..."how many leap call buyers of high flying tech stocks during the q4 1999 are above water today?"
Is this a generic question, or an individual one? Can I use a lifeline?
Speaking for myself, I bought leap calls on qcom, aol, csco, and emc. I am going by memory here, but I made out great in qcom, csco, and emc, lost out on aol (though I already had a triple there from previous investments). So I made out great, but then I closed out those leaps when I sensed the market was heading south due to the FOMC. I remember posting my concerns about AG in January, and feeling like a voice in the wilderness.
as i stated...this is not a game, it is real people and real money....and real people can get caught up with a "get rich quick" strategy....and some have...but most who have, gave a great deal back, as greed prevented profit taking...
I agree. On a technical level, though, it is very much a stochastic game, and can be optimized (though not necessarily won). That is what makes this an interesting game.
profit taking is difficult for many, as they believe it equates to a loss of opportunity....
There are times to take profits, and times to let your winners run. You said you have owned some stocks for 15 years, I'm sure you are well ahead of where you would have been if you would have let profits run. OTOH, at the levels of most of these tech stocks, it is hard to find a good solid stock at a reasonable price that one can sit on indefinitely. Once the market stabilizes, which may take some time, I suspect we will again have reasonable tech prices. In the meantime, there are other sectors, though I am not enamored of any of them in these market conditions. Value has been whacked for years now, metals are in the dump, oil and gas have run but will come back down, financials are at the mercy of interest rates... |
