Hello Friends! Thanks so much for stopping by and visiting my blog, Stock Picks Bob's Advice. As always, remember I am an amateur investor, so please consult with your professional investment advisors prior to making any decisions based on information on this website!
I was looking through my "Trading Portfolio" earlier today and noted that my stock in Exponent (EXPO) had a sharp drop in an otherwise strong market. In fact, as I write, EXPO is trading at $25.90, down $3.19 or 10.97%. Now, since I had already sold a portion of my holdings at a 30% gain, and the EXPO stock was still selling at about a 30% gain, this was not a sell signal by price alone. However, I was determined to get to the bottom of the price drop!
Yesterday, after the close of trading, EXPO announced preliminary 4th quarter results and 2005 guidance. They announced that the fourth quarter would come in under previous guidance due to some delays in anticipated contracts and that the 1st half of 2005 also would come in a little slower than expected. This is not the kind of news I like to hear!
I purchased these 150 shares on October 21, 2003, so it has been more than a year that I have held on to them. In fact, they were purchased with a cost basis of $19.77/share. Thus, at the current price of $25.90, I have a gain of $6.13/share or 31%.
Thus, I have a new "rule" for trading. If I sell a stock in my portfolio "pre-emptively", that is on the announcement of bad news affecting fundamentals, then as long as I have a gain of significance, then I can replace that stock with another purchase! (You know how those nickels burn a hole in my pocket.)
So I am out of Expo and am now looking for a new position to replace it. I will keep you posted. Meanwhile, if you have any questions, comments, or words of encouragement, please feel free to email me at bobsadviceforstocks@lycos.com .
Bob