Penny stocks are very Risky

I'm in VLTC for reasons that have nothing to do with it being a couple of dollars a share.

I would have bought it if it was $20 or $200 a share. Sticker price means nothing.

 

I'll also say that these opportunities don't happen all the time. The chance to make nearly 100% in 2 days on a stock is unusual.

It could have just as easily gone back down to a dollar and change after I bought it for $2.31. I actually figured it would open lower Monday, unless they had somehow already gotten a takeover bid over the weekend (not likely). I figured it would sell off Monday, and I'd buy more. But it actually climbed much higher the second day in a row, and I instead took most of it off.

I then waited until the next day (yesterday) to buy a bigger position after it cooled off. This is not something a beginner with a couple hundred bucks to his name should be gambling on. It could have easily resulted in a big loss from Thursday's close to Monday's open.

I'm smart enough and experienced enough to know to not buy very much (if any) of a stock that is already up well into double digits or even triple digits like this one was on 4/1 and 4/2 - it was barely a dollar on 3/31, and less than a dollar on 3/30.

It would have been very risky (foolhardy) of me to buy $6 million worth of it when it was $2.31... What if it had fallen back down to barely $1 a share? I would have lost half my money (millions) overnight.

Risk management.

Invest wisely. Diversify. Gamble VERY lightly (if at all).

 

VLTC is up over 40% again today. My guess is that they'll likely be bought out soon. I'm gonna hold what I've got for now and see what happens.

 

It gapped open up big again this morning, then sold off somewhat. I just grabbed a few hundred dollars more just above $6 a few minutes ago.

Other stocks I've mentioned ahead of time on this site that I've made big gains on in the last few months that are NOT low priced stocks include new long positions in Westlake Chemical in early Feb, Intercept Pharma in early Jan, a 90% gain since buying Isis Pharma 10 months ago, 30+% on Orbital in the last 6 months or so, a triple digit gain on LaJolla Pharma in a few months, etc.

Plus long additions in old favorites in recent months like Ross Stores, Continental Resources, Diamondback Energy, Hologic, PXD, Sonic, etc.

Shorter term trades in small amounts in names like the ebola-fighting biotech company Tekmira and also another low priced stock Ballard Power have also been very profitable in the last year or 2.

Profitable shorts / puts in names like IBM, GM, WWE, JCP, Athenahealth, and very recently Primerica last week and GE today. Also recently closed shorts in Sears and a very profitable HLF short I'd been holding for years. Also use puts to protect downside volatility on high-beta stocks such as many energy, biotech, and tech names.

The vast majority of my wealth comes from buying stocks that are well above $1 and usually well into double digits in most cases.

 

Up to $8 a share now. I have several thousand shares.

 

It touched $9 earlier. Volume is heavy.

 

Voltari got up close to $10 a couple of times late in the week.

 

I sold out yesterday after it crossed $20.