Trade Alert: When you feel really smart…

Scuttle: @CodyWillard $GOOG $AMZN are doing awesome in AH, $SNDK takeover this week. Probably, one of the best weeks this year for your portfolio. Congrats! $$$

I’ve got butterflies in my stomach because our Trading With Cody  portfolio is having the kind of week it’s having.

Two of our three largest positions are at new all-time highs today, with Google +9% to $711 and $FB, which we’ve owned since $20, finally cracking $100. Our fourth largest position, Synaptics, is up 6% on the day, 50% from its recent lows and now just 10% from its all-time highs. Amazon is a mid-sized position that’s up 6% today and also at new all-time highs. We shorted Valeant Pharmaceuticals last Friday and the stock fell by 50% as questions about the company’s ability to maintain price increases came out during its quarterly earnings conference call Monday morning and accounting fraud accusations hit on Wednesday this week. Our months-long patience in our Pandora short has paid off again as the stock fell after a disappointing earnings report and a disappointing outlook issued by the company (PS. this is the second time we’ve ridden a short sell in this stock to profit in the last few years). Sandisk is indeed being taken over by WDC and up 70% from its recent lows. We were buying new names and putting more money to work in some of these stocks and many others when the markets were crashing in panicky sell-offs and grew increasingly bullish and positioned for this ongoing rally.

I’ve been working my behind off on finding these kinds of longs and shorts and balancing our portfolio and trying to stay ahead of the big trends. So let’s not step off the gas pedal or ride on our laurels here. Let’s be disciplined and smart and flexible. And I’ll continue to strive for some more homeruns.

Now all that said, I’ve been around doing this whole trading and investing thing for many years now. There have been times like this when I’ve felt really smart. And that’s usually just about the time that everything reverses on you. So in the name of discipline I’m going to trim about 1/10th of my FB, trim about 1/4 of my Synaptics and I’m going to cover another 80% to almost close out the Valeant short entirely but keeping just a tiny bit on the sheets as a short. You’ve heard me say it before and it’s another Jim Cramer-ism that he pounded into my head over the years, “Sell when you can not when you have to.”

Earlier this week I saw legendary value investor and friend of mine, Robert Marcin, post a Scuttle that said: “It’s a stock pickers market. It’s about time too.” Ain’t that the truth! That’s when we can shine. Onward and upward and thanks for being a part of Trading With Cody.

Please forward this article to someone you think might benefit from our service and tell them to sign up for our service at TradingWithCody.com. Rock on.