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OT: Stock and Investment Talk

A historic red flag. WSJ reported today that margin debt as the end of November set a new record. Past performance does not predict the future, but you might want to keep this in mind.
 
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A historic red flag. WSJ reported today that margin debt as the end of November set a new record. Past performance does not predict the future, but you might want to keep this in mind.
Mike Santoli on CNBC kind of shot it down, yes it's high, but it typically tracks the S&P, so since the S&P is at all time high, it's not surprising margin dept is as well.

Relative to the S&P it was actually higher in May of 2018. S&P is up 35% since then, margin dept up 7%.

Not that I partake in margin trading.
 
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A historic red flag. WSJ reported today that margin debt as the end of November set a new record. Past performance does not predict the future, but you might want to keep this in mind.
Here’s the FINRA press release WSJ cites. when you look at the historical data, it’s not really that alarming of an increase, and a healthy 20% drop will flush out those bull market geniuses.

 
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Words of wisdom from the past (especially for those buying stocks for the short-term!):

 
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Went with BTCS which is up 7%. That's good.


Didn't go with LBCC which is up 35%. Dang it.


Edit: Down 6%, vs up 45%. The world of penny stock "investing".
BP is another with an 8% yield. Don't think the balance sheet is as good as Exxon, but they've stated they want to lean more towards clean energy. The market is hating on oil, but loves clean energy, so I'm thinking it could jump if it puts something into place, say partnering with a hydrogen company.

I was looking at it when it was at $15 in early november, didn't bite, so I missed that first leg of the run, it has run sideways since but think that next run probably happens once the covid #'s start coming down and the current restrictions lesson, which is not that far off imo.

So a reopening play as well as a potential clean energy pivot. And as you say, you are paid to wait.
Little portfolio retotation.

Sold 1/2 my ABML, up 27% today and 770% overall gain.
Sold 30% of my Riot , up at about 25% today and 78% overall
Sold 30% of GBTC up 13% today and 160% overall
Sold 100% of PLTR down 5 % today but up 200ish% overall

Looking at HA, SLG, JPM.

I did buy BTCS earlier, and may look at another inexpensive speculative crypto play.


That is awesome. You invest in nano cap, micro cap, small cap, crypto currencies, large cap growth, large cap value stocks, etc. You pivot from one category to another without any hesitation. Good luck man. I hope it works out for you.
 
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That is awesome. You invest in nano cap, micro cap, small cap, crypto currencies, large cap growth, large cap value stocks, etc. You pivot from one category to another without any hesitation. Good luck man. I hope it works out for you.
Reading recommendations on the size of ones portfolio it sounds like I carry way too many positions. But I enjoy hunting for stocks, and being so diversified, and I do try to stay diversified, does afford me some safety, though maybe it limits my upside.

I fight back against some recommendations by more experienced guys here, but someone mentioned the "bears bulls and pigs" recently and that thinking def influenced me pairing down those recent high runners. I do listen.

Maybe in time I learn it's better to clean things up and carry less, but for now it's working pretty well. Living and learning.
 
Reading recommendations on the size of ones portfolio it sounds like I carry way too many positions. But I enjoy hunting for stocks, and being so diversified, and I do try to stay diversified, does afford me some safety, though maybe it limits my upside.

I fight back against some recommendations by more experienced guys here, but someone mentioned the "bears bulls and pigs" recently and that thinking def influenced me pairing down those recent high runners. I do listen.

Maybe in time I learn it's better to clean things up and carry less, but for now it's working pretty well. Living and learning.
Remember, as Mark Cuban says, everyone is a genius in a bull market.
 
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For those CNBC fans how bout a game of "would you rather" in the value tech sector?

INTC. P/E of 9. EPS of 5.10, Dividend of 2.8%. 52 week high of $69, currently trading at $43. Rev's are flat over the past 5 qtr's, but the previous 5 years showed some solid growth. Always in the black, though earnings growth has leveled as well. 2 bad qtr's in a row and all the news lately seems to be about losing customers and market share. $22 stock in 2010, and as I mentioned above was up to $69 in this past year.

Or

LUMN. P/E of 8.3, EPS of 1.2, dividend of 10%. 52 week high of $15, currently at $9.8. Jump in revs from 2017 to 2018, but were flat prior and since. They were in the red in 18-19 though they have gone back into the black in recent quarters. In 2007 this was a $50 stock but has broken down since then.



Lumen looks more like a complete turnaround play, not unlike GE, but the dividend is enticing, and they have returned to profitability. Intel was a mega cap growth stock prior to this year though they have hit a bump in the road, question is, is it a blip or the beginning of a trend.
 
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Bought back into GOLD, which has been running pretty cold of late.

Currently at $23, was around $21 precovid, dipped below $18 in March, was over $30 in Sept. Was as high as $50 back in 2012. P/E of 13x.

Same inflation story as Crypto, so I figure it is due. GBTC has been flying since sept, while GOLD is down since then. That was one rotation, I expect it will rotate back, at least to some extent.

Still own SMTS (a silver miner) which I've done very well with. I did trim a month ago, might bump it back up, or maybe try to hunt down a cheaper option.
 
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Or the old joke about the early 90's bear market.

"What do you call a 25 year old with an MBA?"
HA! HA! Very true. I have been researching the bear market after the Dot Com and 9/11 crashes. Very stagnant market for growth funds, but value and international performed much better. I believe 2021 will be steady as we go, but we need to keep an eye on things. :)
 
For those CNBC fans how bout a game of "would you rather" in the value tech sector?

INTC. P/E of 9. EPS of 5.10, Dividend of 2.8%. 52 week high of $69, currently trading at $43. Rev's are flat over the past 5 qtr's, but the previous 5 years showed some solid growth. Always in the black, though earnings growth has leveled as well. 2 bad qtr's in a row and all the news lately seems to be about losing customers and market share. $22 stock in 2010, and as I mentioned above was up to $69 in this past year.

Or

LUMN. P/E of 8.3, EPS of 1.2, dividend of 10%. 52 week high of $15, currently at $9.8. Jump in revs from 2017 to 2018, but were flat prior and since. They were in the red in 18-19 though they have gone back into the black in recent quarters. In 2007 this was a $50 stock but has broken down since then.



Lumen looks more like a complete turnaround play, not unlike GE, but the dividend is enticing, and they have returned to profitability. Intel was a mega cap growth stock prior to this year though they have hit a bump in the road, question is, is it a blip or the beginning of a trend.
Be careful chasing dividends. Some dividends are high because the underlying stock is falling. Many of those are sure to cut their dividends so you'll be stuck with lower prices and lower dividends.
 
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Be careful chasing dividends. Some dividends are high because the underlying stock is falling. Many of those are sure to cut their dividends so you'll be stuck with lower prices and lower dividends.
Ya, I don't chase, I'm actually a little devoid of dividend stocks at the moment.

But I do think the reverse of the "high dividend red flag" could be in play right now. Some companies are so undervalued because they have been left behind as people chase the high growth into the stratosphere, that they are sticking with these high dividends, and in some cases offering special dividends. Posted a stock a couple weeks ago that offered a 25% special dividend.

Not saying LUMN fits that bill. But it might.
 
All bets are off if Warnock and Ossoff win next week.

A guy was on yesterday thinking such an event would trigger the 10% correction that he thought was inevitable anyways.

He also noted the market has outperformed alongside a unified gov't as opposed to a divided gov't over the last 90 years.

I figure Weed and ESG would jump in the immediate aftermath.
 
apparently some big put calls are in today.

Not that I really know what that means, but it sounds bearish.

Edit: One opinion of this being a short term protection trade.
 
apparently some big put calls are in today.

Not that I really know what that means, but it sounds bearish.

Edit: One opinion of this being a short term protection trade.

In case there is a Democratic sweep in Georgia, which could cause a 5-10% drop in everything but renewable energy.

30 year high for the Nikkei.

Which means it's advanced as much as the Dow and NASDQ did in the first 10 years of that 30.
 
In case there is a Democratic sweep in Georgia, which could cause a 5-10% drop in everything but renewable energy.



Which means it's advanced as much as the Dow and NASDQ did in the first 10 years of that 30.
1)Don't forget Weed.

2)Not sure what you mean here. Nikkei was down in the first 10 of those 30 years. Dow was up about double during those 10 years.
 
For those CNBC fans how bout a game of "would you rather" in the value tech sector?

INTC. P/E of 9. EPS of 5.10, Dividend of 2.8%. 52 week high of $69, currently trading at $43. Rev's are flat over the past 5 qtr's, but the previous 5 years showed some solid growth. Always in the black, though earnings growth has leveled as well. 2 bad qtr's in a row and all the news lately seems to be about losing customers and market share. $22 stock in 2010, and as I mentioned above was up to $69 in this past year.

Or

LUMN. P/E of 8.3, EPS of 1.2, dividend of 10%. 52 week high of $15, currently at $9.8. Jump in revs from 2017 to 2018, but were flat prior and since. They were in the red in 18-19 though they have gone back into the black in recent quarters. In 2007 this was a $50 stock but has broken down since then.



Lumen looks more like a complete turnaround play, not unlike GE, but the dividend is enticing, and they have returned to profitability. Intel was a mega cap growth stock prior to this year though they have hit a bump in the road, question is, is it a blip or the beginning of a trend.
While you all are scared to answer, the market isn't. INTC up 6%. Based on a scathing letter by Dan Loeb?
 
While you all are scared to answer, the market isn't. INTC up 6%. Based on a scathing letter by Dan Loeb?
Not scared at all but I don’t follow either company closely and there is not enough information in those two or three sentences for me to make any kind of intelligent decision for my portfolio. However, shareholder activist stances such as Loeb’s can sometimes encourage the market that something may change for the better.
 
Not scared at all but I don’t follow either company closely and there is not enough information in those two or three sentences for me to make any kind of intelligent decision for my portfolio. However, shareholder activist stances such as Loeb’s can sometimes encourage the market that something may change for the better.
C'mon, just for fun.
 
Not scared at all but I don’t follow either company closely and there is not enough information in those two or three sentences for me to make any kind of intelligent decision for my portfolio. However, shareholder activist stances such as Loeb’s can sometimes encourage the market that something may change for the better.
Wise decision to be caution. One of WB's rules.....most news isn't news it's just noise.
 
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Wise decision to be caution. One of WB's rules.....most news isn't news it's just noise.
Most of our portfolio is in Vanguard funds, though about 15% is in individual equities. I’m more of a buy and hold investor unless something fundamentally changes in an adverse way in terms of the company, specific industry, or regulatory environment. I do watch and read the financial media as well as academic and other related sources but I really don’t trade much at all on “news” or forecasts.

You were mentioning dot.com before. I was very much involved in M&A at the time and it was crazy. Valuations were not really based on common fundamentals, day traders were pouring into the market because everyone was making money. You’d get into a car service or barber shop and everyone had a stock tip though there was very little financial literacy. Many of the relatively new market participants hadn’t been through a significant correction and it was just like the Wild West. There may be some similarities today. I’m optimistic about the future long term but won’t try to predict the short term. Hence the tendency to buy and hold and be well diversified within my own investment policy approach. Good luck to all in whatever approach they take!
 
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Maybe it's not necessary in a normal market, but I think these days, when looking at what the market is doing, the R2K should be up there with the big 3 indexes. I feel just looking at the big 3 does not give a very complete view of what is going on on a particular day.
 
Maybe it's not necessary in a normal market, but I think these days, when looking at what the market is doing, the R2K should be up there with the big 3 indexes. I feel just looking at the big 3 does not give a very complete view of what is going on on a particular day.
+1
I always track the R2K. I also love the Morningstar Market Barometer since it shows value, core, and growth buckets.


An example of it's multiple timeline views:
8854.jpg
 
Remember, as Mark Cuban says, everyone is a genius in a bull market.
He stole that from Warren Buffet.

Another Buffet quote appropriate for this market: "when the tide goes out, you realize who's not wearing their bathing suit".

edited to fix it. Thanks MDK!
 
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For those CNBC fans how bout a game of "would you rather" in the value tech sector?

INTC. P/E of 9. EPS of 5.10, Dividend of 2.8%. 52 week high of $69, currently trading at $43. Rev's are flat over the past 5 qtr's, but the previous 5 years showed some solid growth. Always in the black, though earnings growth has leveled as well. 2 bad qtr's in a row and all the news lately seems to be about losing customers and market share. $22 stock in 2010, and as I mentioned above was up to $69 in this past year.

Or

LUMN. P/E of 8.3, EPS of 1.2, dividend of 10%. 52 week high of $15, currently at $9.8. Jump in revs from 2017 to 2018, but were flat prior and since. They were in the red in 18-19 though they have gone back into the black in recent quarters. In 2007 this was a $50 stock but has broken down since then.
AVGO is a more sustainable value play than either of them.
 
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+1
I always track the R2K. I also love the Morningstar Market Barometer since it shows value, core, and growth buckets.


An example of it's multiple timeline views:
8854.jpg
E-Trade has a bunch of different stuff that I haven't fully delved into yet.

The do have a cool stock screener tool which I'll comb through from time to time.

And more recently having been bought up by Morgan Stanley, all of MS's stock analysis is available, been using that a little.
 
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