May 14, 2009

Taking Losses

In the Corps, I was one of the guys in the unit that people went to with financial questions, because I could explain stocks and bonds and mutual funds. I always refused to directly recommend any stock, other than "a broad-based index mutual fund."

But I ignored my advice, and bought some Citigroup shares, because banks have consistently made money every year since the end of the Great Depression, and most of them made money during that time, too.

Today I gave up and sold my position in Bank of America, which "aquired" Citi after it imploded. My Citi investment has lost approximatly 98.5% of its value in the last two years.

And this is why I don't recommend individual stocks to people. (The only good news is that I will likely sell some stock to pay for college, and I can offset capital gains with the capital loss on Citi.)

Posted by: Boviate at 12:02 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
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