What was your best investment move?

[Kaitlyn]

To date, what has been your best investment move? It could be anything from dollar-vaue gains, percentage increase, gained knowledge, etc...

For me, I think I'm quite happy with buying Lululemon. It was actually my very first stock purchase, too. I didn't know how to buy stocks and didn't realize how much time it would actually take to set up a questrade account and fund it. Needless to say I had a lot less capital to play around with and didn't get in right after the IPO but did get in around $33 (pre-split) average I believe. Still holding it, but I kinda wish I exited around their $80 high!

[kashman]

Buying boatload of GMCR puts back in May a day before the earnings call. 750% profit in one night.

[Stryker]

Best move was to purchase two European ADR's in the mid 1990's. Aegon and Nokia. Both became multi-baggers at well over ten times what I originally paid for them. I was beginning to believe I was the equivalent of Warren Buffett. The next best move was in my wife's market timing, although I didn't know it at the time. In 1999 she finally found the detached house she wanted to buy. I was quite happy to stay renting the apartment. Besides house prices hadn't moved anywhere in Toronto during the previous decade. I had to sell all the stocks in the taxable portfolio to pay for a big down payment on the house. Again, selling the stocks turned out to be a good move. Both the above mentioned ADR's went downhill after they were sold while the house price started to go up, with the mortgage completely paid off two and a half years after our purchase.

All the above was luck, by the way. Not skill.

[SkimGuy]

Investing in index ETFs at the age of 22

[ACC-Major]

I didn't do anything this year because I ran out of money and overly leveraged.
However, I did pulled a good one last year on USG Corporation, a bet on the housing market recovery in the US.
Started buying at $10.00 ($9.95 to be exact) on that August 2011 landslide.
Then the share went down to $5.75 and stayed within $5.75 to $7.5 range for a long time.
I accumulated more and more. And now the price is at $20.

I was down big on it. I was cursing Warren Buffett: "damn, shouldn't have listened to Warren Buffett on his comments about housing recovery in the US on CNBC Squake Box".

Manulife is my biggest loser in the portfolio. And the profits I made from USG can't cover it.
My other large position in CCO is almost breaking even.

[pchi]

All of my profits seem to be peanuts. But Starbucks bought it @ $18 and sold it at @ $52... coulda sold it at $62, but missed out. Most of my unit trusts that I have invested have churned out a decent profit for me.

If I had kept my IPO'd Visa shares, I would have made a decent coin... as always I seem to sell out prematurely with most of my stocks.. just left with some questionable ones in my portfolio.

[boipinoi604]

The best move I have ever made was reading a copy of Rich Dad, Poor Dad.

[ccyk]

kinna pointless as the best ones are more involved with luck...

my best one CVI.s, bought at 1.41, next day HTO received share price jumped to 2.55, annualized return 8.359*10^93%, lol, pure luck.

[cjottawa]

Reading William Berstein's "The Four Pillars of Investing (http://www.amazon.ca/The-Four-Pillars-Investing-Portfolio/dp/0071385290)" and building a self-managed, TD e-Series Mutual Fund "Couch Pototo Portfolio (http://canadiancouchpotato.com/model-portfolios/)" was my best move, next to committing to aggressively saving.

[rfdrfd]

Best knowledge gain: The day I finally decided to get a real education on how to trade: Took the Online Trading Academy 7-day course and joined their online XLT

Best gain ever: FAS, gained $8900 USD in one trade, which took only 2 days. I was even in HK when I sold it, at 3am HK time. I was the only dude in that building, dancing like a silly man for joy. I used it and bought myself a Platinum Rolex Yachtmaster (in HK at a fancy watch shop my friend goes to, got me like 30% off I think?). To remind myself of what playing in the stock market can bring, IF you do it properly.

Best lesson ever: my combined net loss throughout my younger years. You can buy a nice Lexus with that. This led to my Best knowledge gain (above). At the 7-day class you meet LOTS of people in the same boat. Lost $200,000, and finally realized he knew nothing and needed an education.

[cjottawa]

...Best gain ever: FAS, gained $8900 USD in one trade, which took only 2 days...

How much money did you have to risk to make that $8,900?

[rfdrfd]

How much money did you have to risk to make that $8,900?

I forget, and too lazy to dig up my records, but it was definitely over $100,000 USD. Used margin of course.

Before my education at OTA, I used to look at my account:

Okay, I have $50,000, stock per share was $10, so I can buy 5000 shares ! DONE. Boy was I STUPID. That's what I did for FAS back then. Hundreds of dollars profit one day if I catch a up market day. Then hundreds of dollars loss per trade if I caught the wrong direction.

This is the reason I finally woke up and realized I need an education.

[ccyk]

kinna pointless as the best ones are more involved with luck...

my best one CVI.s, bought at 1.41, next day HTO received share price jumped to 2.55, annualized return 8.359*10^93%, lol, pure luck.

that was the biggest gain annualized % wise, but not much in my overall portfolio as I owned so little of it.
the ones that made me real $ amount are:
CGL takeover by AEM long time ago. my first real jackpot.
OGC bought a s-hit load of the restricted units@2.15 a few years back, which traded below normal shares at that time, and eventually all converted to normal shares, sold all @$3.3 ish
CEN loaded up @5, 6, 7, 10, 11, 12, 13, 16, 18, 20 as company kept finding new oil fields. too bad I didnt sell at 22 when the drill luck run out. sold 2/3 at avg 17, still holding rest. it is a takeover candidate.
MMT loaded up from 0.67 till 1.50, still buying this one on dip. bought more @1.36 & 1.37 yesterday and today. this one is a cashflow monster. 13% yield. this stock is worth minimal 1.87ish.

[morpheiz]

that was the biggest gain annualized % wise, but not much in my overall portfolio as I owned so little of it.
the ones that made me real $ amount are:
CGL takeover by AEM long time ago. my first real jackpot.
OGC bought a s-hit load of the restricted units@2.15 a few years back, which traded below normal shares at that time, and eventually all converted to normal shares, sold all @$3.3 ish
CEN loaded up @5, 6, 7, 10, 11, 12, 13, 16, 18, 20 as company kept finding new oil fields. too bad I didnt sell at 22 when the drill luck run out. sold 2/3 at avg 17, still holding rest. it is a takeover candidate.
MMT loaded up from 0.67 till 1.50, still buying this one on dip. bought more @1.36 & 1.37 yesterday and today. this one is a cashflow monster. 13% yield. this stock is worth minimal 1.87ish.

Companies like MMT, how did you find out about them? Seems like rolling the dice trying to find the mining companies who are successful

[ccyk]

Companies like MMT, how did you find out about them? Seems like rolling the dice trying to find the mining companies who are successful

internet forum...
lots of liers out there, full of pump and dump
but sometimes some people mention good companies and post their research and I do my own research to confirm and i start buying.
market is slow to react.
mmt was making net back @ $50/bbl for 5000bpd, not so hard to figure out it was trading at p/e=1, p/cashflow<1, back then.
right now it is still trading 2013 p/e under 2 and 2013 p/cashflow under 1.5.

[matthook]

My largest % increase was a 50% profit on RMX.TO which was a gold mining company, but that was just pure luck.

If I look at stocks i bought that i actually used technical analysis for, SWI would be my biggest gainer at 20% profit.

[Sylvestre]

For me, pure luck. Nortel was at ~$1 and I figured, can't go lower. I was right enough - I sold when it hit $4. Made almost 20K profit and paid for my 4th year of university.

But in fact, simply understanding finances & taxes has probably saved me 10x that amount over the last many years. I'm still amazed at people who get excited over a $10 staples coupon but won't put any time into understanding things that will save them thousands a year.

[Sauerkraut]

Two stocks, both Telecom.

1) BCE

When I was a kid in the 1960s, my Grandfather gave a me a certificate for 10 shares of Bell Canada. Since then, I`ve added to it, DRIPped it, lived through both Nortel and Aliant spin offs and the Teacher`s debacle. This company alone made me rich and I still own a small position, mostly for sentimental reasons.

2) RCI.B

Started buying it in the 1980s and kept adding to my position. It didn`t even pay a dividend until recently and at one point was removed from the TSX 60 because it dropped so low. But Ted Rogers knew what he was doing, getting into Cantel at the very beginning. He did what he wanted, basically ignoring the company board. But I sold all my holdings in it recently. Don`t think they have the same entrepreneurial spirit any longer. Certainly not with that useless, stuttering excuse for a son, err...Deputy Chairman!.

[rfdrfd]

Two stocks, both Telecom.

1) BCE

When I was a kid in the 1960s, my Grandfather gave a me a certificate for 10 shares of Bell Canada. Since then, I`ve added to it, DRIPped it, lived through both Nortel and Aliant spin offs and the Teacher`s debacle. This company alone made me rich and I still own a small position, mostly for sentimental reasons.

2) RCI.B

Started buying it in the 1980s and kept adding to my position. It didn`t even pay a dividend until recently and at one point was removed from the TSX 60 because it dropped so low. But Ted Rogers knew what he was doing, getting into Cantel at the very beginning. He did what he wanted, basically ignoring the company board. But I sold all my holdings in it recently. Don`t think they have the same entrepreneurial spirit any longer. Certainly not with that useless, stuttering excuse for a son, err...Deputy Chairman!.

Very impressive. Congrats

[angelok]

For me, buying CM and POW in 1989 and still holding them today.

[boipinoi604]

Two stocks, both Telecom.

1) BCE

When I was a kid in the 1960s, my Grandfather gave a me a certificate for 10 shares of Bell Canada. Since then, I`ve added to it, DRIPped it, lived through both Nortel and Aliant spin offs and the Teacher`s debacle. This company alone made me rich and I still own a small position, mostly for sentimental reasons.

2) RCI.B

Started buying it in the 1980s and kept adding to my position. It didn`t even pay a dividend until recently and at one point was removed from the TSX 60 because it dropped so low. But Ted Rogers knew what he was doing, getting into Cantel at the very beginning. He did what he wanted, basically ignoring the company board. But I sold all my holdings in it recently. Don`t think they have the same entrepreneurial spirit any longer. Certainly not with that useless, stuttering excuse for a son, err...Deputy Chairman!.

Holding time of 50 years. I like that.
Like what Buffett what says; his favourite holding period is forever.
And picking a competent management.
If you can pick a company and hold it for that long, you'll do alright.
Good on you.