Patience can be the most difficult part of investing

All too often, subscribers come to us asking why their holdings aren't going up. When we ask which companies they are inquiring about, they say a company that we recommended a month or two ago. If it is not moving right away, there must be something wrong. This couldn't be further from the truth.

"The investor's chief problem—and even his worst enemy—is likely to be himself."
--Benjamin Graham

Most investors, including us here at The Bowser Report, can over-think from time-to-time. The problem comes when an investor decides to act on his or her quick thoughts, becoming impatient.

The general timetable for our recommendations is two years. After two years, we have a better idea of where the company's stock is heading. Sometimes, it takes less than two years--if a company reports quarter-after-quarter of losses. Sometimes it takes more than two years--if a company continues growing, but investors haven't yet taken notice. However, generally, two years is the time it takes for a recommendation to show its true colors.

That said, we don't recommend over night winners. Some of our picks do take off right away. FONAR Corp (FONR), for example, took just over a month to double from its recommendation price, and it continued climbing from there. Even still, this was an aberration.

More often than not, we recommend a company, it jumps at our recommendation, and then it settles back down, meandering along until a one or more things take place:

  1. More investors take notice (as was the case with FONAR);
  2. It continues adding value through earnings growth; or
  3. It becomes an acquisition target.

Now, there are others, but these three are the overarching events that can drive a pick's price upward. A lot of times, as we have said, these take time, requiring the investor to have... patience! You guessed it.

Smaller companies, in particular, take more patience because they are often improperly valued. So, a great company could be way undervalued, staying so for a while. On the other hand, a poor company could be overvalued, continuing to grow until its flaws come to light. We recommend the great companies, knowing that one day, investors will recognize their true value, and the stock will go up. Until then, patience is key.

The beauty of The Bowser Report is that we keep you up-to-date on the companies that we recommend. That way, you know if something of merit is driving a company down, or if it is just trading inefficiencies. And, the Game Plan keeps you from investing with your emotions and acting too quickly.

The moral of the story is be patient. Give your investments time to appreciate. In the end, your patience will reward you.