Post: #1

Just received an email from the Crowdability guys ... if you had gotten into UBER on Angellist.co - a different angel initiative - 36 months ago every $1k invested is now approx. $4 Million+ and UBER not yet public (iirc min was $10K to get in). The success of UBER from an initial crowd funding has traditional VCs sweating bullets - VCs no longer able to demand Shark Tank terms of 33% of every company that exhibits traction. Now more like 1% to 5%.

With the Fed rumbling about increasing interest rates from 0.1% to 0.25% they have global stock markets quaking if the indexed ETF's and traditional stocks might nose dive as a result. That is how fragile the current bull market is.

Point is the key to early stage Private Stock Investing is traction (emerging discipline of crowd investing now that SEC finally getting around to promulgating actual regulations) - most of us know of UBER and many have used it - I use it almost exclusively now in Metro Boston and SoNH especially if I have had any drinks - therefore UBER now has mega traction and generated incredible wealth creation in just 36 months. What will be the next UBER mega Private Stock Market hit? NOTE These guys are clearly up selling some sort of subscription that will not be cheap. If it is reasonable I may subscribe.

My goal would be to share their picks as they come up and then collaborate with other forum members to see if the service or products of the new picked companies have any merit and more importantly traction - would it be something you use or buy? A great acid test. As RVF frowns on any cut and paste promos send me a PM if any interest in this.

Keep her deep - diver out.

P.S. Looks like it will be a series of 4 promotional "lessons" so like I said PM me for the links.

DISCLAIMER I get NO affiliate remuneration from this - just curious of the crowd testing potential of new picks to see if they will really have any traction and be the next big hit or not as I know forum members are not shy about their opinions.

Post: #2

Just a quick question. Did the crowd ability guys call out uber as a potential investment? Or did they just use it as an example? I wonder what the track record is.

Post: #3

Cool site thanks for posting that I'm checking it out right now. A while back I was trying to invest in "O Pen" they make the hash oil cartridges that are really popular. They actually had a section on their site htey were seeking investors but nobody ever got back to me.

Post: #4

What no one interested in crowd testing Crowdability's up coming "Private Stock Market" picks?

If I get enough interest I would post the picks for everyone here to test and then get the RVF crowd opinion if it is a must or bust pick.

P.S. I was the one calling out Uber... Angelist.co now flooded with VCs and crap - When I joined it was like 750 members now over 70,000 so Crowdability's value add is looking at the traction and upside growth potential because most entrepreneurs blow smoke about how they are the next Steve Jobs, Apple or Instagram whereas them as can do and don't say much about it - by the time insteragram's traction exploded Zuckerberg snapped them up for a cool $1B was not much of a private offering even - I think a few VCs jumped on board just before Zuck and then bam facebook sucked them up like a hoover.

My idea is simple - let the pros filter the picks and then test them with the RVFers who have pretty well defined bull shite detectors ironically due to the study of game.

Any way the IT Contract P.O. I was waiting on got approved and I will be hustling 16 hour days till it ends end of April so will try to check in at least once a week.

Post: #5

(03-25-2015 11:17 AM)Deepdiver Wrote:  What no one interested in crowd testing Crowdability's up coming "Private Stock Market" picks?

If I get enough interest I would post the picks for everyone here to test and then get the RVF crowd opinion if it is a must or bust pick.

P.S. I was the one calling out Uber... Angelist.co now flooded with VCs and crap - When I joined it was like 750 members now over 70,000 so Crowdability's value add is looking at the traction and upside growth potential because most entrepreneurs blow smoke about how they are the next Steve Jobs, Apple or Instagram whereas them as can do and don't say much about it - by the time insteragram's traction exploded Zuckerberg snapped them up for a cool $1B was not much of a private offering even - I think a few VCs jumped on board just before Zuck and then bam facebook sucked them up like a hoover.

My idea is simple - let the pros filter the picks and then test them with the RVFers who have pretty well defined bull shite detectors ironically due to the study of game.

Any way the IT Contract P.O. I was waiting on got approved and I will be hustling 16 hour days till it ends end of April so will try to check in at least once a week.

Since this post popped up the other day and introduced me to these sites I've been checking out crowdability and also ourcrowd. I have a lot of interest in this and have some money to throw at a longshot.

I'm skeptical like you said though. I'm not sure how the equity crowdfunding is in terms of being vetted vs stuff like kickstarter but you hear about people throwing up potatoe salad making on kickstarter making 40k. I think alot of people don't even have a real business just throw something up hoping some people give them money and that's basically their whole business is getting in investory money to basically pilfer for themself so I'd be interested in hearing other RVF members to help detect some bullshit and scams.

I'll keep my eye on this thread as I'm very itnerested.

Post: #6

Private investing is a great way to get fucked. It's very easy for pre IPO companies to manipulate valuations and mess with shareholder equity. Unless you're continuing to provide value to the companies you're involved with (e.g. source of future funding or some critical contribution to their business) I'd stay out of it.

Post: #7

Don't you still have to be an accredited investor? 250 k income, 2 milli networth?

Post: #8

In Canada it's 1 Million Net Financial Assets or 200k income in both of the last 2 years from what I recall. In the US it appears to be the effectively the same definition based on the following link.

http://www.accreditedinvestormarkets.com...efinition/

It sounds great but at the same time it sounds like a great way to get screwed unless you put in a serious amount of due diligence.

There is 1 problem I see with this method of raising funds.

1) Manipulation / bullshit companies which will run high and dry with your money which in turn will lead to people losing faith in the method.

It's a great idea but I wouldn't invest in a business without the stringent regulations public securities have to pass through unless I could meet with management first and perform a lot of due diligence.

Post: #9

If you're making that kind of money, it's a different game.

WIA

(03-25-2015 06:48 PM)lavidaloca Wrote:  In Canada it's 1 Million Net Financial Assets or 200k income in both of the last 2 years from what I recall. In the US it appears to be the effectively the same definition based on the following link.

http://www.accreditedinvestormarkets.com...efinition/

It sounds great but at the same time it sounds like a great way to get screwed unless you put in a serious amount of due diligence.

There is 1 problem I see with this method of raising funds.

1) Manipulation / bullshit companies which will run high and dry with your money which in turn will lead to people losing faith in the method.

It's a great idea but I wouldn't invest in a business without the stringent regulations public securities have to pass through unless I could meet with management first and perform a lot of due diligence.

Post: #10

I gave it a look, but it looks like total BS (99%). Id rather wait until Goldman Sachs vets them (ala Uber), invest in a VC fund (couple publicly traded ones around) or actually know the scene.

Investing like this is like lighting $ on fire.

Post: #11

(03-26-2015 01:43 AM)DVY Wrote:  I gave it a look, but it looks like total BS (99%). Id rather wait until Goldman Sachs vets them (ala Uber), invest in a VC fund (couple publicly traded ones around) or actually know the scene.

Investing like this is like lighting $ on fire.

There's a ton of discussion about the Wall-Streetification of the Silicon Valley.

Outside of SV, and outside of the internet, there's still tons of money to be made in start ups. But internet/computer stuff gets the most press.

WIA

Post: #12

If you want VC-exposure to the developing world, why not invest in Softbank. Its also trading at a 12 P/E and has ginormous equity in Alibaba, Gungho, and the Clash of Clans company. You make profit and get a lotto ticket too.

Goldman structured the Uber deal very smart. You get preferred stock paying 3-12% dividends (year 1- 3%; year 4 or more 12%) that converts into shares that are guaranteed to be 4-5 dollars below IPO price.

There are some closed end VC fund that are publicly traded. Some have huge exposure to Uber/Lyft/Airbnb at early stage investments.

Why buy the lotto ticket when you can buy a basket of lotto tickets or a company that makes real $ and has a track-record of good picking.

I know this will end in tears for most. Hype is not equal to reality. So I feel obligated to give my 2c. Think downside before you think upside

Post: #13

It's pretty much a wild west out there, I'm not too confident/interested in investing into venture investment funds and private companies.

Post: #14

Just did a bit of research to update anyone interested in "crowdfunding" and to check current status of the Jobs Act which introduced provisions for equity crowd funding have not yet been finalized by the SEC.

There are currently two types of crowd funding in concept Equity Participation i.e. private stock market crowd funding AngelList.co, Crowdability et. al. and non equity free markets crowd funding for example indiegogo, gofundme, kickstarter etc..

Status of Equity Crowd Funding in the JOBS Act:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jumpstart_O...artups_Act

There are a lot of criticisms and politics involved with this JOBS act and bottom line the net effect is no funding yet and no net new jobs since it was signed into law by President Barack Obama on April 5, 2012. As of December 26, 2014 this is the latest news "The Securities and Exchange Commission recently released a rulemaking agenda revealing that it plans to finalize the Title III Equity Crowdfunding rules and the Title IV Regulation A+ rules from the JOBS Act by October 2015. Given that these rules will then require 60 days to be published in the federal register and become law, it appears likely that the earliest date small businesses will be able to utilize these JOBS Act provisions to raise capital will be the beginning of 2016."

In an open meeting 25 March 2015, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) elected to approve and release the long-awaited final rules for Title IV of the JOBS Act (commonly referred to as Regulation A+). Per the final rules, under Regulation A+ companies will be permitted to offer and sell up to $50 million of securities to the general public subject to certain eligibility, disclosure and reporting requirements

Private No Equity Participation Crowd Funding:

Some dramatic successes have been noted lately with small teams offering Products and or Services with "perks" that do not offer any equity participation since the final rules above have not been approved and released by the SEC.

Ironically indiegogo places the least amount of hurdles in the way of persons or teams seeking funding and takes a reasonable fee of funds raised and as a result has really been catching fire lately (as of Sunday 29 March 2015):

https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/flow-...ur-beehive

A father and Son team in Australia invent a better Bee Hive to help make beekeeping much easier and less labor intensive with the effect of introducing many more people to bee keeping with a goal of helping to reverse bee colony collapse syndrome a major threat to agriculture. This has been the single most successful indiegogo crowd funding in its history.

Funding Goal was $70,000 USD - Funds raised to date $7,626,883.00 USD with 7 more days to run in the campaign with "Perks" in the range of $30 USD to $600 USD for a complete "flow hive".

https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/sondo...ctric-bike

Funding Goal was $75,000 USD - Funds raised to date $4,511,937.00 USD with 4 more days to run in the campaign with "Perks" in the range of $646 USD for one bike to $2,596 USD for four bike.

https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/protonmail

Web Browsers based secure and private Email "Cloud SaaS".

Funding Goal was $100,000 USD - Funds raised to date $550,337.00 campaign in now closed and there is a waiting list to get a [email protected] account. "Perks" in the range of $7 USD to be a "supporter" to $8,191 USD to be a ProtonMail "Sponsor". Note that the ProtonMail web site is quite transparent - not a big supporter of Google, MSN, Yahoo etc email and indicates that they have since raised over $2,000,000.00 from Charles River Ventures and a Swiss Based innovation fund. Basic email accounts free and extra storage to be charged $5 a month to monetize the platform costs.

Point is the Equity Crowd Funding envisioned by the JOBS act has been stonewalled whereas the NO Equity private crowd funding for Perks industry is booming with a product price point for quality physical products up to $600.00+ an average price point most retailers would die for. The price point for web services/apps/software is much lower but with huge bases of iPhone and Android and PC users much more scalable.

How many people use smart phones, tablets and PCs versus raise Bees or ride Electric bicycles.

The downside is you can buy a perk (Product and or Service) in No Equity Crowdfunding campaigns since the success formula is pre-selling a developed product or service. How ever at this time there is no legal way to participate in these teams success unless you are a qualified investor or VC fund.

JOBS act has been stonewalled now for 3 years. Will be interesting to see how this turns out moving forward.

Post: #15

As promised Crowdability Weekly Digest: 13 New Start-Up Investments:

Purpose is to flush out the duds and find the next hi flyers like Uber early. Basically compaines who's products and services you would use on a regular basis.

Weekly Digest: 13 New Start-Up Investments

Crowdability

Deals for March 30, 2015

To ensure proper delivery of crowdability, please add [email protected] to your address book.

Used by angels, VCs, corporate M&A, buy-side and wealth management teams, crowdability is the industry's most comprehensive daily roundup of companies seeking to raise capital through securities-based crowdfunding.


Latest Opportunities


Kuhcoon

Kuhcoon
Kuhcoon
Santa Clara, CA

Advertising Automation and Optimization

Social Media Marketing, Big Data, Advertising, Digital Media

RAISING: ?


Powellmahoney

Powellmahoney
Powell & Mahoney
Salem, MA

Non-Alcoholic Mixers

Beverage

RAISING:
$1,000,000

Veestro

Veestro
Veestro
Los Angeles, CA

Vegetarian Meal Delivery

E-commerce, Food

RAISING:
$300,000

Hickies

Hickies
HICKIES
New York, NY

Responsive Shoelaces

Apparel, Sporting goods

RAISING:
$250,000


Ecologicsolutions

Ecologicsolutions
EcoLogic Solutions
Mountain View, CA

Eco Friendly Cleaning

Household cleaners

RAISING:
$500,000


Bellesorganics

Bellesorganics
Belles Organics
Rydal, GA

Organic Alcoholic Beverages

Beverage

RAISING:
$1,572,093



Acustom

Acustom
Acustom Apparel
New York, NY

Custom Fit Clothing

Retail, Apparel

RAISING:
$100,000



Bstriker

Bstriker
BStriker
Amsterdam, Netherlands

Social Software Testing

Internet, Tech Startup

RAISING:


Johanson3

Johanson3
Johanson3
Pennsauken Township, NJ

Folding Electric Scooters

Transportation, Consumer Technology, Tech Startup

RAISING:
$2,800,000



Pingtank

Pingtank
PingTank
Los Angeles, CA

Instagram with Animation

Apps, Internet, Tech Startup

RAISING:
$1,000,000


Banter

Banter
Banter
San Francisco, CA

The Waze for Nightlife

Consumer Internet, Mobile, Advertising, Tech Startup

RAISING:
$200,000


Ubimo

Ubimo
Ubimo
Tel Aviv, Israel

Mobile Marketing Platform

Tech Startup, Mobile Advertising

RAISING:
$3,360,000


Biscience

Biscience
BIScience
Tel Aviv, Israel

Comptetitive Analysis Software

Big Data Analytics, Software

RAISING:
$1,400,000

Post: #16

(03-31-2015 03:10 PM)Deepdiver Wrote:  As promised Crowdability Weekly Digest: 13 New Start-Up Investments:

Purpose is to flush out the duds and find the next hi flyers like Uber early. Basically compaines who's products and services you would use on a regular basis.

Weekly Digest: 13 New Start-Up Investments

Crowdability

Deals for March 30, 2015

To ensure proper delivery of crowdability, please add [email protected] to your address book.

Used by angels, VCs, corporate M&A, buy-side and wealth management teams, crowdability is the industry's most comprehensive daily roundup of companies seeking to raise capital through securities-based crowdfunding.


Latest Opportunities


Kuhcoon

Kuhcoon
Kuhcoon
Santa Clara, CA

Advertising Automation and Optimization

Social Media Marketing, Big Data, Advertising, Digital Media

RAISING: ?


Powellmahoney

Powellmahoney
Powell & Mahoney
Salem, MA

Non-Alcoholic Mixers

Beverage

RAISING:
$1,000,000

Veestro

Veestro
Veestro
Los Angeles, CA

Vegetarian Meal Delivery

E-commerce, Food

RAISING:
$300,000

Hickies

Hickies
HICKIES
New York, NY

Responsive Shoelaces

Apparel, Sporting goods

RAISING:
$250,000


Ecologicsolutions

Ecologicsolutions
EcoLogic Solutions
Mountain View, CA

Eco Friendly Cleaning

Household cleaners

RAISING:
$500,000


Bellesorganics

Bellesorganics
Belles Organics
Rydal, GA

Organic Alcoholic Beverages

Beverage

RAISING:
$1,572,093



Acustom

Acustom
Acustom Apparel
New York, NY

Custom Fit Clothing

Retail, Apparel

RAISING:
$100,000



Bstriker

Bstriker
BStriker
Amsterdam, Netherlands

Social Software Testing

Internet, Tech Startup

RAISING:


Johanson3

Johanson3
Johanson3
Pennsauken Township, NJ

Folding Electric Scooters

Transportation, Consumer Technology, Tech Startup

RAISING:
$2,800,000



Pingtank

Pingtank
PingTank
Los Angeles, CA

Instagram with Animation

Apps, Internet, Tech Startup

RAISING:
$1,000,000


Banter

Banter
Banter
San Francisco, CA

The Waze for Nightlife

Consumer Internet, Mobile, Advertising, Tech Startup

RAISING:
$200,000


Ubimo

Ubimo
Ubimo
Tel Aviv, Israel

Mobile Marketing Platform

Tech Startup, Mobile Advertising

RAISING:
$3,360,000


Biscience

Biscience
BIScience
Tel Aviv, Israel

Comptetitive Analysis Software

Big Data Analytics, Software

RAISING:
$1,400,000

Quick question, are these ones you recommend or are you just listing the new opportunities? was hoping for some commentary on your thoughts on various opportunities

Post: #17

The above are the ones I am looking at using Crowdability as an initial screen...

Thinking about this new ETF as I have a PhD friend in bio med devices that has done quite well seems a smart way to diversify across many early stage healthcare opps... basically a bit pissed off that the JOBS act has been anything but with the SEC being foot draggers (Due to Wall Street opposition) on releasing the final crowd investor rules.

FYI:

The Secret Way to Profit from Obamacare
By: Matthew Milner

Right before our eyes, The JOBS Act is changing how America invests.

This new set of U.S. laws is allowing people to pool their money together online and invest in promising start-ups.

It’s a concept called “crowdfunding."

Initially, the websites that facilitated crowdfunding focused on technology start-ups.

Then, sites started to emerge that offered you more specialized investment opportunities – from Food & Beverage products to Real Estate.

And now, a site has decided to specialize in one of the most profitable sectors on the globe…

A Natural for Specialization

The sector I’m referring to is the $2.5 trillion market for healthcare, bio-tech and life sciences.

This market has been on a run lately. In the past 12 months alone, for example, the NASDAQ Biotechnology Index (NBI) has risen by more than 46%.

And given major trends like Obamacare and a population of aging Baby Boomers, more growth is likely to be on the way.

But investing in this sector is complex, especially when you’re investing in early-stage companies.

To succeed, you need someone looking out for you – someone who has an understanding of such areas as:
•The latest medical research
•The FDA approval process
•And government healthcare policy

Finding someone with this detailed knowledge is hard enough – and even if you found them, why would they share their investment ideas with you?

But today, thanks to The JOBS Act – and thanks to a specialized crowdfunding website – this dilemma has been solved. Let me explain...

Poliwogg

Poliwogg is a crowdfunding site specializing in early-stage healthcare and bio-tech.

Its CEO, Gregory Simon, has a wealth of knowledge in this sector covering everything from healthcare policy to Research & Development (“R&D”).

Simon’s been a senior executive at Pfizer, the pharmaceutical company, as well as a healthcare entrepreneur.

And as a member of Congress and the White House, Simon has experience overseeing healthcare initiatives at the National Institutes of Health, the National Cancer Institute, and the FDA.

Normally, a professional like Simon would get recruited by a hedge fund or venture fund to help them find and evaluate new deals.

But Simon’s decided to go to work for YOU instead...

Investment Opportunities For ALL

Poliwogg connects private, early-stage companies with investors like you.

For example, if you register for Poliwogg, you’ll see a bio-tech company called GLG Pharma that’s raising capital. With its STAT3-focused therapeutic solution, GLG is on the cutting edge of cancer therapy.

At the moment, however, the U.S. government only allows “accredited” investors to invest in these private deals. (An accredited investor has at least $1 million net worth or $200k in salary.)

A few months from now, it’s expected that non-accredited investors will be able to invest in private deals, too – but that doesn’t help you today.

We realize that this is disappointing to many of you, and so does Simon.

Which is why Poliwogg recently launched an investment option for all investors...

Early-Stage Bio-tech ETF

It’s an exchange-traded fund called the ALPS Medical Breakthroughs ETF (NYSE: SBIO).

Since it trades on a stock exchange, any investor with a brokerage account can invest in it.

It’s the first ETF to focus specifically on bio-tech and pharmaceutical companies that are at the R&D stage.

The Fund tracks the performance of Poliwogg’s Medical Breakthroughs Index SM. The index consists of 75 small to mid-cap pharma and bio-tech stocks that are listed on U.S. stock exchanges, and have at least one drug in Phase II or Phase III U.S. FDA clinical trials.

Compared to their peers, these 75 companies have a greater focus on R&D. In fact, they spend 29% more on R&D than firms in the NASDAQ Biotechnology Index.

Why is that so important?

Because as a 2013 report from Goldman Sachs revealed ("The Search for Creative Destruction”), companies with strong R&D spending also enjoy the best stock returns.

Simply put, with the ALPS Medical Breakthroughs ETF, investors get exposure to a diversified set of early-stage bio-tech companies that have already made progress.

To us, that sounds like a smart investment.

Hear From Poliwogg’s CEO

Poliwogg’s management team has strong sector knowledge and deep connections to government and industry.

This gives it an advantage in identifying and vetting healthcare start-ups, and in understanding the market potential of a new drug or medical device.

Equally as important, Poliwogg’s sharp focus means that – when the time is right – it’ll know where to go to secure a key partnership or additional funding on behalf of a start-up, or how to help it create a merger or sale.

We’re impressed with Greg Simon – and we were excited when he recently agreed to sit down with us for an exclusive interview.

In the interview, Greg reveals how to profit from soaring healthcare costs, and why now is such an opportune time to be a bio-tech investor.

We hope you enjoy the interview.

You can listen to it here »

http://www.crowdability.com/article/deta...#interview

Please note: Crowdability has no financial relationship with Poliwogg, SBIO, or Greg Simon. We’re an independent provider of education, information and research on start-ups and alternative investments.

Happy Investing

Matthew Milner
Founder
Crowdability

###

DEEPDIVER's opinion:

My PhD friends best success has been from tracking FDA approval processes - at best he can keep an eye on a dozen or so opps and he will invest a small amount say a hundred shares to keep the stock on his radar screen and then follows their FDA approval processes... and then back up the truck on the ones that give him FDA tingles - if an FDA approval milestone is delayed he then dumps out - kind of risky - a biotech correction in 2014 now makes the sector a contrarian's option. This Polliwog index and the associated SBIO ETF track's the top 75 R&D emerging bio stocks - imnsho a good way to filter for FDA approval "pop opps". Again this is just my opinion. I just moved into a loft studio and will be looking to build new construction while working my Cyber Security contracts so not much time to research stocks but do like Crowdability who do share real actionable info like this bio stock ETF and the Polliwog Index (While we all wait for the foot dragging SEC to actually take JOBS ACTion.)

Post: #18

Instead of Too big to Fail BofA - I bought a subscription to the Oxford Communique Stock Analysis newsletter and this BB&T looks interesting:

Tuesday, May 26, 2015

BB&T: The Best Way to Play Rising Interest Rates

Alexander Green, Chief Investment Strategist, The Oxford Club
Alexander Green Dear Michael Russo,

It's not unusual to hear people complain today that their bank deposits earn next to nothing.

Indeed, the Fed's ultra-low interest rate policy is rewarding borrowers at the expense of savers. But there is a way to fight back. You can own a bank - or at least a fractional interest in one.

Here's why you should...

The U.S. economy is finally picking up steam. The Labor Department recently reported that employers added 223,000 jobs in April. The unemployment rate fell to 5.4%, a near-seven-year low. The number of jobless claims hit a 15-year low.

Wage growth is up. And job creation in the service sector is particularly strong. That sector accounts for approximately 80% of American jobs.

Lower prices at the pump are giving consumers more spending power. And so is the strong dollar. It not only keeps inflation down. It also makes imports - from French wine to Japanese flat panels to Brazilian coffee - less expensive for U.S. consumers.

These positives are why Fed Chair Janet Yellen said the central bank remains on track to raise rates later this year. And that is good news indeed for healthy banks.

Stronger growth and rising rates will boost banks' earnings by allowing them to widen the spread between the interest they charge on loans and what they pay for deposits.

BB&T (NYSE: BBT) will be a prime beneficiary.

BB&T is a Fortune 500 company whose origins date back to the aftermath of the Civil War. Its 1,839 branches are in the Carolinas, Virginia, West Virginia, Georgia, Tennessee, Maryland, Florida, Alabama, Indiana, Texas, Kentucky, Ohio and Washington, D.C.

In the last 15 years, BB&T has acquired dozens of community banks and thrifts, 85 insurance agencies and 32 nonbank financial services companies. More acquisitions are on the way.

The man behind the phenomenal success of BB&T was John Allison, an extraordinarily capable CEO. He presided over BB&T's storied transformation into one of the nation's largest and best-performing financial services companies.

Allison retired at the end of 2008, but his legacy lives on through current Chairman and CEO Kelly King.

I estimate BB&T will earn $2.84 a share this year and $3.55 in 2016. Yet despite these strong numbers, the bank is cheap at 14 times earnings and less than 1.3 times book value. The shares also yield 2.8%. And that dividend will increase with earnings in the next few quarters.

Just how healthy is this bank? Our shares are up 117% in our Oxford Trading Portfolio.

BB&T is moving closer to a new all-time high while Bank of America, by comparison, is still 70% below its pre-crisis high.

How is this possible?

Unlike the big money center banks, BB&T didn't package toxic mortgages into securities and sell them to mom-and-pop investors. It never got bogged down in Greek debt or trading losses from "the London Whale." Since its founding in 1872, BB&T has always operated conservatively.

A strengthening economy, regional expansion, new acquisitions, strong asset quality, greater efficiencies and a solid capital position will allow BB&T to keep bolstering earnings in the months ahead.

The shares remain attractive at current levels.

Good investing,

Alex

New Portfolio Highs for the Week

Oxford Trading Portfolio
WisdomTree Japan Small Cap (NYSE: DFJ); Illumina (Nasdaq: ILMN); The WhiteWave Foods Company (NYSE: WWAV); Luxottica Group (NYSE: LUX); BB&T (NYSE: BBT); Sovran Self Storage (NYSE: SSS)

All-Star Portfolio
No New Highs

The Gone Fishin' Portfolio
Vanguard Total Stock Market Index (VTSMX)

Post: #19

My issue with these stock pick type newsletters or subscriptions is this - if someone really had great information, wouldn't they keep it to themselves? And if the information isn't great, then it is basically public, and the trading price of the stock already reflects the information available to the market.

I have an average understanding of investing and financial matters so I could well be wrong.

My general perspective is that unless you have insider information, you are just gambling, and are best off picking index funds. No one beats the market consistently (i.e. quarter after quarter for 3 to 5 years or more) unless they are cheating or rigging the game.

Post: #20

(05-26-2015 06:52 PM)VolandoVengoVolandoVoy Wrote:  My issue with these stock pick type newsletters or subscriptions is this - if someone really had great information, wouldn't they keep it to themselves? And if the information isn't great, then it is basically public, and the trading price of the stock already reflects the information available to the market.

I have an average understanding of investing and financial matters so I could well be wrong.

My general perspective is that unless you have insider information, you are just gambling, and are best off picking index funds. No one beats the market consistently (i.e. quarter after quarter for 3 to 5 years or more) unless they are cheating or rigging the game.

That perspective shows a lack of self belief imo. I've done it however not in large sums of money (20k +) . Its true your analysis that news that is public knowledge is reflected and that people who have information would more than likely keep it to themselves as it would put them at risk if they just told people .
You still however can react to how people already reacted and anticipate and work on that . or (speaking from experience) get to know some women and you might run into a trophy wife of a VP of a company. who may or may not want to tell you her husband publicly traded company will double in a month as a reward for bringing satisfaction to her life.

Post: #21

(05-27-2015 10:07 PM)Ibagemyoutagem Wrote:  That perspective shows a lack of self belief imo. I've done it however not in large sums of money (20k +) . Its true your analysis that news that is public knowledge is reflected and that people who have information would more than likely keep it to themselves as it would put them at risk if they just told people .
You still however can react to how people already reacted and anticipate and work on that . or (speaking from experience) get to know some women and you might run into a trophy wife of a VP of a company. who may or may not want to tell you her husband publicly traded company will double in a month as a reward for bringing satisfaction to her life.

Your perspective shows a lack of connection to reality IMHO.

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/03/15/your-m...-zero.html

Quote:I wrote about the initial findings of that study last summer. It is called “Does Past Performance Matter? The Persistence Scorecard,” and it is conducted by S.&P. Dow Jones Indices twice a year. The edition of the study that I focused on began in March 2009, the start of the bull market.

It included 2,862 broad, actively managed domestic stock mutual funds that were in operation for the 12 months through 2010. The S.&P. Dow Jones team winnowed the funds based on performance. It selected the 25 percent of funds with the best returns over those 12 months — and then asked how many of those funds actually remained in the top quarter in each of the four succeeding 12-month periods through March 2014.

The answer was remarkably low: two.

Just two funds — the Hodges Small Cap fund and the AMG SouthernSun Small Cap fund — managed to hold on to their berths in the top quarter every year for five years running. And for the 2,862 funds as a whole, that record is even a little worse than you would have expected from random chance alone.

In other words, if all of the managers of the 2,862 funds hadn’t bothered to try to pick stocks at all — if they had merely flipped coins — they would, as a group, probably have produced better numbers. Instead of two funds at the end of five years, basic probability theory tells us there should have been three. (If you’re curious, I explained how the math works in a subsequent column, “Heads or Tails? Either Way, You Might Beat a Stock Picker.”

Post: #22

A little bit more discussion about crowdfunding - since the SEC has decided to foot drag on the Jobs Act which allows large numbers of small investors to invest small amounts for Equity shares - which the Wall Street keepers of the Equity Offering keys HATE and have lobbied against like mad men... thus the NO Jobs Act. Got to love the SJWs if it sounds good pass a law then drag your feet.

I have therefore done a deep dive into Crowdfunding via the likes of KickStarter and IndieGoGo...

Turns out donation and perks buying crowd funding (vs Equity Sharing) with advanced products sales against proven prototypes or services has raised some MEGA CASH with NO equity given up by the founders... I am looking at various ways of raising funding via these no equity methods and the Video pitch seems to be the key with a working production prototype or live service. One caution is not to sell so many widgets that it takes you a year or more to deliver - can and has caused class action law suits...

That said links to the largest Crowd Fundings to Date - biggest money on Kick Starter and Indiegogo...

KickStarter focuses on products (Patented or Patents Pending) ready to ramp up to full production and tends to weed out the "my cat needs surgery" fundings whereas just about anything goes on IndieGoGO or on gofundme...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_hig...g_projects

Clearly video games seem to be very popular crowd fundings - go figure...

Top Ten Crowd Funding Sites of 2015 Kickstarter and Indiegogo made the cut - gofundme did not and others I never heard of till now http://crowdfunding-sites-review.toptenreviews.com/

Good to know Indigogo Prohibited Perks:
https://support.indiegogo.com/hc/en-us/a.../204255166

Indiegogo how to: https://www.indiegogo.com/learn

This campaign literally astounded me by its success:

https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/flow-...ive#/story
Goal was to raise about $70K and results were $12,257,554.00 USD total funds raised (over $12 Million!)
Original campaign was 17,384% funded on April 19, 2015

So why post links to the most successful crowd fundings here in a Topic regarding the Private Stock market...

The purpose of business is to provide useful products or services at competitive prices for the value and earn a profit to allow the business to expand and thrive, create jobs for the communities it is based in and wealth for its founders and investors.

VCs will tell you their secret of success is to gain controlling equity stakes and replace the founders with "seasoned" management - when in fact the most successful startups nearly all follow their founders vision, Apple, Microsoft, Oracle, Facebook, Alibaba... when the founders leave the companies can plod on but get distracted by the corporate and marketing types who inevitably chase market share rather than boldly creating new markets.

The idea that with help from Fiverr, Odesk or Elance pros for less than $1,000 you can edit a decent pitch video and create some decent infographics for a product or service (Not saying it does not cost some serious $$ To prototype and patent a product) and then raise the funding numbers we see in the wikipedia article above - giving up NO equity is an astounding return on investment.

Of course since it is not equity and basically sales of and donations to commercial products and services Uncle Sam loves it because it is taxable on the profits at nearly 50% Federal and State income taxes so get a good accountant to manage the amount that is income unless you are smart enough to be in a country that does not charge income taxes on income earned outside of the country which is much of the rest of the world.

Feel free to share your great crowd funding ideas perhaps we can help each other like sharing this mini data sheet with credible links - what is that old lyric "When you can get money for nothing the Chicks are free".

Post: #23

Today's CROWDability update...

The Crowdability team ran web-seminars over the weekend and though quite long and drawn out - I am an A Type personality and "What is the bottom line?" type - I was busy working some Boston Banglers game this weekend and teeing up for a new wing woman to move in as a trial run personal and research assistant.

Anyway I let their seemingly endless webomercial run to completion - must have been an hour+ of typical webomercial shite - however at the end was their on line Platinum Course - for a reasonable price so I bought it to learn how to consistently spot and filter the UBERs and Instagrams from the pets.com of the world - the goal is 27% annual returns with an occasional Home Run or Grand Slam - what is a grand slam? UBER had its first $4 Million USD funding round approx 36+/- months ago on AngelList.co - I read recently that every $1K USD invested in UBER then is now worth approximately $5 Million USD or a 5 thousand times return... furthermore Airbnb was announced over the weekend to have a market cap of $24 Billion+ USD with only one million listed private shareable rental deals - so plenty of room for growth for them.

This idea with the CROWDability course is not to go balls deep into any one early private stock market deal but to follow a discipline that has proven to show consistent risk managed returns of 27% annually with an occasional home run or grand slam <insert your own favorite sports analogy here> - I plan on doing one chapter or module every couple days to let the new info sink in and then post the key info and takeaways to share here and put together our own RVF Brain Trust to analyze new deals as they come up on the various sonar and radar screens.

A solid income is mandatory for enjoying life not to mention funding game - an finding the next UBER or Airbnb or Priceline etc deal that you can put in $1K and turn into a $5M capital gain is the type of return that would make most RVF mens day, month, year and in many cases life!

NOTE: I will only say this once - any INVESTMENT TROLLS who know more, made more, woulda coulda shoulda more more more will be reported for an immediate Investment Troll ban hammer... Keep any assholeatry or devil's advocate or so called healthy skepticism to yourselves - we are all RVFers and therefore various levels of red pill Neomen and playing devils advocate assumes we were not smart enough to think same for ourselves - the purpose of this course is to know the attributes of a solid private stock market opportunity and the analytical processes for sifting the UBERs Airbnbs, Pricelines etc from the Pets.com of this world.

The value add of sharing with RVF trained and cynical Neomen is that we are forced to be cynical by nature gaming the modern North American or European hamster - so we tend to see negative patterns right away and conversely know a good thing we we actually see and meet one.

After the CrowdAbility prescreens the only question that would matter during deep dive evaluations are "Would you use this companies products or services on a regular basis Yes or NO? If enough of us try it and like it similar to UBER or SA or Airbnb it is probably a winner.

Deepdiver Rant over...

The course info:

CROWDability Equity Crowdfunding Research and Education:

EARLY STAGE PLAYBOOK

Course Summary
The Playbook is an in-depth 12-lesson video series. By the time you complete it, you’ll have mastered the proven process used by industry veterans, and you’ll be able to build your own early-stage portfolio in just 60 minutes a week.

What you'll learn

Lesson 1
In this first lesson, we introduce the course, explain the concept of Private Equity, and provide an overview of Venture Capital and “Equity Crowdfunding.”

Lesson 2
In Lesson 2, we explore the websites that play matchmaker between entrepreneurs who need capital, and investors like you.

Lesson 3
In this lesson, we explore two critical concepts: the illiquid nature of private equity, and exactly how you’ll get your money back after you invest.

Lesson 4
In this lesson, we look at the concept of valuation – how it’s set, the factors that can affect it, and how it relates to the returns you can earn.

Lesson 5
In this lesson, we review the deal terms you’ll see with early-stage investments, highlighting the ones that are the most favorable to you, or most objectionable.

Lesson 6
In this lesson, you’ll learn how much of your portfolio to allocate to early-stage deals, how much capital to put into each deal, and the secret to high returns.

Lesson 7
In this lesson, you learn where to find deals, how to screen them so you’re only looking at the best ones, and how to avoid deals that could hurt your portfolio.

Lesson 8
In this lesson, you’ll learn why evaluating a start-ups’s founders and investors is so important. Then you’ll learn the exact attributes to look for, and how and where to look for them.

Lesson 9
In this lesson, you’ll learn how to evaluate a company’s past performance, as well as its prospects for the future. This is a critical step in your investment decision.

Lesson 10
In this lesson, you’ll learn how to determine the fair price you should be willing to pay for a start-up’s shares.

Lesson 11
In this surprising lesson, we debunk three common myths of early-stage investing, and show you how to use these insights to become a better investor.

Lesson 12
In the last lesson, we teach you the final steps to take before making an investment, review everything you’ve learned in the course, and set you on your path as an Angel Investor.

Instructors & Contributors
The Playbook was created by Matt Milner and Wayne Mulligan, the founders of Crowdability. Based on their backgrounds as bankers, investors, and entrepreneurs, they were granted interviews with over 30 of the top early-stage investors.

###

Stay tuned ... PM me if you want to set up a private email chain group to discuss new screened opps and takeaways...

Keep her (balls) Deep ... Diver out.

Post: #24

Im still confused by this thread. Even if you subscribe and they say X stock will be great when it IPO's. Unless you can buy in with etrade, Schwab during offer price the public bid/ask will be like paying full price.

Post: #25

(06-29-2015 04:11 PM)chyamor Wrote:  Im still confused by this thread. Even if you subscribe and they say X stock will be great when it IPO's. Unless you can buy in with etrade, Schwab during offer price the public bid/ask will be like paying full price.

From my reading these are basically pre ipo deals (Think pre construction as a real estate analogy) deals available only on new crowd funding sites - I will be posting my summary take aways after the holidays when I have time to deep dive into each topic/chapter....


The huge money today like UBER 5000X returns are made long before it ever reaches IPO stage which is really just for the institutions now that anyone can be an angel private equity investor and not just so called SEC Rule 501 A C D "qualified investors".