Hello Friends! Have been away from my computer for a few days and haven't been able to closely review the stock market. If you are an avid investor, you will understand how it is being away from those market numbers....Anyhow, thanks so much for stopping by!
Ross, my investor-reader from Alaska writes back,
Talk to a few people and still deciding if I should go short-term or
long-term. One pointed out that eventually, going short-term, you will
end up losing most of your investment or end up selling low and buying
high. He suggested, you should stick with a few established companies
and just invest into them. Ride it out for 20-30 years but make sure
every 10 years do some changing depending on how the market is going,
ie 20% of your portfolio is in wireless communication but somehow, its
going to die in a few years, then cash out. Said, you will make more
money this way due to splits. Sounds like a good idea but there is
always pluses and minuses for everything.
What's your opinion on long-term and short-term investing?
O.K., here is my take on this question of short-term vs long-term. Why decide before you have invested money on whether the investment should be long- or short-term? In other words, I let the performance of the stock dictate to me the duration of my holding.
My strategy, and I am not sure if this is the best strategy at all...as you recall I am a fellow amateur investor..honestly...is to purchase a stock with all of the characteristics of what I will call a "winning" selection. I use current earnings, revenue growth, free cash flow, balance sheet and valuation to determine suitability.
After that, I let the price performance of the holding determine the action that I am going to take. I honestly try NOT to think too hard about my holdings when I have purchased them. In fact, when I DO start thinking, I usually get myself in trouble!
If you review the blog, and look for references to my Trading Portfolio, you will see that sometimes I hold a stock for a single day (!). I sell a new purchase if it declines 8% from my purchase price...no matter how long or short I have held it.
Hopefully, I will hold onto these purchases for many years! However, I do start selling portions of my holdings if they perform well. As you may recall, my sell points are 25% of the holding to be sold at goals of 30%, 60%, 90%, 120%, then by 60% at 180%, 240%....etc.
So in summary, I do both. I go short-term AND long-term. I do not want to hold a declining stock very long, and I would prefer to hold a climbing stock for a very long time!
I hope that answers your question.
As always please consult with your investment advisors before taking any action based on information on this blog....as I AM an amateur...and these are just my opinions.
Thanks so much for stopping by and taking the time to write! It is encouraging for me to receive email from those of you who I have inspired to do more thought on investing! If you or anyone else have questions, comments, or words of encouragement, please feel free to email me at bobsadviceforstocks@lycos.com
Bob