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 consult with your professional investment advisor prior to making any investment decisions based on information on this website.
A few moments ago, I unloaded my remaining shares of Cantel Industries (CMN), a great company that apparently disappointed today with their 3rd quarter 2005 earnings results. Cantel came in at $.23/share, which was a penny lighter than the previous quarter and which were $.03/share under estimates.
I did not sell on the news however. I sold on the fact that the stock was down sharply and hit a sale point of mine. These 150 shares had a cost basis of $13.36/share, and I have previously sold four times portions of stocks up to a 120% gain on the shares. They were acquired on 6/4/04, almost exactly a year ago, so they haven't been a bad performer at all in my portfolio.
The 150 shares were sold a few moments ago at $20/share, so I actually had a gain of $6.64/share or 49.7%. This is in addition to the other four partial sales that I have already made on this holding! I sold because my last sale was at the 120% point, and at the current price, CMN is as I write trading at $19.40/share, the stock has dropped below my "trailing 50% of my greatest sale point", that is it dropped below 60% gain level, and my "strategy" requires I unload the stock.
Especially with my margin level, this preserves my gain. However, I shall now be sitting on my hands with the proceeds, waiting for a sale at a gain to add a new position.
Bob