But first . . .
Russ MacAusland: “Andrew…….NBIX !!!!!”
→ The best performing stock of the past decade, up from $2.50 to $110! So why haven’t I doubled your subscription price? You’ll find the answer in this 2014 post:
NBIX jumped 90% yesterday, to $18.50, which is great for those of you who bought it at $2.60, when suggested here or around $4 here, unless — a big “unless” — you sold at $11 three months ago, as more or less suggested here. But maybe you kept some? (Reason enough not to read this page every day!) Guru thinks the stock is not the great bet at $18.50 it was at $2.60, so it could be a good time to take your profit. But that obviously doesn’t mean it won’t go higher.
If any of you did buy at $2.60, as I did, and held on — as I did not — click here. I hope you bought a lot.
Jeff C.: “Are you out of GEC? You didn’t mention it specifically, so I’m assuming the worst!”
→ It sure has disappointed. I thought I posted, when it was occasionally above $4 last year, that the smart guy who had suggested it to me had lost his enthusiasm. Not to say he was actively negative; just that he saw better opportunities. So, yes, I’ve been lightening up, though I still own a bunch. I don’t see any sign of having posted that — my bad — so I’m glad you asked.
And now . . .
Wayne Arczynski: “I thought you would like The Fund That Does a Lot by Doing Nothing. Here’s the best part. [Even though I don’t pay $468 a year to subscribe to the Wall Street Journal], I read it for free at home using my digital library card from my local Howard County, MD, Library. Paywalls crumble at the power of the public library. I learned about this here.”
. . . Now, if your local library system doesn’t provide this access, you can also look at state libraries, university libraries, or other libraries in the region for which you are eligible. Finally, there are some public libraries that offer library cards to non-residents for an annual fee. For example, the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Library in North Carolina offers library cards by mail for $45 a year (Seniors 62+, $35 a year).
→ He saves another $199 a year on a Morningstar subscription.
I recognize this may not be reason enough to move to Howard County; but have you checked to see what digital access your local library might provide? Or these libraries that offer access to non-residents? (I’m not sure any of them includes newspaper subscriptions; will try to find someone to check them for us.)
I’m all for supporting journalism, but would rather steer my big bucks to the indispensable New York Times and Washington Post (“Democracy Dies in Darkness”) than to Rupert Murdoch, who has for nearly half a century, in my view, been a malign force in the world.
Editors Note: This article was originally published on January 8th, 2020 on andrewtobias.com, syndicated with permission.