Put in simple terms, a Random Walk basically involves taking successive random steps and tracing the trajectory. I adapted the example from part one of Wilmott on Quantitative Finance and wrote a quick MATLAB script to simulate a simple random walk. Basically flip a coin if it is heads multiply the equity seed by 1.01 and if its tails multiply by 0.99.

Results

The graphs below show succesive runs of the script. I simulated 10,000 coin tosses in each test.

Sim one: You flipped 5069 heads & 4931 tails

Sim Two: You flipped 4946 heads & 5054 tails

Sim Three: You flipped 5026 heads & 4974 tails

Sim Four: You flipped 5042 heads & 4958 tails

MATLAB Code

Writing the code in MATLAB is very straightforward I wrote the code in less then five minutes so it is a bit rough around the edges. I probably could refactor it but it does the job.

% Simple Simulated Random Walk Adapted
% from part 1 Paul Wilmott on Quant Fin

% create matrix with random int either 1 or 2
randMat = randi(2,10000,1);
randEquity = [1:10000];

headCount = 0;
tailCount = 0;
equitySeed = 100.00;

for i=1:10000
    if randMat(i)==1
        % we flipped a heads
        headCount = headCount + 1;
        equitySeed = 1.01 * equitySeed;
        randEquity(i) = equitySeed;
    else
        % must have flipped tails
        tailCount = tailCount + 1;
        equitySeed = 0.99 * equitySeed;
        randEquity(i) = equitySeed;
    end
end

fprintf('You flipped %i heads & %i tails\n', headCount, tailCount);
plot(randEquity);
title('\bf \fontname{Arial} \fontsize{16}Simulated Random Walk');
xlabel('\bf \fontname{Arial} \fontsize{12}Number of Coin Tosses');
ylabel('\bf \fontname{Arial} \fontsize{12}Price in ($)');

% clean-up
clear equitySeed headCount tailCount randMat i;

eSignal 11 the Main Screen

The Top Menu Bar

eSMenu

The eS menu bar as shown above is pretty much just like the File menu in most other applications. From this menu bar you can create New Pages, Open Pages, Save Page Create new Layouts, arrange windows and modify application properties.

New Menu

Tools Menu

Watch List

Trade

The Trade menu handles most of the eSignal trade integration functions. From this menu you can handle orders, mange connections to brokers and Money Management planner.

Support

Detailed Quote Window

Charting

• Unlimited Overlays
• Sub-Charts
• View other symbols in sub-chart
• Selectable Studies, Lines
• Drag-and-Drop Studies
• Translucency
• Bars Aligned with Sessions
• Technical Indicators
• Add-On Studies
• EFS
• Back Testing
• Area Chart
• Bar Chart
• Candlestick Chart
• Line Chart
• Drawing Tools
• Tick Intervals
• Percentage Scale

Bottom Line

Getting The Symbol List’s For ASX Listed Companies

The first step in the process is to download the symbol lists from the ASX website. The ASX listed companies list is updated daily at 12Am. The easiest way to get the data is to download the CSV file, then we can work with it in Excel. As you can see in the image below there are three columns of data: Company Name, ASX Code and GICS Industry Group.

If you are unfamiliar with the GCIS or Global Industry Classification Standard you can read up on it here. Basically it is just the industry group assigned to a specific company by Standard and Poor’s.

Converting and Sorting the Symbol List

eSignal requires the symbol code and then an exchange code to be added on the end. So for example BHP in eSignal would have the code BHP-ASX. There is over 2000 companies that we wish to change the code for so we need to automate the process. In Excel this can be done with a simple formula and a fill. What we want to do is take the text string in column B of our spreed-sheet and add the text string “-ASX” to the end of the stock code. To do this we use the CONCATENATE function, this function takes n text strings and adds them together to form a new string.

As you can see from the above image in cell D1 we simply type: =CONCATENATE(B4, “-ASX”) and we fill down for the entire range and we now have our eSignal symbols ready for export. In order to export our symbol list by GCIS sector we need to custom sort the data first. Simply go to Sort -> Custom Sort and then sort by GCIS Industry Group as shown below.

Creating a New Page in eSignal 11 and Adding a Watch List

The first step is to create a new page in eSignal, to do this go to eSignal menu -> New Page or CTRL + SHIFT + N.

In the New Window template select Watch List. This will add a blank watch list to the page. After the Watch List has been added it is a good idea to save the page. You can do this be right clicking on the page tab and selecting save.

For each GCIS group I will create a new list. To do this simply click on the gear icon to the right of the blank symbol list, now rename the list to the appropriate GCIS group.

Copy and paste the group symbols from the Excel spreed-sheet, save the list rinse and repeat. The image below shows my ASX sorted GCIS watch lists.

In total there are 21 separate lists with 2227 symbols.

]]> http://www.traineetrader.com/esignal-11-creating-your-own-watch-list-ordering-by-sector/feed/ 0 http://www.traineetrader.com/timothy-sykes-timfundamentals-dvd-review/ http://www.traineetrader.com/timothy-sykes-timfundamentals-dvd-review/#comments Fri, 09 Apr 2010 05:33:02 +0000 Mark http://www.traineetrader.com/timothy-sykes-timfundamentals-dvd-review/ Timothy Sykes is nearly impossible to slap a conventional label on. He has managed to achieve what some people take a lifetime to achieve in just 28 years. He has been trader, hedge fund manager, reality TV star, publisher, author and now an educator. Sykes most notable achievement was his great trading gains made from 1999-2002, where he turned $12,415 to $1.65 million trading penny stocks. Tim has had many successes and also some well documented failures. There is no denying he really knows his niche and has performed very well throughout 2009 and the start of 2010.

Today I will be looking at the TIMFundamentals DVD package. This package consists of TIMFundamentals a 4 DVDs in total and a thick workbook. TIMFundamentals is aimed at new traders and traders who want to learn Timothy Sykes strategy.

Timothy Sykes: TIMFundamentals DVD One approximate runtime 1 hour 3 minutes 

The first DVD is a recorded coaching session of Tim doing some 1-1 coaching and is split into four chapters. As usual the first 26 pages of the workbook detail Tim’s other products. This may be useful to some people, but most people will derive little value from this advertising. This DVD pretty much consists of Tim going through the basics of how he undertakes his research. This DVD covers some important topics and is helpful for people wanting to learn how to trade Tim’s strategy. This DVD shows how Tim goes about identifying potential trades and the websites he uses. It would have been helpful if we could actually see what Tim and his student were actually looking at on the screen.   

Topics covered include:

• The benefits of using free sites.
• Ticker gathering process.
• Typical moves.
• Identifying the usual suspects.
• Self fulfilling prophecies.
• Some example trades.
• Stock promoters.

Timothy Sykes: TIMFundamentals DVD Two approximate runtime 1 hour 30 minutes

In DVD two we resume with Tim and his coaching student going through the watch list building process.  In this DVD we gain some excellent insight into Tim’s research process. Once again some very interesting concepts are introduced. You will need to make sure you take notes when watching this DVD as some excellent topics points are made that are not written in the workbook.

Topics covered include:

• Specific forums and message boards for research.
• More research sites revealed.
• Press releases and there usefulness.
• Some detailed variables.
• Some basic fundamental indicators.

Timothy Sykes: TIMFundamentals DVD Three approximate runtime 1 hour 50 minutes

DVD three is split into ten chapters and is in screencast format. This is the practical part of the Tim Fundamentals DVD, we get to see Tim create his actual watch lists.  This DVD is highly practical and reinforces the concepts presented in the first DVD. Tim spends quite sometime going through how he uses Clearstation in his research process. Tim also shows us Covestor and his ranking and briefly talks about auto trading. In short this DVD gives excellent practical advice for researching and building of watch lists.

Timothy Sykes: TIMFundamentals DVD Four approximate runtime 1 hour 34 minutes

In the final DVD Tim continues his research and watch list building. In this DVD we also get to see a behind the scenes look at his TimAlerts program. In this DVD Tim continues to filter his watch list. This DVD as the previous is very practical in nature and has some valuable information. It is good that Tim is going through his actual techniques he uses and goes into a lot of detail. In some parts of this DVD there is blurring and the image is un-viewable, Tim needs to get Camtasia and make sure he does the screen capture on a computer with decent RAM and a fast CPU. Finally the DVD goes over actually trading the stocks that were researched the previous day. In his conclusion Tim makes some very good points about the research process. 

Bottom Line

TIMFundamentals is for new traders or people who have little experience in the stock market. The concepts presented are simple, practical and easy to understand. The first two DVD’s moved slowly however they had useful content. The final DVD’s were highly practical and showed the tools that Tim uses on a daily basis. If you are interested in seeing how Tim trades and what he does on a daily basis then TIMFundamentals is for you. This is an excellent introduction to the research process. The one thing that surprised me is that Tim has not automated his processes. TIMFundamentals delivers on its promises and provides you with a look behind the scenes on the Timothy Sykes research process. 

Pros

• Excellent for beginners.
• Research process explained in detail.
• Both theory and practical concepts covered.
• The best free research websites revealed.

Cons

• First two DVD’s slow.
• Screen cast quality not the best.

Related Reviews

• Timothy Sykes DVD Review: PennyStocking.
• Timothy Sykes DVD Review: PennyStocking Part Deux.
• Timothy Sykes DVD Review: ShortStocking
• Timothy Sykes DVD Review: Tim Raw.

• Connect to Interactive Brokers via IbPy.
• Connect and download free stock data from Yahoo finance via ystockquote.
• Visualise stock data using matplotlib.

I wont  go through connecting to Interactive Broker here as max has written an excellent tutorial on his site. Max provides some excellent resources on quant trading.

Getting Stock Quotes From Yahoo via Python

Corey Goldberg has written a simple module that is a good starting point for getting stock data. I am yet to modify the code but when I do I will post the modified source code. You can download the source code for ystockquote.py below:

#!/usr/bin/env python
#
#  Copyright (c) 2007-2008, Corey Goldberg (corey@goldb.org)
#
#  license: GNU LGPL
#
#  This library is free software; you can redistribute it and/or
#  modify it under the terms of the GNU Lesser General Public
#  License as published by the Free Software Foundation; either
#  version 2.1 of the License, or (at your option) any later version.

import urllib

"""
This is the "ystockquote" module.

This module provides a Python API for retrieving stock data from Yahoo Finance.

sample usage:
>>> import ystockquote
>>> print ystockquote.get_price('GOOG')
529.46
"""

def __request(symbol, stat):
    url = 'http://finance.yahoo.com/d/quotes.csv?s=%s&f=%s' % (symbol, stat)
    return urllib.urlopen(url).read().strip().strip('"')

def get_all(symbol):
    """
    Get all available quote data for the given ticker symbol.

    Returns a dictionary.
    """
    values = __request(symbol, 'l1c1va2xj1b4j4dyekjm3m4rr5p5p6s7').split(',')
    data = {}
    data['price'] = values[0]
    data['change'] = values[1]
    data['volume'] = values[2]
    data['avg_daily_volume'] = values[3]
    data['stock_exchange'] = values[4]
    data['market_cap'] = values[5]
    data['book_value'] = values[6]
    data['ebitda'] = values[7]
    data['dividend_per_share'] = values[8]
    data['dividend_yield'] = values[9]
    data['earnings_per_share'] = values[10]
    data['52_week_high'] = values[11]
    data['52_week_low'] = values[12]
    data['50day_moving_avg'] = values[13]
    data['200day_moving_avg'] = values[14]
    data['price_earnings_ratio'] = values[15]
    data['price_earnings_growth_ratio'] = values[16]
    data['price_sales_ratio'] = values[17]
    data['price_book_ratio'] = values[18]
    data['short_ratio'] = values[19]
    return data

def get_price(symbol):
    return __request(symbol, 'l1')

def get_change(symbol):
    return __request(symbol, 'c1')

def get_volume(symbol):
    return __request(symbol, 'v')

def get_avg_daily_volume(symbol):
    return __request(symbol, 'a2')

def get_stock_exchange(symbol):
    return __request(symbol, 'x')

def get_market_cap(symbol):
    return __request(symbol, 'j1')

def get_book_value(symbol):
    return __request(symbol, 'b4')

def get_ebitda(symbol):
    return __request(symbol, 'j4')

def get_dividend_per_share(symbol):
    return __request(symbol, 'd')

def get_dividend_yield(symbol):
    return __request(symbol, 'y')

def get_earnings_per_share(symbol):
    return __request(symbol, 'e')

def get_52_week_high(symbol):
    return __request(symbol, 'k')

def get_52_week_low(symbol):
    return __request(symbol, 'j')

def get_50day_moving_avg(symbol):
    return __request(symbol, 'm3')

def get_200day_moving_avg(symbol):
    return __request(symbol, 'm4')

def get_price_earnings_ratio(symbol):
    return __request(symbol, 'r')

def get_price_earnings_growth_ratio(symbol):
    return __request(symbol, 'r5')

def get_price_sales_ratio(symbol):
    return __request(symbol, 'p5')

def get_price_book_ratio(symbol):
    return __request(symbol, 'p6')

def get_short_ratio(symbol):
    return __request(symbol, 's7')

def get_historical_prices(symbol, start_date, end_date):
    """
    Get historical prices for the given ticker symbol.
    Date format is 'YYYYMMDD'

    Returns a nested list.
    """
    url = 'http://ichart.yahoo.com/table.csv?s=%s&' % symbol + \
          'd=%s&' % str(int(end_date[4:6]) - 1) + \
          'e=%s&' % str(int(end_date[6:8])) + \
          'f=%s&' % str(int(end_date[0:4])) + \
          'g=d&' + \
          'a=%s&' % str(int(start_date[4:6]) - 1) + \
          'b=%s&' % str(int(start_date[6:8])) + \
          'c=%s&' % str(int(start_date[0:4])) + \
          'ignore=.csv'
    days = urllib.urlopen(url).readlines()
    data = [day[:-2].split(',') for day in days]
    return data

As you can see python is a very simple easy to read and understand language.

A Very Simple Example

In this simple example we will work in the interactive ipython environment with matplotlib. We will download the data separate the data and store it in separate list data structures. This is a very inefficient way of doing things and is not optimal. This example is for demonstration purposes.

import ystockquote

# Get Quotes 01/01/2006 - 01/01/2009
GOOG = ystockquote.get_historical_prices('GOOG', '20060101', '20090101')

# Create empty lists, quick and dirty
GOOGOpen = [ ]
GOOGClose = [ ]
GOOGDate = [ ]
GOOGHigh = [ ]
GOOGLow = [ ]
GOOGAdj = [ ]
GOOGVolume = [ ]

# Populate lists from downloaded data
for i in range(1, 755):
	GOOGDate.append(GOOG[i][0])
	GOOGOpen.append(GOOG[i][1])
	GOOGHigh.append(GOOG[i][2])
	GOOGLow.append(GOOG[i][3])
	GOOGClose.append(GOOG[i][4])
	GOOGVolume.append(GOOG[i][5])
 	GOOGAdj.append(GOOG[i][6])

plot(GOOGAdj)
title("Google Adjusted Close")
ylabel(r"GOOG Closing Price ($USD)", fontsize = 12)
xlabel(r"Date", fontsize = 12)
grid(True)

The image below shows the output we get when we save the plot as a .png file.

As you can see we need to adjust the x category labels. We will do this in an upcoming tutorial.

Creating a simple linked chart in Python

In Matlab it is very easy to create linked graphs, it is also possible to create linked graphs using matplotlib. The example below shows how we can link volume and adjusted close for Google.

import ystockquote

# Get Quotes 01/01/2006 - 01/01/2009
GOOG = ystockquote.get_historical_prices('GOOG', '20060101', '20090101')

# Create empty lists, quick and dirty
GOOGOpen = [ ]
GOOGClose = [ ]
GOOGDate = [ ]
GOOGHigh = [ ]
GOOGLow = [ ]
GOOGAdj = [ ]
GOOGVolume = [ ]

# Populate lists from downloaded data
for i in range(1, 755):
	GOOGDate.append(GOOG[i][0])
	GOOGOpen.append(GOOG[i][1])
	GOOGHigh.append(GOOG[i][2])
	GOOGLow.append(GOOG[i][3])
	GOOGClose.append(GOOG[i][4])
	GOOGVolume.append(GOOG[i][5])
 	GOOGAdj.append(GOOG[i][6])

#create canvas add two plots linked via x-axis
fig = figure()
ax = fig.add_subplot(311)
ax2 = fig.add_subplot(312, sharex=ax)
ax.plot(GOOGAdj)
ax2.plot(GOOGVolume)

Below you can see the output, you can scroll and zoom these graphs and they remain aligned.

Below shows what happens when you zoom in on a chart.

As you can see from the above examples python is easy to use and is very flexible. In my next post I will go through some more advanced charting and drawing functions.

As you can see the image on the very end looks to be Timothy Sykes addressing a congregation of Scientologists. After closer inspection however it is clear to see it is a Photoshop fake. So if Timothy Sykes does not have the divine power of Alien life-forms to pick stocks for him how does he do it?

Timothy Sykes The King of Pump & Dump’s

I am not implying that Timothy Sykes promotes these garbage stocks, he merely identifies them. Most of the time he will short these stocks, occasionally he will ride them on the way up. If you want a more in depth statistical analysis of Tim’s trades check CXO’s blog a summary of his findings are shown below:

Notable characteristics of the balance of 295 trades are:

74% of the trades are profitable.

On a trade-weighted basis, the average net return per trade is 6.1%.

The standard deviation of trade returns is 13%.

On a dollar-weighted basis (derived from the trade data provided), the average net return per trade is about 4.0%. In other words, large trades tend to be less profitable than small trades.

The arithmetic (geometric) mean monthly net return of the underlying portfolio is 10.5% (10.3%).”

His final summary shown below:

” In summary, evidence from simple tests on available data supports a belief that Timothy Sykes can identify pump-and-dump patterns in real time with economically meaningful consistency, but scalability is multiply constrained such that his subscribers may not be able to mimic his trades reliably. Niche constraints may preclude exploitation by large traders, a large group of small traders and funds.”

I have yet to go over the numbers myself but the conclusion does seem reasonable. In the past I have reviewed:

• DVD Review: PennyStocking by Timothy Sykes.
• Timothy Sykes PennyStocking Part Deux – DVD Review.
• Timothy Sykes DVD – Tim Raw Review

Overall I was happy with the material presented in these DVD’s however they left me wanting to investigate Tim’s trading tactics more and see if  they could be applied to the Australian market. Over the coming weeks I will be watching and taking notes on all of Tim’s new DVD’s and see if I can turn this knowledge into a tradable system. I will be watching the following DVD’s

• Shortstocking.
• Tim Fundamentals I and II.
• Learn level II.
• TimTactics.
• Best of Livestock.
• Read SEC Filings.

It is a lot of material to get through but if the previous DVD’s are anything to go by I am sure they will be entertaining. I will leave my final judgement till I have gone over all the material.

Economic Calenders

When it comes to economic calendars you will find an assortment of them on-line. There are only two online calendars that I use on daily basis. They are the Forex Calendar @ Forex Factory and Bloomberg Calendar the screenshots of these calendars shown below:

Out of these two calendars my favourite would have to be the Forex Calendar it has more features and has a much easier workflow then Bloomberg. 

Forex Calendar Features

The first thing you will want to do with both these calendars is adjust your time zone. After I have done this I like to get out my trading notebook and I enter  the announcements that will be relevant to me on that given day. To get more detail about a specific announcement simply click on the detail button. The detail window gives you the following information:

• Source
• Measures
• Usual Effect
• Frequency
• Next Release
• FF Notes
• Why Traders care
• Derived via
• Acro Expand
• History
• Related items

The screenshot below shows the Forex Calendar detail feature in action:

The other unique feature the Forex calendar has is the ability to chart historical release data. Like the detail feature you simply click on the chart icon and an interactive chart will be generated within the same window.  The image below shows the chart feature in action:

Software Tools

I use the free tool FF Calendar to news software as it provides an easy way for me to build a database of future and historic news events on my local computer. This is very handy for some system design work I do. The screenshot below shows my news events history database:

Once my database is populated I can then run a script that overlays each of the economic events on the appropriate chart. This allows for me to graphically view the impact if any on the underlying markets. The screenshot below shows the auto generated chart content on the EUR/USD 1 minute spot chart:

In my next post I will talk about the classic reference book that I often refer to surrounding news releases The Secrets of Economic Indicators: Hidden Clues to Future Economic Trends and Investment Opportunities.

eSignal OnDemand Software

After signing up at eSignal OnDemand you will then be able to download and install the software. After installation the first screen most of you will see is this:

Under Windows 7 it is simply a matter of allowing the eSignal data manger access through the firewall and you will be downloading historical data in no time. I really like the integrated browser within eSignal and the extensive getting started guide. The screenshot below shows the browser running in eSignal:

eSignals extensive documentation makes learning eSignal a less daunting process. I strongly recommend anyone starting out in eSignal to not skip this documentation.

eSignal onDemand Symbol Search

One of the first things you will want to do is find a stock, index, future or option contracts symbol. This is easily achieved using eSignal OnDemand symbol search window. The symbol search tool is very powerful and you will often need to narrow your search criteria. Once again eSignal OnDemand makes this an easy process through the use of drop down lists.  The search feature allows you to quickly add the symbol to the quote board, open up a chart or perform other analysis tasks with the click of a button. Below are some screenshots of eSignal OnDemand symbol search in action.

eSignal OnDemand Quote Window

The quote window allows you to gain a quick snapshot of how a financial instrument is performing. From the quote window you can quickly open charts and analysis tools by right clicking the instrument. You can also take a snapshot of the current quote window and save it as an image file locally or on a ftp server. The image below shows a brief snapshot of my current eSignal OnDemand quote window:

eSignal OnDemand Quote Board

The Quote Board is very similar to the quote window however it provides a little more data on individual financial instruments. You can very quickly visually track how a stock or financial instrument is travelling at a given point in time. The Quote Board is colour coded and shows the open, high, low, close and percent change of a given instrument. An example of my Quote Board is shown below:

eSignal OnDemand Advanced Chart

This is the area that eSignal OnDemand really advances in their charting. The charting features are so extensive it would take two maybe three post just to do them justice. Instead I will go over a quick run down of the features.

Chart Types

1. Bar Chart
2. Candle Stick Chart
3. Line Chart
4. Area Chart
5. PNF Chart
6. PB Chart
7. Renko Chart
8. Kagi Chart

Some of these Chart types shown below (Click to Enlarge):

Chart Drawing tools and Indicators

eSignal OnDemand has an extensive array of drawing tools and built-in chart studies, rather then go through them all the screenshots below show some of the available options.

eSignal OnDemand Page Layout

Using the page layout feature it is very easy to create a specific screen setup for a given workflow and then switch between layouts quickly. This allows for increased productivity and allows you to quickly change perspectives. The layout below is a simple one I created for quickly looking at stocks.

Other Excellent features include:

• The ability to export data to csv or html format.
• The ability to replay bars of a given security.
• The ability to back test trading strategies. (I will cover this in a future post as the features are so extensive).
• Price filtering of bars.
• Portfolio tools.
• Extensive keyboard customisation settings.

Bottom Line

I am very impressed with the range of features and data coverage at such a low monthly cost. I have found the software to be stable and after the initial learning curve fairly easy to use. The charting features and data coverage make this a truly fantastic package for a retail trader who only makes a few trades in a week or month. It is also a good starting point for someone who wishes to get into trading but might be at work during market hours. The bar replay feature allows for you to get a feel for some market dynamics.

In an upcoming post I will detail what eSignal OnDemand has to offer for the quant or algorithmic trader. Overall eSignal OnDemand allows you to start analysing the market at a low cost and when you are ready to move to a real time service you will be able to transfer skills learned. eSignal will also integrate with most brokers so you can make trades directly from eSignal.

A Final Note

eSignal OnDemand will not offer to much to the high frequency trader or day trader. For these practises real time data is essential. eSignal OnDemand does not have free market scanners and some advanced features are sold as an add on service.

The Signup Process

To signup to the Kirk reports member only section click on member information page. After doing this a page similar to the one shown below will appear.

I choose to pay via PayPal and the process was extremely straightforward. After the transaction is complete you are redirected to instruction on how to log on to the members only section. You will also receive an email welcoming you to the Kirk report. Once you have logged on you will see a clean easy to use interface as shown below:

As a member you get access to:

• Kirk’s stock screen machine
• Monthly Q&A sessions
• Premarket/Afterhours posts
• A market timing indicator
• Recommended Readings
• Tools of the trade
• Educational posts
• Retirement/Lazy portfolios
• Model retirement portfolio

Stock Screen Machine

Naturally after signing up this was the first area of the members only section that I wanted to investigate. At the bottom of the page is a tutorial which goes over how to use the tools effectively and gives a bit of background information. There are quite a few screens that will help you find stocks to play. The screens provided include:

Stock Screen Machine Filters

• New & Hot
• Most Popular
• Consistent Performers
• Losing Popularity
• All Screens

Kirk’s Favourite Stock Screens

• Back Up The Truck
• Cheapo Growth
• Cream Of The Crop
• Good Minds Think Alike
• Market Leaders
• Passing The Bar
• Pounding The Table
• Safety First & Then Potential
• Value/Growth/Momentum

Another benefit of Kirk’s stock screens is the ability to views charts of all the stocks listed with a singe click, download an excel file contain the stocks or a text file. I have found this to be very hand as it allows me to use BulkQuotesXL and AnalyzerXL on the list directly. The image below shows a selected stock screen filter:

The monthly Q&A section is a complete archive of all the past Q&A topics and is all easily accessible on one page. I found it really helpful to see the lists of news that Kirk reads and the blogs he reads. These two lists are both very extensive and contain some sites that even the most seasoned professional may not have come across.  Kirk also has a list of recommended readings which is fairly standard but helpful to the beginner. The tools of the trade section of the website lists in great detail Kirks trading setup and I have to say I am somewhat jealous The lazy portfolio section of the website is of a very high standard and there are lots of resources. In total there are 25 different lazy portfolios presented. At the end of each day Kirk sends all his subscribers a concise email with links to posts along with other relevant information. The final section of the members only section that is worth its weight in gold is the members mailbag. This section of the website goes over all the previous questions kirks members have asked him. There is a lot of content and it makes very interesting reading.

Bottom Line

Becoming a member of the Kirk report really is easy and the value most people will derive will far exceed the initial outlay. If you only got access to the screen machines it would be $50 well spent. The mailbag section and the tools of the trade section make for very useful and interesting reading. If you have been a regular reader of the Kirk report but have been sitting on the fence it is time to take the plunge. The only criticism I have is the lack of comments and community interaction. It would be great to see a members only forum or comments to be enabled on posts. Also it would be good if the recommended reading section offered links to the Amazon page of books presented. That being said a Kirk report membership offers extraordinary value for  money.Well I am off to read some more Q&A’s and mailbag questions.

As the name suggests Tim Raw has very little editing, no fancy production techniques and comes on four DVD’s.

Tim Raw DVD Disc One – Tim Lessons -Approx Runtime: 2hrs 30min

All in all this is a solid introduction to trading techniques and methods. You will find a multitude of generalised information and anecdotes throughout the DVD’s. I found the first DVD to be a bit slow and less structured then the remaining DVD’s yet there were some great tips. It is very helpful to take notes, as the first two DVD’s are not divided into any structured chapters. Some topics covered on this first DVD include:

Lesson 1

• Disclaimer
• “I am not responsible for any of your losses. If you do have any gains I would like to take credit for that, as I have taught you”
• A brief Introduction to who Timothy Sykes is
• The GYGT trade Lesson- Business reality vs Stock reality
• Nov 2007 The introduction of TIM (Transparent Investment Management)
• SEC Pattern day trading rule (intro)
• Tim Alerts (intro)
• A little bit of cross selling other DVD Products
• PennyStocking in Bull Markets
• Are all PennyStocks Frauds?
• An in depth look at the CYGT saga
• Sub Penny shares…. Should you play them?
• PennyStocking success stories and Covester
• How do you spend your PennyStocking profits?
• The Simplicity of PennyStocking
• Limit Orders Vs Market Orders
• A more in depth view of the pattern day trading rule
• A brief overview of ShortStocking concepts
• Trading Psychology a brief overview
• Habits of a good Trader
• Getting Over losing streaks

Lesson 2

• Managing other peoples money
• Starting a Hedge Fund – One man shops won’t work
• Licences needed
• Prop Firms
• The Financial media jungle
• CNBC and Noise
• Alternative Investment strategies
• Recommended Brokers
• Analysts
• High price stocks
• Tax Law selling
• Seasonal patterns

Book Reviews

The book review section was extremely average due to the lack of information provided by Tim. Despite the lack of information provided the books that were introduced were good and definitely important reading. You can gain just as much insight by visiting Tim’s Trading library section of his website.

Below is a selection of the books reviewed for a full list visit Tim’s library.

1. Book of Investing Wisdom
2. The Predictors
3. Mobs messiahs and markets
4. Bernard Baruch
5. Rouge Trader
6. The Man Who made Wallstreet
7. The Rich and how they got that way
8. The next great bubble boom
9. Lessons from the greatest stock traders of all times
10. Sell and Sell Short
11. Trading for a living
12. How to make money selling stocks short
13. Full of Bull
14. Your money and your brain
15. A mathematician plays the stock market
16. Practical Speculation
17. Millionaire traders
18. My life as a quant
19. Way of the turtle
20. Trend following
21. The Complete turtle trader
22. Inside the house of money
23. Fooling some of the people all of the time
24. The education of a speculator
25. Hedge Hunters
26. Jesse Livermore worlds greatest stock trader
27. Reminiscences of a stock operator
28. The wall street jungle
29. A random walk down wallstreet
30. Unconventional success
31. The white sharks of wall street
32. The boy wonder of wall street
33. Wall Street a History
34. Scam Dogs and Mo Mo Mama’s
35. Trading with enemy
36. Market Wizards
37. Morgan
38. Encyclopaedia of chart patterns
39. The Go Go years
40. The new market wizards
41. The wolf of Wall Street
42. Confessions of a Wall Street analyst
43. Running money
44. Wall Street Meat
45. Hedge Hogging
46. The book of Daniel Drew
47. Where are the customer’s yachts?
48. Soros the life and times
49. Sold short
50. Hedge Fund Masters
51. The poker face of Wall Street
52. Fooled by Randomness
53. All about options

After the book reviews the following topics are looked at:

• A Word about Stock promoters
• A Little history Tulip Mania

Tim Raw DVD Disc Two – Timothy Sykes Seminar Part One – Approx Runtime: 1hr 48min

The final DVD’s go through a recent seminar Tim gave. I found these DVD’s to be a very interesting insight into the way Tim trades. For anyone who is unable to attend a seminar in person this DVD is a great substitute. There are so many substandard educational products in the trading sphere it is good to actually come across a DVD, which contains an honest and open view of the industry. Some topics covered on this DVD include:

• Introductions
• A brief introduction to candlestick charting
• Use of stop losses and routing of orders
• A look at a level II screen
• ¾ stocks follow the market
• Bitter sellers an Explanation
• Pig Farming in China – A technical look
• A look at multiple timeframes
• The Kramer effect
• A look at covester website
• Stock MSG boars and Jonathan Levit
• Stocks that aren’t moving
• Everyone has an angle
• A look at a spam stock
• Midday volume dry up
• 10% Spreads! Crazy
• Naked Short Selling
• A few Seasonal Trends
• Stock Market Fundamentals Market Cap
• Breakouts
• Support and Resistance

Tim Raw DVD Disc Three – Seminar Part Two -Approx Runtime: 2hrs 9min

Some topics covered include:

• A discussion of the pattern day trading rule.
• Looking for market inefficiencies.
• A technical look at PR run ups.
• Cup and Handle pattern
• Some morning patterns
• Short Squeezes
• Taking into account all available variables
• Wait for good setups
• Buying Frauds
• Tim’s Favourite Breakout
• A Short Q&A
• More chart patterns
• Multiple timeframes
• Supernovas
• The Crow
• The Death Spiral
• Identifying short squeezes on the level II Screen
• Doubling your losses Newsletter – Read the fine print
• Yahoo finances – Understanding key statistics

Tim Raw DVD Disc Four – Seminar Part Three -Approx Runtime: 1hrs 44min

The final disc which I found to be the most interesting looks more closely at how Tim trades. Topics covered include:

• Examples of simple breakouts
• Short selling into strength
• Fake out Breakouts
• Morning panic
• An example of how Tim researches a play
• Breakdowns- looking at multiple timeframes
• Take losses quickly
• Forcing opportunities
• A look at media outlets
• Don’t trust insider buying
• Liquidity issues
• Plan for everything the night before
• Tim’s routine
• The sites Tim uses
• Building watch lists
• Don’t trust just one data source
• How Tim finds his stocks

Final Thoughts

Tim’s Raw DVD is a great introduction to his PennyStocking strategy and some general trading concepts. Tim’s Raw DVD should be watched before moving on to the PennyStocking DVD and PennyStocking Part Deux. It is evident throughout this DVD series that Tim knows his stuff when it comes to the Penny Stock niche. In the fast pace world of finance a new guru pops up every few months and then fades into obscurity. Tim’s profits and trades are well documented and transparent and his blog details the day-to-day happenings and events, which are pertinent to PennyStockers. I was very impressed with this DVD it is packed full of trading wisdom.

Pros

• No assumed knowledge.
• Presented in easy to understand manner.
• A vast amount of topics covered.
• Allows new trader to gain an insight into how a successful trader approaches trading.

Cons

• Dis-Jointed in parts
• DVD chapter selection sparse.
• Book review section not very informative.

Bottom Line

A vast array of topics are presented in an easy to understand manner. This is a perfect DVD for anyone who is considering PennyStocking. The production quality is raw but the content presented more then makes up for this. Tim is really maturing as a trader and educator (Maybe the influence of a good woman??).

A Master of PennyStocks gives us a master insight into the world of PennyStocks. I must say thank you Tim you have opened my eyes to opportunities that exist that I would have never even given a second of thought too. Although I don’t currently trade Penny Stocks the perspective and insight presented is still very relevant.