One word - plastics.

 starcloud wrote: 
There are all kinds of precious metal hucksters coming out of the woodwork these days.  That alone is a good sign that the worst of the recession is behind us.  They buy low and sell high.  They're not spending all that money on late night TV commercials out of altruism; they want to fleece gullible investors.  This has been going on forever...buy low, sell high.

Based on my lifetime experience in investing in various financial instruments, I will never put a substantial amount of money into corporate stock.  I might invest in bonds one day, if the return makes it worthwhile.  The first thing I want to invest in is in arable land.  Real estate that I can live on and use to grow food if necessary.  I'd buy now if I had the money or the ability to finance it.  When (and possibly where) the economy gets to the point that precious metal prices fall as low as they're likely to get, I'll buy some as a hedge against inflation.  Other than that, I'll invest in things I can trust, like myself.

Saw this posted on FB by a friend:

"I was buying 90% silver quarters at 2.90 a year ago. Right now they're worth 6.30 a piece!!! Holding on to your paper is a bad idea at this point ... At the very least you could save your nickels. They're worth seven cents in their metal content."

with this link 

 buzz wrote: 
eww

 kurtster wrote: 

 kurtster wrote: 
kinda like Green Stamps.
 
 
lick and stick, lick and stick
 
 

Buy Forever Stamps.

Guaranteed to increase in value, probably exceed inflation.

 katzendogs wrote: 
A typographical error is a typographical error

 hobiejoe wrote: 
I'm thinking kissie  emoticons won't dig you out of a FYT

 islander wrote: 
That is an insanely high P/E, (industry avg. = 22), but obviously (looking at financials) investors drove it up that high as opposed to unnoticed diminished company performance.  It's far too rich for my philosophy (value) and I would consider shorting it if it weren't for a few details...  First, the fiscal numbers themselves are very, very strong especially considering the amount of recent expansion into new markets.  Also, CMG's Forward P/E is expected to drop to 29.6, likely speculation of several things including increased same-store sales, new stores operating for a full year, and then the possibles...either they think sales will skyrocket exponentially to hit those numbers (not likely) or they will be slowing down expansion (my guess).  I also doubt this company will ever saturate their markets to the extent that Starbucks or McDonalds has simply because, as long as the menu stays the same, they will never have a drive-thru and because their average ticket is around $10.  Their strategy of buying local produce, etc. seems to be working as everyone I know who has eaten there has been pleasantly surprised at how fresh-tasting the food is.  Lastly, CMG is an offspring of McDonalds, so I would expect certain core ideas to continue without wavering, including a focus on cleanliness.

 MrsHobieJoe wrote: 
FYT  

 islander wrote: 
 these guys have some really interesting stuff going on.

 Yibbyl wrote: 
SCLR is one where I know some people. It's more of a curiosity thing. ARNA is another biotech that I put a tiny bit into, Interestingly - both biotechs on my list are tiny and tanking hard.

The other 'penny' stocks typically have similar reasons for being watched - Level 3 is my industry and an interesting barometer for a company w/ big capex costs; Q and ALU are former employers, I know people and have some legacy stocks there ( I had Lucent options at $85/share!); OpenWave is a company w/ a local branch and some people I know - they are making an interesting transition in business models as the market changed around them.

CMG has some interesting numbers, but this one scares me: P/E 43.76. And it's a fast food stock.  I sold out when the P/E got close to 20 because that wasn't making sense. At nearly 44, those are really expensive earnings you are getting yourself into. There just isn't room for that kind of growth, and you're counting on momentum and the bigger fool theory for future returns.  Note that I said that exact same thing when I sold out last year at $100 a share. 

 islander wrote:I have kids and debts instead of investments.  I'm also barred from many investments due to my job so it takes all the fun out of the stock market for me.

 islander wrote: 
I'm surprised by the amount of "penny stocks" on your watch list.  SCLR barely has a market; the volume is so low and hit & miss!  That would spook me.  A lot.

***edit*** - CMG has Net Margin (past 12 mo.) of 9.8%, industry avg. = 0.9%, ROE (past 12 mo.) = 23.6%, industry avg. = 2.5%, Debt/Equity = 0, industry avg. = 2.9, current assets alone can cover total liabilities, and has also steadily been increasing cash flows.  It's love!  But wait, majority opinion of 26 analysts following it is HOLD, not buy probably due to the high price.

 islander wrote: 

If I hadn't been curious and checked I wouldn't have found out that Alcatel and Lucent merged 5 years ago.
               Not that I'm out of the loop or anything.
   

Interesting topic & discussion. I'm going to post my daily watch list here. These are a mix of stocks/funds that I own or are interested in enough to care about the day to day trends and info. I use a google gadget to keep an eye on it. I rotate a lot of things in and out of this list for various reasons. But I would be curious to see what's on other peoples watch list too (if you feel comfortable posting it).

Mine (I'm sure the editor will bork the formatting, but I'll give this a shot):

These aren't all stocks I own ( I own less than half of those right now). Some are things I'm thinking about  (SU, PBW, BC), others represent sectors that I think might be interesting as an overall indicator (AAPL, AMZN,CSCO, GOOG, QCOM, Q), Some are just there because I'm curious about them day to day (how long will CMG run with these insane multiples? - I sold in 2010 when they hit $100.... oops).

If you want more info on any of these or any other stock ticker, google is your friend:  http://www.google.com/finance?q=CMG just replace the last 3 letters there with the ticker of your choice.

 bokey wrote: 
I'm aware of that 60 day period..it sucks...but then again...so does outliving your income and assets...

Its one of the reasons I continually remind my clients why I tell them to get long term care insurance while they are young and healthy.

 p4jkafla wrote: 
He weighs 190+ pounds and has 2 artificial hips. He is totally reliant on his walker at home and a wheelchair when I take him to the doctor or something. It could get to the point where he can't move on his own and I can't lift him(I sprained my back about 5 years ago and it gets tight when I try to overlift). Right now I am able to get him up when he takes a dive(thank FSM his cardiologist took him off Coumadin) but a few years ago I wouldn't have been able to. If I get hurt he's screwed.

     Also, there is a sneaky clause in Medicare coverage where you are ineligible for skilled nursing care for a 60 day period after the end of any previous care, even if it is for an unrelated illness/accident.
   He spent 4 months in the hospital/nursing facility in 2009  learning to walk again after he broke his hip(he's 2 for 2). If he would have had a stroke( and he has before) a month after that he would have no coverage for nursing/rehab. The costs are astronomical.

 MrsHobieJoe wrote: 
hahah...

Crazy time of year for you then...