Investing with @GuruEbby

This is just a quick overview of a recent purchase of stocks that I made over the past couple of weeks. I plan on expanding a bit more on each pick in later posts, but a few people are asking me about what I own in the market, and since I will soon have to disclose all my purchases, I might as well get started now. I am still trying to find a widget or something that I can put in this blog so those interested could track my portfolio in real time but I have been unsuccessful in finding one that does what I want. Until I find one, these little updates will have to do.

I recently purchased shares in four publicly traded companies in a quest to further diversify my portfolio. I still hold previously purchased shares in Under Armour, Take-Two Interactive, and Boston Beer Company. The four new companies I added to the mix are Wells Fargo, AMR Corporation, Pfizer, and Berkshire Hathaway (B). As previously written about, my holdings in Under Armour and Boston Beer have been moderately successful, and as such, my overall portfolio is currently up $63, or 2.42%. Not super great, but I am making some money, which isn’t too shabby.

As for my recent purchases, I will briefly discuss each purchase here and possibly delve in a little deeper in future posts as to what I expect from these stocks in the near- to long-term. Without further ado…

Wells Fargo (WFC): Purchased 15 shares at $26.69. It is currently the only recent purchase that is positive after the transaction fee. Though I am not a Wells Fargo customer, I purchased the stock because Wells Fargo has recently been a very strong bank, with a recent (within the past year) acquisition of Wachovia Bank. I was going back and forth between WFC and Bank of America (BAC), which would have been much cheaper, but I am not a fan of BoA in general, though I do have an account with them for my small little tax practice, but only because I couldn’t get a Wells Fargo account here. Upon my return to Utah, my business checking account will be moved to Wells Fargo.

AMR Corporation (AMR): Purchased 50 shares at $5.86. This purchase was kind of on a whim, and partially in support of my sister Jen since her husband works for AMR subsidiary American Eagle. There is possibly a spin-off in the future if American Eagle can continue to be profitable on its own. Might be a few years down the road though. I generally stay away from airline stocks, especially after my holding in Southwest Airlines (LUV) was beat up a bit a few months ago, so much that I abandoned the holding. I also purchased this particular stock because it was fairly cheap, though earnings per share are currently negative. In my opinion, however, it only has room to go up.

Pfizer (PFE): Purchased 20 shares at $20.96. Another whim, though backed with a hope that Pfizer will continue to move. I admit that I know next to nothing about pharmaceuticals, but I recently read an article stating that Pfizer is getting a bit too big to remain profitable in it’s current state, so they may spin off some of the more profitable pieces of the company within a year. If they do, it could mean ownership in some other companies. Also, Pfizer is also the one of two stocks that I currently hold that pays a dividend (Wells Fargo is the other), so that’s always a plus.

Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.B): Berkshire Hathaway is an outstanding company, and I’ve been wanting to buy a few shares for a while, so I finally purchased 5 shares at $75.47, a price that is a tad bit higher than I usually like to go. The company of Warren Buffett and Charlie Munger, Berkshire Hathaway is a holding company with vast holdings. The most recent large scale purchase was the purchase of Burlington North Santa Fe railroad last year. Investors in Berkshire Hathaway from the beginning are millionaires a few times over, and while I don’t think I will get there with my five shares, you never know. After all, after about 40 years, the BRK.A stock is in the low six figures PER SHARE! Luckily for me, I have 40 years or so.

That was just a brief rundown on my recent purchases. If you would like to know more about a particular purchase of mine, just leave a comment and I may address it in a future post. Again, like my other posts on investing, the discussion here is not necessarily a recommendation, and the purchasing of individual stocks is often much riskier than a mutual fund. You’ve been warned.

Until next time…