Halloween 2003 Returns

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Oh, what a tangled web we wove in last year's Halloween special. Our writers tossed a number of different kinds of companies in the cauldron, and the results went from delicious to frightening.

We were pounded for our optimism on Marvel (NYSE: MVL) and Krispy Kreme (NYSE: KKD), both Motley Fool Stock Advisor recommendations. We were rewarded handsomely for our pessimism on AMR (NYSE: AMR). Yahoo! (Nasdaq: YHOO) and Whole Foods (Nasdaq: WFMI) beat us to a pulp too by rising while we thought they'd go down, which offers up as good a warning as any about shorting: You can lose more than 100% of your money, so be careful.

Overall, the market has treaded mostly sideways since last Halloween, the Nasdaq eking out a 0.89% gain while the S&P 500 picked up about 6.27% -- well below its historical annual average of about 10%.

Remember, as always, our Halloween picks are meant to be informed fun. Just as you don't go trick-or-treating to every house in the neighborhood, not every stock is for everyone either. Always keep your larger investment goals in mind before plunking down your money on individual securities.

We have twice as many Tricks and Treats this year, so hopefully there's something tasty for everyone.

Long (Treats):

Company	10/27/2003	10/22/2004	Return
Marvel (NYSE: MVL)	$18.63	$13.85	-25.66%
Krispy Kreme (NYSE: KKD)	$41.98	$10.70	-74.51%

Short (Tricks):

Company	Price 10/27/2003	Price 10/22/2004	Return
Yahoo (Nasdaq: YHOO)	$20.58	$34.96	-69.87%
AMR (NYSE: AMR)	$12.90	$6.52	+49.46%
Whole Foods (Nasdaq: WFMI)	$60.15	$82.09	-37.50%

Indexes:

	10/27/2003	10/22/2004	Return
S&P 500	1031.13	1095.74	+6.27%
Nasdaq	1898.07	1915.14	+0.89%

2004's Motley Fool Tricks and Treats:

• Intro
• Google: A Googlish Trick
• Blue Nile: A Foolish Treat
• Trump: A Ghoulish Trick
• Abercrombie & Fitch: A Foolish Treat
• Intel: A Ghoulish Trick
• eSpeed: A Foolish Treat
• Blockbuster: A Ghoulish Trick
• John Deere: A Foolish Treat
• Xybernaut: A Ghoulish Trick
• Regis: A Foolish Treat
• Attack of the Killer Fees: A Scary Story
• Halloween 2003 Returns

The Motley Ghoul's Tricks or Treats represent the opinions of each Fool only and should in no way be taken as the opinion of either The Motley Fool, Inc. or any company in question, or as representative of anyone or anything other than that specific Fool's thoughts. So do your homework, and review The Motley Fool's disclosure policy.