TradeKing gave me $100

I didn’t know about this promo and just noticed it on my account the other day…I was given $100!!

I couldn’t find any info on the Tradeking website, but googled this post in My Money Blog.  Sweet, I didn’t even know about it!  Didn’t even put in a promo code or anything…

How lucky I must’ve been that I randomly decided to fund my account with $1,000.  Free money is nice, it’s even better when it’s unexpected!!

Some reasons why I want to invest in the IFL

There really is one main reason: I think they’ll do well. There are so many ways that a company can do well, so I’ll try to name some specifics as to why I like the stock (or the company).

– They fight in a team. The team is the one that fights, not the individual. Although they fight one-on-one, they still need to win as a team to advance. Similar to the way the Philippines taekwondo Nationals were held before.   There’s nothing better than training in a team.  Very interesting concept which I hope will be accepted and will succeed.

– They are open about their business. They’re a public corporation. Their books are open and we can see what’s happening to the company. They’re not hidden like some other promotions.

– They are promoting MMA as a sport, not a spectacle like the fake wrestling, which is how the UFC is marketing their shows. Promoting MMA as a sport will have a better, long lasting impact on MMA as a whole.

– They acknowledge the truth about the origins of MMA in the US. They obviously don’t subscribe to the “Zuffa Myth” (I forgot which blog I got that term from) that distorts the history of the UFC saying that before the present managers of the UFC were in place, it started with no rules (they had rules from the start), that they ran away from regulation (they were always going for it), and that they didn’t get any sanctioning (they did, in NJ and even in NY – but the NY story deserves a whole other post).

– They treat MMA journalists as they should. I remember that an MMA journalist was kicked out of a UFC show. Why? I dunno.

– They treat their fighters well. The fighters have a salary and can support themselves between fights. Unlike in the UFC where most fighters get a minuscule paycheck only when they fight.

– They fight in a ring.  Which is safer for the fighters and keeps the fight fair.  Too many people use the cage as a weapon.  Saying that a cage is better since it protects fighters from falling out of rings.  That’s bull.  Go watch some Pride Fighting.  They aways get reset to the center of the ring and there are always people that try to keep you from the ropes.

– They removed elbows.  Elbows should be permitted, but another tactic that is abused is trying to give an opponent a cut above the eye.  Elbows do that very well.  A cut above the eye bleeds.  A lot of blood will go to the eye.  The fight will be discontinued because of the cut even though the fighter is still in excellent condition.  Not a fair fight.  Besides, cutting down on the blood factor will bring MMA closer to being a sport more openly accepted by the general public.

-They don’t sign exclusive contracts with their fighters.  They can still fight elsewhere.

– They have shows on free tv.  No need to pony up each time just to watch a show.  Just know the schedule – like you need to for any other tv show.  Not that I watch TV, I don’t.  But majority of people do.

So yeah, they are doing great things for MMA and I would like to see them succeed.  I hope I got my facts straight, although I wrote the whole post based on some other blogs I read – I can’t remember which ones, and the No Holds barred podcast.  So thank you unknown blogs and NHB podcast.

So my Tradeking account finally cleared.  I just set up a limit order for 100 shares.

My IFLI mistake

Over a week ago I wanted to buy stocks of the International Fight League. The price was $3.50.

I searched and compared online brokerage houses and decided on TradeKing. The stock was rising.

It took 5 days to clear my savings account for ACH transfers to my TradeKing account. The stock rose some more.

When it finally cleared, I transferred money. I was told it will be reflected in my account later in the evening. It was, but was on a five-day hold since I had a new account. The stock had risen to almost $15.

Because I insisted on reducing my commissions to $5 a trade, I lost out on a quadrupling of the stock. I lost out. I should have a giant “L” on my forehead. I should’ve just bought the stocks right away with Vanguard ($15 commissions).

Good thing I didn’t buy at $15 though, it dropped down to $11…

All this dancing around of the stock price – – this is why I don’t buy individual stocks…

IFLI’s price

I blogged about buying stocks of the International Fight League (IFLI – Yahoo, Google). Last week, their price closed just below $4 around $3.50 or something. This morning the stock jumped up to $8. That’s a big leap, I wonder what the closing price will be.

I opened a Tradeking.com account last week so I could buy the stock. Tradeking is a fairly new online brokerage firm, but so far they have had wonderful reviews. They offer the lowest fees per trade ($4.95 – no limits) and even offer things I don’t care to know about like options and puts and whatnots. The research portion of the site is supposedly not as good as that of other online brokerage firms, but in the age of google, why should that matter? I had transferred some funds from my checking account over to Tradeking, but it is still in process.

Imagine, I could have had a quick 60% gain!! This morning’s gain really is just noise in the long-term stock price of IFLI and I’m sure that their overall trend will be upward. I’m looking forward to watching the IFL perform over the next year and watching the fights they put up, of course.

Just a note: My overall financial plan is good and all, with a majority in index funds in tax sheltered accounts. I’ve no intention of becoming a day trader and the portion of money that I’m going to put in IFLI is considered “play money”. I also have “play money in Prosper.com in the amount of $1,500 making about 15%.

International Fight League

I remember reading an article many, many years ago about investing in company’s that you know and whose products you like. So when I heard that the International Fight League went public, my interest went up. The stock started at $8 and had dropped down to about $4, which is normal for IPOs. Normal in a way that the stock price adjusts to the market after the IPO and it is usually a downward adjustment.

I’d like to buy their stock but I don’t like buying individual stocks though. I’m a buy and hold investor and would rather buy index mutual funds. I’ve only bought one company’s common stock which I bought through a Dividend Reinvestment Plan (DRIP) over two years. I’m waiting until I’ve owned all the shares for a year, so when I sell I’ll only owe long-term capital gains tax and not short term gains. And I’ll only sell if I make at least a 10% – 15% profit. I’ll wait for the price to go up before I sell too. I am a buy and hold investor after all. It might be a long wait, since it’s a huge S&P 500 and DJIA company, and it’s not exactly a growth nor volatile stock.

The IFL stock will be different though. I can easily afford a block of stocks (or is it called a “lot” ? ). It’s a micro stock. I like what they’re doing with MMA and I think they have a lot of growth potential. Guess I’ll look through their financial statements 1st and make a decision then.

open season ends

Open season for choosing next years benefits just ended last week.

I chose the same elections as the year before, but I went with a higher Flexible Spending Account (FSA) amount. This will be my 3rd year using the FSA and am again increasing my contribution to it. One way or another, I’ve always ended up using the whole amount before year end. This year it was visits to the chiropractor, last year it was an extra dental visit or two. And there’s always all the over-the-counter medicines I purchase (thank you seasonal allergies and colds). An FSA is an account where you can set aside pre-tax dollars, taken from your paychecks throughout the year, to use for any eligible expenses not covered by your regular insurance. In my case, it’s for co-pays and otc drugs. I’m not too sure what else it can be used for. This deducted amount must be used within the year or it is forfeited. I like it since it’s taken pre-tax and I use the money anyway. The amount I’ve chosen isn’t an insanely high amount, so am sure that I’ll get to use all of it next year.

I work for a big Pharma company, so I think my insurance costs are low compared to that of people from other industries. As an employee, I get free prescriptions drugs (all drugs, not just the ones my company makes) and very affordable health and dental plans. There are even some programs that you can participate in to decrease the cost of insurance. The one I’m in has someone calling me every 4 months or so for about 15 minutes to discuss my health and health goals in exchange for a 20% discount and health advice. We aren’t offered the option of getting a Health Savings Account paired with a high deductible insurance plan. Actually, there’s no need for one as all the plans cost pretty much the same.

There are other cool benefits that you can choose from but haven’t had the chance to take advantage of. One of them is the financial planning plan and the other, the legal plan. It works like insurance, you pay a
premium to get service from providers, from fee-bsed financial planners and lawyers instead of healthcare professionals. Cool!

I also just rebalanced my 401K. I can do this at anytime during the year but aim to do it once during open house. A few years ago, I managed my different investment vehicles (401K, IRA, taxable) as completely separate portfolios, as though I had each of them for 3 different people, with numerous similarities in each. I’ve since changed my investing style. I’m still in the process of selling off my taxable investments and putting the proceeds in my ROTH IRA. My Roth is balanced to and complements my 401K, and I’ve reduced as many duplications as possible – such as not having a S&P 500 fund in both. Most of my investments are in index funds, my Roth has the International, Large Cap, and Small Cap index funds and my 401K has all the Mid Cap funds and a lifecycle fund.

Oh yeah!