BARE (Bare Escentuals Inc.)

BARE has started a trading pattern that shows some good opportunity. The stock is trading well above it's IPO offering and has held up very well for the last 3 months. Each significant dip has been met by strong buying power with volume showing signs of institutional support.

Fundamentally the company looks like it is gaining footing as sales and EPS have picked up over the last few quarters. The trade back above the 50 day this week caught my attention and I put on a small position on the 8th at $33.30. So far the trade has acted well and it is not a name I want to hold long-term until there is a little more solid information and trading history.

Jan 16, 2007

As i looked at my positions this morning, I noticed that BARE was running up against what appeared to be some stiff resistance around $35.00. While this was no reason to be paranoid, I did have a nice profit that I received fairly quickly in the name and the market was not particularly exciting this morning so I decided to take 1/2 profits off the table. I sold 2,500 shares at 34.91 only to watch the stock trade up and close above $36.50. I'm glad I left part of the position on the table but a bit frustrated that I missed the move with the other half. Damage control is important but it definitely keeps you from missing moves at times. So for now I have a realized gain of about $3,900 and unrealized gains of $8,200.

Jan 23, 2007

The stock traded through 35 without any problem and made me question myself for taking some of those profis early. However, after just a few days, the stock has gotten weaker and that coupled with a market that has been showing some signs of distribution has me a bit more conservative. I decided to liquidate some of my shorter-term trades and downsize on some i am less comfortable with. I took the rest of my profits in this name and closed a good but not great trade.