Boring Portfolio Report
ANN ARBOR, Mich. (September 5) -- Recall Mark Twain's famous cat that sat
on a hot stove. After the painful experience, the cat never again sat on
a hot stove -- nor on a cold one, neither.
Traders are beginning to remind me of that cat. Nowadays, it doesn't take
a "hot" employment report to send them panicking (as in July, to take but
the most recent example). It only takes the possibility that the report *might*
be hot. So today, when a room-temperature weekly jobless claims report was
waved in front of a crowd of cats that's been skittish all week in anticipation
of tomorrow's monthly employment and payrolls report, the cats scrammed.
The ensuing sell-off accelerated in the late afternoon, and most major averages
closed at or near their daily lows. The Dow triggered the 50-point loss collar
seconds before the close. The S&P 500 lost nearly a full percentage point
in value. The Nasdaq fell more than a percentage-point and a half. And the
Boring Portfolio slumped more than two percentage points. NYSE volume was
moderate -- around 363 million shares. Nasdaq volume was heavier.
All nine Borefolio holdings dropped today, with four-letter stocks Cisco
and Oxford Health Plans getting singled out for special smacks. There was
no notable news on any Boring stocks. Today's losses had nothing to do with
the stocks themselves. When everyone's selling and few are buying, stocks
of all stripes and colors flop as one: techs, transports, high-fliers, boring
snoozers, whatever.
Today is history. The question is, what about tomorrow? Well, so far this
year, every time the market has dropped, it's been a great time to wade in
and scoop up some bargains. Perhaps tomorrow will present another such
opportunity.
Or perhaps a sell-off tomorrow will *not* be followed by a quick recovery
-- as in "it's different this time." Or maybe tomorrow's report will be "benign"
and the market will heave a collective yawn -- or even advance smartly. Or
it may be a "nothing" report and the market will sell-off just for spite.
There. I think I've covered all the logical possibilities. Hey, with a bit
more practice, maybe I could get on CNBC and be a market gooroo!
(c) Copyright 1996, The Motley Fool. All rights reserved. This material is
for personal use only. Republication and redissemination, including posting
to news groups, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent
of The Motley Fool.
Transmitted: 9/5/96
Thursday, September 5, 1996
BGP -1...CSL - 3/8 ...CSCO -2 1/2 ...GNT - 5/8 ...OXHP -1 3/8
...PMSI - 3/8 ...SHAW - 1/2 ...SPY -25/32...TXI - 7/8 ...
*Scroll down or expand screen for full portfolio accounting
Day Month Year History
BORING -2.07% -2.21% 5.51% 5.51%
S&P 500 -0.94% -0.39% 4.48% 4.48%
NASDAQ -1.59% -1.39% 8.14% 8.14%
Rec'd # Security In At Now Change
4/12/96 100 The Shaw Gr 18.84 32.00 69.84%
2/28/96 200 Borders Gro 22.51 30.75 36.59%
1/29/96 100 Texas Indus 54.50 65.75 20.64%
2/2/96 200 Green Tree 30.39 34.13 12.30%
3/8/96 400 Prime Medic 10.07 11.25 11.73%
7/23/96 100 S&P Deposit 64.15 65.03 1.37%
6/26/96 100 Cisco Syste 53.90 51.75 -3.99%
8/13/96 100 Carlisle Co 52.65 50.38 -4.32%
5/24/96 100 Oxford Heal 48.02 43.63 -9.16%
Rec'd # Security Cost Value Change
2/28/96 200 Borders Gro 4502.49 6150.00 $1647.51
4/12/96 100 The Shaw Gr 1884.16 3200.00 $1315.84
1/29/96 100 Texas Indus 5449.99 6575.00 $1125.01
2/2/96 200 Green Tree 6077.49 6825.00 $747.51
3/8/96 400 Prime Medic 4027.49 4500.00 $472.51
7/23/96 100 S&P Deposit 6414.99 6503.13 $88.14
6/26/96 100 Cisco Syste 5389.99 5175.00 -$214.99
8/13/96 100 Carlisle Co 5264.99 5037.50 -$227.49
5/24/96 100 Oxford Heal 4802.49 4362.50 -$439.99
CASH $4428.44
TOTAL $52756.57