Risk of the buisness... When did you get into BOST and why? A friend of mine was long on it also, but I don't think he had any good reason. Not sure what his loss will turn out to be.
I've had one of my longs go chapter 11, and one get so near that it did a merger with it's buisness partner that turned a small ($500) investment into $10. I trade mostly pennies though, and just take it in stride. Normally you won't have any recourse, you'll get a 60 plus page, single spaced copy of all the terms and conditions from your broker in a few weeks if your shares are in street name, it should be mailed directly if your in certs. (Actually, BOST's might be a tad longer). That will explain what future there is for the company. The exact terms vary, in my case the common shares were canceled and new stock was issued to the debt holders in a new holding company in response to the debt. You may still have an opportunity to sell (for a large loss) though. (And, the debt here may not be as severe as it appears, it is still possible to come out of C11 with some value to the common if the creditors approve...)
Anyways, the trick is to figure out why you invested in the Co and then not do it again. In both cases, I had bought into companies with LT debt way outside their profit potential. Now, I check back filings with the SEC.
So, talk to your broker and tax advisor, plan on using this as a tax loss, figure out what went wrong,why you didn't see it, what you'll do differently, go get a hangover, and move on. That's what I do.
regards,
-Tony |
