"My biggest position" thread

[James282]

After reading DesertCat's NICK thread - and seeing the great discussion and analysis that followed - I figured there might be some interest in a thread where people say what their biggest position is, and if they want, to defend why it is so. My biggest position is First Marblehead(FMD), a company which provides securitization services for major financial institutions in private education lending. This was the first stock I ever 'found' myself after its pummelling from a high of 48 to a low of 14(split adjusted) about a year and a half ago. The price was driven insanely cheap due to the public largely misinterpreting the news surrounding the stock, and I was able to convince myself to pull the trigger after reading Tom Brown's convincingly bullish articles on bankstocks.com. After averaging down several times(though since I was a newb, I did take some profits off at 22, [censored]) - I have still managed over 200% on this stock which also happens to be the stock I've invested the most initial capital in - so that's pretty much why it's my biggest position. I still think the company is very very strong going forward(the Motley Fool's Hidden Gems newsletter advised buying this stock about 6 months after my initial position) for reasons I can detail if people want, so I haven't taken any off the table in the last year or so.

But I am very curious - what's your biggest position(and why, if you feel like it)?

James

[almostbusto]

BXL- http://forumserver.twoplustwo.com/showfl...e=2#Post8977582

ACH- maybe ill write a full write-up sometime, for now i'll give the reader's digest version. ACH is relatively well protected by the chinese government, it seems to be priced relatively cheaply, and it is positioned very well to take advantage of the growth of china, india, and russia (i think?). Basically as those economies grow, demand for aluminum should go up considerably, and ACH should be in a great position to take advantage of it. if you are wary of china, i would look at AA (alcoa, which is the largest aluminum producer in the world). AA does own something like 13% of ACH fwiw.

ALL- Allstate insurance. I got beat up pretty bad on the 31st after its annual report, i think its undervalued. Long term i think insurance is a great place to be, i am studying to become an actuary so i could be biased on that one. BRK also seems like a good buy, i do not own it however.

[BeL0wMe]

MHK - Mohawk Industries, a carpeting company, probably the best one in the nation. I used to do work for them, and just bought into their stock, and just kept increasing my position and have been very happy.

Biggest Fund I own is DODFX, Dodge and Cox International, followed by CGM Realty

[En Passant]

VTI

[Perplexity]

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VTI

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VTI sucks. It's all about FSTMX.

[En Passant]

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VTI

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VTI sucks. It's all about FSTMX.

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What is your reasoning for VTI sucking?

[yellowbastard]

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ACH- maybe ill write a full write-up sometime, for now i'll give the reader's digest version. ACH is relatively well protected by the chinese government, it seems to be priced relatively cheaply, and it is positioned very well to take advantage of the growth of china, india, and russia (i think?). Basically as those economies grow, demand for aluminum should go up considerably, and ACH should be in a great position to take advantage of it. if you are wary of china, i would look at AA (alcoa, which is the largest aluminum producer in the world). AA does own something like 13% of ACH fwiw.

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ACH is an interesting company that may make a good topic of discussion for another thread. The company has grown its earnings at over 45% annually since 1999 and is currently trading at less than book value. I haven't done much research yet and would like to know why ACH appears to be so undervalued.

ACH's annual reports are here if anyone else is interested.

[almostbusto]

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ACH- maybe ill write a full write-up sometime, for now i'll give the reader's digest version. ACH is relatively well protected by the chinese government, it seems to be priced relatively cheaply, and it is positioned very well to take advantage of the growth of china, india, and russia (i think?). Basically as those economies grow, demand for aluminum should go up considerably, and ACH should be in a great position to take advantage of it. if you are wary of china, i would look at AA (alcoa, which is the largest aluminum producer in the world). AA does own something like 13% of ACH fwiw.

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ACH is an interesting company that may make a good topic of discussion for another thread. The company has grown its earnings at over 45% annually since 1999 and is currently trading at less than book value. I haven't done much research yet and would like to know why ACH appears to be so undervalued.

ACH's annual reports are here if anyone else is interested.

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i just sold it about a week ago. it was up 45% on the year at that point (which is when i bought it). i think when i bought it, it had just gone up like 30%-40% in the previous 3 months or so. so its made a huge run.

despite the huge run, its still trading cheap considering its underlying value imo (which i just notice you already commented on by saying its trading near book value). I took the money off the table strictly because i needed some cash and i came across another stock or two i wanted to invest in.

hopefully the "china bubble" will burst and ACH will drop big in the next few months and i can jump back into the stock. i have no reason to believe that will actually happen though.

[Scorpion Man]

CHTR

[krishan]

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CHTR

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QFT