Funny Money Update
In the last episode, I put to a vote which two stocks I should double-up on.... I chose Gap, Inc. (GPS) and Equity Inns (ENN). (Surprise! Gap wasn't on my vote list).... but now that Gap rose above my purchase price + commission, I came under their wire for dividend payout, AND I don't like their fall line-up, all the people who made Gap so great have actually left the company, and they seem to be losing market-share -- I turned around and sold all 85 shares last week. I made about $60 from the sale, and garnered a whopping $6.80 in dividends... Not bad for having only held onto the shares for only a few months, but not necessarily stellar, either.
I didn't choose the other stocks to double-up for various reasons: MEL because I actually reduced my position in that stock last year (or so), and would have been buying back stock at a slight premium. DELL, 'cause they don't pay a dividend and their stock is in the dog-house with analysts right now, so I'm comfortable with my position in their stock right now. And VLCCF 'cause I'm comfortable with my position in their stock, and tanker stocks are still taking a beating at the moment.
I turned around and bought 50 shares of Hasbro (HAS) today (probably at a premium, 'cause their stock price is near a five-year high)... But they seem to be a very solid company, just had an 8% increase in revenues, raised their dividends, and overall have a very good spreadsheet. I'll come in just under the wire to receive their dividend -- which should be about $6.00, too. I think HAS may be a keeper for long-term....
The remainder, I put into LSI Logic (LSI) which is still very cheap, which brought up my position to 50 shares in that company. Their stock price hasn't really done that well, and they don't pay a dividend. But I think they're a long-term value-investment. For a semi-conductor business, they've sold off all their manufacturing and production plants (quite easily the biggest capital-losing area in their industry), and have concentrated, instead, on design and engineering, which has always been their strong-point. I think their unique business-model spooked analysts, but on the spreadsheet and in the marketplace, things seem to be working for them.
I didn't choose the other stocks to double-up for various reasons: MEL because I actually reduced my position in that stock last year (or so), and would have been buying back stock at a slight premium. DELL, 'cause they don't pay a dividend and their stock is in the dog-house with analysts right now, so I'm comfortable with my position in their stock right now. And VLCCF 'cause I'm comfortable with my position in their stock, and tanker stocks are still taking a beating at the moment.
I turned around and bought 50 shares of Hasbro (HAS) today (probably at a premium, 'cause their stock price is near a five-year high)... But they seem to be a very solid company, just had an 8% increase in revenues, raised their dividends, and overall have a very good spreadsheet. I'll come in just under the wire to receive their dividend -- which should be about $6.00, too. I think HAS may be a keeper for long-term....
The remainder, I put into LSI Logic (LSI) which is still very cheap, which brought up my position to 50 shares in that company. Their stock price hasn't really done that well, and they don't pay a dividend. But I think they're a long-term value-investment. For a semi-conductor business, they've sold off all their manufacturing and production plants (quite easily the biggest capital-losing area in their industry), and have concentrated, instead, on design and engineering, which has always been their strong-point. I think their unique business-model spooked analysts, but on the spreadsheet and in the marketplace, things seem to be working for them.