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We’ve been kicking around the idea of having a place to post a small biography




Affiliation Made Easy

I’ve just updated our affiliate program.  Here’s the deal: refer someone, and get $25 when they subscribe.  To participate, just login to your Member Page and go to the Affiliates area. There, you can get code for text links or banners, which you can put on your blog, website, or on the side of your car.

We’d honestly rather have new members who are referred by current members, because you are smart people and you are probably friends with other smart people. So if you signup 4 new members, we’ll throw another $50 your way, and will keep doing so for every fourth paid referral. Again, this last perk is only for current members.




Site Changes

A few items you might not be aware of:

  • Our Links page has been updated to include some helpful information about options-friendly brokers. Hint: you won’t get far trading options with Scottrade (I know, I tried once).
  • You can edit your membership information, password, or subscription status at any time by going to your Member Page.
  • You can reach me (Jared) anytime I’m online through any of the major instant messaging services. See the Contact Us tab for more information.
  • For some of you, 2 posts a day and 250+ comments still isn’t enough, and you occasionally find yourself browsing through our archives, yearning for more. Well, today’s your lucky day: our archives now extend all the way back to January 2005! Note: if you come across any old posts that aren’t formatted properly, please let me know.



Confessions of a Phil’s Stock World Neophyte

[Ed: member gumbaphil submits:]

Confessions of a Neophyte “Phil Groupie”

“So, Cory old buddy, whadya get for your birthday???”

(I suppose I can use triple question marks…in keeping with the “Phil” lexicon)

“Well”, sez I, “I bought myself a subscription to PhilsStockWorld.com. Figgered I oughta find somethin’ interesting to do while recuperating from back surgery. Sitting is a might more comfortable than lying around in the bed doncha know; and I don’t care much for no soap operas on TV.”

“PhilStockWorld?…What’s that?

“Good question. I’ve been a member now for 12 trading days and it appears to be part Options trading education, part trading “hints” (he don’t give no “advice” since he’s not a registered securities “advisor”), and a whole batch o’ political and economic commentary”.

“That’s it? You just glue yourself to a computer monitor all day, and READ stuff?”

“No way man. I launch my Ameritrade Control Panel which is a poor man’s trading platform and do my best to mirror the stock option trades (hints) that Phil posts on his commentary Phorum. “

“And that’s not all either. I discovered that the second by second monitoring of some the more “risky” positions was an excellent way to test out this little heart rate monitor that my son gave me. So far, it sez I’ve registered about 99 million calories by just sittin’ at the keyboard.”

“So, ya made any money?

“Well…yes…and…no.”

“Whaddya mean yes AND no?

“Well, I FOLLOWED PHIL’S DISCIPLINED APPROACH on most trades, which is basically the 20% rule, and took my gains off the table. But I made the classic mistake of DENIAL on my oil PUTS and let my losses pile up, without directional protection, to the point that my losses on them may well exceed the gains on my closed positions.”

“HOWEVER, I still have some time on my side with those oil PUTS (Apr 21st) and I’m so d@&mn far underwater with them that I may let them ride and hope for a miracle.”

Here’s the 12 trading day breakdown:

Virtual Portfolio Balance $25,000  
CLOSED Positions (24)    
   Net Gain $3,870 15%
   Total position trades 24  
   Avg value per trade $600  
   Avg gain per trade $161  
   Avg


continue reading




Confessions of a Phil’s Stock World Neophyte

[Ed: member gumbaphil submits:]

Confessions of a Neophyte “Phil Groupie”

“So, Cory old buddy, whadya get for your birthday???”

(I suppose I can use triple question marks…in keeping with the “Phil” lexicon)

“Well”, sez I, “I bought myself a subscription to PhilsStockWorld.com. Figgered I oughta find somethin’ interesting to do while recuperating from back surgery. Sitting is a might more comfortable than lying around in the bed doncha know; and I don’t care much for no soap operas on TV.”

“PhilStockWorld?…What’s that?

“Good question. I’ve been a member now for 12 trading days and it appears to be part Options trading education, part trading “hints” (he don’t give no “advice” since he’s not a registered securities “advisor”), and a whole batch o’ political and economic commentary”.

“That’s it? You just glue yourself to a computer monitor all day, and READ stuff?”

“No way man. I launch my Ameritrade Control Panel which is a poor man’s trading platform and do my best to mirror the stock option trades (hints) that Phil posts on his commentary Phorum. “

“And that’s not all either. I discovered that the second by second monitoring of some the more “risky” positions was an excellent way to test out this little heart rate monitor that my son gave me. So far, it sez I’ve registered about 99 million calories by just sittin’ at the keyboard.”

“So, ya made any money?

“Well…yes…and…no.”

“Whaddya mean yes AND no?

“Well, I FOLLOWED PHIL’S DISCIPLINED APPROACH on most trades, which is basically the 20% rule, and took my gains off the table. But I made the classic mistake of DENIAL on my oil PUTS and let my losses pile up, without directional protection, to the point that my losses on them may well exceed the gains on my closed positions.”

“HOWEVER, I still have some time on my side with those oil PUTS (Apr 21st) and I’m so d@&mn far underwater with them that I may let them ride and hope for a miracle.”

Here’s the 12 trading day breakdown:

Virtual Portfolio Balance $25,000  
CLOSED Positions (24)    
   Net Gain $3,870 15%
   Total position trades 24  
   Avg value per trade $600  
   Avg gain per trade $161  
   Avg


continue reading




Quick Note

We’re trying to improve the speed and reliability of the site, so the comment browser software is temporarily unavailable.  We’ll keep you posted.




New Comment Browser

Hi everyone. Today we’re introducing a new way to view comments on the members site – a special comment browser that you can download and run from your desktop. It works like this: simply follow this link, download the file available there, and then launch the application from your desktop. You’ll be presented with a login window – just use your normal login and password. From there the controls are pretty straightfoward.

This will save you from having to constantly refresh your browser window, and hopefully makes keeping up during the day a little bit easier. We’ve tested this version and it seems to work well, but if you encounter any bugs or problems, please do let us know.

Download

Many many thanks to member Stephane, who created and developed this application!




Poll

We really never expected to develop such a knowledgeable and convivial group of members so quickly. You all continue to surprise us, and as we grow we want to attact the kinds of members that will contribute to what we’re building here. So:

  1. As always, mentioning us to your friends and collegues is a great way to help build the community, and we do offer a generous affiliate bonus (get one month free for every 3 months your friend subscribes).



A Poll

No promises here - but we really would like to know what you'd like to see us add (if anything) in the future. If there's something we haven't thought of, just mention it in the comments.

Best,
Jared




Vista’s So-So Debut

In comments today we discussed how the launch of Microsoft’s Vista operating system was a "sell on the news" sort of event.

We already have our close calls off the table but we still have two longer plays and I came very close to closing out our April position on today’s dip but we already called a top there and sold the $30s for .95 against them, a call that, unfortunately for MSFT, seems to be on the money.

As with Apple’s IPhone announcement and, it seems, anything popular, there are always critics anxious to take them down.  Today it seems that it was time to complain about the fact that Vista doesn’t run certain downloadable games because they look like "malware," a form of virus that Vista’s beefed up security just says no to.

There was a noticeable lack of lines at the stores for the "Vista Release" as it turns out that most serious people who want it either got the beta months ago or simply downloaded it rather than sit outside Best Buy in freezing weather waiting for the store to open.  From the coverage given by the press, you would think Microsoft had remade Ishtar in 3-D!

We know Vista is already under attack in the EU, a rehash of that same old anti-trust suit that was such a yawner in 2003, 2004, 2005 and 2006.  IBM, Nokia, Sun Microsystems, Adobe, Oracle, Corel, RealNetworks , Linspire, Opera and Red Hat are all getting along on this issue – something needs to be done about Microsoft! 

"Vista is the first step of Microsoft’s strategy to extend its market dominance to the Internet," the ECIS statement said.  It said Microsoft’s XAML markup language was "positioned to replace HTML," the industry standard for publishing documents on the Internet. XAML would be dependent on Windows, and discriminatory against systems such as Linux, the group said.

"The end result will be the continued absence of any real consumer choice, years of waiting for Microsoft to improve—or even debug—its monopoly products and of course high prices," said Thomas Vinje, lawyer for ECIS, in the statement.  

I can’t say I really disagree with them.  While it’s good to have a "universal operating system" it is not good for it to ruthlessly crush competition and stomp out innovation.  Speaking of innovation – check out…
continue reading




 

Zero Hedge

The Cost Of The Combined Greek Bailout Just Rose To €320 Billion In Secured Debt, Or 136% Of Greek GDP

Courtesy of ZeroHedge. View original post here.

Submitted by Tyler Durden.

Some of our German readers may be laboring under the impression that following the €110 billion first Greek bailout agreed upon and executed in May 2010, the second Greek bailout would cost a "mere" €130 billion. Alas we have new for you - as of this morning, the formal cost of rescuing Greece for the adjusted adjusted adjusted second time has just risen to €145 billion, €175 billion, a whopping €210 billion, bringing the total explicit cost of all Greek bailout funds to date (and many more in sto...



more from Tyler

Chart School

Best Stock Market Indicator Ever: Weekend Update

Courtesy of Doug Short.

The $OEXA200R (the percentage of S&P 100 stocks above their 200 DMA) is a technical indicator available on StockCharts.com that can be used to forecast conservative entry and exit points for the stock market.

The OEXA is used to find the "sweet spot" time period in the market when you have the best chance of making money. See Is This the Best Stock Market Indicator Ever? for a discussion of this technical tool.

The chart below is current through the February 3rd close.


After a major S&P correction, the conditions for safe re-entry into the market are when:

   a) $OEXA200R rises above 65%. And two of the following three...

more from Chart School

Phil's Favorites

Violent Protests in Greece; 6 Cabinet Members Resign

Violent Protests in Greece; 6 Cabinet Members Resign; LAOS leader "I Would Rather Starve Than be Under German Jackboot"; Controversy Over Missing Paragraphs

Courtesy of Mish

Imagine you are asked to sign a document but three pages were missing. Further imagine the documents you were asked to sign were written in English but you only speak Greek. Would you sign?

That is exactly the predicament Greek officials were placed in by the Troika. Here is the story sent to me by Demetri Kofinas at Capital Account.

Hello Mish

George Karatzaferis leader of LOAS political party gave a speech today addressing why he refused to sign this latest agreement. In his speech, he said that he a...

more from Ilene

Sabrient

Sabrient Risers - 2/11/2012

Top 5 RisersStockRatingAnalysisICABUYThe projected value for Empresas ICA is still rising quickly even though past earnings have already improved significantly.XBUYThe projected value for US Steel is still rising quickly even though past earnings have already improved significantly.FEICBUYProjected value continues to rise for FEI while long term increases in earnings growth are also becoming more widely expected.ASBCBUYMany analysts are expecting higher than previously expected long term growth from Associated Bancorp, and its near-term earnings outlook is also improving....

more from Sabrient

Insider Scoop

Benzinga's M&A Chatter for Friday February 10, 2012

Courtesy of Benzinga.

The following are the M&A deals, rumors and chatter circulating on Wall Street for Friday February 10, 2012:

Actuant Acquires Jeyco Pty

The Deal:
Actuant (NYSE: ATU) announced Friday that it has acquired Jeyco Pty Ltd (“Jeyco”). Headquartered near Perth, Australia, Jeyco designs and provides specialized mooring, rigging and towing systems and services to the offshore oil & gas industry in Australia and other international markets. Additionally, its highly engineered products are used in a variety of applications for other markets including cyclone mooring and marine, defense and mining tow systems. Jeyco generates annual revenues of approximately $20 million.

Actuant shares closed at $27.33 Friday, a loss of 0.18% on average volume.

...

http://www.insidercow.com/ more from Insider

Market Montage

And Still Not a Single 1% Down Day in 2012

Submitted by Mark Hanna

Courtesy of MarketMontage. View original post here.

A little flurry of buying in the closing 5 minutes tacked on 2 S&P points and took the major indexes off the lows.  Only the Russell 2000 finished with a greater than 1% loss (1.4%) as it has been relatively weak versus the senior indexes for the past few sessions.   While today was the "worst day of the year" – it was quite a low bar as the previous biggest loss on the S&P 500 was -0.57%.

The S&P 500 held well above the 10 day moving average (didn't even really touch it) and did not even attempt to fill the gap from last Friday's employment report.  The teflon market rolls on for now.  Specul...



more from Mark

ETF Selector

ETFs Skid On Greece (VGK, EWG, FXE, DIA, SPY)

Courtesy of John Nyaradi.

Greece was “saved” for less than 24 hours but now major ETFs around the world skid into the weekend on Greek fears

After wangling for a week or more, Greek took their new deal to the European Ministers meeting, only to have it promptly rejected and so as we go into the weekend, major global markets and ETFs have again hit the skids on Greece.

After two years of wangling, the European zone is demanding yet more and deeper cuts for Greece to qualify for the next round of bailout loans that will keep the country from going bankrupt on March 20th.

Major European and United States ETF responded negatively to the new developments:

SPDR Dow Jones Industrial ETF (NYSEARCA:...



more from John

All About Trends

Mid-Day Update

Reminder: David is available to chat with Members, comments are found below each post.

Click here for the full report.




To learn more, sign up for David's free newsletter and receive the free report from All About Trends - "How To Outperform 90% Of Wall Street With Just $500 A Week." Tell David PSW sent you. - Ilene...

more from David

Option Review

True Religion Falls Apart At The Seams After Earnings

 

Today’s tickers: TRLG, KR & IGT

...



more from Caitlin

OpTrader

Swing trading portfolio - week of February 6th, 2012

Reminder: OpTrader is available to chat with Members, comments are found below each post.

This post is for all our live virtual trade ideas and daily comments. Please click on "comments" below to follow our live discussion. All of our current  trades are listed in the spreadsheet below, with entry price (1/2 in and All in), and exit prices (1/3 out, 2/3 out, and All out).

We also indicate our stop, which is most of the time the "5 day moving average". All trades, unless indicated, are front-month ATM options. 

Please feel free to participate in the discussion and ask any questions you might have about this virtual portfolio, by clicking on the "comments" link right below.

To learn more about the swing trading virtual portfolio (strategy, performance, FAQ, etc.), please click here

Optrader 

...

more from OpTrader

Stock World Weekly

Stock World Weekly: The Relentless Pursuit of Meaningless Metrics

NEW: Elliott and Ilene are available to chat with Members regarding topics presented in SWW, comments are found below each post.

Here's the latest Stock World Weekly, called "The Relentless Pursuit of Meaningless Metrics."  

...

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IRA Strategy/Income Trader

Weekend Virtual Portfolio Update 1/30/2012

Here is a quick update of past trades and our current position. AA Money No trade this week as we wait for AA to settle. Phil remarked last week that AA seemed overvalued. In the meantime, it looks like we might have to roll our Feb 9 calls. Good thing we sold only 5 of them against our position. Last week P&L - 310.00 We lost ground last week, but we still have 11 months to sell premium! FAS Money Very good week for FAS Money as we benefited from the large amount of premium sold the previous week. We covered most of the shorts in advance of the Fed speech, but sold another set of options on Wednesday after the speech - 2 FAS calls that expired worthless on Friday, 2 FAS put that we are still holding and 2 FAZ put that we bought back for a profit on Friday. A late stick comparable to last week's almost gave us problems at the end of the day though! Last week P&L - $4277.00 IWM Money A decent week in this virtual portfo...

more from Strategies

Pharmboy

Biotech Investing for 2012

Reminder: Pharmboy is available to chat with Members, comments are found below each post.

Finding new and exciting Biotech companies that target novel mechanisms is like trying to find a needle in a haystack.  Sure there are many companies working on cutting edge science, but investing in those companies to reap the rewards of their work is a very dangerous game.  More often than not, companies fail because the mechanism does not pan out, the compound(s) do not have pharmacokinetics (get into the body or last very long in the body), or an adverse event happens that knocks years off a development timeline.  In addition, the stock can be manipulated by market makers so investors don't know which way is up.  I approach investing in biotechs as a long term prospect.  I continue to like our current portfolio of biotech companies (join in chat for many of those plays), and we continually add/subtract shares and sell/buy options on ...



more from Pharmboy



As Seen On:




About Phil:

Philip R. Davis is a founder Phil's Stock World, a stock and options trading site that teaches the art of options trading to newcomers and devises advanced strategies for expert traders...

Learn more About Phil >>

About Ilene:

Ilene is editor and affiliate program coordinator for PSW. She manages the Favorites backup site (blogroll, archives, more). Contact Ilene to learn about our affiliate and content sharing programs.

Favorites Site >>