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Non-Tech : SIRN - Sirena Apparel Group: Undervalued But Moving Up -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Jay Lyons who wrote (48)	5/28/1998 11:03:00 PM
From: James Wright	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 161

I am always hesitant about publicly posting that I have sold a position in a stock because I don't want to hurt those who continue to hold. Generally, my approach is to highlight what I believe are good investment opportunities, but leave it up to individuals as to when to sell (either to take profits or minimize losses). Thus, unless I believe a company is about to enter free fall and cause carnage, or unless I think the fundamentals have changed, I keep my sells private. With SIRN, I've had no such concerns so I didn't post the fact that I sold when the price dropped below 7. (In contrast, I concluded that NMGC was about to enter free fall and I did post my sell on NMGC when I got out at 18 1/2 as it began its spiral down to 14.) The reason I don't post my sells (except in unusual circumstances) is because my criteria for holding a stock are much more restrictive than the criteria used by most other investors. Without exception, I will sell if the price drops 8% to 10% below my average purchase price. Also, I don't believe in averaging down. Although many other investors are willing to ride out short term dips and even buy on the dips (and I respect that strategy), my own personal rule on when to sell has saved me great hardships on many occasions. Thus, when SIRN moved below 7, my automatic sell was triggered because I originally bought at around 7 9/16. However, I emphasize that even when my automatic sell kicked in, I saw nothing to change my views on the fundamentals or long term prospects for SIRN. If I had, I would have said so at that time. Having said that, it is important to also say that I often re-enter stocks once I see that any weakness that cause me to sell in the first place has been shaken out. It looks like that point may have arrived with SIRN, but I'll probably monitor the broader market for a day to two before deciding to re-invest in SIRN. Finally, over the last three weeks, nearly all of my holdings triggered automatic sells due primarily to downward pressure caused by the broader market, and I've generally been watching a number of stocks (including SIRN) for clear evidence of upturns as most of my portfolio sits in a money market fund. Thus, I've not in any way singled out SIRN for special treatment by having sold. I hope this provides some clarification. -- Jim Wright