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Reply With QuoteIt's been pretty funny watching the rush to invest in Facebook post-IPO and watching the rollercoaster ride it has been taking ever since.
Well I am not a stock broker or anything remotely near that but I do have some pennies and I watch the meerkats mostly due to the ongoing euro 'dwama' about which I am sure all know my opinions by now. However wabbits, meagre as we may be, are deserving of tips in a hard time... we should also back good stuff and used for good purposes no? Not just your average bank or Government stock... I mean it's hard times out there and if you have pennies what to do? How to get a return? So I start this thread that we can collect our tips.
I have one to start off that is a dead cert: "The company grew revenues from $25.3 million in 2009 to $48.5 million in 2010, an increase of 91.6%, and to $82.1 million in 2011, an increase of 69.3% from 2010. Adjusted comprehensive income was $12.4 million, $23.9 million and $40.5 million in 2009, 2010 and 2011, respectively, representing 48.9%, 49.4% and 49.3% as a percent of revenues." Avast Software IPO: proposed symbol AVST - Best Stock Watch
They have about $85m in the bank and 200 employees and are making money! No wonder... over 150m users+. Yes alot of their users use their free antivirus software - which I have tested and recommend it for normal use.
"Avast Gradually Moving Forward With IPO
Avast is gradually taking the steps to undergo an IPO (Initial Public Offering) on the NASDAQ exchange as AVST. They filed a second amendment to their F-1 with the Security Exchange Commission on May 7. The amended F-1, 150 plus pages of reading, including 23 pages of risk factors. Three years of financial statements are included. 2011 revenue was $82.1 million, a nice 69% increase over 2010’s $48.4 million in revenue. Avast promotes that they have around 160 million users of their products. According to the OPSWAT 2012 March “Security Industry Market Share Analysis”, Avast has the top spot, with 16.3% of the market.
http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/da...09210zf-1a.htm
Avast has also now opened a hiring req for a SEC Reporting Manager, operating out of their San Francisco Bay Area office. This means Avast has to be getting serious about the IPO. “The individual in this critical, hands-on position will be based in the San Francisco Bay Area, report to the CFO and have responsibility for compliance with SEC reporting requirements, including preparation of Forms 20-F and 6-K, and Sarbanes-Oxley”.
This person will be traveling to Prague occasionally. When the financial people from Prague travel to the Bay Area, they will be able to find Czech food Czech Bars and Restaurants in San Francisco Bay Area - BayCzech though there are some rather nice restaurants in the Bay Area! Foodies are usually happy when they visit.
No new rumors as to when the IPO will take place. No sightings of executives in hoodies on Sand Hill Road in Menlo Park, or having breakfast at Burk's in Woodside. Rumors of sightings at mid Peninsula Starbucks. The date (IMHO) will shift after Avast people and their external “smartest guys in the room” make any adjustments based on analysis of the Facebook IPO. "Pops" are nice on the first day of an offering and neither Facebook nor their Prague based competitor AVG Technologies, had these on their first days.
http://kensek.blogspot.com/2012/01/w...uation-be.html
Comments on Security and Other Topics by Craig Kensek: Avast Software Files for $200 Million IPO
http://kensek.blogspot.com/2012/03/march-2012-opswat-report-on-worldwide.html"
More info can be found from the links there such as;
Worldwide Security Industry Market Share Leaders
1. 16.3% - Avast
2. 11.7% - Avira
3. 11.0% - AVG Technologies
4. 10.1% - Microsoft
5. 10.1% - Eset
When these go public expect fast rise and easy short term takers who will then sell. Might be a good 'keeper' though.
Another one I have been watching, but which is already listed is Reaction Engines Ltd. Now the financial outlook there is not so rosy; https://companycheck.co.uk/company/02413577 BUT if they are right then they NASA is going to knocking on their door - along with every other company that wants to put satellites or people into space - very soon. Various tests of their SABRE engine are underway (BBC News - Key tests for Skylon spaceplane project) but the European Space Agency has said "it should work" or some such having reviewed it; "Esa has not identified any critical topics that would prevent a successful development of the engine," which with anything 'European' in front of it is normaly the kiss of death. They are already 50% funded by ESA for LAPCAT testing using a smaller version of the SABRE engine; Reaction Engines Ltd : LAPCAT
The company is essentialy Alan Bond who worked on a previous project of this nature called HOTOL which failed to receive sufficient funding as far as I can work out. IF this project gets enough funding and works buy as heavily as you can asap! For investment purposes it's a watcher, though I admit I have a small imvestment there already cos it's British and stuff, but of course you can judge for yourselves. The IF here is big and I advise nothing big until the test results are analysed fully.
Well those are my 'tips' for an alternative investment; Avast is a dead cert when they launch... 200 staff and 150m users says to me they have their heads screwed on. As for the spaceplane, to an untechnical type like me, it seems just a matter of how you keep the engine cold enough so that it doesn't go bang. It has to be doable one day. Maybe they have solved it?
I hope these tips make you rich!
It's been pretty funny watching the rush to invest in Facebook post-IPO and watching the rollercoaster ride it has been taking ever since.
Lol I hope you didn't dive into the hype. Facebook is, in my opinion, another 'IF'. The problem with fb is that it has probably peaked... users are leaving and it has no real 'break through' or new technology as for instance the SABRE engine might be. I believe the first video ever shown on MTV was 'Video killed the radio star' and the net killed MTV... Twitter kills fb in the same way. Social activities based investments are short term investments only - when the interweb is replaced by a faster medium avast will be done too.
By the way I did your read you 'hello' message BridgeB_ and welcome to WAB - I look forward to reading your thoughts.
snapper,
Tech stocks are notoriously unpredictable unless you have very good knowledge about them.
Why aren't you diversifying your portfolio to hedge on risk. Just sticking to tech stocks is a bit limited & risky.
You don't get into the stock market unless you've been studying it for some time. An hr or two every day for the last many months. If i were you i'd spend more time on research and playing with dummy accounts instead of real money. You could do this with a simple spreadsheet and after a month or more evaluate how much you would have made or lost. Could you beat what a savings account can offer and keep on doing it more times than not.
How does the stock index move during the week, one day up & 4 days down or other. If it spends more days down than up then that is a good indicator of what to expect.
You don't get into the stock market with pennies you need more to make it worth your time. A good starting amount is $10k.
The time to get into the stock market is when there is an expectation of a boom. Not when there is a gloomy outlook as today or the near term.
In India banks offer very good rates of interest on fixed deposits ~9%. Not the same where you are but a bank is what i call a safe bet nowadays especially if we're talking pennies.
The stock market here has tanked as not a lot of money is coming in, quite the contrary its running out. That means indexes drop and finding a winner in that mix is pretty damn hard.
Last edited by Double Edge; 09 Jun 12, at 20:41.
I agree with you that diversity in holdings is wise. I still have quite alot in rice futures cos there's always more Asians being born. I wasn't talking about my portfolio though, just pointing out 'maybe worth a punt' ideas. My own private 'portfolio' I started over 2 years ago with £10,000. I have added about another £3000 of 'new money' and the entire stock is now worth just over £24,000. I also part manage our familys money which is alot more and we are more cautious with that; bonds etc and property.
I did pretty well short selling Spanish banks last month but got out when it became clear that Spain would be given a 'not-a-bailout' or whatever true speak they will conjure up to lie about this one.
You can make money on a bear market - lots of it - but it is risky and you have to know when to get out. Always err on the side of caution.
You say banks are safe? Care to tell that to the Spanish?
Very good. If you went from £10,000 to £21,000 in just 2 years. A 50% annual rate of return is excellent. I've known people to average just over 30% when times were good in previous years and lose more than in the last year. This getting out business when you've had a good run requires strong nerves.Originally Posted by snapper
You're a day trader.
Ah, now i know the source of your scepticism. You were betting on it just like a load of other short sellers. The hype about it only made things better.
Fair play
I meant India, even when we were bankrupt the banks did not go bust (few did) because a lot of them were nationalised in the late 60s. The central bank in India is a very interfering type, big on regulations, prefers caution to profit.
The ECB only worries about inflation.
The Fed & BOE do that and manages the currency
The RBI does a heck of a lot more.
Last edited by Double Edge; 10 Jun 12, at 12:29.
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