April 3, 20232 yr Women are much more in demand during their early career phase than young guys. People are afraid that young guys are going to babble on all day about video games, beer, Magic the Gathering and pot. Older people don't want to hear about that stuff. It's easy for their careers to get derailed by mere guilt by association even if they weren't going to do that. By 30 everyone is howling at them to take anything anywhere and that's how degrees wind up in the trash.
April 3, 20232 yr 8 minutes ago, GCrites80s said: Older people don't want to hear about that stuff. It's easy for their careers to get derailed by mere guilt by association What's hilarious is how everything has turned into a high wire act, thanks to the rise of human resources. It's to the point now where business owners are afraid of their own HR departments.
April 3, 20232 yr That's not exactly what I meant. I didn't mean to shift the later sentences' subjects to the older people. The subjects should have stayed the young guys.
April 6, 20232 yr You're broke and won't be able to retire because you're a dog person: https://www.cnbc.com/2020/02/26/how-to-know-if-you-can-afford-to-own-a-dog.html
April 12, 20232 yr Bank of America's website has added a ZestimateTM to its front page: I ran mine through and - surprise, surprise - BOA estimates my house $30k higher than Zillow, which is itself at least $10k higher than what the house would likely get. There is nothing stopping these free services from exaggerating the value of your home in order to direct you to their agents, and since they're now competing with each other, they have every incentive to over-estimate their competitors.
May 5, 20232 yr Here's the chart of Preformed Line Products Corp, a nifty little Cleveland company. I bought a few shares last August and have no idea why it has performed so well. Yes, their earnings have grown very nicely, but it's up 250%! Any insight? Remember: It's the Year of the Snake
May 25, 20232 yr PC gaming is finally regaining the kind of market share traction against console that it had in the late '90s
June 3, 20232 yr Dave Ramsey sued for endorsing fraudulent "Time Share Exit Team"; plaintiffs seek $150 million: https://www.tennessean.com/story/news/local/2023/06/02/dave-ramsey-sued-for-150-million-from-listeners-who-followed-his-advice/70281204007/
June 27, 20231 yr 34 minutes ago, DarkandStormy said: Lordstown Motors has declared bankruptcy. Workhorse might fail by the end of the year as well.
June 27, 20231 yr ^ Yep. On a similar theme, the reason China is all-in on full electric vehicles is very little to do with the environment and much more to do with the fact that their local car manufacturers don’t have 100+ years of experience with internal combustion engines and mechanical transmissions. They’re hard things to master and they simply can’t compete. My hovercraft is full of eels
July 26, 20231 yr Big jump (20%+) in Key Bank stock in the past couple of days. I'm thinking it's in response to the cheap price as well as a couple of brokers' buy recommendations - and not any kind of takeover rumor (cf. Pacwest). Remember: It's the Year of the Snake
July 26, 20231 yr Netflix, Tesla and Microsoft disappoint Google and Meta do not. Apple and Amazon coming up soon folks!
October 31, 20231 yr Taking a flyer on Lincoln Electric (LECO) @ $172. It's down about 15% from its 2023 peak and I think its new EV charger will be a successful product. It turns out that with a little tweaking, their arc welders can be refashioned into car battery chargers. They are supposed to launch the product in late November. Remember: It's the Year of the Snake
November 3, 20231 yr Wow. LECO hit $185 this AM. I wasn't looking for that fast a response. It will probably back off from that, offering another buying opportunity. Longer-term, I'm looking for $250 Remember: It's the Year of the Snake
November 14, 20231 yr On 10/31/2023 at 1:11 PM, Dougal said: Taking a flyer on Lincoln Electric (LECO) @ $172. It's down about 15% from its 2023 peak and I think its new EV charger will be a successful product. It turns out that with a little tweaking, their arc welders can be refashioned into car battery chargers. They are supposed to launch the product in late November. It hit $195 this morning. Considering selling it, with the expectation of buying it back lower in December. December may produce some tax selling since it is still down on the year. Remember: It's the Year of the Snake
November 30, 20231 yr On 11/14/2023 at 10:18 AM, Dougal said: It hit $195 this morning. Considering selling it, with the expectation of buying it back lower in December. December may produce some tax selling since it is still down on the year. I saw they officially launched their EV chargers yesterday, and LECO is up a little today to $197. I thought the specs on their charger are kind of disappointing. Most new EV's can charge faster than 150 kW, so they'd be hardware-limited by these chargers. The CCS connector is also on the way out, as almost every manufacturer has announced a switch to NACS. Hopefully Lincoln Electric is planning to do the same, but it was kind of odd not to see it mentioned. It's not terrible, just not the best hardware out there. I still think it'll do well because there's so much demand for DCFC, and 150 kW is still way better than the 50 and 62 kW chargers that dominate a lot of the smaller 1 or 2 port stations.
November 30, 20231 yr On 11/30/2023 at 10:37 AM, acd said: I saw they officially launched their EV chargers yesterday, and LECO is up a little today to $197. I thought the specs on their charger are kind of disappointing. Most new EV's can charge faster than 150 kW, so they'd be hardware-limited by these chargers. The CCS connector is also on the way out, as almost every manufacturer has announced a switch to NACS. Hopefully Lincoln Electric is planning to do the same, but it was kind of odd not to see it mentioned. It's not terrible, just not the best hardware out there. I still think it'll do well because there's so much demand for DCFC, and 150 kW is still way better than the 50 and 62 kW chargers that dominate a lot of the smaller 1 or 2 port stations. I thought they announced their next model would be Level 3, a faster charger, due out next year. I'll recheck. EDIT: Lincoln Electric says: "The Velion charger can deliver output voltage between 200 and 1,000 V DC and "is capable of charging every EV battery" with fast charging times ranging from 15 to 45 minutes." I did get the impression that they displayed the low-powered version at the meeting, however. The stock closed at $201.77 today (Friday). Remember: It's the Year of the Snake
November 30, 20231 yr There is some soft demand in the EV market for cars right now. https://www.businessinsider.com/why-car-dealers-worried-about-biden-ev-mandate-letter-2023-11#:~:text=Car dealers aren't happy,the brakes" on his mandate.
December 1, 20231 yr Yesterday I placed a buy order priced a couple of cents over the current bid but well below the asked price. The market maker sold me ONE SHARE at my price. I guess he was sending a message. 😁 Remember: It's the Year of the Snake
December 2, 20231 yr Description of the EV charger: https://www.lincolnelectric.com/en/Products/k5489-1 (dual cable version "coming soon") https://www.lincolnelectric.com/en/Products/k5488-1 Remember: It's the Year of the Snake
December 2, 20231 yr 10 hours ago, Dougal said: Description of the EV charger: https://www.lincolnelectric.com/en/Products/k5489-1 (dual cable version "coming soon") https://www.lincolnelectric.com/en/Products/k5488-1 Yeah, this is what I was talking about. Dual cable would just be two CCS plugs, but still no NACS. Again, there’s definitely still a place for 150 kW CCS, almost anyone that currently has a EV would be delighted to charge there. However, the top players in the market are now manufacturing ~350 kW chargers with NACS. By 2025, there may be NO new EV’s with CCS. VW is the only major automaker that hasn’t announced a transition from CCS to NACS, and they’re <5% of the market. Keeping this more on-topic, it seems that their stock is continuing to go up since the announcement, so they must be doing something right. If they can build reliable chargers they’ll certainly always have a place in the market as reliability has plagued non-Tesla DC fast chargers across the country.
December 2, 20231 yr DOW is getting close to all time high, S&P not far behind. Tech a little more to go. I'm still paying for some late 2021 hubris - come on Roku, Docusign. The hell was I thinking??
December 2, 20231 yr 4 hours ago, acd said: If they can build reliable chargers they’ll certainly always have a place in the market as reliability has plagued non-Tesla DC fast chargers across the country. They have certainly built reliable welders and claim the chargers are 95% identical parts. NACS is the "Tesla" standard, right? Remember: It's the Year of the Snake
December 3, 20231 yr 15 hours ago, Dougal said: They have certainly built reliable welders and claim the chargers are 95% identical parts. NACS is the "Tesla" standard, right? Yes, it is. I think it’s actually a lot simpler than CCS. It’s fewer conductors at least. So maybe switching over down the line won’t be a big deal.
February 16, 20241 yr On 10/31/2023 at 1:11 PM, Dougal said: Taking a flyer on Lincoln Electric (LECO) @ $172. It's down about 15% from its 2023 peak and I think its new EV charger will be a successful product. It turns out that with a little tweaking, their arc welders can be refashioned into car battery chargers. They are supposed to launch the product in late November. Lincoln Electric was up $18.25 today to close at 249.80. Its mid-day high was 251.09. Q4 revenues were up 13.7% and earnings were up 26.3%. https://finance.yahoo.com/news/lincoln-electric-leco-q4-earnings-153005091.html Remember: It's the Year of the Snake
February 16, 20241 yr 9 hours ago, Dougal said: Lincoln Electric was up $18.25 today to close at 249.80. Its mid-day high was 251.09. Q4 revenues were up 13.7% and earnings were up 26.3%. https://finance.yahoo.com/news/lincoln-electric-leco-q4-earnings-153005091.html I don't often act on tips I receive on internet forums. But in this case I did--so thank you!
February 16, 20241 yr 1 hour ago, Cleburger said: I don't often act on tips I receive on internet forums. But in this case I did--so thank you! Good for you and you're welcome. The stock is getting too pricey; so I'm switching to options. For my next move I sold some September 280 puts. So if LECO is selling above 256 at expiration, I win; the more it's selling above $256 (up to 280), the more I win up to $34 per share. Remember: It's the Year of the Snake
February 16, 20241 yr With that strong report I suppose people are optimistic that they'll be able to use their welder tech in charging infrastructure that Uncle Sam is building all over the country so that there aren't all these gaping holes in the charging network such as Appalachia, the Mountain West and even NW Ohio. Right now you usually have to find a university or Harley dealership to charge in those areas.
February 16, 20241 yr 2 hours ago, Dougal said: Good for you and you're welcome. The stock is getting too pricey; so I'm switching to options. For my next move I sold some September 280 puts. So if LECO is selling above 256 at expiration, I win; the more it's selling above $256 (up to 280), the more I win up to $34 per share. Above my level. I'd love to learn more about these kinds of bets!
February 16, 20241 yr 3 hours ago, GCrites said: With that strong report I suppose people are optimistic that they'll be able to use their welder tech in charging infrastructure that Uncle Sam is building all over the country so that there aren't all these gaping holes in the charging network such as Appalachia, the Mountain West and even NW Ohio. Right now you usually have to find a university or Harley dealership to charge in those areas. During the earnings report conference call, the CEO said the EV charger is still in development (adapting the Tesla standard?) but they expect to be able to provide an update early in the second half. He and the CFO said nothing specific beyond that they were talking to everybody at all concerned in the field; but they also sounded very positive about the product. Remember: It's the Year of the Snake
June 21, 2024Jun 21 I'm probably early, but this seemed like a good week to sell. Remember: It's the Year of the Snake
August 29, 2024Aug 29 Picking money up off the floor? I shorted Eaton Jan 25 $230 puts at $2.25 today. If the stock actually goes that low, I'll be a happy buyer. If it doesn't, I'll gladly accept the proceeds Remember: It's the Year of the Snake
January 8Jan 8 I own some Palantir shares which I bought less than a year ago in the $15-20 range. It recently fell from $80 to about $70. Ouch, although I still have a big profit. I'm going to keep the stock, but I have shorted Feb and Mar puts at $60, which is a support level and a level at which I'm willing to buy more. We'll see. It's going to be an interesting year. Remember: It's the Year of the Snake
March 21Mar 21 Question for the more financially literate in the group... We've been blessed in the last few years to increase our household income considerably, and I'm an absolute idiot when it comes to taxes - and a family friend of ours still does ours on the side. I've heard from a few people that I should start filing taxes quarterly and likely engage CPA firm to handle. Does anyone have 1) any idea of that's actually correct, and 2) an explanation of the potential benefits of filing quarterly? Please explain as if I'm a golden retriever.
March 21Mar 21 Are you a partner? If so that would be a reason to file quarterly. That's a business. Usually filing quarterly estimated taxes is for people who own a business.
March 21Mar 21 7 hours ago, YABO713 said: Question for the more financially literate in the group... We've been blessed in the last few years to increase our household income considerably, and I'm an absolute idiot when it comes to taxes - and a family friend of ours still does ours on the side. I've heard from a few people that I should start filing taxes quarterly and likely engage CPA firm to handle. Does anyone have 1) any idea of that's actually correct, and 2) an explanation of the potential benefits of filing quarterly? Please explain as if I'm a golden retriever. Here is an answer from another golden retriever. It has always been my understand that you pay quarterly if you have income sources that do not have automatic withholding. Like if you are a small business owner under an LLC and are taking regular distributions that are not considered salary. If you are just an employee of some firm or company they should be withholding the appropriate amount from you salary. My 91 year old mom pays quarterly but it is because she has a number of investment accounts with no withholding, although she has some where there is withholding and she has withholding from her monthly pension. Edited March 21Mar 21 by Htsguy
March 21Mar 21 3 minutes ago, YABO713 said: Question for the more financially literate in the group... We've been blessed in the last few years to increase our household income considerably, and I'm an absolute idiot when it comes to taxes - and a family friend of ours still does ours on the side. I've heard from a few people that I should start filing taxes quarterly and likely engage CPA firm to handle. Does anyone have 1) any idea of that's actually correct, and 2) an explanation of the potential benefits of filing quarterly? Please explain as if I'm a golden retriever. When you heard about "filing" quarterly, what I think that person means is paying estimated taxes quarterly. You still only "file" once per year, even if you're LeBron James. Quarterly estimated payments can be required if you have taxable income for which there is no withholding for whatever reason. We make quarterly estimated payments to the City of Akron because my wife's employer, based in Dallas, does not withhold municipal taxes. We also make quarterly estimated payments to the federal government based on investment income because Fidelity does not withhold estimated capital gains taxes on transactions, nor taxes on dividends. You can be subject to penalties for underwithholding (which happened to us at one point, though nothing serious).
March 21Mar 21 1 hour ago, YABO713 said: Question for the more financially literate in the group... We've been blessed in the last few years to increase our household income considerably, and I'm an absolute idiot when it comes to taxes - and a family friend of ours still does ours on the side. I've heard from a few people that I should start filing taxes quarterly and likely engage CPA firm to handle. Does anyone have 1) any idea of that's actually correct, and 2) an explanation of the potential benefits of filing quarterly? Please explain as if I'm a golden retriever. At the end of January do you receive a 1099 or W2 from your firm? I do a mix of both so can pretty much avoid quarterly filings--my CPA just claims all the income in the last quarter of the year for my non W2 earnings.
March 21Mar 21 7 minutes ago, Cleburger said: At the end of January do you receive a 1099 or W2 from your firm? I do a mix of both so can pretty much avoid quarterly filings--my CPA just claims all the income in the last quarter of the year for my non W2 earnings. W2, but my firm is based in Philadelphia. I don't yet have an equity stake.
March 21Mar 21 4 hours ago, YABO713 said: W2, but my firm is based in Philadelphia. I don't yet have an equity stake. Then you don't need to file quarterly. They withhold from your paychecks.
March 22Mar 22 22 hours ago, YABO713 said: Question for the more financially literate in the group... Does anyone have 1) any idea of that's actually correct, and 2) an explanation of the potential benefits of filing quarterly? Please explain as if I'm a golden retriever. The financial benefit of filing quarterly estimated taxes is avoiding an interest penalty if you don't. You are supposed to file estimated taxes for the quarter in which you earned the untaxed or undertaxed income. If you delay and pay it all when you file in April, you will pay an 8% penalty for being late. The common exception to quarterly payments is if you get a big windfall (profit on sale of house, Christmas bonus, etc.) all at once, you pay those estimated taxes only once when taxes for the quarter in which you received the windfall are due. Personally, I make each installment whatever estimated taxes I paid in the prior year plus 10%. It usually works out that my estimate is close to what's due and I pay a small penalty. The exception was last year the Feds raised the tax on investment income by about 4% and I never got the memo. EDIT: Once the IRS missed a payment I submitted. Their unofficial advice was NEVER make payment in the exact same amount twice in a year. So I always vary my payments by $100 or so. Remember: It's the Year of the Snake
March 22Mar 22 It really is a bet if your industry has uneven demand and/or pricing. There's been several times that even after a good year we lowered the amount we sent in quarterly then our industry tanked and we had losses the next year. They send us the money back just like a regular W-2 refund.
March 22Mar 22 19 hours ago, Cleburger said: Then you don't need to file quarterly. They withhold from your paychecks. My main concern are my bonuses. They're only taxed at 20% so I've been trying some voodoo to do the appropriate withholding each quarter
March 22Mar 22 21 minutes ago, YABO713 said: My main concern are my bonuses. They're only taxed at 20% so I've been trying some voodoo to do the appropriate withholding each quarter In that case you can either A. Submit a new W4 to your employer requesting additional withholding B. Submit estimated tax payment on your own: https://www.irs.gov/businesses/small-businesses-self-employed/estimated-taxes#:~:text=You may send estimated tax,to IRS.gov%2Faccount. But I should ask--are the bonuses issued at year end? If so then you may not need to do extra withholding or quarterly payments. Or, like my CPA does, just report the income in the 4th quarter anyway 😜
March 23Mar 23 7 hours ago, Cleburger said: In that case you can either A. Submit a new W4 to your employer requesting additional withholding B. Submit estimated tax payment on your own: https://www.irs.gov/businesses/small-businesses-self-employed/estimated-taxes#:~:text=You may send estimated tax,to IRS.gov%2Faccount. But I should ask--are the bonuses issued at year end? If so then you may not need to do extra withholding or quarterly payments. Or, like my CPA does, just report the income in the 4th quarter anyway 😜 I get quarterly incentive bonus and then a year end bonus in early March of every year
March 23Mar 23 On 3/21/2025 at 11:14 AM, YABO713 said: Question for the more financially literate in the group... We've been blessed in the last few years to increase our household income considerably, and I'm an absolute idiot when it comes to taxes - and a family friend of ours still does ours on the side. I've heard from a few people that I should start filing taxes quarterly and likely engage CPA firm to handle. Does anyone have 1) any idea of that's actually correct, and 2) an explanation of the potential benefits of filing quarterly? Please explain as if I'm a golden retriever. The IRS’ “safe harbor” rules for withholding and estimated taxes are as follows- Quote Avoid a penalty You may avoid the Underpayment of Estimated Tax by Individuals Penalty if: -Your filed tax return shows you owe less than $1,000 or -You paid at least 90% of the tax shown on the return for the taxable year or 100% of the tax shown on the return for the prior year, whichever amount is less. If your adjusted gross income (AGI) for 2023 was more than $150,000 ($75,000 if your filing status for 2024 is married filing separately), substitute 110% for 100%. This is all you’re obligated to do and if you do it then they can’t charge you penalties/interest. For the overwhelming majority of W-2 employees, you’re going get to this every year from payroll withholdings. 22% is a standard withholding rate for supplemental income (bonuses), so your employers’ payroll isn’t really doing anything wrong there. What is the withholding “voodoo” you spoke of? Depending on your compensation structure I suppose it’s possible that if you get a lot of bonus and it’s only ever withheld at 22% and your marginal rate is higher, you could fall beneath the safe harbor. The people who have recommended to you to make quarterly payments, are they colleagues or otherwise familiar with your compensation structure? If it’s common practice among your colleagues, there probably is a reason for that. If you do end up needing to make additional quarterly payments, it is not too tough, you just need to pay a bit more to hit the safe harbor of 110% of prior year taxes. The forms you fill out for the quarterly payments are very short and simple. You also can just do additional withholding through your paycheck instead of mailing a payment separately. Did you end up owing taxes this year or were your withholdings sufficient?
March 23Mar 23 19 hours ago, YABO713 said: My main concern are my bonuses. They're only taxed at 20% so I've been trying some voodoo to do the appropriate withholding each quarter You are only required to have paid at least the amount of tax you paid in the previous year by the end of the year, so I'd assume that the amount withheld from your salary plus 20% of your bonuses would get you to that. Edited March 23Mar 23 by jam40jeff
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