Money For Nothing...

Talking about all this selling reminded me of the second way I have been trying to make money with stocks; namely DIVIDENDS. If you pick stocks in companies that pay regular (and hopefully increasing) dividends, then you keep making money while you are waiting for your stocks to get to a place where you are ready to sell.

In that quest I have been trying to buy stocks that provide this passive income in addition to the price growth potential. I can fill this page with tables, charts, and graphs with details, but I'll spare you the details. If you do want all the nitty-gritty let me know in the comments WhatSayYou?

In the four years since I have been on this adventure, my brokerage firm got acquired and some of the data from the prior brokerage got lost in the shuffle. So I only have dividend info for the years 2017 - 2019, and here they are:


2017: $5054.55
2018: $4699.63
2019: $5322.59

For a Grand Total of $15076.77 
Ka-Ching!

In terms of where this came from - here are the top 5 dividend producers. 

Apple Inc. (AAPL), Annaly Capital Management Inc.(NLY), Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (VOO), Alliance Bernstein Holding L.P. (AB), Alliance Resource Partners L.P. (ARLP). 
Home Depot Inc. (HD) is a close 6th.

Of course what also matters in terms of dividends is what is the rate of return over the money I have invested in all the stocks that are producing the dividends. I have not yet had the time to generate that information and will leave it for another post.

One change you might notice in the blog going forward is that all the stock links will now take you to MarketWatch instead of Yahoo Finance (no link). This is in protest for Yahoo Finance continuously restarting ad videos every time you do anything on the site.

Feels good to be back and writing, hopefully I have not lost the three people that were reading this blog and they will reconnect and continue to read... 

Give me a shout out in the comment, will you?
Thanks!

Missed One

In the frenzy of Sell notifications I missed one in my last post, Sell, Sell, Sell.

This one happily was also sold at a profit. Seagate Technology PLC (STX) was a stock that I had bought before this (mis)adventure began based on a recommendation from the Valueline Investment Survey. The stock is still rated better than average by Valueline, but the price has been steadily declining for the last six months. I figured it's time to lock in my gains and reconsider the stock at a later time if it shows signs of a recovery in the price.

Purchased at a little above $35, I sold quickly at market price fetching just shy of $44 for a net gain for 25%, not bad. Ka-Ching.

Sell, Sell, Sell

After two posts full of thoughts It's Hard to Say Goodbye... and ...Goodbye Again about selling stocks, I am back to the reporting about stock transactions. And what am I going to talk about? Stocks I just sold of course! Sell, Sell, Sell as the title says!!

I got rid of a few stocks in the past week or so, most of them at a good profit, one at a loss based on some of the thoughts I presented in the last two blog posts. All of these stocks are not represented in this blog because they were purchased before I began documenting my (mis)adventures. Here are the details:

The first was Amarin Corp. PLC (AMRN). This was a stock that had been sitting at the bottom of the ocean for a few years. A biotech stock that I first bought when they were at the verge of a breakthrough drug. Unfortunately, this was a case of being hit by hidden information. The drug failed, and the stock tanked dropping from my purchase price of ~$13 to between $2 and $3, where it has stayed for a few years. Then suddenly a couple of weeks ago the stock rocketed up to over $16. Once again hidden info, this time working for me; a drug they tested turns out to be very effective and with no side effects. Using a trailing stop I got out a little above $16 for an approximate gain of 23%. Ka-Ching.

Next, Apollo Global Management (APO) an asset management company I had bought when it was highly rated in the Valueline survey. It was showing a good profit but had since dropped out of favor in Valueline and it was time to get out. Another exit via a trailing stop, sold at a little above $34.50 for a net gain of about 26%. Ka-Ching.

Another money maker was Scholastic Corp. (SCHL). This is the beloved publishing company, most famously known for stories they published about a most famous wizard named Harry Potter. Perhaps you've heard of this book series!! The company is doing well, but the stock had run out of magic, so it was time to get out. A sell at almost $45 gave me a boost of a little over 17%. Ka-Ching.

Then comes the heart-breaker, Atlantic Power Corp (AT) a power/utility company that was rated highly, wasn't a price mover, but a company that paid a good dividend. Then things turned sour. I stuck around a bit in the hope that things would recover. But a few years passed with no signs of a price recovery. Then the straw that broke the camel's back... dividend went to zero. It was time to take my lumps. A sell out at $2.20 and a loss of 50%. :-( Ka-Flunk.

Where Did I Put That Stock?

So, as part of turning my attention back on this (mis)adventure I ran an audit on all the stocks listed in the portfolio and to my dismay discovered that I had misplaced a stock!!

I was almost certain that I had bought Magna International, Inc (MGA) but I could not find in any of my accounts. I also did not remember selling it. A frantic dig through my transactions over the last two years finally cleared up the mystery. 

Some time early this year this stock had started to make me nervous and I had set a trailing stop Sell order on it. Apparently, it sold sometime in February!! And, if I had not sold it then, I would still be looking to sell it at a slightly lower same price now, because it has dropped to a Timeliness rating of 3 in the Valueline rankings. 

The happy ending to the story is that it sold at a profit of almost 16%. Ka-Ching. 

They've Got Potential

A few stocks have emerged in my latest research screening that I am putting into my Potentials list. I managed to snag one of them yesterday when it was a down day; I wrote about it in my post Buy, Buy, Buy. The stock is up today in spite of a down market overall. Ka-Ching.

Now for some future prospects.

First a high dividend yielding Financial Services company that makes me a bit nervous. It's a small-cap company so all the details are not available to me in my subscription of the Valueline Survey. My concern about this stock is that it deals with real estate and mortgage backed securities (disturbing flashbacks to the financial crisis from a decade ago). But, at the same time it's ranked high in Timeliness and has a significant dividend rate. Fear still permeates the thought of owning this stock. It's probably one to watch like a hawk.

Here's what I know:

Name:                                Ellington Finance LLC

Industry:                            Financial Services, Specialty

Symbol:                              EFC
Timeliness:                        1
Safety:                               2
Technical:                          UNKNOWN
Approximate Price:            $16.00
Dividend Yield:                  10.15%
Industry Rank:                   UNKNOWN
Low Gain Estimate:            UNKNOWN
High Gain Estimate:           UNKNOWN

Another is a high flying company in the Financial Services industry that is very unique. This is a company that rents and leases small commuter jets to corporations and the rich. The company seems well managed and has recently upgraded a large part of its fleet of aircraft. So fly high while still staying on the ground with this stock. Hey, maybe there is a way for the 98% to take advantage of the massive tax cuts that got passed this year. 

Also can someone explain why this is a Financial Services company? Maybe because it helps the rich exploit tax loopholes?? WhatSayYou?

Name:                                Aircastle Limited

Industry:                            Financial Services, Diversified

Symbol:                              AYR
Timeliness:                        1
Safety:                               3
Technical:                          5
Approximate Price:            $21.00
Dividend Yield:                  5.35%
Industry Rank:                   30
Low Gain Estimate:            65%
High Gain Estimate:           140%

Still more to write about, but I'll leave that for tomorrow.

Thanks for reading. Comments are welcome.

The Perils of Inattention

Investing in the stock market is a bit like being a gladiator in a multi-person free-for-all fight. You have to constantly be on the guard and keep your eyes on all the other fighters in the arena. A little bit of inattention and you will find yourself clobbered from all sides.

This is what happened to my portfolio in the time that I stopped to smell the roses that the audience has been throwing at me... In the last eight months I've had some losses from stocks that had looked good when I bought them.

Novo Nordisk A/S (NVO) is down 8.40%, Hanesbrand Inc (HBI) is down 15.01%, and the bottom fell out from Tahoe Resources, Inc (TAHO) down 66.02% because they lost the rights to a silver mine that was critical. Ka-Flunk.

It's not all bad news though, the rest of the portfolio is doing quite well and overall the portfolio is in better shape than when I last posted. I won't bore you with the details of the good news, so you can breathe easy. Ka-Ching.

Renolds American [RAI -- no link] was removed from the portfolio because it got acquired in an all-cash deal and does not exist as a company anymore. But it left me with a 33.02% gain. Ka-Ching.

One change you might notice in the blog going forward is that all the stock links will now take you to Yahoo Finance instead of Google Finance (no link). This is in protest for the "upgrade" that the folks at Alphabet have given Google Finance, effectively eviscerating that site of any usefulness it had before.

In the next week I will have some Potentials and some Buys that I plan to write about. Hope you will find me again and continue to follow my (mis)adventures.

Cheers! 

New Beginning

Another hiatus, another beginning.

This post will just take stock of where things are after this long absense. See what I did there, yup bad humor, a "dad joke" there to remind you how much you love to read my posts.

Moving on...

The portfolio is doing much better than it was when I last wrote about it, Ka-Ching, and there have been some purchases and sales. The one constant is that Novo Nordisk (NVO) is still suffering from its disastrous dive into negative territory Ka-Flunk. All the other stocks still in the portfolio are ahead and looking stable, if not looking up.

On to sales and purchases;

I've sold one stock from the portfolio. Happy to report that it was sold at a good profit (30%). MGE Energy, Inc. (MGEE) had started to stall out and the long term outlook for it was starting to look less than attractive. Also I have another stock in that industry in CenterPoint Energy, Inc. (CNP).

Two new purchases have been added to the portfolio. Remember the time I missed out on the Gold Rush? Well, I redeemed myself by catching another precious metal company at the right time; and this time I did not chicken out. Tahoe Resources Inc. (TAHO) is primarily a silver mining company, and is rated highly in the Valueline survey, with a good dividend, and a solid 3-5 year price increase potential. Oh and Royal Gold (RGLD), my "Gold Rush: missed opportunity" is currently priced below the good price that I almost bought it at, so that worked out in hindsight. The other purchase in the portfolio is Hanesbrand Inc. (HBI). This stock shows up in a couple of lists of significance in the Valueline survey; Timely Stocks and Highest Growth Stocks. Currently Tahoe Resources Inc. (TAHO) is showing a 10% profit Ka-Ching, but Hanesbrand Inc. (HBI) is showing a small loss ~3% Ka-Flunk, so the new purchases are a mixed bag.

I am also looking at a couple of Potentials, which I will cover in the next post.

Thanks for continuing to follow my (mis)adventures.
That's all folks!

Gold Rush: A Missed Opportunity

It was like it was 1848 and I had a ticket for the train to California, but I was afraid and didn't get on ... and now it's 1856. The Gold Rush has passed me by.

As you may (or may not) have read in my last post, I had put Royal Gold Inc. (RGLD) into my list of Potentials, and decided to convert it to a Buy soon. Right after this call, the stock went into a free fall as expected, refer to "The Curse", The stock dropped from ~$83 all the way down below $75 and I thought, here's my chance, but alas, I panicked. I decided to wait just a bit to see if it would continue to drop further. Nope. It roared back and in a matter of a couple of days has made it back to over $84, creating a missed opportunity that I will remember for ever. Or at least until the next big thing on this adventure. Chalk one up to Fear.

Meanwhile, everything else in my portfolio is also doing well, or better than before for stocks that were doing badly. Here's a quick rundown on the highlights.

Paychex Inc. (PAYX) is doing even better at $61.84 with a 15%+ gain. Same for MGE Energy (MGEE) currently showing a gain of 12.6%. Ka-Ching.

On the other side, Novo Nordisk (NVO) is still struggling at a loss of 11.6%, Ka-Flunk, but CenterPoint Energy (CNP) has recovered enough to be back to a flat status with a loss of just $38 (0.81%).

No new Potentials this time, but Boston Scientific (BSX) is still a good possibility, and maybe I can get into the Klondike Gold Rush with Royal Gold (RGLD).

See how I worked a history lesson into that post? You like? WhatSayYou?

As always, thanks for reading.

Surprise, Surprise!!

"Surprise, Surprise", not as in the classic cliche, but a period of two surprises! Read on for details...

The first surprise was Novo Nordisk (NVO) which after reporting earning took a dive on August 5th, dropping $6 on open and then another $2 the next day. I am still trying to figure out what caused this crash, because the earnings were actually better than expected. OK, after a bit of digging I've discovered that their diabetes drug (Victoza) did not do as well as expected; it was 13% better than current drugs, but the expectation was for 15% better. :-( All told, the 2% shortfall in the expectations for the drug has cost me an almost 10% deficit in my stock's value. Ka-Flunk. Reading more details I've discovered that another cause of the downturn is the company revising it's forecast down by about 2%. The Timeliness of this stock has also dropped to an average 3, but the company is still solid. This will be one stock I will be monitoring a lot more closely.

On the happy side of the surprises, MGE Energy (MGEE) has done well since I decided to replace it with CenterPoint Energy (CNP). They announced a hike in the dividend rate, their 41st consecutive year doing so. The dividend is payable on September 15th for stock holders of record on September 1st, so if you are thinking about this one, now is the time. the stock has also appreciated in price recently currently sitting at $56.55 showing a solid 12.81% gain for me. Ka-Ching!

CenterPoint Energy (CNP) meanwhile is struggling to take off from my purchase price and sitting slightly under water, showing a 3.28% loss. The fundamentals of the stock are still strong though and it's approaching Ka-Flunk territory, but not yet in the GetOutNow range.

Looking ahead to a couple of Potentials; currently a lot of the industries at the top of the Valueline surveys rankings stocks are in the energy or utilities sector. And because I am already invested in these industries, I've had a difficult time finding good Potentials. The two that I have found bend the rules a bit, but still have good potential.

The first is Royal Gold Inc. (RGLD):
Name:                                Royal Gold Inc.
Industry:                            Precious Metals
Symbol:                              RGLD
Timeliness:                        1
Safety:                               3
Technical:                          3
Approximate Price:            $75.93
Dividend Yield:                  1.1%
Industry Rank:                   1
Low Gain Estimate:            0%
High Gain Estimate:           45%

This stock is worthy of consideration for a few reasons. First, it's a Timeliness (1)  stock in the highest ranking industry. Next, it's a high growth stock showing an at least 10% growth in multiple fundamentals like sales growth, cash flow, earnings, dividends etc, and the forward looking estimates are just as strong. Finally, and this is the weakest reason, the current chart shows that the stock is likely to drop a bit after achieving a double peak chart pattern, so it might be a good time to get some. The only thing I don't like about it is the P/E Ratio which is at a staggering 56.7!! Is that too much? WhatSayYou? I might consider converting this to a Buy soon.

The other is Boston Scientific (BSX):
Name:                                Boston Scientific Inc.
Industry:                            Medical Supplies Invasive
Symbol:                              BSX
Timeliness:                        1
Safety:                               3
Technical:                          3
Approximate Price:            $23.77
Dividend Yield:                  0%
Industry Rank:                   3
Low Gain Estimate:            25%
High Gain Estimate:           90%

Again, a good stock with solid fundamentals, that also shows up in the list of stocks with enough cash flow to operate and pay dividends and still have money left over for over 5 years. It is priced reasonably, which will allow me to grab a good parcel. The only thing I don't like about this one? No dividends... in spite of having the money to pay it. Boo!  Still, the other numbers are good and this is another stock that I might pick up soon.

That's all for this post folks, thanks for reading.
I hope you leave me some comments if you are a regular reader or even if you are a first timer.

Is There Anybody Out There?

I know, I know, it's been a while. 

But I do have a couple of excuses:

1. I got lazy; what can I say, happens to the best of us.
2. LIFE; like travel, a studio shutdown, layoff, job search, new job, etc., you know, simple stuff.

In any case, thanks for coming back to read my (mis)adventures. 

Let's dive right into it.

A lot has changed since I last wrote a post, so here are the updates.

Alphabet Inc. (GOOG) has been up and down, but currently stands at $769.89 putting me in the black on my average price with a gain of 4.65%, Ka-Ching! 

Fresh Del Monte (FDP) dropped in Timeliness and I decided to get out and Sell before things turned sour. I closed out my position at $41.833 locking in a gain of 5,44%, Ka-Ching! Unfortuntely, I fled too soon and the stock has climbed out of the funk and currently sits at $59.60 with it's Timeliness restored to 1, Ka-Flunk? WhatSayYou?

Novo Nordisk (NVO) has been through a trough, but has climbed out of it now. It's always been in the black for me though, and is currently at $55.42, a gain of 6.53%, Ka-Ching. As I've said before, they also paid out a $0.96 dividend, equivalent of a 1.78% return, double Ka-Ching.

I also converted another stock in the Potentials list into a Buy. Picked up a batch of Paychex, Inc. (PAYX) at $53.00. It is currently priced at $58.35 giving me a 10.02% gain, Ka-Ching. When I bought it it had a Timeliness of 1, it has since dropped to 2. Here are rest of the details.

Name:                                Paychex, Inc

Industry:                            IT Services

Symbol:                              PAYX
Timeliness:                        2
Safety:                               1
Technical:                          3
Approximate Price:            $53.00
Dividend Yield:                  3.11%
Industry Rank:                   14
Low Gain Estimate:            25%
High Gain Estimate:           45%

As you can see, it still looks like a healthy stock to hold on to.

I converted MGE Energy (MGEE) to a Buy in late March and bought a small parcel at $50.06. The stock has done well since then and is currently selling at $55.98 (after a bad couple of days) and still showing a gain of 11.67%. They also paid out a $0.295 dividend in May, making this another double Ka-Ching stock. But the market is fickle and so are investors (like me), MGE Energy (MGEE) has dropped to a Timeliness of 2 in the Valueline survey and I believe I've found a better alternative in this industry segment.

Name:                                CenterPoint Energy Inc

Industry:                            Electric Utility (Central)

Symbol:                              CNP
Timeliness:                        1
Safety:                               3
Technical:                          2
Approximate Price:            $23.47
Dividend Yield:                  4.35%
Industry Rank:                   3
Low Gain Estimate:            0%
High Gain Estimate:           25%

CenterPoint Energy (CNP) is a better stock in the same industry in many respects. It has a higher Timeliness, better potential for price increase, almost double dividend yeild, and half the price. I have added this stock into the portfolio with a Buy at $23.4805, and it is currently flat. I plan to Sell my batch of MGE Energy (MGEE) right after it passes its ex-dividend date, so I can get another dividend payout, Ka-Ching.

Finally, I moved quickly from Potentials to Buy on another good dividend paying stock that seems to have a solid track record for paying (increasing) dividends over a long time. 

Name:                                Reynolds American, Inc

Industry:                            Tobacco

Symbol:                              RAI
Timeliness:                        1
Safety:                               2
Technical:                          3
Approximate Price:            $49.02
Dividend Yield:                  3.69%
Industry Rank:                   17
Low Gain Estimate:            0%
High Gain Estimate:           30%

Solid fundamentals, and a Buy price of $49.6521; current price $48.99, well within the normal fluctuations to call flat. But folks, I have sinned, by buying a so-called "sin stock", a tobacco stock. WhatSayYou?.

Anyway, this has been a long update because of the inexcusable hiatus between posts, and I have given you a lot to contemplate. If you've taken the time to read to the end, I'd love it if you leave a comment and let me know what you think of the couple of WhatSayYou? questions in the post, or anything else.

Thanks for coming back.

Over and Out!

The Curse Has Been Broken!!

And there goes my amazing business idea...

This week Wendy's (WEN) bucked the trend and broke the "curse" and did not drop in price. My perfect record is broken and I can no longer offer my services for bringing down a stock price with my toxic touch. One bit of shadow on this stock is that the industry rank for Restaurants has dropped from 16 to 20 and the Timeliness of the stock has dropped from 2 to 3. So maybe, just maybe, my poisonous recommendation power is still in force? WhatSayYou? I guess based on this bad news I have no choice but to declare the stock Dropped from the Potentials list.

MGE Energy (MGEE) also managed to hold off the curse and have a good week holding steady at the price at which I listed it as a Potentials pick. Additionally, the industry group that this company represents jumped from a Valueline rank of 7 to a rank of 3, and the company's Technical rank was upgraded to 1 (best). This stock is looking even better now. I guess this high energy stock has the power to resist my toxic touch. This stock is very likely going to convert into a Buy in the coming week.

The report for the current portfolio is also good this week.

Alphabet Inc. (GOOG) had a great week rising to $737.60 putting me back in the black on one of my batches, Ka-Ching! 

Fresh Del-Monte (FDP) had a flat-to-slightly down week and ended at $41.87, still leaving me with a 5% gain, Ka-Ching. More good news, on March 7th, the stock paid out a $0.125 dividend, the equivalent of 0.29%. Sadly, the stock has dropped to a Timeliness rating of 3, meaning it's time to get out.  

Novo Nordisk (NVO) had a down week going from little over $57 to $54.61 by the end of the week, also leaving me with almost a 5% gain, Ka-Ching. In other news they paid out a $0.96 dividend, equivalent of a 1.78% return, offsetting the drop in price, double Ka-Ching.

With so much churn in my Potentials and Portfolio, I didn't get time to research new recommendations, so nothing on that front this time.

Thanks for reading.

Would I rather eat Wendy's or McDonald's?

Given my well "proven" Ownership Bias, this week has me asking the question, would I rather eat Wendy's (WEN) food or McDonald's (MCD) food. To tell the truth I would prefer to not eat either, but both these companies are showing enough promise to be on my Potentials list. Because I don't want to put all my proverbial eggs in the same Restaurant business basket, I am forced to pick one of these fast food giants. The advantages of McDonald's (MCD) over Wendy's (WEN) are obvious due to its size and customer affinity, but the smaller chain seems to have a bigger possible upside, so I am going to go with Wendy's (WEN) as my first Potentials pick this week. Here are the vital statistics:

Name:                               Wendy's Co.

Industry:                            Restaurant
Symbol:                              WEN
Timeliness:                        2
Safety:                               3
Technical:                          2
Approximate Price:            $9.39
Dividend Yield:                  2.5%
Industry Rank:                  16
Low Gain Estimate:            25%
High Gain Estimate:           90%

Pretty good numbers; reasonably priced, a decent dividend yield, and a solid growth potential to boot. If I were to believe Valueline, and I do, buying in will result in an 8-18% return on investment between price appreciation and dividend. Makes for an attractive company to bite into. 

Another stock that seems to be powerful at the moment is MGE Energy (MGEE).

Name:                                MGE Energy

Industry:                            Electric Utility (Central)
Symbol:                              MGEE
Timeliness:                        1
Safety:                               1
Technical:                          2
Approximate Price:            $50.12
Dividend Yield:                  2.4%
Industry Rank:                   7
Low Gain Estimate:            5%
High Gain Estimate:           15%

Looking at the numbers, this does not look very attractive, but the company appears prominently on the Valueline report. First it's a Timeliness 1 company, in an industry that is rated highly (7/97) ranking, plus a decent dividend and growth potential, make this a worthy purchase. Between all of this it is expected to return between 4-7% annually.

I have one more company to add to the Potentials list, but it is a weaker case and so I want to research it some more before I mention it here. I hope to get to that by the time I write my next post.

I have no Buys to report, so let's move on to this weeks performance report.

Alphabet Inc. (GOOG) continues to struggle and is once again below $700 at $693 and change getting a Ka-Flunk rating. Still believe in this one and still holding on tight.

Fresh Del Monte (FDP) continues to serve up sweet rewards sitting at $42.01 even after a bit of a down day today. With a gain of about 18% it earns a solid Ka-Ching rating.

Novo Nordisk (NVO) also continues to pull out of the curse and ended the day today at $56.36, also after a down day. Now showing an 8.2% gain it also earns a Ka-Ching rating.

That's all for today.

Thanks for reading.

Wednesday, March 2nd, 2016

Back again after a brief break.

I realize that I had planned to write a post once a week for this series, but given the limited size of my investment pool I found that I had nothing to write about on a weekly basis. So here I am after a bit of a hiatus with an update on my (mis)adventures.

Since the last time I wrote a few interesting events have transpired. 

One of my biggest Buy, Alphabet Inc. (GOOG) overtook Apple (AAPL) to become the company with the largest market capitalization effectively making it the biggest company in the world! But this major achievement has not helped the stock price keep growing. It currently sits at $718.85 well below the average price of my purchases. In the past week it has been well below $700 and so this is not as bad as it has been, but GOOG still earns a Ka-Flunk rating.

Fresh Del Monte (FDP) has been a bright spot in my portfolio. Currently sitting at $41.79 it is well above my Buy price of $35.54 and earns a Ka-Ching rating. Also the company sits well with some strategic moves that are likely to help it grow in the future.

Another update is that I converted one of my Potentials into a Buy. As you might recall, I had added Novo Nordisk (NVO) to my list of potential buys and it had immediately been struck by the "curse". Even still, I believed in the company and watched it as it struggled with the effects of the bad news. The stock dropped from around $55 all the way down to about $46 and in a couple of weeks had recovered to be back above $50. At that point I figured, the markets had forgiven and forgotten, and jumped in to Buy paying $52.03 per share. The current price is $53.07 giving me a narrow gain and also earning a Ka-Ching rating.

Meanwhile my sitting-on-the-fence stock Cal-Maine (CALM) keeps on laying golden eggs and is now priced at $54.91. I had the opportunity to buy in near $47, but I chickened out again (see what I did there?). Anyway, the Goose is still alive and well and I may yet buy it if I get the opportunity.

That's all I have in this installment...
Cheers!

Saturday, January 30th 2016

The "it's going to get worse before it gets worse." edition. 

As you already know one of my favorite money talk shows is Marketplace from American Public Media. Last week's wrap had a scary conversation about how things are going to get bad in the next few months. The conversation gave me pause about the timing of this (mis)adventure. Foolish as it seems, I am going to forge ahead with the best choices I can make with the knowledge I have, and take comfort in the knowledge that I have a reasonable amount of time before I retire so I still have time on my side.

On the sunny side, this is the first week that officially gets a Ka-Ching rating, a new tag that denotes that stocks in my Buy list actually made enough gains to put me into the "black" or took me higher up than last week. Both Alphabet Inc. (GOOG) and Fresh Del Monte (FDP) ended the week with gains. GOOG made great progress ending the week at $742.95, putting one of my batches well in the black and the other pretty close. On average though, I am 1% over. FDP ended the week at $40.81 giving me a current gain of 3.2%. This put a smile on my face in spite of the potential storm that is approaching.

This week I saw another manifestation of what I have referred to as the "Ownership Bias". At the grocery store while buying lunch time fruit in syrup things, I ended up buying the Del Monte brand over the Dole brand, just because I own FDP stock.

In the Potentials list I have a new stock this week:

Name:                                Novo Nordisk ADR

Industry:                            Drug
Symbol:                              NVO
Timeliness:                        1
Safety:                               2
Technical:                          3
Approximate Price:            $55
Dividend Yield:                  1.6%
Industry Rank:                    27
Low Gain Estimate:            20%
High Gain Estimate:           55%

Novo Nordisk (NVO) is a Dutch company that makes medications primarily for diabetes management, hemophilia, and other conditions. They have a had a strong 2015 and are poised to continue a good run this year too. Two new diabetes drugs have just received FDA approval and more drugs are well into the research and approval pipeline. They have a small (1.6%) dividend and a good price appreciation potential too. This is also the only stock given a Timeliness of 1 by Valueline in the Drug industry group. I foresee a good chance that I will convert this to a Buy in the next week.

Still on the bubble is Cal-Maine (CALM) which I should have bought when I first saw it. If I had I would have put away a gain of 5%-7% and also claimed the dividend that just passed the ex-dividend date. Maybe this will be the week I jump into this omlette too.

That's all I have this week. If you have been a regular reader, please leave a comment and tell me WhatSayYou?