The Long Term Investor

Discussion in 'Investing' started by WXYZ, Oct 2, 2018.

  1. andyvds

    andyvds Active Member

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    green new deal in usa and eu will change a lot. i set my $$$ on EV, IT, green energy. relations between usa, eu and china might also improve. good news for modern stock titles worldwide. and usa needs a stimulus fast.
     
  2. The Ragin Cajun

    The Ragin Cajun Active Member

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    Nice habit, I need to copy that, maybe an annual bitcoin purchase as well, hah! I still regret selling an American Buffalo 1oz coin 15 years ago, a premium gold coin! Can't go wrong with gold as an investor to store some wealth. Only have the entire history of Western Civilization as proof!
     
  3. WXYZ

    WXYZ Well-Known Member

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    NICE gains today. Of course it was a HISTORIC day.......well....sort of. Milestones are nice.....but......they are just an artificial construct. However, with investing it is nice to get past a perceived milestone level since that often frees up the markets to RALLY.

    ZUKODANY.....I still think it is funny. But....the house hunt....if your market is anything like here....it is a wild ride.

    Nice green today although the SP500 beat me by .32%.

    We are still seeing some lingering........minimal and temporary....... weakness in the BIG CAP market leaders. I do not see any reason to worry about the BIG BOYS.....AMZN, GOOGL, MSFT, AAPL, NKE, COST, HD, NVDA, TSLA, etc, etc. These companies are the GUTS of the economy. I suspect that their earnings will do EXTREMELY well post-pandemic.....just as they have done for the past ten to fifteen years. They BOOMED before the pandemic, they BOOMED during the pandemic and they will BOOM post-pandemic. That is how I see the future.
     
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  4. zukodany

    zukodany Well-Known Member

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    Yes of course I say this in jest but it’s clear to me now as daylight that it’s a crazy sellers market now. My only biggest fear is that this will somehow end up like the crisis of 2008 with the housing market. The prices here.. everywhere... are super high... some properties are jacked up by well over 50-60% of what even Zillow suggest they should be. But just because... people like myself... who have moved from a big city can afford them.. and desires them... we can buy it without thinking twice.
    My wife keeps reminding me... we would never. EVER. Be able to find a gorgeous house in a historic town nonetheless, fully updated and with plenty of amenities surrounding us, for 400k in NY, so why do I care if I pay an inflated price if I like it and it’s a 5 star neighbourhood. Heck, she tells me, let’s buy 2-3 of those, our budget and income allows it.
    We’ll see where this goes...
     
  5. WXYZ

    WXYZ Well-Known Member

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    Not really my place to comment Zukodany. BUT.......LOL.....I agree with your wife.....not that I would buy 2-3.....but I would certainly have no hesitation to buy a special one for myself if it was going to be for the long term. That is as much as I will say on that topic.

    Very curious to see where we go tomorrow in the markets.
     
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  6. WXYZ

    WXYZ Well-Known Member

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    TODAY.....for me......is like the day that Zukodany had a short time ago.....a nice disconnect from the DOWN averages. Starting the day nicely GREEN.
     
  7. WXYZ

    WXYZ Well-Known Member

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    IRRELEVANT news of the day:

    U.S. economy surges by record 33.1% in third quarter

    https://www.denverpost.com/2020/11/25/us-economy-third-quarter/

    Another 778,000 Americans filed first-time unemployment claims last week

    https://www.cnn.com/2020/11/25/economy/unemployment-benefits-coronavirus/index.html

    U.S. New-Home Sales Remain Elevated in October at 999,000 Pace

    https://finance.yahoo.com/news/u-home-sales-remain-elevated-152216046.html

    MY COMMENT

    NO....not really irrelevant....but may as well be. If a tree falls in the forest....and no one is there......etc, etc, etc.
     
  8. zukodany

    zukodany Well-Known Member

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    Yup. TOTALLY a repeat. It’s days like these that I APPRECIATE having a diversified portfolio. My tech positions are off the chart today. Plus my LULU is showing a strong recovery... total win for me today, and that’s on top of having a killer day yesterday. Today; Beating the SP by .65 AND getting a record breaking high with my investments. Loving it!
     
  9. WXYZ

    WXYZ Well-Known Member

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    I HOPE you didn't show your wife......that post above where I agree with her Zukodany.

    TODAY.....I have been running around all day and have not done much reading.....BUT....the result in my portfolio was good. Plenty of GREEN today and a really nice BEAT DOWN of the SP500 by 1.50%.

    Interesting and irrelevant observations......the ONLY holding that was down in my account was HON with a very minimum loss of twenty one cents per share. SNOW kicked ass today with a gain of $20 to hit $303 per share......boosting my short term gain to 31.70%. MSFT was positive today........by one cent.......not a BIG contributor today but GREEN.
     
  10. zukodany

    zukodany Well-Known Member

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    Haha you know I did!
    “You know that guy that I follow on the internet with stock? Well he says he agrees with you on buying a few houses and a Lot!”
    I think you have more fans around the country than you would think ;)
    Congrats on a massive day end Happy Thanksgiving!
     
  11. WXYZ

    WXYZ Well-Known Member

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    Can you IMAGINE......we are +12.35% on the SP500 year to date. We are ABOVE the long term index average annual return. I suspect that we will end the year at somewhere between +17% and +22%.

    The poor little DOW is at +4.67% year to date. This index has become irrelevant to real world investing. It is now.....in my opinion....totally symbolic.

    JUST shows the POWER of investing for the long term and staying fully invested. Trying to market time.......ie: GUESS short term market direction.....just about guarantees that you will severely miss out on all the times when the markets surprise with massive upside results.
     
  12. WXYZ

    WXYZ Well-Known Member

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    One final.......HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO ALL...now that we are at the actual day. Here is a RELEVANT little article:

    Thanksgiving Rays of Light for Investors

    https://www.fisherinvestments.com/en-us/marketminder/thanksgiving-rays-of-light-for-investors

    (BOLD is my opinion OR what I consider important content)

    "A few things to be thankful for over the holidays—even this year.

    With most folks’ Thanksgivings lacking the gathers of family and friends this year, it doesn’t seem as if there is much to celebrate—an understatement, considering the sucker punch 2020 has delivered to the entire world. Even the mere exercise of searching for glimpses of positivity to grasp may seem like sacrilege after months of upheaval and tragedy. But maybe that is the best reason to do so now? A way to try and wrest something “normal” from a year that is anything but. So as we tuck into our downsized Thanksgiving meals and video call our long-distance friends and loved ones, here are some things we think investors can be thankful for even in this terrible year.

    Stocks recovered from the bear market much faster than most could envision. February and March’s five-week bear market was trying for many investors, but with the benefit of hindsight, it seems to us that its speed was its defining feature—both in how fast it came and went. Stocks regained their prior highs five months later—a record-fast round trip completed before summer’s end. Those who didn’t react may have a new appreciation for staying cool in the midst of panic—when it is generally better to ride out volatility—hard as it may seem.

    The speedy round trip from record high to bear market low and back to record high means that, as harrowing as the steep drop was, this bear market had a smaller-than-usual effect on folks who draw cash flow from their portfolios (provided you remained disciplined). Prior to 2020, bear markets averaged a 21-month grind lower. While even this timeframe isn’t insurmountable, retirees with higher cash flow needs often feel pressure to cut back during downturns (whether they are in stocks or not). That doesn’t seem as necessary this year.

    Earnings didn’t decline as much as people feared. As we covered recently in more depth, earnings have far exceeded expectations. With 95% of S&P 500 companies reporting, their Q3 earnings are down only -6.3% y/y.[ii] At September’s end, analysts expected them to fall -21.1% y/y.[iii] Behind the positive surprise? Q3 sales are down just -1.3% from last year’s level, highlighting how the earnings beat isn’t primarily from cost cuts.[iv] Corporate America is showcasing extraordinary resilience in the face of adversity, in our view.

    That has enabled corporations to cut dividends far less than expected. In April, when things seemed bleakest, pundits forecast companies cutting dividends more than -20%.[v] However, with one month to go, 2020 S&P 500 dividends are on track to fall just -1.2% from 2019.[vi] Plus, many companies that cut or suspended dividends earlier this year are now planning to resume them.[vii] This speaks to a stock-market reality that isn’t as dire as feared—fuel for a young bull market.

    However you feel out about politics, uncertainty is falling. On top of everything else this year, elections added an extra layer of uncertainty. But we know a lot more than a few weeks ago. With more states certifying their results, President-elect Joe Biden’s transition is in full swing, and his cabinet is taking shape. Congress’s exact makeup is pending Georgia’s January 5 Senate runoff elections, but whatever happens, we will have either a narrow Republican majority or a 50/50 split with Vice President-elect Kamala Harris breaking ties.

    Regardless of which outcome we get, sweeping change is unlikely. The narrower House margin also fosters gridlock. With 3 races undecided, the Democrats edge is at 222 – 210, down from 232 – 197 in the current Congress.[viii] No matter how the undetermined races wind up, this is a small margin historically. For stocks, increased political clarity—and unusual early-term gridlock suggesting big change isn’t afoot—is a plus entering the new year.

    While 2020 has been among the worst of times, immense challenges have also brought out the best in people. The COVID response no doubt has major fallout. But humans are infinitely creative and adaptable. Remote schooling and work aren’t perfect, but practice has improved them overall and they demonstrate people’s and businesses’ flexibility. Companies’ supply-chain adaptations have fundamentally upgraded America’s infrastructure and capacity to deliver goods and services. It wasn’t so long ago that people thought food shortages were coming. That hasn’t happened on any broad scale.

    Of course, there are also innovations in vaccine development. What used to take years and years seems to have taken months. There are now at least three effective vaccines pending safety approvals. More may come. Distribution hurdles remain, but we think creative businesses will prove capable of surmounting them.

    On a more personal level, the IRS is giving you a tax break for charitable contributions this year. The CARES Act lets you make a tax-deductible $300 cash contribution to 501(c)(3) public charities without itemizing. That means if you take a standard deduction when you file your 2020 tax return, you can also deduct $300 from your adjusted gross income for a bit of a tax break. This may not sound like a huge deal, and it may present only a modest plus for those able to act financially. But for charities—and the people they help—it could make a big difference.

    Also, courtesy of the CARES Act, you don’t have to take this year’s required minimum distribution (RMD). This lets you keep more of your savings invested and lowers your taxable income. You can still take distributions if you choose or need to, of course—and donating these tax-free to eligible charities up to $100,000 is still an option. But you aren’t legally required to.

    The next few months will likely hold yet more challenges. But we think it is critical to recognize the positive things people are doing both in spite of—and in response to—the crisis. This Thanksgiving we are thankful for the sacrifices of those on the front line, those working to develop vaccines and those just working hard to keep an ounce of normalcy in all our lives. In our view, those are things we all can be thankful for—above and beyond the rays of light investors can find. Happy Thanksgiving, this year more than ever."

    MY COMMENT

    YES.......to the final two sentences of the last paragraph that I have BOLDED:

    "This Thanksgiving we are thankful for the sacrifices of those on the front line, those working to develop vaccines and those just working hard to keep an ounce of normalcy in all our lives. In our view, those are things we all can be thankful for—above and beyond the rays of light investors can find. Happy Thanksgiving, this year more than ever."

    The ONLY thing I do not agree with above is the analysis that we will be fine either way regarding the Georgia run-off. I believe SWEEPING CHANGE is likely if the party of WOKENESS candidates both win.....very sweeping changes that will be extremely negative for the country. BUT.....that is a topic for another day.....NOT THANKSGIVING.

     
  13. TomB16

    TomB16 Well-Known Member

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    As Tesla flirts with $3000 (in pre-split dollars) and WXYZ has roughly tripled his money in a few months, I find myself reflecting back on the individual who declared buying Tesla at $1000 to be stupid.

    We're all in a battle with our own ignorance. Being adamant something is going to happen, or not happen, is no assurance that it won't.

    Objectivity seems to be the key to making money. Ignorance is insidious. I've had to struggle against it my whole life but it's been worth it.

    Good luck out there and Happy Thanksgiving! :)
     
    rg7803, T0rm3nted, zukodany and 2 others like this.
  14. WXYZ

    WXYZ Well-Known Member

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    "We're all in a battle with our own ignorance."

    AGREE completely......that is one reason that I post on these sorts of sites. It allows me to get my daily, weekly, and other thoughts out there in a way that DOES NOT impact my real.....long term...investing. It gets it out of my system. I RARELY act on what I post....since what I post is often short to medium term oriented. AND....being a long term investor.....I try to NEVER act on that sort of thinking. I DO try to be as accurate as possible and take pride in seeing the markets correctly over the short to medium term. BUT....I am NOT willing to bet money on short to medium term thinking.....especially my own.

    I did calculate my ACTUAL return in my primary account for the past 13 months. Why 13 months....because it gave me a CLEAN start date.....where I had a good accurate starting figure to work with. From October 21 to yesterday, November 25, 2020 TOTAL RETURN is 28.15%.

    AS to OBJECTIVITY.......it is very CRITICAL...that everyone constantly check their investing results and be honest about if you are actually being successful. If not......being able to......admit that you are NOT doing well....... recognize the deficiency in your approach......and make changes......is very important. AND.......nearly impossible for us humans. I try to be focused on MAKING MONEY.....NOT the approach I use to do so. I think being a small.....very successful.....business owner for 22 years was a BIG HELP. You can not BULL SH*T yourself when you are in business....the REALITY is staring you in the face EVERY day.
     
    #2614 WXYZ, Nov 26, 2020
    Last edited: Nov 26, 2020
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  15. Progress

    Progress New Member

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    Yunji might be a good catch for the time being.
     
  16. Globetrotter

    Globetrotter New Member

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    As this is my first post, I would like to introduce myself.

    I am a young parent, in my early 30s. I have a stable job with a good income.
    I have been interested in the stock market since the financial crash of 2008.
    After following couple stocks, I found it fascinating how stock prices could go up and down, driven by sentiment, while in reality nothing realy changed.

    My long term goal is to accumulate sufficient money to become financially independent and secure our family's future. This topic has been a big help and motivation in how to reach this goal, for which I owe WXYZ and all other contributors alot of thanks. I also read a little about bogle's investment filosophy.

    Currently we live in a medium sized appartment (5 years mortgage remaining) on the border of the city, with a nice scenery. As the children grow, we plan to settle farther outside the city, although we will miss the scenery, it will be nice to have a big garden. Since the interest rates are low in europe (currently about 1% for a 20 year loan), I intend to buy/build 100% on mortgage. Our income should be sufficient to pay off the mortgage, that way we can stay fully invested, and let the magic of compound interest do it's work.

    After years of fear of losing money and trying to time the market (all time highs, getting higher and higher, waiting for a crash), I dipped my toes in the stock market couple years ago. I initially made a little profit with Amazon, Netflix and Nvidia. I sold them all right before the first corona wave, boy was I wrong. I also lost some money offcourse: sold facebook too soon, bought oil futures in may (lost about 15k through contango) -> lessons learned: don't try to time the market and especially don't buy something you don't understand. Afterwards these losses would be profits if I held them till today.

    I consider all losses as tuition money, all these lessons would be meaningless if I didn't try to improve myself and learn from my mistakes. As the stock market sinked deeper I carefully kept investing our precious savings. Before the US election I decided to go all in, although newspapers said that a Biden win would be bad for the stock market. Thanks to not listening to the newspapers I rode the wave of the vaccine relief rally.

    Our investment is currently about 1/3 in stocks (mainly european to avoid currency exchanges) and 2/3 in ETF's. Previously I had about 3/4 in ETF, but since SP 500 started stagnating last weeks and 'left behind' stocks starting booming with the vaccine relief rally, I sold some ETF's to pick a couple stocks that I believe still have an opportunity to rise. Long run I would rebalance my portfolio to more acc. ETF's, so I don't pay tax on dividends.
    My ETF's are mainly based out of:
    - Energy sector: my belief is that after all the doom and gloom, we will still reach a new oil peak before transitioning to renewables. Some big oil companies are also already investing in renewables.
    - Tech sector: After first fearing that we already are in an all time high, I still made a nice profit.
    - SP 500
    - Eurostoxx 50
    - Also interested in AI, robotics, automation and the gaming industry

    YTD my profit is about 10%.
     
    #2616 Globetrotter, Nov 27, 2020
    Last edited: Nov 27, 2020
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  17. zukodany

    zukodany Well-Known Member

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    Amazing open today. This whole short week has been phenomenal for me. Of course next week is a new week followed by new experiences.
    Happy investing!
     
  18. WXYZ

    WXYZ Well-Known Member

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    Hi Glodtrotter......and WELCOME. It is nice to see more posters from other countries. It is a good thing to have the diversity of thought.

    Your post is very honest and reads like MOST new investors. We ALL go through a learning process. Dont give up. Over the years as you learn and invest you will make back all those losses and MUCH MORE. The key is LONG TERM thinking. Think as an INVESTOR.......NOT......a trader. There are many different SUCCESSFUL investors that post on this thread.....TomB16, Zukodany, Emmett Kelly, Ragin Cajun, rg7803, B Russ, and many more......it is hard for me to remember everyone.

    I see LOTS of good knowledge in your post. At your young age you understand compounding, and other investing concepts that are NOT understood by many people your age.
     
    #2618 WXYZ, Nov 27, 2020
    Last edited: Nov 27, 2020
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  19. WXYZ

    WXYZ Well-Known Member

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    Emmett......how is that not investing? SIMPLE.....I do not see it,or, consider it an investment. LOL.

    I am a "COLLECTOR" type person. Some people collect things others dont. FOR ME this is simply accumulation.....compliments of my "collecting" gene. I dont follow gold and silver in the least. I will say that on some level this purchase of silver and gold......that I have been doing now for many many decades......is a hedge against the ULTIMATE FINANCIAL or WORLD DISASTER. Not that it would matter.......someone bigger than me or with more guns would simply take it away from me.

    Probably the bottom line......I like to own "things"......art, antiques, a nice house, some metal, etc, etc. The one thing that I have NEVER had any interest in is cars.
     
  20. WXYZ

    WXYZ Well-Known Member

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    I decided yesterday to ADD 100 shares of SNOW to one of the other accounts that I manage. So I put in an order to be executed "at the market" at the open today. I checked just before coming on here. The shares were purchased at the open for $310 per share. When I checked they were at $326. A nice hour and a half gain of 5.36%.

    So.......here I am.....a long term investor...talking about hour and a half results. Oh well......better than seeing an immediate 5.36% LOSS. So, I will take it and hope for more of the same to build up a cushion against the inevitable DIPS and CORRECTIONS that come with owning a very young very speculative company.

    To generate those funds I sold a little bit of APPLE, NIKE, and some SP500 Index FUND in that account.
     
    #2620 WXYZ, Nov 27, 2020
    Last edited: Nov 27, 2020

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