What happened this morning?
I woke late to find I’d missed a chance to buy NYSE:BP under $30/share. I almost went to work without making a purchase. But anxiety subsided and I bought in at $31.22. This holding is in addition to my investment club strengthening their position this morning at $29.78.
Why did I finally buy?
1. I spend too much of my life learning and planning and not enough doing. I’m more often guilty of over-analyzing than of being hasty. In this case, it was time to get into the game, and I’ll learn my lessons along with the emotional roller-coaster that is sure to follow.
2. I’m not a day trader. Having missed a $1 discount because of a day change should not affect my one-year returns significantly.
3. I’d made up my mind the night before and my morning apprehensions were emotionally fueled.
What’s the worst that can happen?
It’s possible BP is “playing nice” publicly while selling off and hiding as many assets as possible in expectation of an eventual bankruptcy. In this case, my money will have disappeared entirely. Assuming they don’t go bankrupt, I expect the be in the green and receiving dividends again by 2012.
“BP continues to dominate the sector and the political arena, agreeing to set up a $20 billion escrow fund to pay claims in the largest oil spill in U.S. history. Shares remain volatile, falling and then rebounding. Steve Gelsi reports.”
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