Trade Updates: QID, VLO, HAL, LEH, STLD, AAPL

I was stopped out of my 350 share position of HAL at $30.44 for a $388 loss (-3.7%).

I sold 350 shares LEH at $72.71 for a $231 gain (.9%). The total gain for the 700 share position was $696 (+1.4%). I was hoping for a bigger gain, and decided to bail on the trade because I think the bounce might be over.

I bought 500 shares of QID at $54.46. I've been waiting for QID to near support. Let's see if it holds.

Along with the QID position above, I am also long 200 shares of VLO, 500 more shares of QID, short 200 shares AAPL and short 500 shares STLD.

Trade: Playing the Lehman bounce

Investment banking stocks such as LEH and MS have been crushed over the past couple of weeks. It's always risky to go counter to a strong downtrend, but I think LEH is a low risk bounce setup right now. LEH almost broke down below to strong areas of support: the 200 day moving average at $72.21 and price support at about $70. Notice what happened when the stock broke down; it immediately reversed itself and printed a long, long tail. This is a sign that the stock is oversold, holding at resistance, and is in for at least a short term bounce.

I bought 700 shares of LEH at $72.05. This is a short term play. I would not be surprised if the stock retests these lows. I already sold half of my position at $73.38 for a $465 gain ( 1.8%). I'll let the remaining 350 shares ride for a few days and place a stop at my purchase price, which is just under the 200 day moving average.

For those considering placing a trade here, it might be too late. Note that RSI and stochastics have moved out of oversold territory.

Today's Trades: CENX, STLD, RL and LEH

I've had a busy day at work, so I'll have to detail the trades in more depth tonight. I bought 500 shares of STLD at $40.02, 500 shares of CENX $47.64 and 300 shares of RL at $87.10.

I also got stopped out of my 250 shares of LEH at $81.61 (entry at $82.64) for a loss of $257 (-1.3%) . This may sound crazy, but I'm actually happy about this trade. I originally had my stop placed under the 50 day MA at $80.40, but decided a better spot would be at the "fill the gap" point under $82. My thinking was, if the stock can't hold the gap support level, it will likely tumble. A tenant I try to adhere to when placing stops is that price action support is more important than moving average support.

An emailer asked my why I am placing so many long trades when I am short the Nasdaq. Take a look at my trades closely. I am not making any bets on tech. My longs have come from the commodity, broker (bad move) and retail sectors.

Trade: LEH

I bought 250 shares of LEH at $82.64. This is a speculative play along the lines of the AKAM trade. My target is the recent highs at $86, and my stop will be placed just under the 50 day moving average, around $80. The brokers have been strong over the past few months with dips providing good entry points.