Hello Friends! Thanks again for stopping by. You are welcome to make yourself at home....there are LOTS of posts....sort of like my house sometimes with things sort of lying around...you may have to sort through them yourself to find some clean clothes!
One of my readers, John, who wrote earlier this weekend wrote back (!) and has additional comments and questions. He writes:
Wow,
That was really thorough. Sorry, /i asked so many, but you probably knew more about investing than I did, so it made sense to "interview" you to gain other people's perspectives, style, etc. Your not doing bad at all.
As you may have read, I have $10,000 to 'dispose' of. A reader suggested Canadian oil stocks, but I'm really not too sure about that. I opted to go for 100% individual stocks.
I recently got membership to NAIC (National Association of investor's Corp.) and they sent alot of fundamental analysis forms, programs, books, etc.
I have read the same books you have read. O'Neill has several books out, all of which are very good.
I also believe in a 'blend' between growth and value. It is possible to find a value company on the verge of immense growth.
One thing I do like to know is, how much has taxes sucked out of your gains? I consider myself as the 'buy-and-hold' alot contributing to lower taxes on long-term gain! s.
I will visit your site as often as I can, you have some good info on it.
Thanks for answering my questions.
Let me see if I can comment on what you have written. First of all, I am a fellow AMATEUR investor so am not qualified to give you specific stock suggestions. Hopefully, what I write will give you some inspiration about things to discuss with YOUR professional investment advisor who will be better equipped to let you know which investments are most suitable for you.
In general, I cannot predict which direction specific stocks like Canadian Oil Stocks will be moving. They might turn out to be a terrific investment....and then again they might not. As you read through my blog, you will see that I try to practice what I call the "Zen of Investing"....I have an entry on MSN which I comment on that and I am NOT the originator of that term! What I mean by that is that I let the stocks themselves determine whether I invest in them or not. Not trying to sound pseudo-profound, what I mean is that I watch the lists of stocks each day that are making large moves upward, and from THOSE stocks, I pick stocks to invest.
I try NOT to have a bias towards or against a particular stock group when I make a purchase. Thus, I have purchased stocks in Egg producers, chicken producers, and lots of stocks in the Health field. Frankly, I do tend to be a bit biased towards health stocks...but I think it is because of their steady growth. One of my most recent stocks is a Kefir manufacturer (Lifeway), which is some sort of Yogurt drink!
How about TAXES? That IS an important issue. As you will note from my discussion in my portfolio, I have very LITTLE realized gains. Most of my gains are UNREALLIZED and thus deferred and not subject to taxes. I try to take LOSSES quickly which is a very tax-advantaged proposal. My gains I take SLOWLY and the early, or usually short-term gains, are mostly return of principle, with the later-gains being mostly profit...and hopefully falling into the long-term gains category which is taxed at a lower rate.
I think my system is very tax-friendly.
Thanks again for visiting my website. Please visit as often as you feel it is helpful and continue to correspond. I would love to hear how you are doing in your investment quest!
If you or others have questions, please feel free to email me at bobsadviceforstocks@lycos.com!
Have a GREAT week trading everyone!
Bob