It’s hard to believe, but I get hate mail. Anytime I write something negative about a stock someone inevitably sends me a profanity-filled screed. And I’m going to share some of them with you today!
That’s because within these angry missives are real lessons in investing and a whole lot of humor.
Do Your Due Diligence
First is Tim S., who took issue with my negative article on PetMed Express, Inc. (NASDAQ:PETS).
You said [PetMed is] “nothing more than an online pet pharmacy”
Name another one, I’ll wait. [Profanity].
You have nothing better to do than discourage people.
Holw [sic] do you take pleasure in stealing money from people just trying to make an honest buck?
I hope you sleep well, [profanity]
Dear Tim:
Attached please find a Google link to about 1,000 other online pet pharmacies. I don’t “steal people’s money” by writing articles educating investors about stocks. They steal their own money by making questionable investment decisions.
Tim’s email demonstrates critical ignorance about PETS stock. He believes PETS has the only online pet pharmacy in the country. That’s a foolish assumption. It shows that Tim S. not only lacks common sense, but didn’t read the 10-K:
“The pet medications market is competitive and highly fragmented. Our competitors consist of veterinarians, and online and traditional retailers. We compete with veterinarians for the sale of prescription and non-prescription pet medications and other health products. Many pet owners may prefer the convenience of purchasing their pet medications or other health products at the time of a veterinarian visit. In order to effectively compete with veterinarians, we must continue to educate pet owners about the service, convenience, and savings offered by our Company.”
Tim S. also seems to think I hang around pet pharmacies and grab the cash out of people’s hands as they are buying antibiotics for Spot. Go figure!
Investing From a Place of Emotions
Steve K. wrote about my article that suggested the Walmart (NYSE:WMT) turnaround is too late.
Walmart isn’t too late for anything, you’re clueless. You’re out to [profanity] lunch, [profanity]. You’re full of [profanity]. Is your office in a storage bin?
Dear Steve,
My office is large enough to hold the five billion dollars that Amazon stole from Walmart’s bottom line.
Steve makes one same mistake that Tim S. does, which is that he is really emotional about WMT stock. You cannot ever get emotional about investing. If you are, then you have overestimated your risk profile. “Individuals who cannot master their emotions are ill-suited to profit from the investment process.” – Benjamin Graham.
That’s one of the reasons you should never watch or listen to CNBC or financial TV shows. They are designed to generate emotion, and that causes investors to make bad decisions.
Steve Kratzer also appears to be in denial about the effect that Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT) has had on retail. WMT stock has lost a third of its net income over the past three years. A third! Five billion dollars of net income lost, even as revenue has remained flat.
If you aren’t paying close attention to how Amazon has affected other retailers, especially if you own a retailing stock, you are not doing your due diligence.
Here’s Gary M., who seems annoyed about my article on Under Armour, Inc.
“Just read Meyers’ article on UAA. Same old same old. Nothing new. He says it is his duty ‘to warn’ investors. What I think he meant was: “It is his duty to ‘manipulate’ investors.”
Dear Gary,
Actually, as Skynet’s latest T-5000 model Terminator, it is my duty to destroy the human race using my magic unicorn brainwaves. You should purchase a tinfoil hat immediately. They are available at Wal-Mart.”
Once again, so much emotion. I can only imagine what each of these people must go through when some analyst at some investment bank lowers a rating on a stock, or Ron Insana at CNBC hiccups in the middle of saying the name of their stock.
I get a ton of mail from conspiracy theorists who are convinced that articles published on any website, including that of Investorplace.com, can “manipulate” anybody. If someone is that easily swayed by a single article regarding an investment, then they shouldn’t be in that investment.
Bottom Line
Investing is about story. What is the story of the company? If you are confident in the story and you invest, you stay invested until the story changes, and then you re-evaluate.
All I do at Investorplace.com is offer a jumping-off point for further investigation into various investments. I try to provide suggestions and guidance on the overall state of the market and, most of all, how to minimize risk.
If you are intrigued by my approach, then please visit www.TheLibertyPortfolio.com, where I am building a real-money portfolio designed for conservative investors who want to reduce risk while maintaining strong returns.
But if you want to send me hate mail, please do that, too!
Lawrence Meyers is the CEO of PDL Capital, a specialty lender focusing on consumer finance and is the Manager of The Liberty Portfolio at www.thelibertyportfolio.com. He does not own any stock mentioned. He has 23 years’ experience in the stock market, and has written more than 2,000 articles on investing. Lawrence Meyers can be reached at TheLibertyPortfolio@gmail.com.
