This is Shana's story. Or rather, it's the story of Shana, her father, and a confluence of real-life events that inspired a Fool. It begins innocently with a proposition:
Shana's dad has some money to invest but neither the time nor the expertise (or so he thinks) to do the job himself. He does, however, have a secret weapon -- a daughter who works at The Motley Fool. Could we help a father out?
This is your life
Long story short, Shana and her dad are going to invest some money. Over the next few months, we will gradually put $8,000 to work -- and here's the catch -- in a portfolio of stocks recommended in Motley Fool newsletters.
There's more to it, but before we go on, two quick but important points: First, this is a family affair between Shana and her father (we are not running money), and, second, you are not Shana's dad. What's right for him may be absolutely wrong for you. Onward.
In future columns, you'll hear more about our journey through back issues, performance scorecards, CEO interview transcripts, online discussions, and a whole lot more. But I'm writing today because Shana and her father finally bought a stock.
So how did she do it?
We pored over notebooks of newsletters. Then we scoured members-only websites. Frankly, we had a blast. I was surprised by one thing, however: how difficult it was to actually take the plunge and buy a recommended stock. But we did it.
Actually, Shana did -- choosing a top pick from Tom Gardner's Motley Fool Hidden Gems roster. This despite the stock being up more than 50% from its IPO in November 2003 and more than 25% since Tom first recommended it in July 2004. It helps, certainly, that Tom is convinced that it has room to run.
But like I said, buying wasn't easy. We thought long and hard about starting Daddy off with a more conservative value play -- one that pays a dividend. In fact, we very nearly narrowed our search to Merck
On the growth side, we poked around JetBlue
Are you looking for a home run?
But Shana's dad was clear: He was looking to build an aggressive stock portfolio. This put Tom Gardner and his Hidden Gems small-cap service right in the sweet spot. It stands to reason, after all, that tomorrow's big winners are smaller, underfollowed companies today.
You may even have heard of the restaurant chain we bought. The wings are hot, and they're popping up all over. Already, there are more than 250 locations nationwide. Yet with roughly 30% of existing locations in Ohio, there is plenty of room to grow into management's target of 1,000 restaurants.
Like most gems, the company is cash-rich, with nearly $50 million on a balance sheet that is debt-free. Management is another real strength, led by Chairman Kenneth Dahlberg, a great business success with a half-century of experience.
Before I tell you what we bought ...
You should know that I've heard my share of hot tips. This one guy I worked for was nuts for Harley-Davidson in the 1990s. I didn't buy it. Big mistake. A thousand bucks in Harley in 1990 would buy you a new V-Rod today -- and two more as gifts for the kids. That hurts.
I've never bought a restaurant stock, either ... or, come to think of it, even a retail stock. This is curious, given that I write often about Peter Lynch and have always been a fan of his notion of the consumer as portfolio manager.
So what gives? Well, like most investors coming up in the '90s, I was taken by new technologies and killer apps. I fretted right along with you over the comings and goings at Lucent
Meanwhile, I slept on some great consumer brands. Love 'em or hate 'em, Wal-Mart and Starbucks took over the world and made smart investors rich. Unassuming mall rats Pacific Sunwear and American Eagle Outfitters both are up on the order of 2,000% since hitting the markets in the early '90s.
Ouch. I bet Lynch loved all of these stocks, especially early in their growth phases. I have much more than a hunch that there is money to be made in simple retail concepts. Companies like Daddy's No. 1 pick.
What's in this for you
Shana's dad is an aggressive investor. You may not be. For balance, both Shana and I have opened portfolios of our own -- hers conservative, mine somewhere in the middle. Your needs likely fall somewhere else altogether, but we expect that there will be something here for almost everyone.
As for me, I love small caps. With so many big guns on board, the markets in big daily traders are just too darn efficient. A hot new restaurant concept, on the other hand, can creep higher and still have a lot of horse left when Wall Street (gradually) climbs on board. That's how I see it, anyway.
What's in it for you is this: With a little discipline, a certain knack, and a lot of hard work, you can beat the pros with individual stocks. And that's a lot.
What to do next?
But for all that, I hope you maintain a healthy respect for this rudderless market. More importantly, I hope you are serious about the prospects of independent stock research and of using it to get -- in the words of Peter Lynch -- one up on Wall Street.
But you are also right to wonder: Can you really make money using investment newsletters? Or, more specifically, can I? I say yes. But like all fair questions, this one is hard to answer and downright impossible with back tests. Turns out, investing really is like life -- best experienced in real time. So, here we go.
By the way, Daddy's No. 1 stock pick? It's called Buffalo Wild Wings.
Performance tracker
Meanwhile, I promised to keep you posted on Tom Gardner's progress. As of July 15, 2005, Hidden Gems recommendations are up an average 35.6%, versus 10.6% for the S&P 500 over the same period. As always, all picks and results are posted on the Hidden Gems website. (You can view it with a free trial.)
To find out what else Tom likes right now, you can take a special 30-day free trial to Hidden Gems. I hate to sound like a cheerleader, but it really is a painless way to find out whether a newsletter is right for you. Click here to give it a shot.
This commentary was originally published on Dec. 3, 2004. It has been updated.
Fool writer Paul Elliott owns none of the stocks mentioned recommendations. The Motley Fool is investors writing for investors and maintains strict trading guidelines for employees. Merck is a Motley Fool Income Investor recommendation. Anheuser-Busch is a Motley Fool Inside Value recommendation. Electronic Arts and JetBlue are Motley Fool Stock Advisor recommendations. See the Fool's disclosure policyhere.
