Hello Friends! Thanks so much for stopping by and visiting my blog, Stock Picks Bob's Advice! As always, please remember that I am an amateur investor, so please remember to consult with your professional investment advisers prior to making any investment decisions based on information on this website.
If you have been following my ongoing 'saga' with Meridian (VIVO), you will know that last week, after the 17% decline in the stock price from about $29 to $24, I chose to put on my 'contrarian hat' and bought 2000 shares of Meridian (on margin!). The stock didn't decline further, actually had an upgrade to "long-term buy" and managed to rebound to its current level. (VIVO is trading at $26.00, down $(.37) or (1.4)% on the day as I write (last quote as of 12:27 pm EST).
This kind of "trading" is not my forte. I work my portfolio as more of a system trader until every once in awhile I get the 'bug', and take a shot at what I believe is an opportunity I should not ignore. I have been wrong as often as I have been right. As one reader told me "stick to your system"....and I generally do.
Anyhow, I wanted to update you on the last 500 of the 2000 shares that I sold just a few moments ago (leaving me with my 171 shares of Meridian (VIVO) that I shall continue to manage in my usual fashion). This morning I sold my last 500 shares in two lots: 250 at $26.531, and 250 at $26.1854.
Unfortunately, my Fidelity account does what is called "first in first out" accounting, It really isn't bad like I say because long-term gains are taxed at a lower rate than short-term gains. So I saved a bunch of money....at least a little :).
However, I have been using those % numbers on the website to figure my own sale points. So go figure.
Needing to figure my sales points is important to my own idiosyncratic trading strategy. Going back to my entry of June 29, 2008, "Trading Portfolio Update", I summarized my current status on the 171 shares of Meridian (VIVO) that I own:
Meridian Bioscience (VIVO): 171 shares, purchased 4/21/05 at a cost basis of $7.42. VIVO closed at $27.74 for a gain of $20.32 or 273.9% since purchase. I have sold portions of VIVO eight times (!) at levels of 30, 60, 90, 120, 180, 240, 300, and 360% appreciation targets. Thus on the downside, if VIVO slips further to the 180% appreciation level or $7.42 x 2.8 = $20.78, then I would sell all of my shares. On the upside, a partial sale would next be at a 450% appreciatio level or 5.5 x $7.42 = $40.81.
Boy am I glad I had written that one up!
So thanks again for dropping by and visiting. Trades like the above are quite dangerous and prone to loss. Especially buying shares of a declining stock. But getting lucky is probably helpful.
Perhaps I should have held on longer. I am not interested in getting away from my own investment strategy that has been working. I just would like to try to dabble in 'trading' and see if I can master any of those skills. And I know, I should 'stick to my system' and shall try very hard to do that as well!
If you have any comments or questions, please feel free to leave them on the blog or email me at bobsadviceforstocks@lycos.com.
Yours in investing,
Bob