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Actually, sometimes making an accidental mistake can pay off. Just before earnings this month Macy's pps went up pretty good so I decided to sell the shares in my IRA account. But in the drop-down menu I meant to hit "sell" and accidentally hit "sell short". So my online broker booked the short order into my margin account. Ouch. When I discovered the mistake, I sold the M shares in my IRA at a nice profit and kept the short shares anyway. Earnings report was 2 days later (it was good) but M promptly dropped 10%. So I made money in both directions purely by chance.
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You know it’s funny, Riverbabe, but there was a time when I was doing so badly, I actually thought about making my picks and then just trading in the opposite direction. I figured that way I’d turn my losses into gains. I could have thrown darts for my picks and improved my performance.
That was many years ago, and I doing much better now, but it took a lot of that kind of pain to get here, and there were some hard won lessons along the way.
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I've been there, done that, too (since 1982). It's so much easier now, with all that experience under my belt. I assessed my strengths and weaknesses early on. I absolutely stink at options and fundies! Day trading is way too stressful on me for the small gains. And I've won and lost too many times on binary trades, which makes them too scary to risk any more. I am great at short term technical and news trading, long and short, although this has become more complicated and unpredictable with the intrusion of the invasive algobots. Now I mostly rely on my gut and patience and experience. And am doing just fine.Originally posted by BlueWolf View PostYou know it’s funny, Riverbabe, but there was a time when I was doing so badly, I actually thought about making my picks and then just trading in the opposite direction. I figured that way I’d turn my losses into gains. I could have thrown darts for my picks and improved my performance. That was many years ago, and I doing much better now, but it took a lot of that kind of pain to get here, and there were some hard won lessons along the way.Comment
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There’s no substitute for experience, riverbabe.Comment
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Originally posted by billyjoe View PostIt may be the beginning of the end for Sears The long-struggling retailer could file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection as soon as this week, the WSJ reported, citing unidentified sources. Earlier yesterday, Sears announced that Alan Carr, an expert in financial restructuring, had joined its board. But the WSJ reports that the company could file for bankruptcy before Monday, when $134 million in debt comes due. This isn’t surprising. Sears has lost $11 billion since 2011; sales have dropped 60 percent over the same period; and it has closed hundreds of stores. Its C.E.O., Eddie Lampert, has sold off businesses to raise cash, but critics argue that he has strip-mined the company. Filing for bankruptcy is risky for retailers, as doing so tends to send customers and suppliers fleeing, making it hard to recover. There’s no reason to think Sears would fare any differently. ____________________________ Today’s DealBook Briefing was written by Andrew Ross Sorkin in New York, and Michael J. de la Merced and Jamie Condliffe in London. Comment
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It isn't shortable but is optionableComment
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SHLD has been delisted by NASDAQ.
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Several years ago in our yearly contest the stock I chose was delisted (a shipping company). Unfortunately I was long.Originally posted by billyjoe View PostComment
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So, that was my question for JH on POTY. If it is bankrupt, there are no shares to buy to cover your short. So even your short shares are worthless. Does that mean that instead of a 100% gain on your short shares, you have a complete 100% loss?Originally posted by billyjoe View PostComment
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