Thanks, Bob.
You mention that for you a dividend is a requirement.
I do look at whether the stock has a dividend or not, however, it is not a requirement to me. While it is nice to be paid "to wait" and the fact that a dividend is a good indication that the company is solid, I'm mostly looking for price appreciation. I am looking for signs that a stock will make a nice move in a matter of couple of weeks to a couple of months. I may discover that that window is just too short. It's a learning process.
You have talked a number of times about fundamentals (balance sheet numbers) that you consider to be important. I'm screening on debt, EPS, and EPS trend. I usually run the same scan with and without a requirement for a dividend. How important is the companies cash position. I have been thinking that cash as measured by cash per share is another indication of a strong company and certainly not one that is likely to need to go into debt.
Another thing I am watching for is that the price is either flat or in an up trend as measured by a moving average, the length of which I am still trying to decide. And, of course, I want to use our indicators such as CLX, sentiment, and such to time my buys. Don't fight the market.
A problem with these screenings is if I am too picky on these fundamentals and I am watching for Ted patterns, I suddenly find that I am left with no stocks at all that meet the criteria.
A problem with these screenings is if I am too picky on these fundamentals and I am watching for Ted patterns, I suddenly find that I am left with no stocks at all that meet the criteria.
Another issue is when I see a stock in a consolidation pattern, how much of a percentage move must I see the stock making for it to be a good choice for swing trading? Too little and suddenly I don't have enough profit on the right buys to more than cover the loses when I'm wrong. And while I want to cut my losses quickly on a bad buy, there has to be some room for the stock to move a little bit back and forth. The right balance is a statistical problem of risk vs. reward.
It's all such an interesting game.
These problems of swing trading and the time it consumes do point to the advantages of Ted's methods of buy and hold.
WEagle |
