How are your investments doing?

[Duds13]

I want to be like your friend. lol
I am very comfortable, but want to build a massive nest egg rather than the “so-so” one I have now.
I actually own a decent block of Tesla stock, but bought in way too late (~$200/share)
I tried Critical Metals, but that has disappointed.

Painfully obvious question, so save the “everyone is” answer, but who is the next Tesla, Apple, etc?? I already own plenty of FXAIX, but looking for a faster grand slam home run…..lol

My guess is like a SpaceX or another Musk venture that goes public? Anyone have any hunches?

I got in QS (QuantumScape) at $7.50. Was $18 just a couple weeks ago but has dropped back to $11.47 on Friday.

Also considering come vertical take off aviation stocks. JOBY, EVTL, XTIA....something along those lines. Some are very cheap so high reward potential.

 

[California]

On a positive note, this is about the definition of a high-class problem. Your income in retirement is significantly higher than when you were working, and it pushed you into a higher tax bracket.

I was suggesting that someone just retired might be at the best time to make a major Roth conversion. In a year of low reportable income. I didn't when I retired in 1998, never considered it, and now with inflation the dollar is worth half what it was on the day I retired. While investment appreciation has doubled the apparent dollar number of our savings and income, pushing us into a higher tax bracket where the conversion would lose quite a bit to taxes. Reading investment advice online, it seems there is no advantage to making such a conversion now. I wish I had known this in 1998.

 

[Fuddyduddy1952]

Open an SMA account. Losses help offset capital gains & dividends.

 

[California]

Open an SMA account. Losses help offset capital gains & dividends.

Whazzat? Pay a percentage on AUM for someone else to make the decisions?

All our savings were put away long ago. So by now, years later, there are no apparent losses. (And the loss in purchasing power as the dollar is devalued, isn't recognized).

 

[ultrarunner]

I was suggesting that someone just retired might be at the best time to make a major Roth conversion. In a year of low reportable income. I didn't when I retired in 1998, never considered it, and now with inflation the dollar is worth half what it was on the day I retired. While investment appreciation has doubled the apparent dollar number of our savings and income, pushing us into a higher tax bracket where the conversion would lose quite a bit to taxes. Reading investment advice online, it seems there is no advantage to making such a conversion now. I wish I had known this in 1998.

It was very much the same advice I was given in the 90’s regarding Roth… I never figured Roth to heirs would be tax free…

 

[Fuddyduddy1952]

My 98yo Mother recently passed and my nephew was here, an Economists major.
He has mutual funds but hidden under the stairs at Mom's house he had an unassuming cardboard box all taped up. Heavy for it's size and we weighed it. 37 pounds. I asked what was in it. "Krugerrands" he replied.

 

[ultrarunner]

Nephew stored gold at the home of his aunt?

How many did you have stored at moms house?

I was happy to find some silver dollars at my grandmothers house and the count was enough to give everyone in the family 1 each.

 

[ultrarunner]

I’m still hoping to find the coins the previous owner of my home was reported to have…

The family couldn’t locate and had 4 small safes drilled but no gold or silver.

The coin dealer said the previous owner would come in a couple of times each year and pick up some…

Maybe a coffee can in the yard or somewhere in the crawl space?

 

[Hay Dude]

Most conventical wisdom with stocks centers around finding the next big stock, buying early, and riding it out for 15 years to get appreciation.

That is crazy in my view, absolutely crazy. There are plenty of stocks that make 10% moves all the time. I will skim those 10% moves all day, every day. Stocks are trend based things, they don't behave in random fashion.

A person could capture 10, 10% moves in one year and have the same return as a Tesla over 15 years. The number of different stocks out there with swings far exceed the number of Teslas, Nividas, or the SPX funds.

So don't wait to find the next thing, it's already out there for the taking.

You are right in principal and I understand that, but it’s more time consuming to skim 10 stocks, than ride one like Apple or Tesla.
I can’t be on my phone all day during the week buying/selling. I don’t work in front of a computer terminal during the week.

I am just asking people their opinions of would could be the “next” one, realizing it’s totally speculative

 

[Fuddyduddy1952]

Nephew stored gold at the home of his aunt?

How many did you have stored at moms house?

I was happy to find some silver dollars at my grandmothers house and the count was enough to give everyone in the family 1 each.

Only coins I had were a mix of old coins probably not worth a whole lot, (condition).

 

[Larry Caldwell]

California; I have my RMD's electronically sent to a savings acct. From there I invest the money in short-term bonds, which is working out OK.

My big mistake was about 20 years ago . A friend had retired from the USAF and had always dabbled with stocks. He called me one day and invited me to join him in buying Tesla stock, which at that time, to the best of my memory, about $17/share.
I declined, choosing to remain with mutual funds.
Here we are now, my funds have performed well IMO, but he is now a millionaire several times over, now lives in Denver in a new house for which he and his wife paid cash. They just last year bought a 2nd Tesla plaid, again paid cash.
Last year I bought this tractor, paid cash, the funds have recovered the purchase price.
That's what I get for being conservative.

Shoulda woulda coulda. If I ever win the lottery, I will give it all away except for a couple mil. I'm not rich, but I have all I need.

 

[Larry Caldwell]

Whazzat? Pay a percentage on AUM for someone else to make the decisions?

All our savings were put away long ago. So by now, years later, there are no apparent losses. (And the loss in purchasing power as the dollar is devalued, isn't recognized).

This is a rural group. Now I'm trying to figure out how Animal Unit Months make decisions.

 

[California]

This is a rural group. Now I'm trying to figure out how Animal Unit Months make decisions.

Assets Under Management. The base that a financial advisor's percentage skim, is based on.

 

[riptides]

I am just asking people their opinions of would could be the “next” one, realizing it’s totally speculative

I think the entire financial ecosystem is trying to figure that out. We are mired in mediocrity. I think some tech oriented biogenetic firm or some strategic mineral conflagulation will set a new trend to be the "next" one.

I am 3/4 ultra conservative now. Waiting for a new move in the market.
Let us know what you see or hear.

 

[Fuddyduddy1952]

You are right in principal and I understand that, but it’s more time consuming to skim 10 stocks, than ride one like Apple or Tesla.
I can’t be on my phone all day during the week buying/selling. I don’t work in front of a computer terminal during the week.

I am just asking people their opinions of would could be the “next” one, realizing it’s totally speculative

I just looked through stocks I have in our SMA account and spotted "GE VERNOVA INC COM"
which is up 1,511.75% since purchased a few years ago. A division of General Electric doing alternative energy research. Anything like that and Ai I'm thinking would be a good choice.

 

[jmc]

I just looked through stocks I have in our SMA account and spotted "GE VERNOVA INC COM"
which is up 1,511.75% since purchased a few years ago. A division of General Electric doing alternative energy research. Anything like that and Ai I'm thinking would be a good choice.

Alternative energy research is "going to be going thru some stuff."

 

[RayIN]

Alternative energy research is "going to be going thru some stuff."

I agree; look at all the different types of storage batteries already invented and undergoing testing.

 

[MossRoad]

Two things I won’t miss is getting up at 3 am for 4 am start and call ins.

I will miss the people I work with and the patients… after so many years I really am the holder of Institutional Knowledge… and the respect that comes with that.

Some companies have great employee stock plans and I know a few that did well with Columbia HCA stock with a built in savings for employee purchases.

At my old job, we had institutional knowledge. And a great network of vendors and tech support. New blood didn't care, wiped the vendors and contacts for "corporate approved" only, then started wiping out long-term employees. They'd fire an old timer and a young person on the same day to avoid age discrimination suits.

 

[Torvy]

On the flip side, one of my old jobs, my boss had been there 28+ years. He had institutional knowledge and connections with vendors and employees.

A year or so after I left, he was fired for embezzlement. He strong-armed vendors to give him kickbacks while he worked to get approvals that were for equipment we never actually got.

Part of the reason I left is that he got mad at me when I shared the costs with our marketing department on a project for which they were paying.

Little did I know, but my act started the ball rolling on the investigation that nailed him.

Just to add icing on the cake, he used his position to manipulate women into performing for him. He was a truly despicable person.

 

[MossRoad]

On the flip side, one of my old jobs, my boss had been there 28+ years. He had institutional knowledge and connections with vendors and employees.

A year or so after I left, he was fired for embezzlement. He strong-armed vendors to give him kickbacks while he worked to get approvals that were for equipment we never actually got.

Part of the reason I left is that he got mad at me when I shared the costs with our marketing department on a project for which they were paying.

Little did I know, but my act started the ball rolling on the investigation that nailed him.

Just to add icing on the cake, he used his position to manipulate women into performing for him. He was a truly despicable person.

Our new blood got the boot after 2 years due to incompetence. By then, the damage was done.