Why I'm Avoiding Facebook's IPO
Kyle is a member of The Motley Fool Blog Network -- entries represent the personal opinion of the blogger and are not formally edited.
If you get your investing ideas from Sean Parker, you might as well trade with the E*TRADE baby while he intently watches footage of wildebeest migrations.
So while the “savvy” president of Facebook, whose creative genius gave us Napster and the removal of the word “The” from “The Facebook”, proclaims that Facebook's IPO could be “the largest public offering in history”, I want everyone to remain calm and relax. Take a deep breath.
If you want to take advice from Mr. Parker regarding music, the benefits of file-sharing, or how to survive in California while couch-surfing, you have my blessing. But if you want to jump into the Facebook pool, I’ll be more than happy to stick it out and throw you a life preserver, if you need one.
The IPO trades for last year were less than stellar, and I made the mistake of taking the bait on two of them, which I still hold as I type this.
I must disclose that I am not on Facebook, and to be honest, I have no rush to join all my “friends." I’m perfectly fine with Twitter. We have all witnessed the pros and cons of the social media “craze,” and I am just fine steering clear of the shady path it offers. There are plenty of other alternatives available, and I can update my constant mood swings and what I am eating for lunch on Twitter, if I so choose. Further, I don’t get the harassment or the constant whining, “Why didn’t you friend me? Wahhh!”
But because I still have burns from Renren (China's Facebook) and C&J Energy Services (NYSE: CJES), I’m going to have to wait and see before I “friend” that potential Facebook offering.
So my experience with CJES has certainly been less than spectacular, and I am holding less than a 1% position in my stack of holdings, along with the hope that there will be some fracking good news coming down the pike. With all the recent reports regarding “shut-ins” with natural gas, I definitely have some concerns. So it should be an intriguing earnings report after market close Wednesday, February 15th and I will be on the conference call the following morning.
The company provides hydraulic fracturing, coiled tubing and pressure pumping for “technically challenged” well developments. With everyone getting on board the “wait just a minute” train so we can get natural gas prices off 10-year lows, I can’t wait to hear something positive from the call next month.
The short float on this stock is above 40%, so for my tens of newbie traders reading this take a gamble if you want. I wish I hadn’t. Your money might be safer with Sean Parker after all.
Motley Fool blogger Kyle Metivier owns a small, long position with C&J Energy Services, and has no "friends" on Facebook. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
