Category: stocks

It was a sad day. I sold Intel this morning after holding it for about a year. It topped out in the $28 range while I was in Northern Ireland last summer and has been at a steady decline ever since. So, goodbye.

About a week ago I put out a limit order for a stock I own, Calgon Carbon. With a lot of the big names not endorsing it anymore, I wanted out. Intel and Sirius have taught me that lesson… when the analysts get out, I need to as well.  (Net portfolio loss in 2006 is at 18%. That ain’t good)

So, I forgot about the limit order to be honest. Well, Wednesday morning I got a not from E-trade that it had gone through. I actually made a nice litte "short profit’ on the stick, so I can’t complain.

So the question was, where do I go from here? I know I am too tech heavy. So while I love tech stocks, it just wasn’t a good idea. So… I went back to my favorite stock philosophy of "buy what you use." In this case I thought about the busiest, most happening, and best steak around. Texas Roadhouse. [Yeah, remember this story about Kristen and I burning one on a date… it’s personal now!] So our 3 stocks of "things we use and love" are Intel, Sirius, and Texas Roadhouse.

Very exciting news was released today. Starting in March Blue Collar Radio will launch on Sirius Satelite Radio channel 103. (See news story)

There are already several celebrity stations on Sirius, this will just kick it up a notch in my books.

I know I am not supposed to retire for another 30 years or so, but this picture sure represents how I am feeling about my portfolio lately. I won’t go into a dollar amount, but I think I’ve lost something like 15% value in my stocks alone. The only thing that is doing well right now is the kids 529 plan. Crazy!

Not a good day for my portfolio as Intel is getting their butt kicked. I tried to sell at the opening but it quickly went lower than I was willing to sell at. It’s down something like $3/share so far today. As I told a friend earlier, I guess if this keeps up I’ll be retiring one year later. Seriously, in the grand scope of life this isn’t a big deal.

Well, I have had some nail biting to do as this young investor had to make some choices! I’ve got100% of my stock portfolio in tech stocks. So obviously, I wanted to get out of some tech and get into something else. But what?

My answer ended up being Calgon Carbon. This is a company that helps communities clean up their water sources. This companies exhibits two qualities I like in an investment, something I can tell people I own and not flinch, and a company which is profitable.

My "dilemma" was that I am stock on Sirius right now and I may even end up selling my position Monday depending on how it reacts on Stern’s first show. My thoughts were… "Double down on Sirius or get out altogether." I chose option 3 and split my position. Nothing too shocking, but it is a minor deviation in my strategy.

Well, the big day for Howard Stern (don’t even think about looking at his website!) is coming this Monday as he goes on Sirius uncut and uncencored…. though I have a feeling the FCC will figure a way to cencor him by years end.

What I like about Sirius, and why I am still a stock holder even after Jim Cramer told me to sell last week is that it is clear "the Stern factor" will greatly change satelite radio. And the numbers are backing this up. They said they’d likely have 3 million subscribers by New Year’s and they had 3.3 million.

But I like that they took a massive risk and it has so far paid off. As for Jim Craimer’s comments about Sirius being oversold, I understand that too… but this is a long position for me.

The flipside of Howard Stern is David Stern, the NBA’s commisioner. He is conservative and if it weren’t for the NBA draft no one would know who the guy was or what he looked like. When I think about David Stern, I think "safe play" and little profit. When I think of Howard Stern I think big risk and maximum potential for payout.

Just in case you’ve got an extra $3.6 million laying around, today is that last day you can buy a seat at the NYSE.

Historically, owning a seat on the stock exchange granted you rights to buy/sell/trade stocks on the floor. Going back to the very beginning in order to have rights to do that… you bought a seat. Literally, a chair. Read more about it here.

I’m no expert, but this seems good for Sirius. Here’s the press release from that was just issued.

NEW YORK, Dec 27, 2005 /PRNewswire-FirstCall via COMTEX News Network/ —  SIRIUS Satellite Radio (Nasdaq: SIRI) today announced that it recently surpassed three million subscribers and expects a strong year-end.

I’ve had mine less than 48 hours… and I already love it. Good service, lots of channels, good content.

From time to time people comment to me about my weird facination with the stock market and my unique ability to plan for retirement before I am 30… I don’t think it’s weird, I just think it’s good stewardship to have a simple plan for the future.

Here is an excellent article from CNN about "how to retire rich." Yeah, it really isn’t that fancy and you don’t have to be a genius. What you do have to do is simply put money away somewhere you can’t get to it incrementally. When you allow interest to compound over say… 30 years… dollars turn to thousands of dollars. It isn’t fancy, it is really simple.

The first step is to salt away as much as possible. Contribute at least
enough to get the full match — anything less and you’re leaving money on the
table.