MORE WOES FOR BP

It appears as though British Petroleum's (BP) latest attempt to seal the oil leak in the Gulf of Mexico has failed. I hate to see such bad luck befall such a good company. I was quick to sell my shares of BP, as soon as I heard about the disaster, since I thought it quite possible they would have a great deal of difficulty solving the problem. So I got my money out before the big drop in their stock price.

Let's face it though, it could have happened to any of the oil companies involved in offshore drilling. So for the time being, I'm avoiding any investments in oil companies. I certainly hope they get things under control as soon as possible, but I shudder to think of future litigation involving this disaster. It's possible that they will be able to cover the costs, they do rake in money hand over fist. But I think it's going to be a lot more difficult for them than it was for Exxon during the Exxon Valdez oil spill. More difficult and a lot more expensive.

I can't even imagine how they'll be able to overcome the bad publicity generated from this disaster. One thing I am sure of, if any corporation is capable of making a comeback from this type of event, I believe BP may just be the one. Still, I'm taking a wait and see approach. Like I said before, won't be investing in any oil companies anytime soon.

GULF OIL SPILL

I've been keeping an eye on the news related to the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. After reading more in yesterday's paper, I decided it might be a good idea to sell my shares in BP and BPT. Although I'm not sure the trust would face any litigation related to the spill, I figure what's bad for British Petroleum would be bad for them as well.

At any rate, I've placed orders to sell all shares and am using the cash to purchase more shares of AZN, AT&T and UVE. So all the money I get back from my investment in British Petroleum will be re-deployed and put back to work so I shouldn't lose much dividend income.

Just hope the politics of this oil spill don't lead to such severe restrictions that consumers end up paying for the whole mess.

Looking Forward To Summer

I'm looking forward to summer and to seeing whether the rally in stocks will continue. Traditionally, the old stock market wisdom is, "In May go away." Some experts were expecting to see continued run this year, as long as the recovery in the economy continues. But from what I've been seeing, it looks like a lot of buyers will be slowing down for the summer months and I'm thinking things will pick up again in August or September. So I probably won't be doing many quick trades.

Usually, during this time of year, I take time to find good quality dividend stocks to add to my long term holdings. This year is likely to be no exception. If the market is taking a break, it will be the perfect time to pick up stocks at lower prices. I may be adding to some of my current holdings like AT&T (T), General Electric (GE), Merck and Co. (MRK) and a few others. Might also buy back in to British Petroleum (BP) and Universal Insurance (UVE) since I think both have good long term prospects and they both pay good dividends. I do still hold both stocks in my IRA account for the long term payouts and growth prospects. Also hoping to pick up more shares of AFLAC (AFL) if I can get them at a decent price. Would also like to unload some of my less productive holdings and re-invest the cash. I'm currently holding extra cash in my money market account in case the market does drop back some, so I will be able to take advantage of bargain priced stocks.

Hope everyone had a great weekend!

Trading for Some Quick Cash

Today was a day for selling on Wall Street and I decided to join in on some of the profit taking. I put in orders to sell half my position in Univeral Insurance (UVE), I'm keeping the rest for the dividend payout. I also sold British Petroleum (BP) and Veolia Environmental (VE) for quick cash profits.

I will be investing most of the money from the above sales in 3 energy limited partnerships:


EV Energy Partners LP (EVEP) Recent Price $21.91, Dividend/Yield $3.01/13.70%

Encore Energy Partners LP (ENP) Recent Price $15.93, Dividend/Yield $2.00/12.80%

Regency Energy Partners LP (RGNC) Recent Price $13.05, Dividend/Yield $1.78/13.70%


All three have fantastic dividend payouts, so I could be holding them long-term, depending on whether the payouts hold up. They were also attractive in the sense that I believe there is room for quick short term growth in stock price. So it's possible I could be trading them off for quick profits, depending on how the price moves. Whatever I decide, I'll be sure and post the results as they happen.