades. In opposing the bill, Burr argued at the time that insider trading laws already applied to members of Congress. President Barack Obama signed the bill, known as the STOCK Act, that year.

[myboynoah]

Senator Burr Dumped Up to $1.6 Million of Stock After Reassuring Public About Coronavirus Preparedness:

https://www.propublica.org/article/s...s-preparedness

I'm sure this was super ethical.

Lookey here:

That guy should go to prison.

[wuapinmon]

That guy should go to prison.

He's a GOP Senator from the South. The guy could hunt people on his own private island and FoxNews would call it a snipe hunt.

[Clark Addison]

He's a GOP Senator from the South. The guy could hunt people on his own private island and FoxNews would call it a snipe hunt.

FWIW I did not vote for him.

Not worth much, obviously, since he was still elected.

[frank ryan]

That guy should go to prison.

As should several other Republican politicians, I'm sure.