Don’t let the panicking public get in your head…

“Setting a goal is not the main thing. It is deciding how you will go about achieving it and staying with that plan.” — Tom Landry

That was sloppy, ugly, nasty, slippery, etc-y.  In yesterday’s chat, I’d had this discussion with a subscriber:

Q: Do you think we’re gonna revisit or go lower than August lows and why?
A: I think the longer we stay above the August lows, the more likely we are to steadily rally away from them. But until this market stops doing these 2% plus intraday dislocations, I’m leery about the near-term action and keeping cash ready to deploy in case we do crash not just to but even below those August lows.

We didn’t get much below those August lows today, but that doesn’t mean we won’t tomorrow.  The emotions are running high out there and there’s no fighting the emotional traders.  It will play out when it plays itself out.  Don’t let the panicking public get in your head.

Marvell and Autodesk are both out with their earnings report after hours and they’re both pretty good.  Marvell came in a bit better than expected on both the top and bottom lines and if the markets weren’t down crashing today like they are, the stock might actually have found some traction off this report.  As I usually tell you, we’ll have to wait til tomorrow to see how she trades.

Autodesk beat on both the top and especially nicely on the bottom line after the close.  The company gave guidance that’s inline with estimates and the stock’s up a bit after hours tonight. Again, we’ll have to see how she trades manana.

I’ll be a buyer if we crash further tomorrow.  Otherwise, I’ll most likely let things play out a bit for now.

These are the times you have to stand tough, be disciplined and follow your playbook.  You know my playbook and I’m going to continue following it.