Mad Money Machine

10.3%

Dude, 6% return on your money is OK, right? 8% return in a year is pretty good. 10% these days is really nice. Well, after 6 trading days the MMM Cramer 2006 portfolio is up 10.3% already! Pretty fantastic for a diversified portfolio!

As I mentioned previously, I swapped out of Cynosure (CYNO) today and into Palomar (PMTI). Sold 479 CYNO at $18.00 and got 221 PMTI at $39.08 at 10:30. (Pretend money, remember). So in addition to a 10.3% gain in the portfolio, we also have $1,370 of tax loss that we can apply to any tax gains we may happen to take later this year.

Darn, I should have put real money into this thing!

Should we ring the register on ENG, STX, or GME? Lemme know!

Adjustments

Cramer says Palomar (PMTI) is now the best-of-breed laser company. While he still likes Cynosure (CYNO), he says PMTI has more patent protection than competitors. Let’s swap CYNO for PMTI from the Cramer 2006 portfolio as of tomorrow’s (Tuesday’s) price at 10:30 ET. (Guess I’ll have to keep track of the tax-loss selling too.)

Also, he said Friday that until the Guidant (GDT) deal is done he’d stay away from Johnson & Johnson (JNJ). So strike it from our Common Ground report below.

Me, the fan. Without the plug.

I’m mentioned briefly in an article about Jim Cramer’s Mad Money show. I told the reporter about my (at the time upcoming) website and podcast too, but sadly it didn’t get a mention. At least she got my quote right! But I think I also mentioned something about investing being a normally dry topic and that is what is different about Mad Money.

BTW: as of this writing the link to the slideshow at the bottom of the article didn’t work. I’ll send her an email…

Party like its 1999!

A market that acts like this makes one giddy. Ah memories of 1999 all over again. I’m liking 2006 already. MMM Cramer portfolio up 6.7%, ETF portfolio up 4.0%.

No Stoppin’ GameStop

Holy Cow! Whatta move today for GME. up 11.5% for the day and 17.3% since the 12/30 close. December comp same store sales up 8.7%. Lots of other good news there. Should we RING THE REGISTER NOW? or let ‘er ride??? Perhaps a trader would sell now and buy it back again slightly lower, but I think we’ll just hold it until we get the signal from Jim.

The MMM Cramer Portfolio is already pulling ahead of the ETF portfolio after only 3 trading days, thanks to GME and ENG. CYNO and SLE are the only two under water at the moment. The MMM Cramer Portfolio is up 4.2% and the ETFs are up 2.9%. That’s fantastic after only three days.

BTW: Jim’s newest monthly column is up at nymag.com. In it he gives some headlines we should expect to see in 2006. BTW: he also covered the material in yesterday’s radio show. He says CBS is ripe for a takeover and that Citigroup and GS will merge.

Love days like today

Oh my, what a great day to be in the market. Kinda makes you wish you didn’t have anything at all in cash. Have a look at how well the MMM Cramer portfolio did compared with the ETF portfolio today. Nice energy spike, huh?

Hey, while I’m here I have a favor to ask: would you please VOTE for my podcast? I’m trying to gain some traction here against the big corporate types. So if you like rooting for the little guy, please VOTE.

MMM-003: The Cramer Crackle

Win a free copy of Jim Cramers Real Money and a rare Mad Money tchotchke: Listen to the podcast for details. In reviewing his stock picking performance, I am going to coin a term called the Cramer Crackle. The guru this show has an invisible hand. The Jones Brussels Sprout soda is reviewed. Two predictions for 2006. What do the Bid and Ask prices mean?

Listen to the podcast and answer a question about the following picture:

and send the answer to feedback@MadMoneyMachine.com

This show features:

• Predictions for 2006:
• Tax Gain Selling?
• Enjoy the Lites kits for sale. Read more about the christmas lights that sync to the music and also watch the commercial
• Tough week for Cramericans
• End of year comparison of Cramer’s featured stocks vs. the basket of ETFs.
• The Next Dirty Dozen?
• Play Pick the Cramer Pick
• Tools in the Crib: EDGAR
• The Guru Roulette winner has an invisible hand.
• I taste test Jones Soda’s Holiday Pack of beverages including Slow Roasted Turkey & Gravy and Brussels Sprout with Prosciotto.
• The 2006 Portfolio Challenge Has Begun!
• Win a copy of Jim Cramer’s Real Money: Sane Investing in an Insane World and also a RARE Mad Money Notepad
• New Money: What do the Bid and Ask prices mean?

download show MMM-003.mp3

MMM-002: Cramer Makes Us Money!

The performance of Cramers featured stocks since Halloween. The 2006 portfolio takes shape. Toolcrib features the MSN Stock Screener. Stock superstitions. The New retirement. Year-end planning. Guru Roulette. And for the new investors: What does the stock price mean? Questions at feedback@MadMoneyMachine.com

THANK YOU FOR PUTTING MAD MONEY MACHINE IN ITUNES TOP TEN BUSINESS PODCASTS!!!

This show’s goodies:

• Stock Superstitions
• The New Retirement
• Year-end planning
• The 2nd Guru Roulette winner has a little book.
• Jim Cramer’s Mad Money Roundup: QDEL, PWAV, ZUMZ, CTHR, BMD, IRBT, ING, PG, AMD, GGC, ARG, WBSN, VRSN, GOOG, UARM
• The 2006 portfolio ALREADY changed since the first show!
• Tool in the Crib: MSN Stock Screener
• New Money: What does the stock price mean?

download show MMM-002.mp3

Overwhelming Response, Thanks!

The first Mad Money Machine podcast is only 48 hours old now, but the response has been absolutely overwhelming! I am flabbergasted by the amount of attention this thing is getting and so soon. We addicts are finding a community I can tell. I will work my hardest to keep improving both the quality of the show and the quality of the information contained therein, especially now that I know you’re listening. (And I’ll add some energy while shortening its length, two things I’m sure you’ll appreciate!) Please send emails to feedback@MadMoneyMachine.com with questions, ideas, improvements, or just a Merry Christmas. I’ll see what I can do to get another show out before the new year with the 2006 portfolio. Then again after the turn of the year I’ll discuss the prices we got for the stock picks. And as always in each show I’ll give ideas from other gurus, some tools, and the New Money segment for the new investors and kids. Happy Holidays! Click HERE to listen or download into iTunes.

MMM-001: A Cramer Portfolio

A portfolio influenced by Jim Cramer vs. a basket of stocks. A special segment for kids discusses What is a Stock? The Excel stock quote plug-in. A stock portfolio to watch for 2006. The first spin at Guru Roulette. Questions- feedback@MadMoneyMachine.com

I promised a 2006 rollout of the Mad Money Machine podcast and lookey here… it is still 2005 and the first podcast is already here! (Although I recommend getting the feed by clicking the link here.) A good selection of topics including:

• Answers to questions about this podcast
• Guru Roulette picks one who knows your future if you are an investor
• Compares a Cramer portfolio vs. a basket of ETFs for the last 3 months
• Tool from the Crib: Excel Stock Quotes plug-in
• A Cramer portfolio for 2006
• New Money segment especially for kids or new investors: “What is a stock?”

Promo

Shortest podcast ever? Nah, just a promo for the upcoming show. The gears are almost engaged, get your mad money ready to invest!