Re: Investing

From: Samantha Atkins (samantha@objectent.com)
Date: Thu Jun 12 2003 - 01:02:11 MDT

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    On Wednesday 11 June 2003 15:48, gts wrote:
    nings and has a bad debt/equity ratio.
    >
    > My advice now, to myself and to my friends and family, is to stay long.
    > Never go short and never sell unless you really need the money. Own a
    > reasonably but not overly diversified portfolio. In the long run the market
    > rewards investors according to the level of risk they take (on the long
    > side).
    >

    I don't believe this advice makes much sense in a time of radically increasing
    change and volatility. It becomes much more delicate to predict which
    companies are going to be around for the long haul. Too many good companies
    are now dead or dying with their stock price less than half a penny on the
    dollar of when they were purchased if they are alive at all. At even highly
    optimistic yearly growth it would take more years for such stocks to come
    back to par value than I have before I retire. It would be very foolish to
    take long side risk on such. A rule of thumb that makes sense to me: If
    you had the money in hand today that you have in this investment would you
    buy this instrument? If the answer is "No" then sell at least half of it
    immediately.

    - samantha



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