Stocks Update

Today, I sold my 100 shares of MRK @ 38.57. Including the fact that a dividend will be paid, I am slightly ahead, but only by a few dollars. That lowers my averages in my closed positions.

In other news, Goldman Sachs cut Pfizer (PFE) to "neutral," with a price target of 22, causing PFE to go to 18.50 a share. I am not worried--if anything, this means the bad news is finally out of the way (and being cut by Goldman is definitely bad news). Now, value investors will enter as disenchanted stock holders exit. Plus, I only need PFE to go to 20-ish before making a decent short-term profit on the trades. I figure PFE will hit 20-ish in about a month or two, if not sooner.

I bought and sold a large position of PFE in about an hour today: bought 2000 PFE @ 18.49 and then sold at 18.57--made 200 bucks. Now, if I had held the shares for another 30 minutes, I would have made another 200 dollars in an hour and a half (400 dollars total). That's the issue with day-trading--if you blink at the wrong time, it costs you. As long as I am in the black, however, a few hundred here and there is inconsequential. Rule #1: don't be greedy. Or, as Cramer likes to say, "Bulls make money, bears make money, pigs get slaughtered." 'Tis true.

I bought some shares of PPS today at 34.37 as well. Pure value play and potential buyout target.

I bought 500 shares of CNB at $5.00/share, a little-known bank in Alabama (or, as they like to say down South, 'Bama). This one is a value and dividend play. Just two months ago or so, CNB sold 350 million dollars' worth of its stock for 8 dollars a share. I like the shares at 5 dollars, but don't ask me what I'll do if it hits $6.50.

I also bought 15 shares of YHOO so I could attend their shareholder meeting on August 1, 2008. For purposes of this blog, however, I will not report on trades consisting of positions with a cost basis (money spent to buy a company's shares) below 1,000 dollars.

Closed Positions:
Daytrades: PFE (0.5%)

MMM (0.5%), MRK (0.1%), SCUR (15%) (held less than seven days; record in this category is a 5.2% average gain)

The information on this site is provided for discussion purposes only and does not constitute investing recommendations. Under no circumstances does this information represent a recommendation to buy or sell securities or make any kind of an investment. You are responsible for your own due diligence.

Stocks Update

Big pharma looks like one of the cheaper sectors in the market. Today, I bought

60 shares of PFE (Pfizer) at 19.33
50 shares of MRK (Merck) at 38.61
65 shares of WYE (Wyeth) at 44.41

In my tiny, self-made pharma fund, I like WYE the most. MRK will issue a dividend soon, which is one reason I wanted to own it. I bought 100 shares of PFE before (at around 20.70) and am averaging down. It will probably take years for the pharmas to get out of the doldrums. In the meantime, I am sure it will be a bumpy ride. If a Democratic president is elected, chances are that any universal health care plan will squeeze big pharma. In addition, Congress may decide to cut consumer prescription costs by supporting generics and reducing patent rights. But with money market yields at around 2%, I could do worse than put my money in these dividend-generating stocks. I am not necessarily a long-term investor--once MRK pays its dividend, for example, I will look to get out.

Update on June 2, 2008: Bought 50 MRK @ 38.12 (have 100 shares total now)

The information on this site is provided for discussion purposes only and does not constitute investing recommendations. Under no circumstances does this information represent a recommendation to buy or sell securities or make any kind of an investment. You are responsible for your own due diligence.