I like my stocks to work the same way. I don't want them to require constant attention. I may watch them that much, but that is at my discretion, not a twitchy requirement.

 

Not all stocks get by with such little news. A mega-corporation that wants to manage its public image may produce press releases every hour. They never stop talking. Tracking their activity can be a full time job. Amongst twenty press releases that announce new products, partnerships, neighborly initiatives, managerial shuffles, advertising campaigns and official filings, there might be something that makes a difference to an individual investor. But just like some people will read over most of that last long sentence and skip ahead, it is easy to overlook the factoid that changes a mind or alters an investment opinion, when it is wrapped in too many words.

 

Small companies may have very little to say. Instead of a press release every hour, they may have a press release every month. Official reports stand out and are hard to ignore. There's more time to decipher each one, and check in with the rest of the investment community. Small companies can even be more responsive. Because they are small, they have fewer shareholders and may take the time to answer emails from investors, not just from institutions.

 

The investment communities that surround small companies act more like small towns. Most of the conversations are gossip based on rumor colored by speculation. The discussion can be entertaining, illuminating, and quite wrong, but it can be fun to jump in and throw around possibilities.

 

One of the tricks in such small communities is to enjoy the conversation, but only act on the information. When it is time to make a decision, it is necessary to sit back, throw out all of the color commentary, and scrutinize the remainder for data, truths, and realities. That isn't as much fun as chasing conspiracies and suggested secrets, but quietly reviewing the tangible protects sanity.

 

My newspaper is delivered on Wednesdays and Saturdays. Companies can report any day they like, but out of 365 opportunities every year, the investor in small companies can ignore at least 100. Small companies are probably, not assuredly, but probably, not going to release news on a Saturday or a Sunday. They, or at least their communications staff, are probably not working on the weekends. There go 104 days, so we're down to watching the remaining 261. Christmas, New Years, the Fourth, Thanksgiving, Labor Day, Memorial Day, block out another 6, which brings it down to 255. That's about five days a week. Of those five, Friday is only going to be used for news that can't wait or for bad news. It is best to announce good news early in the week so the market and the media can hear it, react to it, and possibly send the news into a second cycle of activity before trading ends for the week. Announce something on Friday, and there is the possibility that everyone will forget about it over the weekend.

 

Investing or speculating in stocks shouldn't overwhelm a life. One way I keep that from happening is to own stocks in small companies. My friends know that I spend as much time watching my stocks as some people spend watching golf, which can be a lot; but, imagine how much more time my portfolio would suck up if I was trying to track Microsoft, Boeing, Costco, and Nordstrom.

 

If I wanted, I could get a subscription to a metropolitan daily newspaper, assuming any still exist, but that would merely be a way to have a daily delivery of fireplace kindling. Most of what they have to say has nothing to do with my life. Most of what a large company has to say has little to do with my portfolio. Other aspects of life can be complicated enough. There's no need to add complexity in my finances at the same time. There are more important things for me to learn. For instance, I may finally learn how to do a traveling pivot turn in waltz. At least within my community, that would be news.