7net11: FCF per share Snapshot Analysis: Plug Power

This analysis relates to free cash flow strength and the ability for $PLUG to be solvent related to its overall shares outstanding in lieu of no positive earnings to date or profitability. The basic premise is that a healthy business should have 3x free cash flow to pay its bills in case of liquidation. 

At first glance, Plug Power had reduced negative earnings over the last few years. They have gone from $-.60 to $ -.36 basic earnings per share in the last year or so. The question from an investment perspective: Is that reduction enough to create momentum in the near term towards profitability? Calculating Free Cash Flow per share may lend a clue:

FCF per Share = FCF average 3 - 5 yrs

                            ----------------------------

                           Total Shares Outstanding

PLUG FCF per share = - $64M

                                   ----------               

                                 332.17M shares outstanding

Plug Power has negative cash flow and its FCF per share is $-0.19 cents per total shares outstanding.  Meaning, this company has issued 332M shares of stock and in case of insolvency, shareholders would not have anything left but debt. An optimal overall Free Cash Flow for this company would be 332M shares x 3 = $996M. 332M x 1 = $332M would be respectable! 

As a result, buyers of this stock are most likely high risk speculative retail players or long term institutional investors taking a bet (shares are 42.13% institutionally owned.)  Additionally, M and A's (expansion/growth) are often reasons for low/negative FCF, and this might be the case for Plug Power, but most big institutional investors eventually like to see a path towards consistent and sustained profitability.

This analysis is a potential red flag for PLUG POWER. Coupled with its poor FCF per share value, high dilution percentage, and substantial increase in long term debt, $PLUG, founded in 1997, must get to consistent, stable profitability and show substantial positive earnings growth in order to become a more attractive investment.  

Disclosure: The author is long PYPL, ZYNGA, ELY, ABEV, FB, TCHEHY, VIAC, SIRI, VIPS, AAPL, SLGG, APPS, HUYA, DOYU, RDNT. The author wrote this article himself, and it expresses his own opinion. The author is not receiving compensation for it. The author has no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article and does not anticipate taking a long position in PLUG within the next 90 days.

7net11: FCF - Free Cash Flow

I was listening to Alan Greenspan yesterday and he was discussing E/P ratios, the inverse relationship to the P/E ratio. This came up as he was giving color to the professionalism of the FED and discussing 10 - Year Treasury bond yields as a standard valuation tool when analyzing/comparing the strength of individual companies/sectors.

This led me down a research rabbit hole to FCF or Free Cash Flow. Whenever I analyze a company, I always look at the cash flow statement, especially if a company shows no income or P/E ratio.  This allows me to see if the company at some level, is building strength over time.  Not having a P/E ratio, or having an absurdly high P/E ratio, say north of 25, should not be the end of the road when deciding when/if to buy. 

As a result, I discovered this ratio: FCF (Free Cash Flow) per share = FCF/total shares outstanding.

This ratio allows for a quick snap shot to see if I should investigate more. FCF is found at the bottom of the Cash Flow Statement and should be normalized by averaging 6 - 7 years if possible.

As a result, I am able to guesstimate how much liquid cash a company has in relation to its total shares outstanding. The logic follows that a business should have 3:1 cash flow to operating expenses as a sign of balanced financial health. 

If a company has too much cash, more the 3:1, I then look to how they are investing and if they are expanding their business to stay competitive. Too much cash can be as bad as not enough cash. Too much cash may point to poor executive management and an ineffective use of cash reserves.

If the FCF is below 3:1, I do the same thing, I look at how the company is spending free cash, but also looking closer at their debt obligations and annual revenue. Also, with emerging companies, cash may be used to vastly expand operations and invest new capital. This could point towards future growth and a positive indicator towards a BUY projection.

7net11: The Arrogance of Wall Street in Full View - The Robinhood Dilemma

Perhaps I see the world through rose colored glasses. However, as I have grown older, I assumed that many in this world, especially the individuals that I hold in high regard for their financial successes, have concerns for the greater good in their heart.

"WRONG." After listening to some Wall Street talking heads and billionaires that have themselves been recipients either directly or indirectly from tax cuts and PPP loans and THEN attacking the common working person for using such investing apps as Robinhood, I have become WOKE to the unabashed arrogance of Wall Street (AGAIN).

To say, "many do not deserve a stimulus check" and "many are making more on unemployment now than they do when working" as a mean dig to validate market volatility created by new/small investors, is a completely tone deaf response to the situation we as a country face right now.  How dare these individuals blame the everyday working person for creating more volatility in "their" markets, making the ride to their future gains rockier than necessary.

"TRUE." Many new investors do not have the skills or the understanding to sustain long term gains in the stock market. This has been the case since the stock market began!

That said, do these same Wall Street individuals really think that new investors have that much POWER to move the markets? Compared to their own turret systems and supercomputers that both hedge the market and manipulate it with high volume trades? 

This out of touch and entitled response by some on Wall Street EXPOSES the truly arrogant and unacceptable situation this country faces now as we move forward. It is this type of behavior that makes our economy toxic. It is this type of behavior which will expedite the failure of capitalism to future generations. 

We are better than this. I challenge all on Wall Street to put on their empathy hats, roll up their sleeves, and try to see beyond their own situations for the benefit and care of the greater good.

7net11: Anton Kreil - The Real Deal. Great Seminar about Investing.

Appropriate viewing for today. Enjoy!

7net11: Are you a Prudent Investor, or just a Gambling Stooge?

Discipline makes a great investor over the long term. Anyone can have a great day in this kind of market.  

You may have heard the Kenny Rogers line, "Know when to hold em, know when to fold em." Value investing is NOT about all that. True, investing is about making more income which demands taking risk, but investing is also about an attitude and a philosophy. I believe in general, that the value investor is more of an idealist, the gambler more cynical. Only you can decide what side you fall on.

Great poker players aren't really gamblers first and foremost, they are experts at accessing risk. The gambling part comes in when deciding if the gain/loss is worth the implied risk. 

The desperate gambler has fewer choices, because he/she is often backed up against a wall with nowhere to go. This is where the problems come in. 

CONCLUSION: Devise a game plan and stick with it. Learn what works for you and stay true. Chances are, you will have long term success. 

7net11: Cash is KING!

I have said it once and I will say it again. CASH is an asset. As we approach pre-Covid levels for the markets, let's remember that we were dealing with an overbought market to begin with.  P/E ratios were north of 24 on average for the S and P and many retail stocks had been heading downward for years. 

The only activity I am doing now is:

1) Long Puts: 3, 6, 12, 24 month expirations.

2) Long Calls: 1 - 3 months

3) Buying discounted shares 5 - 7% on average already in my long portfolio.

The weak dollar, low interest rates, and FED intervention are propping up these woeful conditions. Airlines are a classic example of bad chasing bad. Don't believe the hype. More than one airline could be bankrupt within a year. 

HOLD your cash. I know the temptation is there right now.  Sentiment is charged which is creating more volatility. The BIG money is playing/preying on this sentiment and cashing in up or down further complicating the situation.  

7net11: Pragmatism Will Prevail. Market Report June 2020

The train has left the station.  Most of my bids were canceled or unpurchased late Friday and Monday morning as the upward move in the market left most realistic pricing behind. 

It was as if the market was letting me know to kick back and see what happens in the next few weeks. Granted, most of my moves were set up for puts to expire this fall, winter 2020, I am in no rush to do anything but HOLD my positions right now. 

Causes for concern:

1) FED support will stop at some point.

2) No vaccine in the near future.

3) Virus still problematic.

4) Economic damage still largely unknown.

5) Unknown how banks will react/survive long term.

6) Longer term virus effects on cities unknown.

7) Election uncertainty.

8) Major changes in future domestic policies.

9) The market has already rebounded to its overpriced levels before the virus.

I agree with the more conservative analysis about this market. Many of my current valuations are at/over current prices and the historical 5 yr. downside stocks are giving me no reason to look for bargains right now. 

Daily price jumps between 5% - 100% or more should be viewed with extreme skepticism. Most of these upward trending stocks are not based on any sound logic, mostly pure speculation.  

If you have not bought already in March, April, or May, I suggest holding off until after the election at least and see how things pan out in 2021.

7net11: Liquidity - Equities and Options Trading 2020

Liquidity is a key element in acquiring stocks/options. I am steadily moving towards larger, more stable stocks all the time with plenty of liquidity, yet taking the steps to get there still takes navigation through illiquid terrain. 

There are plenty of small cap and penny stocks that I have passed on over the last few months that have had stock gains of over 100% and I DO NOT think I have missed out on these opportunities. 

Why you may ask?  

Because many of these securities trade at very LOW levels and are often susceptible to manipulation by pump and dump actors. This is even true now with larger securities that have billion dollar market caps. Whenever you see a chart that goes STRAIGHT UP/DOWN 10, 20, 30% or more, you know that a big fish is entering in or out of a position.  What's to stop these players? Not much.  

So if this is being done with larger securities, image how much easier it is to do with smaller cap, less liquid companies.  Take a guess.  CORRECT: Much easier!

Do your research, take a look at the charts, identify large buy ins, sell offs on a companies stock information page. All the information is right there.  

I also see this as a big problem with BITCOIN and crypto in general. First off, there are many fewer controls and regulations overseeing crypto. Secondly, how does a currency with 100 billion dollar+++ market cap have price fluctuations straight up and down all the time?  Easy...it's called manipulation.  Also, crypto markets are eerily illiquid. Price movements have been reduced to zippo for long periods of time then, boom, a big movement up and down.  You may be better off taking your chances at the craps tables in Vegas. At least there is continuous action and money changing hands! 

Stay liquid and watch sudden large spikes +/- in stock price. Chances are, someone or some super computer is taking advantage of sentiment.

BONKERS Market: Assessing Portfolio Fair Market Value: 2020

Today the market is up almost 900 points on good jobs news. Money if flooding back into the market because of hyper hot positive sentiment. What does it all mean?

Look back to about one year (2015) before the last presidential election. The market already had a long bull run that started sometime in 2009.  Then, there was a four year power boost stimulated by tax cuts, followed by a coronavirus "mini-recession" move and now  a "mini-recovery."

I was bearish on the market after the tax cuts because I surmised that the Fed had artificially pumping up the markets. P/E ratios were already off the charts and earnings seemed to be good for the big guns and not so great for small-mid caps in general. 

That said, a possible guide to find fair market value for ones portfolio with a 2 - 3 year forward projection into 2023-24, in general, is to take the value of your portfolio (each companies average share price 2015, 2020) and compare them to each other.  These two years appear to be two pivot points for organic valuations in this warped time frame. Take the average of those two valuations and reduce by approximately 15% for historically upward trending stocks and 45% for downward trending shares just to be safe.  

You may also want take into account any change in P/E ratios for your respective company shares, preferred shares outstanding and goodwill. This may give you a clue as to the more intangible revenue fluctuations and debt obligations including EBITDA that existed during this time frame.

Granted, some/many of your positions may have changed since 2015. This method will help you to evaluate your portfolio against current prices and to understand your own investment behavior over time.

Good luck!

BUYING "OUT OF THE MONEY" CALL and PUT CONTRACTS - OPTION HEDGING - WAY OUT OF THE MONEY!

I have started to buy very liquid CALL and PUT options way, way out of the money...way, way far out in the future at deep discounts and have found that there is a sub-market for these contracts.  I suppose it's contrarian thinking, but at such deep discounts, these bets are worth it.  Some returns have been over +300% to date. Even if you a buy a call/put with no open interest at the strike price, you will be surprised how many players enter into your far out strike price slot when price sentiment starts going your way! 

Give it a try. It's better than a dollar and a dream!  (It may cost you $5 upfront for a single contract!)

Good luck!

GOAL: +/- Two Percent Monthly Against the DJIA

Navigating this bear/bull market has been a learning experience for sure. One thing I have noticed is that my relatively conservative portfolio has bounced upward when the DJIA is in the negative and down when the DJIA has crossed into positive territory.

I use the DJIA as a standard in relation to the overall diversity of my portfolio: I hold S and P stocks, small caps, and some long shots.

Instinctively, this trend in my portfolios movement suggests that:

a) I am invested in closer to fair market stocks.
b) I am hedged by balancing put buys against the rest of my portfolio.


The goal is to have slow and steady returns over the long haul and to hedge against unexpected tailspins in the market. No portfolio is bulletproof, but I am minimizing risk at every turn to keep my overall investment safe from wild fluctuations and adverse event possibilities in the future.

As a result, I have set long term goals of having +/- two percent return AVERAGE against the DOW on a monthly basis. If I can consistently hit this goal month after month, my annual return will most likely be in the 11% + range.

***I am about 5% hedged as a result of buying put options to expire 1/15/21. I am always looking for opportunities to hedge more.  

Thinking of Share Losses as "Learning Curve" Debt Expenditure in the Big Picture

I was researching more complex option strategies today such as straddles, strangles, protective collars, and butterfly spreads. All makes me think of the KISS principle..."KEEP IT SIMPLE STUPID."  One thing I did get out of this research is that different option strategies can best be utilized by matching their risk/reward to specific market conditions, the amount of investment, and sector volatility related to share price.

Without getting too far down the rabbit whole, my instinct says that one would be more inclined to hedge more by implementing complex option strategies in volatile markets/larger investments. It is more difficult to keep the ship sailing smoothly with these implied risks, so more complex option "navigation" strategies seem warranted. The difficulty lies in covered calls/puts and writing contracts because upfront investment is greater and one exposes oneself to unlimited losses on the up and down sides if call/put buyers come calling for their shares in adverse/negative return environments.

Ok, enough of that for the moment. I geared down these option trading strategies thinking of the new beginner investor. I stated in a previous post that when starting out in the market, one should think of all stock buys with a "call" mentality. Inherent in this thinking, risks associated with declines in stock price can also be considered "debt expenditure" instead of simply, the defeatist sounding "loss."

"Debt expenditure" in this circumstance can be considered the "risk loss" factor when taking a chance on a long position that may not be at the bottom of the overall market. There is truly NO WAY to predict the bottom of a market. Based on this fact, if one has done their diligence and believes in, let's say the prospects of a small cap company, there is a good chance that the initial investment may drop 30% or more, much like a call or put option does before the stock heads toward positive gains. Anyway, thinking of the decline in a stocks price for a small investment/small cap stock that one strong believes in, it may be better to think of it as the "debt expenditure" or in more basic financial terms, the "cost of goods sold" or "learning curve loss" when getting familiar with a new investment. 

In my experience, when I first started investing, I would close out of positions because of short term losses, only to watch a stock go up over the long term. My instincts were correct, I just did not give the buy enough time to turn positive. Once I started viewing stock price losses in terms of "learning curve debt expenditure," I started to become a better investor because I became more disciplined and patient.  It make the ride more interesting and often times, more financially rewarding.  Give it a try, you might like it! 

Good Ole P/E Ratio: Riding The Bear/Bull Into 2020

I started to inch my way into this market at the end of March 2020.  I have been a hobby investor for many years and this time, I swore I would do it right. Utilizing P/E ratio: "Price to Earnings Ratio"  has helped! 

When I was earning my MBA at Binghamton University in the early 90's, I had a great finance professor. He was fascinated by the fact that I bought a used 1980 Toyota Celica for $800 and seemed to NOT have to put a lot of money into it to keep it on the road. He kind of pushed me to see the long view of investing in a historically bad investment, a used car with lots of unknown factors. How long would the engine hold out? When would I need new tires? Would the axle and muffler hold up? Well long story short, the car held up for a few years until it didn't and I ended up spending alot of money until the car just died. The original PRICE of the car $800, ended up ballooning to about $3,000 over four years. 

Ultimately, there were probably better options to spend the $3,000 up front for a better vehicle that may have lasted longer than the life of my Celica! The "earnings" aspect here would be the good functioning of the car over time, which ended up going up dramatically, (increased cost for maintenance.) My theoretical P/E ratio sky rocketed off the charts until the car died. I ended up paying an extraordinarily high price for every mile I put on that car before it died. CONCLUSION: BAD INVESTMENT!

So, the moral of this story, is that an investment can look GREAT in the beginning, but many factors can lead an investment to go downhill...rather quickly. This is very true when investing and understanding P/E ratios can help you to minimize your risk so you can make better choices when choosing stocks.

In this same finance class, it was at a time when craft beer brewing was coming onto the scene. Large corporate brewers like Budweiser dominated the market. Their P/E ratios were around 10, more like an financial institution/bank. Big, slow, and steady. BUD still dominated the market and it was fair to say, still a pretty good investment. That said, new players such as Sam Adams, were starting to take away market share from BUD. All in all, small craft brewers only made up about 5 - 10% of the entire beer brewing market.  BUD(INBEV) currently sells at $46 per share and has a 11.49 P/E ratio. Today SAM is selling at $560+ per share with a 61.58 P/E ratio!

Wow, what a change in the beer industry over the last 30 years!

So what do these contrasting P/E ratio stories infer about the journey of these two companies in relation to their prospects as investments? See below.

1) DISCLAIMER: BUD issues a quarterly dividend, sharing its' earnings directly in cash with shareholders. SAM does not issue dividends, hence earnings are re-invested into the stock price. This creates an overall higher stock price for SAM. Dividend or not, neither methodology has an affect on calculating their respective P/E ratios.

2) BUD was bought by INBEV, and huge international beverage company in 2008 for $70 per share. As a result, BUD's finances were embedded into the finances of INBEV's entire portfolio. BUD's finances became a smaller part of a larger picture. The average P/E ratio for the entire S and P 500 was 21.46 in 2008 and unbelievably skyrocketed to 70.91 in 2009, most likely as a result of the "Great Recession" of 2008-2009. I could only find a P/E ratio for BUD in 2010 which was 13.47, approximately two points higher than currently listed. SAM'S P/E ratio bounced around between 2006-2008 and landed at an average of about 55 compared to its current 61.58. These incremental changes in P/E ratio show a consistent industry trend from 2008 - present. BUD taking on the role of stable old warhorse, and SAM taking on the role as new white night entrant.

BUD's P/E ratio has remained rather low and slow, whereas investors have always been willing to pay a higher premium for SAM as reflected in its higher P/E ratio.  Has SAM been a better investment over the long term? Perhaps in relation to returns, but BUD still presents as the more stable and consistent investment over time. Lower return, yet more stability in that investors pay closer to earnings for BUD than for SAM.

No surprise, beer always seems to have a market! This simple analysis also shows how volatile downward markets can have a dramatic immediate effect on P/E ratios (S and P 500 2008-2009 variances 21.46 - 70.91), and also be an indicator of a company's/industry's overall health in relation to varying market conditions and other industries.

3) Over the last twenty years, BUD became a part of a bigger entity whereas SAM became the bigger entity under its own brand.  Contrasting evolutions, yet the historical evolutions of their P/E ratios seem to be surprisingly consistent in relation to each other and the overall beer industry.

Conclusion:

The beer industry has served as a steady source of investment opportunity through the decades. A case study comparing P/E ratios between BUD and SAM through their respective evolutions over time shows how P/E ratios can help gauge the overall health of a particular company/industry in relation to other players in that industry and other business sectors in general. 

The bottom line is that a company that shows earnings and a P/E ratio greatly enhances a prospective investors ability to analyze a company and make more informed stock picks in the short and long term.

call, Call, CALL!! Options trading 101

Wow!  I just learned how to invest in OPTIONS trading with Robinhood and am having some success.  A few observations:

1) Spread the wealth around: When buying an option, make sure you give YOUR SENTIMENT/analysis enough time to take effect!  I found that with my first few options picks that my sentiment for the change in stock price was over ambitious. The longer the time to expiration the better chance the option has of being closer to/or in the money! Take one small contract as far out as you can, and move in date wise on your contracts as you gain more confidence in the stock movement! Don't put all of your eggs in one basket.

2) Buying PUTS can be a bit more tricky: One important aspect of buying a PUT option hopefully headed south is that the company may be a candidate for take over or bankruptcy which may actually make the stock price go up! Also, in volatile market conditions, it's hard to gauge the actual health of a company that may have numerous underlying issues and is in constant transition to stay afloat. The management of the company may also be taking extreme measures (not always best practices) to make the company look better than it actually is, so gauging an accurate valuation may be harder to do. I am currently only buying puts on older, slower moving, larger companies that have less volatility.  Still can be risky.  More motivated buying calls of healthy, focused companies most interested in providing value to shareholders. 

3) Liquidity: Make sure there is enough volume and OPEN INTEREST before buying a CALL or PUT option. You can check out your options at BARCHART. Sometimes, if the company is big and the option you are buying is way out there is the future, it is still ok to buy because you may be ahead of the game and will get a lower price than later entrants. Be careful, because you DO NOT want to get to expiration and NOT have a buyer for the contract!

4) The Greeks: Delta, Gamma, Theta, Vega, Rho:  Still wrapping my head around the Greeks. The way I see/use this data is that IN GENERAL: Delta/Gamma address the AMOUNT of price change towards expiration, whereas, Theta/Vega address the PASSAGE OF TIME and VOLATILITY towards expiration. Rho has to do with how interest rates effect the option price. Understanding these variables helps me to gauge when I should sell a contract leading up to expiration.  Here is an article that discusses the Greeks more.  

EXAMPLE: Think of looking through a rifle telescope at a moving target. As the target (Delta/Gamma) is farther away, moving left to right in the scope (the straighter the line better/less volatility!), the image is smaller (risk/reward) and appears to be passing through at a slower pace (time passage/volatility - Theta/Vega) . If the target (Delta/Gamma) is closer (risk/reward), it will appear larger and moving at a faster pace (time passage/volatility - Theta/Vega). This is how I utilize the Greeks. A metaphor for RHO (the fifth major Greek)(variable/fluctuating interest rates) might be how clean the scope is, affecting how well you can zero in on the target!

Good luck out there! 

OK to PARK. Cash is an asset!

Yesterday money flew out of the red hot tech sector and into more post Covid S and P 500's and Russell 2000 small cap bets. Also, bond yields are back up a bit which may have created a bit more confidence in certain sectors. These changes were most likely affected by rising investor confidence due to the economy opening up and also institutionally triggered buys. 

I look to buy more calls and discounted shares for my long term portfolio in this kind of market. Also, cash is an asset! It's ok to park money and wait this out a bit longer to see what happens in the near term.

I came across this article yesterday on Seeking Alpha by Daniel Schönberger about the stock market back in the Great Depression starting in 1929. Notice the chart after the first initial drop in 1929. It is followed by a short term recovery (similar to now) before falling into a downward spiral until the summer of 1932 and longer. Obviously, these are different times. There is exponentially more liquidity in our markets and more government safeguards to thwart long term free falls. However, one thing that cannot be created by these safeguards is CONSUMER DEMAND.

CONSUMER DEMAND is the currently big unknown and will undoubtedly cause the failure of many businesses in the near term.  

Resistance in stock sentiment...goes both ways, up and down!

FULL DISCLOSURE: My dream is to be more like Warren Buffett and Charlie Munger from an investment perspective. Low and slow, steady and/or near zero growth in the short term until eternity, I am just not there yet!

Hence, I discuss short/midterm stock strategies to help my stock positions/decisions/choices evolve. Enter the term "resistance."

A great aspect of this volatile market is that it's like learning to sail a boat in rough seas. One has to adapt, adjust, and learn rather quickly or get fed to the dogs.  The idea of resistance in regard to a stocks movement up or down helps me to stay on course. 

TRUE: one should think of a stock buy as a marriage with committing to a company. Similarly, shorting is committing to a divorce of a company from its' shareholders. That's why I would bet that Warren and Charlie take into account the idea of resistance prior to entering a long position. 

The idea of resistance for a stock up or down, depends more on ones sentiment that your thesis about the future of a company is accurate. A simple way to gauge resistance is tracking if a bullish position stays steady in down markets. Similarly, do your short bets continue to head down over time in down markets?  Does your sentiment towards a company/stock reflect the movement of the stock in less favorable market conditions?  This will help you wiggle in or out of a position for the long term.

I typically do my valuations based on overall financials and time.  How has a company held up or 5 years, 10 years, prior to Trump's tax cuts, things like that. Then, when I commit to a companies overall good or bad health, I will estimate the bottom and high limits in "real time."  When I estimate a bottom or top number for a stock, I will generally discount this number by 3% - 7% or even more depending on the type stock in question, then stake out my entry/exit from there. I generally use +11/-11% as a basis to consider entering a position or exiting. (Stocks and Options). Hence the name of this blog 7net11.com.

IN CONCLUSION: The idea of resistance, and the variables one feels comfortable using to keep the ship on course, is a great tool for positive gains, in the short and long term! 

Negative Interest Rates - Maybe not such a bad idea in the short term

I have been listening to various analysis regarding negative interest rates on the treasury bond offerings. Shooting from the hip here, maybe it's not such a bad thing.  It appears that corporations and institutional investors have always utilized these bonds as safe havens for low risk protection of cash assets. These bonds have also provided a way for companies to offset payroll and overhead costs. So...in the current situation, if these negative rates occur, here is my take. 

Negative interest rates most likely will:

1) push more cash into the stock market with yields much better than 2%! This makes the stock market look very desirable and will keep the markets liquid and flush with cash.

2) Remember those corporate tax cuts? Perhaps this is an indirect way for the gov't can claw back some of those breaks by charging basically additional interest rates for the big players who wish to PARK their money behind the safe haven of the US Gov't.

Thinking FUTURE crazy thoughts:  Will the Fed start charging higher negative rates for foreign investment in the US? This could greatly slow incoming investment cash from all over the world, but seems in sync with this FED's recent sentiments.  

At the end of the day, issuing negative interest rates seems like a bad move because it could inhibit investment in the US, create more restrictions/fewer safe havens, and perhaps spark inflation, the exact opposite of what these negative rates are supposed to stave off. 

Coupled with bank issues, est: 1 trillion in unpaid mortgages last month and overall bankruptcies on the horizon, this is a delicate balancing act that feels a bit like the FED is waiting on the river card to win the hand.

Thinking of everything as BUYING a CALL or PUT Option...

Beginning investors: Of course, the GOAL long term is to be in steady consistent investments that gradually increase over time. Minimize RISK. Embrace The Oracle of Omaha principle. "Buy companies, not stocks."

Alternatively, for those risk takers who wish to nudge/accelerate their short term results, especially in volatile markets, I heard a talk show personality say the other day that he took a small position in a high priced stock and considered it like an option CALL. I liked that analogy, especially in a situation where you are buying a few shares of AAPL, AMZN, FB or other stock that one has to pay more than a few dollars for. From there, the buying of a few shares will help you to focus and learn more about the company, track the stocks movement, and at the same time, give you a better understanding of either building/buying into a longer position, or selling to take shorter term profits and move on to another opportunity.

To minimize risk when first starting out, it's a good idea to cautiously diversify and not overly commit to any one stock/idea. When you find something that works, commit more on a graduating basis. Regarding options themselves, I generally invest in options with a one year expiration by first buying one or two contracts, then based on a result over time, I may buy more contracts, similar to expiration and price, or sell.

Being able to balance risk and reward is important when starting out as a new investor. Put the gambler in you on the sidelines and work to find opportunities that are relatively safe. Slowly build momentum, and as you gain confidence, take more incremental risks.

Freakin Phony Stock Market 5/18/20

I started back in April with a strong Covid play on both stocks and options. I have cleared a 10% return with very conservative moves.  My mantra during this stretch since early April has been, "Vaccines are great, but folks need hand sanitizer now." Also, "what do people do with so much time on their hands while stuck at home?" Watching movies and playing video games comes to mind. Hint, hint.

On the bearish, put side of things, I have stuck with the basic mantra, "If there are properties, rent, lots of inventory, outdoor aspects to a business, run for the hills and short that S_ _ _ !"

This philosophy has worked reasonably well in the short term, while holding back on what look like bargains in the SP 500. Airlines comes to mind, yet I have not taken the bait....

However, today was really weird. The Fed comes out with statements basically saying that they have unlimited resources and the economy will forever be propped up. This is not cause for relief in my estimation. True, the US economy stands as one of the strongest if not the strongest on earth, but we are still limited in the sense that if consequences of this pandemic hang on for the long term, we might never be the same again. Once something stops or severely slows down, well, unless it rains (alot) again, there isn't going to be much fresh water to go around!

As a result, the DOW was up almost 1000 points today. Coupled with positive vaccination prospects from MODERNA (we have seen/heard this before from many companies) the DOW went into overdrive. I didn't believe the hype for a minute.

It seems that investors are: 1) Either stuck with old habits and/or 2) Completely jaded by the past four years.

The fact that many stocks bounced back over 50% since pre-Covid, tells me that it is already  overpriced in general. Also, many P/E ratios are absolutely off the charts. Time to keep some cash, pick a choose wisely, and short that SH_ _!

Hello again...PreMarket Prep Podcast anyone?

Check out  Premarket Prep podcast sponsored by Benzinga. Great podcast and community based info sharing.  

One can trade options for free using Robinhood, user friendly, provides basic how to information.  In addition, barchart goes deeper into the data to help you make your bets. The main things I focus on regarding options trading are Price, Volume, Open Interest, and Liquidity. I started in options to mainly find a simple short strategy, so buying puts solved this problem. I learned that making short term options bets are a very risky proposition, especially in volatile markets. One really has to understand the basics and take baby steps to get a good working strategy going.  

Understanding the GREEKS very important as options head towards expiration.  More on that later. 

Investopedia.com  great source of information.  Stay Tuned!