Happy Valentine’s Day!

I hope all of you have a Valentine and already know what love is on a personal level.  At 48, I am still searching but “can’t stop now, I’ve traveled so far, to change this lonely life.” And that is all the mush allowed in this article about stocks.

There is a good lesson to be shared here about investment. No good comes from expressing love when it comes to successful investing because, if you do, there will only be “heartache and pain.”  Investors have to analyze and reanalyze the reason to be in or out of a position almost daily, and yet, never fall in love with the company.  “This mountain I must climb” of not falling in love with any stock should be one of your top investing rules.  The best advice I can give any investor is “gotta read between the lines” and leave love for your personal life. Read more about Dark Horse Trader's Hedge: I Wanna Know What Love Is

First and foremost, Happy Holidays to all!

While we wait to see if Washington is going to bring us Christmas cheer or Scrooge 2012 (beware of the 3^rd visitor which foreshadows the future), it is a good time of year to review the Dark Horse Traders’ Hedge portfolio.  I have one option trade to recommend and two positions that I would recommend taking gains on in 2012 and replacing with new positions. Read more about Dark Horse Traders' Hedge: It's Been a Long Way Down For Apple

I was stuck in a Dallas hotel on October 29, 2012 trying to get to New York City.  The flights to JFK were canceled Monday and Wednesday due to Hurricane Sandy which has left the upper East Coast “Riding the Storm Out.”  I won’t add anything other than my prayers to those affected by this storm as the media has inundated us with plenty of information. Read more about Dark Horse Traders' Hedge: Ride out the Storm with FCX, Option Review

In our last article (September 8, 2012), we commented on the likelihood that the United States would follow the ECB in implementing a form of QE3, which in fact happened.  It happened with such a magnitude that many “experts” have given the impression that Fed Chairman Bernanke “better slow (his) Mustang down.” The argument for or against QE3 is best left for another day, but I believe it is safe to say that the re-opening of the printing machine will help prop the market up in the short term, allowing us to make safer additions to our Dark Horse Traders’ Hedge long positions. Read more about Dark Horse Traders' Hedge: Ride Sally Ride (SLM) in Option Review, Add Cooper Tire (CTB)

The European Central Bank (ECB) announced a bond-buying plan Thursday that lifted U.S. Markets to levels we haven’t seen since 2007. China followed suit with a post on the National Development and Reform Commission’s (NDRC) website announcing plans to boost infrastructure spending.  Together, these announcements helped investors feel better about global growth. 

Just as the market was feeling like the “sky was the limit,” the US payroll report this morning was so bad that the market reacted like “a rebel without a clue” by continuing higher.   The reason for today’s continued rally “into the great wide open” is predicated on the belief that the Fed will announce some version of QE3 next week.  Read more about Dark Horse Trader's Hedge: Market Moves Into the Great Wide Open, Option Review September

When I look into your eyes

It’s like watching the night sky

Or a beautiful sunrise

There’s so much they hold

And just like them old stars Read more about I Won’t Give Up On Freeport-McMoRan and Western Digital

I woke up this morning and the sun was gone

Turned on some music to start my day

I lost myself in a familiar song

I closed my eyes and I slipped away

It’s more than a feeling

More than a feeling Read more about More Than a Feeling To Go Long Aflac, July Option Review

I used to like to walk the straight and narrow line

I used to think that everything was fine

Sometimes I’d like to sit and gaze for days through sleepless dreams

All alone and trapped in time

All alone and trapped in time

I wonder what tomorrow has in mind for me

Or am I even in its mind at all

Perhaps I’ll get a chance to look ahead and see

Soon as I find myself a crystal ball Read more about Dark Horse Traders' Hedge: Crystal Ball Says Add Sallie Mae Long and Short Wells Fargo

I used to like to walk the straight and narrow line

I used to think that everything was fine

Sometimes I’d like to sit and gaze for days through sleepless dreams

All alone and trapped in time

All alone and trapped in time

I wonder what tomorrow has in mind for me

Or am I even in its mind at all

Perhaps I’ll get a chance to look ahead and see

Soon as I find myself a crystal ball Read more about Dark Horse Traders' Hedge: Crystal Ball Says Add Sallie Mae Long and Short Wells Fargo

We see the light of those who find
A world has passed them by
To late to save a dream that's growing cold
We realize that fate must hide it's face
From those who try
To see the distant signs of unforetold
Oh... oh, take hold

From a haze came a rage of thunder
Distant signs of darkness on the way
Fading cries scream of pain and hunger
But in the night the light will guide your way Read more about Dark Horse Traders' Hedge: June Options Review, Take Hold of VCI and LDK