Tuesday, October 18, 2005

Flu Basket

AAVI....Bought 2.25....Current 3.05.......+36%
BCRX....Bought 8.69....Current 17.87.....+106%
CRXL....Bought 24.13...Current 27.10......+12%
HEB.....Bought 2.02....Current 2.71.......+36%
NNVC....Bought 0.09....Current 0.45......+400%
NVAX....Bought 1.49....Current 3.57......+140%
SVA.....Bought 4.05....Current 7.59.......+87%
VICL....Bought 6.00....Current 5.50........-8%

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hi Allan,

I thought I'd share with you a question that's on my mind in case you can help me with it as you have with previous questions of mine.

Just what is it that I'm buying when I buy a share of NNVC? I'm having difficulty conceptualizing what a share of that company represents. Their balance sheet reflects pretty much no assets. They pay salaries to a handfull of people and have some other liablities. Am I buying a potentiality? Why does that have value anyway? Why do people pay for that? These questions probably apply to the purchase of shares in any company, but when I look at NNVC such questions nag at me more.

Practically speaking, though it may not be the case (tell please if it's not), given that nnvc is like a concept more than a company, it seems like if I were to buy a share a .45 and sell it as say .90 I would be trading one dollar for two with a paper representing no assets (i.e., the share) acting as an arbiter.

A said...

Just what is it that I'm buying when I buy a share of NNVC?

You're buying an ownership share in a company at the forefront of "nanomedicine," developing products to treat, as stated at their web site, "nano-scale molecularly engineered "guided missile", about the size of a few billionth of a meter, that courses through the blood-stream, seeks its target e.g. a virus particle, attaches itself to the target, and then destroys the target completely."

When you will start to sell? What percent of your portfolio is in buy and hold?

My core position in this basket will remain untouched as long as bird flu is in the news everyday. Going for the home runs here, grand slams to be exact. Yesterday I took a very small amount of NNVC off the table, but it was enough to cover my cost basis of the entire position.

Anonymous said...

I'm worried that BCRX is about to tank. Any thoughts?

A said...

I'm worried that BCRX is about to tank. Any thoughts?

Using the basket concept, the action of any one particular stock in the basket becomes less worrisome. There was some negative press on BCRX yesterday, but nothing that would change the reasons for BCRX being held.

A