Wow, Saul!
This board started only six months ago as of tomorrow, and only 14 posts to go to make it 10,000 in the first six months.
(I’m betting you’ll make it by tomorrow’s official six-month mark.)
Thank you for starting a board that has turned out to be wonderfully rich, educational, and thoroughly enriching.
okapimoon
Wow, Saul! This board started only six months ago as of tomorrow, and only 14 posts to go to make it 10,000 in the first six months. (I’m betting you’ll make it by tomorrow’s official six-month mark.) Thank you for starting a board that has turned out to be wonderfully rich, educational, and thoroughly enriching. okapimoon
Hi okapimoon, Actually the board started on Jan 2 last year (2014) so it’s been running a year and five months. However, we are a very prolific group and we’ll be at 10,000 in about 900 more posts. Thanks for all your kind words. It’s been quite an adventure.
Saul
OK, I’ll help up the number.
Saul, Airbnb and everyone else, you’ve inspired me to do some serious culling. I have sold some go-nowhere stocks that I bought as recs from various services (and dont remember why I bought). I’m also getting rid of some serious down stocks (DDD, SSYS, XONE) where I have anywhere from 50-80% losses (ouch). I figure if they ever actually start to go up, I can buy back in, and in the mean time, have my funds invested in something that is actually worthwhile.
I am (very) slowly learning more about the companies I invest in. As a full time wife, mom of 2 (7 and 6 yrs old), and scientist (biotech) it has been very interested learning a completely new field. My amazing husband handed over the purse strings about 5 years ago and let me manage all our finances. My MFOne membership has been very helpful providing in-depth coverage but this board has inspired me to do more.
Thanks,
Belinda
I am (very) slowly learning more about the companies I invest in. As a full time wife, mom of 2 (7 and 6 yrs old), and scientist (biotech) it has been very interested learning a completely new field. My amazing husband handed over the purse strings about 5 years ago and let me manage all our finances. My MFOne membership has been very helpful providing in-depth coverage but this board has inspired me to do more.
You and your husband are wise. Women in general tend to be better investors than men. I am hoping that my wife takes over and invests more. (I will keep my small stakes, high risk Rule Breakers port.)
Cheers
Qazulight
Belinda, this has been on my mind lately: serious culling
I need to do this and must agree with the logic in Saul’s 15-25 stocks at-a-time idea. I had about 70 at the end of 2014 now down to 54 plus options (just replaced the 16 owned stocks, ahem).
• Some folks say water the flowers; pull the weeds
• Others say those losers are now a much smaller % of your port so just sit and wait (if you still believe).
Of my top 25, only 8 are not beating the SPY over 3 years; most of those 8 pay dividends.
The bottom 20, where I think maybe I should weed, represent about 14% of the $ in my port. Half of these are RB or MFO rec’s though, that I’ve been thinking wait-and-see / next earnings release could bring blossoms.
If I dumped the following, the “bottom” would only represent 4%:
RKUS & NILE - I’ve wanted to dump these for a while and keep hoping to break even.
My 3D “basket” Arcam, XONE, and SSYS;
UBNT, YNDX, and the recently fallen MTZ (that I have heart for as one of my 1st RB picks) 
Waddya’ll think?
Joe
Ticker Guide XONE & PRLB
click link for my profile & holdings
http://my.fool.com/profile/CMFJambo/info.aspx
Joe,
You are doing exactly the right thing.
I had the same situation in my portfolio when I came across Saul’s recipe for remarkable returns. It took me a couple of years to trim down to 18 stocks which are the ones widely discussed on this board. Yes, it is painful to sell for huge losses. However…
My returns are smashing the S&P 500, up some 27% YTD. 80% of the so called investment “experts” that manage mutual funds have subpar results that do not even equal the S&P 500 Index Fund. The main reason is simply they have so many stocks in their portfolios that they inevitably will become in essence an index fund.
So yes, cut your losses and join us for better returns. Always do your own DD.
Welcome aboard!
Jim
The 3D basket you have does represent 3 different approaches to 3DP.
But is there any evidence that XONE will ever make money?
https://ycharts.com/companies/XONE/profit_margin
IMO, XONE is loser, their process is too complex, too many steps involved. I said that at much higher prices.
SSYS has more potential, though they are also losing money. At least
their sales are up but volume doesn’t help if you lose money on each sale.
Arcam is in a small niche, but a profitable one. And EBM is highly protected with patents and trade secrets so there is a big moat. AMAVF the stock isn’t cheap. I bought more very close to the recent low so may be biased . I am also willing to wait 5 or more years for payoff, including holding through the bear market likely to happen within the next 5 years. Because the aerospace market means certification, long and slow to get. But once you get it, there can be no substitution for that part.
But is there any evidence that XONE will ever make money? IMO, XONE is loser, their process is too complex, too many steps involved. I said that at much higher prices.
Hi Mauser, I agree! Here’s a post I made on the XONE board a couple of years ago when MF was touting XONE as the next greatest thing and the price was $59.
"Why would a stock with negative earnings, that has never had a profitable year, be selling at such a huge inflated price. Granted, some is about prospects for the future, and some is the 3D printing hype, but some must be hopes of the company being acquired. Look, last year they lost $10.2 million on $28.7 million of revenue. That’s a negative margin of 35.5%. It means they lost 35 cents on every dollar of sales!!!
In the first quarter of this year they lost 20 cents the first quarter in spite of great revenue. Say that by magic they overcome the loss in the next three quarters and finish the year with 25 cents profit. I’m not rejecting the possibility. With that miraculous result, they’d then be selling at over 200 times earnings. (220 times to be exact)…What can I say? I think the technology and the company may have great futures, but the stock may be miles ahead of itself. Miles and miles and miles. I may be totally wrong, and greatly underestimating, but it’s worth considering those figures."
That post got all of 2 rec’s. No one listened. XONE’s price at yesterday’s close was $12.76, well less than a quarter its price of $59 when I was writing. And it’s still a misleading “Buy” in MF RB. Eventually, even some time soon, for all I know, it may turn around and start making money (or be acquired), but there was a lot of opportunity loss for anyone who has held it all this time. And it’s trailing the S&P by 102% according to MF !!! Tell me again how it’s always a mistake to sell out of a position. Intelligent stock picking (and selling) does pay off. And buying stock in companies that are losing so much money that they’d have to quintuple their revenue to break even is not a smart move.
Best,
Saul
Hi okapimoon, Actually the board started on Jan 2 last year (2014) so it’s been running a year and five months. However, we are a very prolific group and we’ll be at 10,000 in about 900 more posts. Thanks for all your kind words. It’s been quite an adventure.
Wow, I’m not sure where I pulled my arithmetic skills from yesterday. I was 1013 off in adding up to 10,000 and 30 days off on what constitutes 6 months, and not only that, one year off on when the board started (how fast time flies). [Plus, this thread was highjacked to a totally different subject — reducing number of positions in a portfolio!)
So, the 10,000 mark will likely occur within the next 30 days, just short of the 1.5 year mark, not true six month mark. Still supremely impressive. And even if my math skills are off, I’m still counting (and I believe accurately this time) on the fact that the reason for all the traffic is because of how amazingly valuable this board has become (and not just because of all your books on either the French language or sex!).
Thank you again,
okapimoon
Wow, I’m not sure where I pulled my arithmetic skills from yesterday. I was 1013 off in adding up to 10,000
Okay, I’d better stop while I’m ahead (or rather, before I get TOO far behind.) I was not 1013 off yesterday in adding up from post number 9987 to 10,000. I was 914 off. Gosh. Must return to lurking mode right now.
okapimoon
in
quiet mode
now
Saul and fellow fools,
First, thanks for this GREAT board!
Secondly, thanks for ALL the posts.
Third, thanks for getting the grays cells in my brain thinking MORE and reacting less.
Finally a big thanks to Motley Fool for allowing a forum such as this to exist.
The most important thing learned on this board is how LITTLE I know and admit to know. Looking in the mirror … so to speak.
Regarding XONE and your comment:
That’s a negative margin of 35.5%. It means they lost 35 cents on every dollar of sales!!!
Many years ago a business associate and I visited a company as a candidate to purchase and merge into ours. While touring the plant a manager made the comment on sales’ “we increase our revenue by selling 2 cents per thousand units below cost and intend to make it up in volume.”
Of course, we all laughed. The manager then said it was a true fact.
Needless to say, we passed on the deal and the company went under less than a year later.
Point being, this may well be the strategy of XONE and VJET.
Mark
Dumped VJET and XONE many moons ago