Sold CLCT

My previous post included the following quote:

I seldom have money in my investment accounts that's not already at work.

Well, for once, this is not the case.  Friday morning one of my stocks sold, albeit on auto-pilot.

When I purchased Collectors Universe, Inc.(NASDAQ:CLCT) a couple of months ago I put in a sell order for $18.15 a share, almost immediately.  I had purchased 230 shares at $15.921 each.  A sell order for $18.15 was, shall we say, optimistic.

I can't remember exactly how I arrived at that figure.  CLCT hadn't been above $18 since early 2005.  I had no inkling as to when or if it would go that high again.  I seem to remember picking a number that would be a good sell price PLUS include all the dividends it would pay in either a quarter or two.  If it didn't go above $18.15 then I would make dividend money for a while.  If it did go that high, though, then I would probably be just as happy to sell it as keep it.

Well, I got lucky again.  During the day on Friday CLCT went from $17.96 to $18.75 and then finished the day back down slightly at $17.92 a share.  TD Ameritrade sold it for me at $18.20, actually.  

My profit was nearly 13.75%  after all was said and done, and it was an investment that lasted just under 2 months.  Let me just say:  I feel pretty good about making a profit of nearly 14% in two months.

I thought very seriously about NOT placing that sell order a couple of months ago.  CLCT pays awesome dividends and can actually afford to do so.  If I hadn't placed that sell order then I would surely would have made the same profit, but if I had only profited through dividends then it would have taken 10 times as long.

Anyway, enough gloating.  The point is that for once I actually sold a stock without knowing how I'm going to turn around and invest the money from the sale.  This is unusual.

For now I've placed an order for some shares of Verizon Communications Inc.(NYSE:VZ), but it will only go through if VZ goes below $46.53 a share.  I don't think that's likely to happen, but in case it does, the order is in.  Really I expect that order to sit there, unfulfilled, until another opportunity presents itself to me.

If CLCT goes below $16.25 then I'll probably invest in it again.  I suspect I'll make more money from its price fluctuations, quarter-to quarter, than I would from its dividends.  This is a new strategy for me, and it deserves its own post.  I'll try to find the time to write it up properly.  But not right now.