George at FatPitchFinancials has posted the 67th Festival of Stocks. This edition, my first TA attempt using EMC and my CPI article have made the cut. Just wanted to thank George for all of the hard work he puts into the carnivals day in and day out. Thanks sir!
Monday, December 17, 2007
Thursday, September 20, 2007
Saturday, September 15, 2007
Online Brokerage Review – OptionsXpress
Here’s a review on an options-based discount brokerage, OptionsXpress. OptionsXpress prides itself on catering to the broad market including options, futures, and bonds to name a few.
Fees/Commissions: OptionsXpress has a tiered fee structure. Starting with their options schedule, their fee is broken into two groups: 35+ trades per quarter and 0-34 trades per quarter. Taking the 35+ trades per quarter, OptionsXpress charges a flat rate of $12.95 per trade for up to 10 contract trades. Every contract trade after is $1.25. If you trade 0-34 options per quarter, OptionsXpress will charge a flat $14.95 for up to 10 contract trades, and $1.50 thereafter
OptionsXpress’ stock fee schedule is also tiered. 9+ stock trades per quarter runs $9.95 per trade for 1,000 shares (per trade). For every share above 1,000 per trade, OptionsXpress charges $0.01. If trading less than 9 stock trades per quarter, the fee runs $14.95 per trade (up to 1,000 per trade) and $0.015 per share above the 1,000 limit per trade.
Other fees from OptionsXpress include no charge for broker assisted or limit order trades, $14.95 min / $1.50 per contract in a complex options trade (up to 4 legs), $29.90 minimum for a covered call trade, $14.95 plus any additional loads or fees for mutual funds, $5 / bond with a minimum of $14.95, $3.99 / futures contract plus exchange fees, as well as other fees for options assignment or exercise. Margin rates range from 6.5% to 8.75%.
Investments Offered: OptionsXpress offers stocks, options, futures, mutual funds, and bond trading. Some options are not available unless you meet their minimum requirements. Futures trading, for example, requires 3 years of trading experience plus a minimum account balance of $25,000.
Platform Features: Extremely organized and chock full of features. OptionsXpress offers up to date options chains, stock prices and free (yes, free) Level II quotes. The actual platform is fairly simple but the information that it contains is extremely valuable and useful. OptionsXpress also has various proprietary screens and research.
Security: OptionsXpress only has a login page. They do not use, at least from my experience, any sort of trading password found with competitors such as Tradeking or Zecco. OptionsXpress is also an SIPC member.
Ease of Use: OptionsXpress has a very easy to use trading platform. Everything is labeled accurately and easy to find. OptionsXpress also has convenient features including trading directly from their Level II platform.
Support: I have yet to use OptionsXpress’ support features so at this time I have no comments available.
Pros
- Favorable fee structure for heavy options trading
- Free Level II quotes
- Easy to use platform
- Very responsive trading platform
Cons
- Expensive equities trading even with tiered fee structure
- Lack of double layered security found with competitors
Summary: If you’re a heavy options trader or even a futures trader, OptionsXpress may be a good option for you. At $1.25 per contract ($12.95 minimum per trade), it appears to be one of the cheapest in the game if you achieve their active trader status (35+ contracts / quarter). Although I do not have access to their futures platform, the ability to trade around the clock makes it desirable for other futures traders. OptionsXpress also has an increasing number of mini contracts, or e-mini contracts as its called. Their search feature is extremely useful. The trading platform is well designed, easy to use, and extremely organized. Free Level II quotes is valuable beyond belief. I would like to see their equities fees brought down a bit but I wouldn’t use OptionsXpress for anything beyond options and futures trading. That being said, OptionsXpress caters to a smaller portion of the trading community, albeit very well.
Saturday, September 1, 2007
The UpDown Investing Challenge Update
Well I received an interesting e-mail from The UpDown stock challenge this afternoon. It appears they are making good on their promises to pay folks with outstanding performances.
Congratulations! You earned $3.31 at The UpDown for August 2007.
Your portfolio return in August was:7.82% compared to the S&P 500 return of 0.38% for the same period
Your portfolio return since you started on August 6, 2007 has been 7.82% compared to the S&P 500 return of 1.59% for the same period.
Your portfolio performance earned you $3.31. You also earned $0.00 from the performance of members you referred.
To determine earnings, we consider your portfolio performance last month, the length of your track record, and your performance since you started.
Our goal is to reward members who beat the market in the long run and, by doing so, contribute to our ability to derive a community-based investment strategy that consistently outperforms the market.
Your market-beating performance this month also means you are well positioned to earn even more next month if you continue to manage your portfolio successfully. Well done.
Visit http://www.theupdown.com/displayProfile.do to view your portfolio performance chart on The UpDown
You can claim your money, via PayPal, by visiting http://www.theupdown.com/home.do and following the “Claim Your Money” link in the “My Updates” section.
Please note:
* You can only claim amounts equal to or greater than $0.50
* All money must be claimed through PayPal. If you don’t have a PayPal account, simply create one for free using the link provided in the money claiming process.
* You must certify that you are at least 18 years old and that you are legally allowed to accept money from The UpDown.
* You, and not The UpDown, are fully responsible for all potential tax implications related to you accepting money from The UpDown.Visit http://www.theupdown.com/learn_more.jsp to learn more about earning real money at The UpDown.
Please contact us at contact@updown.com if you have any questions or concerns.
So there you have it. Maintaining a portfolio with them can earn you real money! Granted, the number could be larger with an increase in referrals *hint hint*. The UpDown is still in beta. If you’d like an invite to try your hand at it, leave me a comment or email me at investingadventures@gmail.com. I’ll be able to send you a link to your own account. Good luck!
Update: Use the following link to sign up for The UpDown challenge!
Thursday, August 16, 2007
Help?
CNBC Alert: Dow Plunges More than 250 Points, Down 10% from July Record
Help? This has not been a great week.
Intraday Update: DJIA down 320 points at 13:00. I’m nervous to see what’s going to happen in the 14:00-15:00 “sell” block.
Closing Update: Market closed almost flat. I don’t understand this game.