MARCH 1, 2018
Back from the living dead
Next Update After Seminar - March 22Nd
SITE UPDATED EVERY OTHER THURSDAY AFTERNOON (EXC school hols)
International Finance Awards : Best Finance Blogger: Robbie Burns
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BEGINNER/IMPROVER SEMINAR: SPEND A DAY WITH ME AND LIVE MARKETS
MAY 21ST (March event is sold out)
If you want more than the book and see me do it live, come and spend a day with me and live markets. (beginners and improvers welcome). If a beginner there is guaranteed no jargon!
See trades from my own accounts, research, level 2, and finding great shares from scratch and tons more. Three course lunch, snacks, drinks ,lots of chocolate, banter and fun with me live all day.
**Best Financial Educational Provider, International Finance Awards.**
Mail me at robbiethetrader@aol.com with " May seminar interested" and I'll send you details. There is a large early bookers discount on offer.
Also new Follow up date for those who have been before, Mar 26th, mail me
with follow up in subject line. That's a day of live trading, research and follow ups on problems since the first seminar.
MY NEW PSYCHOLOGY BOOK "TRADE LIKE A SHARK" IS OUT!!! DISCOUNT OFFER:
The book covers things that can go wrong, how to fix them. How to stop bad habits, gambling, trading with a clear head. How not to panic, managing trades, trading in a down market.
To buy Trade Like A Shark at £12.25 plus p and p use this link
https://harriman-house.com/tradelikeashark Use code NTSHARK at the checkout. The E Book is free with the print version.
***
25% off Stockopedia and free trial
Stockopedia is indeed like a stock market encyclopedia and a great place to scan for new shares to buy, check out fundamentals, discuss on a sensible bulletin board. Each share gets a ranking, you can use "guru" screens to find shares, there is even a stock screen loosely based on my criteria! You can try it for free too.
For your 25% discount off any sub (eg £56 discount off UK sub) and free 14 day trial you need this link:
www.stockopedia.com/nakedtrader/
It's been a while since a seminar so looking forwards to meeting some of you - beginners and improvers on March 16th and my follow up students on March 26th!
** March seminar is sold out **
I very much need some new ideas myself and a whole day of work usually comes up with some goodies for me, which is one of the selfish reasons I love doing them!
Those of you coming to the follow up can expect some homework from me soon...
See those of you coming to the beginners/improvers on the 16th from 10am, don't worry about the cold, there'll be lots of caffeine and sugar available to keep you going all day.
I'm trying to persuade the chef to do a nice roast chicken with the trimmings for lunch.
Just come in, relax, you are in good hands I promise! We'll have some fun as well as hopefully you'll learn lots of research tools, supply and demand and we'll see what new shares we can dig out and get interested in.
Beginners don't worry! It's all in plain English, no jargon here. Look forwards
to seeing you all on the 16th!
I know most of you would prefer to get an update AFTER a seminar than before to see what came up on the day so that update will now be on March 22nd.
Me and the Mrs managed to catch the horrible Aussie flu
that's been doing the rounds.
People make jokes about flu, me included.. "Man flu" and all.
Never again. If you get this you have my utter sympathy.
It's absolutely awful. You can hardly move, every move is an
effort. Aches come from everywhere. Now add in severe
cough, headcold, bad headache, fever and delerium. I've
never know anything like it.
Oh, and occasionally for a few blessed minutes you feel better. Then it hits you again.
It's also almost impossible to sleep. Oh and eat as you
feel sick in the tummy too.
You feel sick and tired all the
time and very irritable also. I could see emails building up
on a laptop under the bed.
"You selfish pigs! All you care about
is some crap share and I'm dying here, leave me alone!"
There's also no real antidote to it all. Antibios don't work with
it and paracetamol might help ease the headache a bit but
don't expect much.
Whole days went by in a blurred... er.. blur. Anyway don't get this.
If anyone close starts looking unwell, get a mask, wash your hands.
be careful. Don't shake hands. You don't want this.
If a close relative gets it and you don't take precautions you will
get it it is totally contagious. So help them of course, but keep
away from any infection route.
Anyway at least I am back up and running. Thank you all for your kind messages, afraid it would be a full time job to reply to you all but please consider yourselves thanked!
Some of you had it a lot worse than us. many of you mentioned getting this flu and it lasting more than a month. Though probably the worst email was from reader David:
"Something similar happened to me last month. I had a slight tickle in my throat .
The next day I was bedbound with a cough and barely able to breathe . Despite my protests my wife and daughter packed me off to hospital where I was on oxygen for a week and diagnosed with double pneumonia.
The hospital was packed with people suffering from flu who were being "triaged" in a makeshift series of curtained off cubicles. I was very lucky not to contract flu as well as pneumonia as there was barely any barrier between one patient and another.
I am now recovered but it takes a full 6 weeks to get over this. NHS staff are great but the hospital organisation is chaotic with Alzheimer's patients walking around the wards unsupervised at night and tweaking the toes of patients (including mine) to - as one explained - "check whether they are still alive". I still was ... just about!"
Glad you came out of it David! Health is definitely all. It's only when sick you realise it is all that matters.
Thanks to all of you who wished us well. I just don't have the
energy to reply but consider yourself thanked!
Just before we got sick managed to catch Galantis! What a great gig. Full of fun. Everyone just dancing along.
Ok, so it's silly music and not deep and meaningful. I'm sorry.
I just want fun with my music not someone boring whingeing about something or other... "Ohhhh I've got terrible flu.. oh so full of woe.."
Is that Easter coming already? It can't be. It is!! And the school
holiday is massive!
We do have a week away arranged when we're off to Cornwall with some friends and their kids.
There's a tennis court and a pool... and lots of sheep!
Thanks for the continued feedback on the last seminar so happy you
all enjoyed it,
I would love to publish it all to show you how fantastic I am but just one:
"I had a really enjoyable day on the seminar. Travelling down the motorway before the start, I felt we were in for a long day of numbers, PowerPoints and dry talk.
Instead, what we got was fascinating and enjoyable mix of punchy insights, merriment and wise-cracks, sharp wit, and to the point no nonsense advice. I sat down at 9:45am and didn't look at the time again until way after 8pm at which point I had to drag myself away.
I read your books and understood the words "" however I was missing that final nugget of knowledge "" actually seeing you valuate a company and make that buy/no buy decision live means I now get it."
Getting mails like that make it so worthwhile.
Next seminar now is May 21st email me for details at robbiethetrader@aol.com with "May seminar interested". March is sold out. The last three have been sold out well before time so don't leave it too late.
There is also a follow up seminar for those of you who have been before this one is on March 26th. Mail for details. You MUST have been to one before to qualify. A day of trade hunting, research, supply and demand and ironing out problems.
If you'd like to come to the next seminar mail me at robbiethetrader@aol.com with "May seminar interested".
Beginners and improvers welcome. Come and spend the day with me, the markets and some lovely people - and of course, lunch, lots of sugary snacks, and even live chocolate waffle making in the teabreak!
My seminars are designed for beginners, dabblers and improvers and deals with everything from how to look for winners, how to research, spreadbetting, level 2 use how to time trades and short, how to use advfn properly and run your portfolio without having to spend money on systems and tipsters.. and tons more.
A lot of the day comes directly from the live markets and I show you many of the tricks I use to get good prices live. And there might even be the odd live trade or 2!
Here's some feedback from from "D"
'It's obvious from his site Robbie Burns is a good market analyst and shrewd stock-picker. He is also a highly opinionated commentator on everything from TV shows to food. Therefore I expected his seminar to be 75% entertainment, 15% general exposition for beginners and-- if we were lucky-- 10% of something I could use to help me invest. But I could not have been more wrong.
The opinions on food and politics etc. though genuine, are I believe a bit of disguise or misdirection for there is a real touch of rebel genius here. And in the seminar, which is 95% hardball, he actually takes you candidly right into the mental process involved in his successful trading, making it a pretty amazing display, even showing his own investment accounts right there on the screen. You can see at once why so many of us are merely stabbing in the dark with our investments.
This is a genuine coaching session in how to trade like him if you put in the graft. I have only bought one stock since, as I am waiting for the tools he recommends, but I got the price down by using his tactics and I cannot recommend the seminar too highly if you are going there to learn. It must be taxing on him to let us at such length and in such detail into the process, which has made him so much money (for--unlike so many other so-called experts the seminars are not a day job). My advice therefore would be to sign up for this while he is still prepared to do it.'
I love it the most getting mails from people who have spent a day with me some time ago and are doing well. This was very pleasing from Jason:
"I took part on one of your courses this summer and I wanted to send you a belated thank you. The next day I got myself Level 2 and sold all of my positions, most of them had losses, I then started to buy shares, some which we found on the course and others using the techniques you shared, the simplicity of your selection process surprised me but I also found it easy to apply. Within a couple of weeks I felt so much more at ease trading, I wasn't worried about my decisions anymore because I felt in control of each trade, I knew when to sell and when to hold on and I'm no longer anxious when I open my account because it's always in the plus.
When I signed up to your course my goal was to make 20% p.a., I've achieved that in less than six months. Your course was pretty much going to be my last attempt at trading, So once again thank you, it's by far the best money I've ever spent on trading education and probably on education full stop."
Thanks Jason but it is down to you, you applied the discipline needed and had the cuts to cut your losers.
With the oil price up some smaller energy companies are going bust and some of you have
been in touch with me to join Utility Discount Warehouse which I've been a customer of and
promoting for 16 years!
They now have a decent one year fixed rate energy deal which is cheaper
than any other major supplier.
And it is easy to switch, you can
do it all online. If you take a service as a bonus you also get the website stuff sent direct to you
before it gets published here on web update day.
To sign up with me just click here http://www.jointheclub.org.uk/237058
Have look through the phone, broadband and mobile services too - if you take the
whole package unbelievably they come round, change all your lightbulbs to new ones
saving you another 11% on your lec bills and change any bulbs as long as you remain
a customer. No more bulb buying and fitting!!
**Website Updates To Your Mailbox
****
When I left my full-time job to trade it really helped having another income: this I got from part-time selling energy and phone services to people and getting a cut of their use of their home services forever! I still get enough from it now to pay all my bills. I am a great believer in multiple incomes and this is a great one in my opinion as anyone could do it.
If you'd like a second part-time income click here
http://www.utilitywarehouse.org.uk/237058/opportunity
This will explain what you can expect to earn and how it all works. If you sign up there you'll be under my wing. Any questions just mail me and if you sign up please let me know.
Many of you enjoy the cheap advfn toplists bronze deal through me as do many of you with the cheap level 2. However many of you say you want a half-way house to include real-time share prices always on.
So I'm pleased to announce I've managed to seal a new deal with Advfn for its "Silver" service - that's always on real-time share prices for a good saving (Bronze toplists etc are included in this).
The deal is via me you can save £30 for your first year by paying just £174 inc vat via me instead of £208.43
Just mail me for full details if you'd like it with "silver" in the subject line.
Naked Trader Seminar Latest News
March seminar is sold out
Fancy spending a day with me, learning all the ways I have learned over the years to find good shares and play the markets? Well, you can at one of my seminars!
Booking is open for the Naked Trader seminar on May 21st
Price is £690 plus vat. However there is decent early bird discount on offer. Mail me for details.
That includes three course lunch, coffees, snacks etc.
The seminar is mainly aimed at beginners and dabblers though improvers are welcome too.
Topics covered using live market feeds all day include: Market psychology, level 2 - a simple guide to how to use it for better timing; how to value companies; finding companies that are about to rise. I will also cover techniques for handling events such as the recent meltdown and volatility.
Spreadbetting: How to use it to gain an edge and go short. Market makers - how they work and how to beat them; how to stop losing money and make it instead and plenty more.
How to plan trade entries and exits - how to research companies and understand reports, plus all those niggly questions you always wanted to ask. How to set stop losses and targets. Charts and how to use them.
Also covered: Market maker tricks: How to spot tree shakes and use them in your favour, How to tell when NOT to buy a share. I use live ADVFN all day with lots of level 2 and looks at all kind of live market data.
The idea behind the seminar is SIMPLICITY. I don't use jargon or fancy words - everything is in PLAIN ENGLISH! No question is too stupid and the event is held in a friendly relaxed and supportive environment.
The idea is you will come away from the event I hope a wise and better investor with lots of new ideas. I try and translate complex topics into easy bite size pieces. I also aim for it to be entertaining as well as instructive.
If you are interested please e-mail me at robbiethetrader@aol.com with "May seminar interested" in the subject line and I will send you full details of the event including comments from those who have come to previous seminars and you can then decide whether you would like to come. See you there!
One seminar attendee Clare wanted to write a testimonial about her experiences at the seminar which follows now!
"I've just come back buzzing from one of Robbie's seminars. What a day! He's just brilliant, and manages to pack an awful lot into one day, and with his enthusiastic and humorous delivery the day just flies by. There are no gimmicks, no sell, no "˜get-rich-quick' promises, just his own solid, sound approach which he has learnt over the years and which works.
He shows you how to minimise the risks and maximise the profits and points out the banana skins on the way. Where the seminar really comes into its own is when he teaches using live level 2. Hearing him talk through his thought processes and reasoning is invaluable, and really brings home everything from the book. He has endless patience answering peoples' questions, and really seems to care that everybody understands.
On top of that, you meet some really nice like minded people and swap e mail addresses, you're plied with
chocolates and coffee all day, have a great lunch and spend the evening getting tiddled with Robbie in the
bar afterwards!
Don't worry about the cost, it's easily worth it, and you'll soon make it back with your new-found investment skills, and in what you're no longer losing. If you're thinking of going along to his next seminar, whether you're a novice or an experienced trader, don't hesitate ""just go!
Thanks Clare, did you want the tenner in cash, or will a cheque do?
If you like to trade the FTSE, Dow, or currencies then Spreado has an outstanding tight 0.8 spread - that is incredibly tight. The platform is very good and robust and have used it to great satisfaction.
You can sign up at this link which includes a decent market commentary:
http://www.spreadco.com/nakedtrader
(A reminder if you don't know what you are doing you can
lose a lot of money spreadbetting - make sure you understand the risks - see spreadbetting chapter in my book Naked Trader 4 which explains how to do it and the risks)
Naked Rambling
Other counties seem to manage well. We know at some point over the winter we are going to get some snow so why so ill prepared?
Why cancel so many flights? Planes are well capable of taking off and landing in snow. Iceland seems to manage well! They even cancelled trains "for fear" of some snow arriving. It didn't in some cases.
You wonder where the council tax goes to except lining the pockets of the ones in charge with their massive salaries. At the very least you'd expect the streets to be gritted when they have had tons of warning.]
But no, you can't expect any actual service for your taxes?
Mid market restaurants are in a terrible state. Bryon Burgers is pretty much bust as are other chains.
Jamie Oliver overdid himself and launched way too many very poor chains. They all seem to get their meat supplies from dodgy sources.
The food in these places is always poor, costs have been cut too much. Maybe you noticed Oliver and Ramsey both really make their money from TV shows.
Their actual restaurants seem to struggle.
And I just don't get Nandos! It was revealed this week their "chips" are actually McCain frozen, a lot of the food comes from frozen, the chicken isn't organic (no surprise).
The whole experience is vile. No more mid market! It's got to be a good place - either a proper non chain or upmarket. Eat out less, but go for quality instead.
Labour's "new" Brexit approach just shows them up to do anything to force an election. The approach is there to try and undo the Government and that's it.
You feel none of them really believe in it. Right now we really have the politicians we deserve.
Just when it would have been nice to see some decent TV not being able to move with the flu there appears to be nothing decent to watch!
I tried several series on Netflix and Amazon, what disappointments!
Either too gloomy or dull or seen it all before types. Even tried more of the new Star Trek but it was really abysmal. Talk about rehashed stories we've all seen before (alternative universe - AGAIN!!!)
We got so desperate we've just decided to watch The Sopranos again from the beginning. Ah, superlative. If you never saw it, watch it! Amazon has it at the mo.
There is nothing at all I'm really looking forwards to watching. Britannia maybe is the best of a bad bunch but it is only passable.
I tried "Strike" written by the Harry Potter author. Not impressed. Bland and predicable. Sneaky Pete is back this month so hopeful for that at any rate.
Oh and Here And Now is just about worth it so far. But really only just. "Save Me" - just seen half the first episode, promising with some very authentic dialogue. We'll see....!
For those interested in sports betting try
http://www.spreadex.com/nakedtrader/sports (unless you are Wayne Rooney!)
Good quick execution of bets and a great range of markets. Recommended!
Naked Mail
Chris writes :
I want to tell you of an experience I had this week. After reading your new book Trade Like A Shark.
I had finished my research on some stocks and as I was about to buy when I felt myself get really excited about it because two of them were making good gains. I stopped myself, admitted to myself that my emotions were running amuck and I closed the computer.
The next day I made the trades but with ice running through my veins and no emotion. I found that by admitting to myself that my emotions where high I could gain control again.
Excellent you are really on the way to becoming a proper shark!
Gary writes :
"For throwing your heart, soul and energy into one fact-packed, full-on and exhaustingly educational day: FIVE stars with no hesitation!!
Met some really nice people too - like me, nervous that it was the most we'd ever spent on a whole day of anything (had we made arses of ourselves?) But no one felt short-changed, especially when you were still going strong when we all wanted to go to bed! One of your delegates, Susan, back for a second time, said to me unequivocally, "you will go away absolutely inspired." I can't disagree.
Thanks Gary, hope you make some money!
Duane writes:
Wanted to say a big thank you to you and Mrs NT for an amazing day of learning and fun at your seminar.
The way you explained the share trading from start to finish was understandable and really interesting, well worth the seminar fee!
It was great to hear such down to earth and honest assessment from a successful trader like yourself. The way you explained everything was good revision from your book and gave further insight into successful share trading.
I particularly liked your live trades and going through your accounts when you gave snippets of why you invested in certain shares and why you kept/dumped them. Also helpful was the way you searched for prospective shares and within minutes discounted them or put them on a short list for further examination and correct entry points. Amazing!
You could really tell that you loved doing what you do and your energy levels to keep going till 10pm was well....... I had to leave at 9pm I was shattered!
Thanks again Robbie I am keen to put into practice what you have taught me. Even though you make squillions from your trades and I am sure don't need to do the seminars for financial gain, but please keep doing those seminars for newbies like me!
Thanks Duane! Don't expect to be doing them foreever but very rewarding for me to help people so expect to carry on for a while longer.
Gabriel writes:
If you are reading this, you are perhaps considering going on one of Robbie's Seminars. You maybe asking yourself (like I did) the testimonials are all well and good but once the euphoria and excitement of attending a Seminar has died down ..... and I am back home in my normal routine and faced with the "graft" of putting it all into practice... will I become a better trader and be financially better off?
Let me tell you that in my case it certainly has!
Book your place pretty sharpish....... is what I say !
Thanks Gabriel!
Paul writes:
Well it's the end of 2017 and I am very pleased about it. I first read your books around 2 years ago and went to your seminar last xmas. I've been trading 'proper' now since January of this year, I uploaded £3k to my spreadbetting account and I have ended the year with £9k. Whilst this is obviously peanuts, I have managed to achieve this by taking trades for most part of the year to the equivalent of £1k, with £200/£300 per trade being my target and of course I have lost trades too. So my return has been great, I am now taking trades to the equivalent of £2.5k and often buying more if it goes in my favour so sometimes £5k in total which is what I noticed you do, so for 2018 I am really in a position to push on and start making some decent money.
My life has completely changed this year, I sold my coffee shop in April to focus on trading, I have every school holidays free to be with my kid and I can do whatever I want whenever I want. I remember reading the first chapter of your book and being inspired to live this kind of life - I am almost there now and I am forever grateful.
Thanks Paul, glad you could change your life but you did this through sheer determination and hard work. Well done.
Dan writes :
'It's obvious from his site Robbie Burns is a good market analyst and shrewd stock-picker. He is also a highly opinionated commentator on everything from TV shows to food. Therefore I expected his seminar to be 75% entertainment, 15% general exposition for beginners and-- if we were lucky-- 10% of something I could use to help me invest. But I could not have been more wrong.
The opinions on food and politics etc. though genuine, are I believe a bit of disguise or misdirection for there is a real touch of rebel genius here. And in the seminar, which is 95% hardball, he actually takes you candidly right into the mental process involved in his successful trading, making it a pretty amazing display, even showing his own investment accounts right there on the screen. You can see at once why so many of us are merely stabbing in the dark with our investments.
This is a genuine coaching session in how to trade like him if you put in the graft. I have only bought one stock since, as I am waiting for the tools he recommends, but I got the price down by using his tactics and I cannot recommend the seminar too highly if you are going there to learn. It must be taxing on him to let us at such length and in such detail into the process, which has made him so much money (for--unlike so many other so-called experts the seminars are not a day job). My advice therefore would be to sign up for this while he is still prepared to do it.'
I have 3 great offers from ADVFN.
ADVFN level 2 offer
This compares to £ 567.60 direct from advfn so this deal saves you £147.60! ADVFN level 2 also includes all the live trades made through Plus Markets which I find invaluable.
To accept this great deal just e-mail me at robbiethetrader@aol.com with "Level 2 offer" in the subject line and I will tell you how to get it.
Level 2 gives you access to all the market maker positions and the order book and I would not trade without it! More on level 2 in my book and I spend hours on it at my seminars.
ADVFN Bronze Offer
To take up the offer, e-mail me at robbiethetrader@aol.com with Bronze in the subject line and I will tell you how to claim the deal.
Bronze is included inside the level 2 deal.
Advfn Silver Exclusive Offer
The deal is via me you can save nearly £35 for your first year by paying just £174 inc vat via me instead of £208.43
Just mail me at robbiethetrader@aol.com if you'd like this deal with "silver" in the subject line. Please note if you want to discontinue the sub you need to give a month's notice by post.
Markets
EMAILS: I do beg you not to send me emails asking me for advice on a particular share. It isn't legal for me to give you individual advice and all I do is send you a mail saying that, which wastes a lot of my time and yours too. This includes asking me what to do with a share, what I might "think" about a share, or deconstructing any of the buys I mention here. I would be grateful, see FAQ for more on this. Of course more than happy to answer general questions not related to specific shares.
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COPYING TRADES: I can't stop you from copying a trade I made but remember the price may already be a lot higher than I paid indeed I hope it is as buying at good prices is what I do for a living. You may be buying at the top and could easily lose money. Also I can make terrible mistakes and have done in the past. I could also sell before you or before the share tanks. I may still be holding in a year when you sold at a loss. Always do your own research, don't jump in blindly. Market makers are very clever at knowing how to make you pay top dollar and then push you out at a loss. This site is about sensible investment and learning how to trade sensibly and is not a tipping site. Beware. Never push buy on anything till you've done proper research and got yourself a sensible price.
****
Markets
I rarely do offers - Forex companies in particular offer me eyewatering sums. I turn all this down as I would never put out an offer for a company where I think my reader will 95% likely lose, or be taken for a ride.
Having had lots of mails from people using Stockopaedia and using it myself I am 100% confident.
Stockopedia is indeed like a stock market encyclopaedia and a great place to scan for new shares to buy, check out fundamentals, discuss on a sensible bulletin board. Each share gets a ranking, you can use "guru" screens to find shares, there is even a stock screen loosely based on my criteria! There are strategies based on ideas from top investors.
There is lots more really fantastic material and I believe access should help investors and I now use it myself.
For your 25% discount off any sub (eg £56 discount off UK sub) and free 14 day trial you need this link:
http://www.stockopedia.com/nakedtrader/
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MARKETS
Next seminar is MAY 21st March is sold out
- mail me at robbiethetrader@aol.com with "May seminar interested".
Well it feels like ages, it has been ages thanks to the
horrid aussie flu.
For many days I didn't even know what a share
was anymore. Health is all. I think I would have handed over all
the money I had just to feel better. I managed to answer a few emails but some I just didn't.
If you got a weird one from me during high fever I'm sorry.
Something like "I'm dying so I don't care about your crap share
that's going down..."
Interesting new book out "Skin In The Game". Hidden Asymmetrics in Daily life by Massim Nicholas Taleb.
He's a trader who made millions.
His thesis is don't pay attention to what people say, only to what they do and how much of their own necks they are putting on the line.
On paying attention to "experts" and others offering advice on share dealing he says: "Don't tell me what you think. Just tell me what is in your portfolio".
He says never listen to financial advisers, experts, journalists who are not exposed to the consequences of the advice.
I have to agree: I laugh a lot at "experts" on TV and in magazines and elsewhere telling others what to do or what will happen when they obviously have no exposure themselves.
For example, if you go to any kind of event where an expert is holding forth on shares, one thing and one thing only they need to show if you are to take any notice of what they say.
Which is.. let's see your accounts live. Let's see what you have and whether you follow your own advice. What have you got to be scared of?
If they can't or won't, ask for your money back. At my events my accounts are freely available and indeed we trade from them.
If I could not show I made a lot and practise my own preachings, I would be way too embarrassed to tell others what they should be doing. Anyway, lots of "dodgy geezers" out there! Beware.
Anyway if you want to see what's in my portfolio (Oooh matron) come along to the March 16th seminar! There is some small space left. See details elsewhere.
Now feeling better I am getting back into it. Luckily for me actually not a lot happened to my portfolio, a few rises here and there, no real dramatic falls so I feel relieved.
The new "flash crash" was interesting when the Dow smashed down for no real reason. Indeed I thought I was hallucinating during my fever. Was that 1,500 points down? Well, there was a reason. It's the machines. They have way too much power!
Sellers come in, algorithms go haywire and random computers start to sell everything. It really is totally bonkers. However perhaps there was a lesson in it to keep some cash aside.
It's a reminder that these days when markets crash they can do it really fast. Not months, not even days, sometimes hours! Maybe minutes!
If some major down event occurs it is just a lesson that we could see a lot wiped out real fast. And we should now all hold some cash ready to buy when and if it happens.
After all most of us have done pretty well recently. I got really lucky with it all anyhow. As I mentioned last time I had gone short of the indices and the flash crash filled the coffers nicely. I decided to take the money and run, quit the shorts and banked, gratefully. Well, except for some small shorts I got on in the 7700 area. However if it looks like
it is going to sink again, I may consider adding some new shorts.
After all trading shares is a business and shorting must be considered. But they must be dumped fast if they go wrong!
Sad to see so many retailers going bust but this is just the start. I would suggest don't get involved with buying any of them!
ToysRUs and Maplins went yesterday. I felt sorry for Maplins. The geeks in there really wanted to help and I only ever got good service. But, afraid Amazon took its toll.
What's next? Looks like Carpetright. I've been warning about that chain for years and indeed made more than £30k shorting them. (Should have stayed in!). But it's been a badly run chain and deserves to go.
Mothercare also looks ropey, I give it a year tops. A lot of the mid-range restaurant chains are next too I reckon. Overexpanded and relied too much on a "name" (Jamie Oliver).
I am short of Pets At Home but I think that will survive because of its vet and grooming services rather than pet food which is very competitive. Estate agents are in trouble too, check out the dismal Foxtons results yesterday.
The high streets are going to end up with just coffee shops (subsidised by pub chains), fast food junk, and charity shops. Everything else will go.
Gradually a lot of high streets will give way to new residential housing and Amazon
and the like will be taking everything else over. Happy days !
I am sure many of you have made some money recently.
Why give it back? I have a mountain of cash now and that happily waits for a smashdown. Ready for whenever it happens. So, lucky for me it's been pretty quiet recently.
But I have fiddled about. (Stop it.)
I really liked the results from Amino Technologies (AMO) so I have bought some.
A great sign is always a rise in net cash and this more than doubled to over £13m. Profits are on the up too and another encouragement is the 10pc dividend hike.
On top of that a very clear three step to increasing profits laid out by the management.
One of my favourites, Next 15 (NFC) which always seems under the radar ( not exciting or volatile enough for traders) made another decent report and I added some more.
There's increasing revenue coming in not just from existing companies like Samsung but also new ones like Slack and Nike.
Despite various acqusitions net debt is lower than expected leaving more headroom for further buys. A stronger dollar is not such a good thing but it doesn't hurt that much.
One of my favourite kind of buy it, forget it types (unless obviously the outlook changes)
I've bought some more of one of my favourites - K3C.
A sensationally good statement today - there is nothing like a "substantially" above forecasts for shareholders!
And they even gave out some real figures which very few managements do.
It all looks extremely positive and this under the radar one should gradually rise higher and
would expect to hold it for at least another year.
Trouble I feel with investors is they can't bear to buy shares that have already gone up a lot.
They either "average down" (buy more of the same crap) or want to buy something that has been hit hard and gone down a lot. (See that's a bargain!).
I continue to advocate: Don't average down. Average up ! But it seems to me this is almost impossible psychologically for many. We want a bargain! But shares have often been falling for good reason...
I've taken a few profits. Two shorts worked out for me very nicely indeed. All hit their targets and I was happy with that. Hanging onto shorts for too long sometimes isn't the best of ideas!
Boo dropped nicely so I came out of the short on that one with a profit of £450.
The short in Conviviality worked out very well indeed and I took profits on that short of £1,480.
Elsewhere some pretty decent risers. Sopheon has soared above 600p and continues to look strong. Abcam has gained nearly a quid and quiet for now there might be another lunge up coming.
Alliance Pharma has risen to nearly 70p and what can I say about NMC which has fired on up! 500p to over 3000p.
The Devro short is paying off - there may be further falls after a lucklustre report. Safecharge holds nicely over 300p and remains a bigger holding.
It remains a tricky time with falls possible. Having cash on the side could pay dividends some point this year.
Newcomers for right now should probably be wary.
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*** If you'd like my website updates sent direct to your mailbox (you get it first and a little earlier) plus the odd higher risk trade made for my pension, you can get that for either a smallish one off fee, or signing up for a service from Utility Warehouse. For details on either way of making sure you always see my updates first mail me at robbiethetrader@aol.com with "mail service" in the subject line.
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Trade tables follow! Trades are current open and recently closed trades. Closed trades feature the closing price and the amount I won or lost. All others are open. Trades get updated a little later than the narrative. Trading costs are ignored, however I also do not add in dividend payments and with the kinds of companies I buy, dividends tend to equal or outweigh costs. Spread rollovers ignored for web purposes. Tables as accurate as poss however a mistake or two can creep in and very occasionally if I forgot I sold or bought something it will be added at a later time. Trades first reported in the diary under Markets every other Thursday afternoon.