FINANCIAL CYCLES WEEKLY UPDATE #0347 – November 23-29, 2003 with TIM BOST

SOMETHING NEW: We’re getting ready to start a new feature in our weekly email letter, geared for longer-term investors. Look for details on our Eclipse Portfolio at the end of this week’s issue.

COMMENT: Last week we noted that “short positions are appropriate” with “the possibility of a sharp market correction . . . getting stronger and stronger.” We also pointed out that last week’s lunar void-of-course periods were likely to offer brief interruptions from the generally negative market direction, hinting that especially at the end of Friday’s trading day it would be wise to “take any last-minute market action with a big grain of salt.”
As it turned out, the market’s performance matched our forecast perfectly. We saw the second week in a row with U.S. equities significantly lower, interrupted only by brief positive interludes during the lunar voids. It certainly looks like we have a correction in the works, although from a technician’s perspective the trend won’t reverse to the downside until we get the Dow Industrials back below 9497 and the NASDAQ Composite below 1841.
It’s a funny thing, though. Nobody on Wall Street seemed to be giving much credit to the void-of-course Moon, or even to the upcoming solar eclipse. In fact, traders and analysts who don’t have the many advantages that astrological perspectives bring to our understanding of the markets often attribute shifts in stock market trends to reactions to the news.
Of course nothing could be farther from the truth. While we sometimes see surprising news events that coincide with intra-day market swings, the real driver of the markets is the force of mass emotions, and our astrological indicators give us a systematic way of anticipating and forecasting fluctuations in those mass emotions.
But what about the news? A look at the headlines from the closing days of last week quickly shows us what a bizarre world we live in, but also amply demonstrates just how ludicrous it is to assume that the news somehow drives the markets.
Thursday got underway with the announcement that there were more deaths in Iraq, of course, but that’s hardly news any more. President Bush was in London, where his personal security required shutting down much of the city’s normal commerce, resulting in an estimated 25% loss in retail revenues. A Member of Parliament commented that the British didn’t want any harm to come to “this foolish, ignorant, and dangerous man” because that would bring Dick Cheney to the presidency, “which would be far worse.” More than 100,000 protestors jammed the London streets, and two simultaneous suicide bombings hit British interests in Istanbul, killing dozens and injuring over 400 people.
At the same time, back in the U.S., an estimated 10,000 demonstrators confronted police on the streets of Miami as they protested actions by the World Trade Organization. On Friday morning, at Elgin Air Force Base in northwestern Florida, the U.S. military exploded a 21,700-pound satellite-guided GBU-43/B Massive Ordinance Air Blast Bomb, the “MOAB,” which is designed to replace the 15,000-pound BLU-82 “Daisy Cutter” bomb used in the 1991 Gulf War and in the attacks on Afghanistan in 2001. The test explosion of the MOAB created a huge mushroom cloud filled with flames, sending a plume of smoke more than 10,000 feet into the air that was visible more than 40 miles away.
The story that should have hit the top headlines—but didn’t—was the one about the White House being evacuated at 9:20 a.m. on Thursday due to a suspected terrorist threat. White House staff members and visiting school children were ordered by the Secret Service to leave the premises immediately. A Secret Service contingent, in full anti-sniper gear, took up positions on the White House roof while Vice President Dick Cheney and Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge hurried away to safety. Two F-16 fighter jets from Andrews Air Force Base were scrambled in response to a radar blip indicating that an unknown aircraft was approaching the White House no-fly zone.
When the F-16’s arrived, however, they found nothing. Just empty air. After about 20 minutes or so, everyone went back to work. Officials later speculated that the radar blip had been caused by strange weather, or maybe by a flock of birds, or maybe just by malfunctioning equipment, but admitted that they didn’t really know, and the flying object remained unidentified. In other words, the White House had been evacuated in response to a UFO.
Perhaps its no surprise that the media failed to put all these stories into the proper perspective. After all, the mainstream press and all the major television networks were obsessed with the really big story of last week—Michael Jackson turning himself in to be fingerprinted. But whether the news is about bombs, protestors, UFOs or rock stars, it’s hard to see it as a cause of instead of an effect. Both the news and the markets are evidence of the psychological temperament of our times, and astrology is an extraordinary tool for helping us understand what that temperament is all about, and when it’s likely to change.


THE WEEK AHEAD

There are a just a few stragglers left from the Q3 earnings season this week, with only about 130 companies reporting. The largest will be Campbell Soup (CPB), Deere & Company (DE), H & R Block (HRB), and H. J. Heinz (HNZ). Other stocks in the news will include Diodes (DIOD) and eResearch Tech (ERES), which will both begin trading on an ex-dividend basis for 3-for-2 splits on Wednesday; and Jarden (JAH), which will begin trading on an ex-dividend basis for a 3-for-2 split on Friday. We’re also watching for IPOs from Open Solutions (OPEN), SIRVA (SIR), SYNNEX (SNX), and Tercica (TRCA).
In spite of the fact that it’s a holiday week, there should be plenty of action on the economic front. We will be looking for the Q3 GDP report; October numbers for New and Existing Home Sales, Personal Income, Personal Spending, and Durable Goods Orders; and the November PMI from Chicago. The week will also feature two important sentiment indicators: the October Consumer Confidence report from the University of Michigan and the November Consumer Confidence report from the Conference Board.
The solar eclipse which starts the week is definitely the strongest astrological factor at work for the trading sessions coming up, but it’s not all that’s happening in the heavens. We have a Mars/Pluto square this week, in right ascension on November 23 and in geocentric longitude on November 26. This planetary configuration is not only connected with increased levels of violence and bloodshed; it has also been historically accompanied by some fairly juicy moves in the U.S. equities markets. In general, stocks move up near Mars/Pluto squares, but it’s worth noting that there’s a significant difference in the effect of the waxing “front” squares and the waning “back” squares. About 80% of the time, the waxing Mars/Pluto square has brought U.S. stocks down for a few weeks following the square, while the waning Mars/Pluto square has brought prices up about 75% of the time. In this case, we have a waxing Mars/Pluto square in the works, so we’re looking for declining equity prices to continue.
Another astrological factor at work this week is a Mercury/Pluto conjunction on November 24, which could provide a mitigating influence on stock prices. U.S. equities typically go up following Mercury/Pluto conjunctions, but this is a weaker factor than the Mars/Pluto square, so we don’t expect a positive price bias to get much reinforcement here. There’s an intraday lunar void-of-course period prior the closing bell on November 25, so wise traders may want to step aside during that interval. A much longer void-of-course period comes up on Thursday, November 27, but the U.S. markets will be closed that day for the Thanksgiving holiday. Lunar voids are traditionally said to be good times for feasting, drinking, entertainment and relaxation, so it’s quite an appropriate time for the time-honored American institutions of overindulgence and spectator sports.
Have a wonderful week!


GLOBAL EQUITIES MARKETS LAST WEEK

Stocks sold off steadily in markets around the world last week, with the Nikkei gapping back down to price levels not seen since the summer months. Paris, Singapore, Hong Kong and the NASDAQ Composite all posted significant losses for the week as well.

Dow Jones Industrial Average – down 1.43%
Dow Jones Transportation Average – down 2.81%
Dow Jones Utilities Average – down 1.32%
S& P 500 – down 1.43%
NASDAQ Composite Index – down 1.88%
Russell 2000 – down 1.32%
London FTSE-100 – down 1.77%
Paris CAC-40 – down 2.39%
Frankfurt DAX – down 4.09%
Sydney All Ordinaries – down 1.25%
Tokyo Nikkei – down 3.09%
Hong Kong Hang Seng Index – down 2.98%
Singapore Straits Times Index – down 4.58%


FINANCIAL CYCLES MODEL PORTFOLIO


POSITIONS CLOSED DURING THE PREVIOUS WEEK: AACE, APCC.

We closed two portfolio positions during the previous week, with one winner and one loser producing a net profit of $350.00.

On November 17 we sold 500 shares of Ace Cash Express, Inc. (AACE) at 19.97, taking a loss of $25.00 (a 0.25% loss in 5 trading days).

On November 17 we sold 500 shares of American Power Conversion (APCC) at 21.25, taking a profit of $375.00 (a 3.66% gain in 10 trading days).

*****


POSITIONS ADDED TO THE PORTFOLIO DURING THE PREVIOUS WEEK: MRBA, STRA, USNA, WITS, CRDN.

We sold short 1,000 shares of Marimba, Inc. (MRBA) at 5.60 on 11/17/03, setting our initial buy stop at 6.01.

We bought 100 shares of Strayer Education, Inc. (STRA) at 103.25 on 11/17/03, setting our initial stop at 100.15.

We bought 300 shares of USANA Health Science Inc. (USNA) at 33.25 on 11/17/03, setting our initial stop at 30.25.

We bought 1,000 shares of Witness Systems, Inc. (WITS) at 8.00 on 11/17/03, setting our initial stop at 7.17.

We sold short 200 shares of Ceradyne Inc. (CRDN) at 38.00 on 11/20/03, setting our initial buy stop at 48.51.

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YEAR-IN-REVIEW MODEL PORTFOLIO ACTIVITY

Since the beginning of the year we have had a total of 150 completed trades, with 86 winners and 64 losers bringing us a total net profit of $49,771.00. The largest profit for a single trade has been $9,240.00; the largest single-trade loss has been $900.00; the average profit per trade has been $331.81. The mean duration of our trades has been 10.5 trading days.

During 2002 we had a total of 195 completed trades, with 119 winners, 74 losers, and 2 break-even trades bringing us a total net profit of $50,956.00. The largest profit for a single trade was $5,100.00; the largest single-trade loss was $1,055.00; the average profit per trade was $261.31. The mean duration of our trades was 12.7 trading days.

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CURRENT POSITIONS IN THE MODEL PORTFOLIO

Akamai Technologies Inc. (AKAM) – sold short 1,000 at 11.75 on 11/14/03; currently 11.37. Lower buy stop to 11.55.

Ceradyne Inc. (CRDN) – sold short 200 shares at 38.00 on 11/20/03; currently 37.55. Lower buy stop to 39.75.

Cypress Bioscience Inc. (CYPB) – sold short 600 shares at 14.00 on 11/10/03; currently 12.45. Lower buy stop to 13.55.

Landstar System Inc. (LSTR) – sold short 200 shares at 75.00 on 11/10/03; became 400 shares at a cost basis of 37.50 following 2-for-1 split. Currently 33.97. Lower buy stop to 35.25.

Marimba, Inc. (MRBA) – sold short 1,000 shares at 5.60 on 11/17/03; currently 5.39. Lower buy stop to 5.88.

PTEK Holdings Inc. (PTEK) – sold short 1,000 shares at 9.25 on 11/10/03, setting our initial buy stop at 9.87; currently 8.16. Lower buy stop to 8.68.

Staples, Inc. (SPLS) – sold short 400 shares at 27.25 on 11/03/03; currently 25.64. Lower buy stop to 26.15.

Strayer Education, Inc. (STRA) – bought 100 shares at 103.25 on 11/17/03; currently 104.79. Raise stop to 101.25.

USANA Health Science Inc. (USNA) – bought 300 shares at 33.25 on 11/17/03; currently 33.41. Raise stop to 31.25.

Witness Systems, Inc. (WITS) – bought 1,000 shares at 8.00 on 11/17/03; currently 8.00. Raise stop to 7.35.

*****


STRONGEST MARKET SECTORS LAST WEEK

Silver; Sporting Goods Stores; Consumer Services; Apparel Stores; Residential Construction.

*****


WEAKEST MARKET SECTORS LAST WEEK

Drug Delivery; Jewelry Stores; Data Storage Devices; Major Airlines; Specialty Eateries.

*****


KEY ASTROLOGICAL EVENTS THIS WEEK

November 23
True Lunar Node retrograde station 00:19 EST
Venus quincunx Vulcanus in right ascension 01:19 EST
Heliocentric Venus enters Aquarius 01:38 EST
Heliocentric Mars parallel Heliocentric Saturn 02:23 EST
Mars sesquiquadrate Poseidon in right ascension 02:41 EST
Mars square Pluto in right ascension 04:24 EST
Sun sesquiquadrate Saturn in right ascension 04:41 EST
Heliocentric Earth semisextile Heliocentric Kronos 05:33 EST
Venus semisquare Neptune 08:37 EST
Mercury semisextile Chiron in right ascension 10:47 EST
Heliocentric Venus quincunx Heliocentric Kronos 12:24 EST
Void-of-Course Moon 14:27 – 16:02 EST
Cupido sextile Zeus 16:00 EST
Sun quincunx Kronos 16:01 EST
Solar Eclipse New Moon 17:48 EST
Mercury square Mars 22:15 EST

November 24
Heliocentric Earth trine Heliocentric Venus 00:34 EST
Heliocentric Mercury in 24th harmonic to Heliocentric Neptune 01:13 EST
Chiron sesquiquadrate 4/19/04 Solar Eclipse Antiscion 04:15 EST
Heliocentric Venus semisextile Heliocentric Uranus 05:20 EST
Heliocentric Earth square Heliocentric Uranus 08:04 EST
Mars sextile Admetos in right ascension 12:43 EST
Sun enters Sagittarius in right ascension 14:19 EST
Heliocentric Mercury square Heliocentric Mars 18:39 EST
Heliocentric Mercury enters Aquarius 20:42 EST
Mercury conjunct Pluto 21:14 EST
Mercury square Jupiter in right ascension 21:30 EST
Mercury quincunx True North Node in right ascension 21:33 EST

November 25
Heliocentric Mercury quincunx Heliocentric Kronos 02:05 EST
Heliocentric Venus in 24th harmonic to Heliocentric Chiron 04:37 EST
Jupiter trine True North Node in right ascension 04:50 EST
Heliocentric Mars enters Taurus 05:37 EST
Sun semisquare Chiron in right ascension 08:49 EST
Mercury semisquare Poseidon in right ascension 10:15 EST
Heliocentric Mercury semisextile Heliocentric Uranus 10:36 EST
Mercury conjunct Pluto in right ascension 11:38 EST
Venus semisquare Neptune in right ascension 12:05 EST
Sun parallel Cupido in right ascension 13:54 EST
Void-of-Course Moon 13:57 – 15:31 EST
Sun parallel Cupido 15:27 EST
Sun quincunx Kronos in right ascension 18:14 EST
Mercury quincunx True Lunar Node 19:19 EST
Mercury quincunx Admetos in right ascension 19:21 EST
Heliocentric Earth sesquiquadrate Heliocentric Chiron 20:46 EST
Heliocentric Mercury in 24th harmonic to Heliocentric Chiron 22:02 EST
Heliocentric Earth trine Heliocentric Mercury 22:36 EST
Sun square Uranus in right ascension 22:38 EST

November 26
Heliocentric Venus semisquare Heliocentric Pluto 00:24 EST
Venus sextile Uranus 01:21 EST
Mercury semisquare Poseidon 07:02 EST
Heliocentric Mercury semisquare Heliocentric Pluto 07:36 EST
Mercury square Mars in right ascension 08:13 EST
Heliocentric Mercury contraparallel Heliocentric Chiron 08:37 EST
Heliocentric Mars sextile Heliocentric Kronos 10:41 EST
Heliocentric Mercury conjunct Heliocentric Venus 14:22 EST
Sun in 24th harmonic to Pluto 15:50 EST
Heliocentric Mercury square Heliocentric Poseidon 16:13 EST
Heliocentric Venus square Heliocentric Poseidon 18:14 EST
Mars square Pluto 18:22 EST
Mercury quincunx Admetos 18:28 EST
Venus enters Capricorn 20:07 EST
Venus enters Capricorn in right ascension 20:08 EST
Heliocentric Mercury quincunx Heliocentric Jupiter 20:24 EST
Void-of-Course Moon begins 22:52 EST

November 27
U.S. Markets Closed for Thanksgiving Holiday
Heliocentric Venus quincunx Heliocentric Jupiter 03:18 EST
Venus in 24th harmonic to Chiron 04:11 EST
Heliocentric Mercury sesquiquadrate Heliocentric Hades 04:34 EST
Heliocentric Mercury trine Heliocentric Zeus 04:52 EST
Mercury sextile Apollon in right ascension 06:34 EST
Heliocentric Mercury quincunx Heliocentric Saturn 11:27 EST
Heliocentric Mercury sextile Heliocentric Cupido 11:44 EST
Mercury opposition Hades 12:14 EST
Mercury quincunx Vulcanus 13:51 EST
Mercury opposition Hades in right ascension 15:20 EST
Void-of-Course Moon ends 16:48 EST
Venus opposition Kronos in right ascension 17:20 EST
Venus opposition Kronos 17:26 EST
Heliocentric Venus sesquiquadrate Heliocentric Hades 20:01 EST
Heliocentric Venus trine Heliocentric Zeus 20:39 EST
Venus sextile Uranus in right ascension 21:44 EST
Mercury in 24th harmonic to Cupido 21:46 EST
Mercury sextile Apollon 22:39 EST

November 28
Saturn quincunx Neptune in right ascension 05:01 EST
Sun semisextile Poseidon in right ascension 05:07 EST
Heliocentric Earth quincunx Heliocentric Poseidon 07:12 EST
Heliocentric Mars sextile Heliocentric Uranus 09:45 EST
Heliocentric Venus quincunx Heliocentric Saturn 10:55 EST
Heliocentric Venus sextile Heliocentric Cupido 11:00 EST
Mars semisquare 5/16/03 Lunar Eclipse Antiscion 13:10 EST
Heliocentric Saturn quincunx Heliocentric Cupido 14:59 EST
Sun semisextile Poseidon 15:06 EST
Heliocentric Mercury conjunct Heliocentric Neptune 15:50 EST
Venus sesquiquadrate True Lunar Node in right ascension 22:09 EST
Mars sextile True Lunar Node 23:57 EST

November 29
Heliocentric Earth square Heliocentric Jupiter 00:48 EST
Mercury quincunx Vulcanus in right ascension 05:36 EST
Heliocentric Earth in 24th harmonic to Heliocentric Admetos 10:31 EST
Sun contraparallel Vulcanus in right ascension 11:38 EST
Mars quincunx Apollon in right ascension 12:39 EST
Sun contraparallel Vulcanus 13:20 EST
Mercury semisquare Neptune 14:06 EST
Heliocentric Mercury sesquiquadrate Heliocentric Kronos 14:20 EST
Venus sextile Poseidon in right ascension 16:01 EST
Void-of-Course Moon 19:46 – 21:25 EST
Heliocentric Earth semisquare Heliocentric Vulcanus 21:00 EST
Heliocentric Mercury in 24th harmonic to Heliocentric Uranus 22:15 EST
Heliocentric Earth in 24th harmonic to Heliocentric Hades 23:34 EST

November 30
Heliocentric Earth trine Heliocentric Zeus 00:32 EST
Venus sesquiquadrate Admetos in right ascension 00:51 EST
Venus in 24th harmonic to Pluto 07:32 EST
Heliocentric Mercury semisextile Heliocentric Chiron 09:01 EST
Sun sesquiquadrate Vulcanus 09:22 EST
Heliocentric Earth sesquiquadrate Heliocentric Apollon 09:36 EST
True Lunar Node direct station 12:07 EST
Mars square Hades in right ascension 13:39 EST
Mars sesquiquadrate Poseidon 13:50 EST
Heliocentric Mercury sextile Heliocentric Pluto 17:10 EST
Sun sextile Zeus 20:04 EST
Sun semisquare Apollon in right ascension 22:34 EST
Sun conjunct Cupido 22:53 EST
Sun semisquare Apollon 22:59 EST
Heliocentric Earth opposition Heliocentric Cupido 23:02 EST
Heliocentric Venus conjunct Heliocentric Neptune 23:15 EST

*****


STOCKS TO WATCH: AMKR, ASPT, KOSP, RANGY, TECH.

Amkor Technology, Inc. (AMKR)
First Trade Date: 05/01/1998; 09:30 a.m.
Trading Strategy: Jupiter is currently crossing the AMKR First-Trade IC, which would typically be enough to suggest that this stock is about ready to reverse direction and head south. There are a few other factors at work, however, which modify the situation significantly. First of all, transiting Mars is crossing the AMKR First-Trade Midheaven, and is about to conjoin the First-Trade Jupiter. This definitely adds some additional positive energy to the mix. The Sun is also currently conjunct First-Trade Cupido, and as the Sun conjoins transiting Cupido a week from now, the two of them will simultaneously conjoin the AMKR First-Trade Pluto. This could add additional volume to a rally for this stock. Finally, transiting Zeus will be form a tight square to the AMKR First-Trade Ascendant for the next couple of months as this slow-moving transneptunian takes its time making a retrograde station. We would expect this to add to the overall stamina of the current drive to the plus side. In summary, then, even though we may see a bit of price pull-back for this stock in the trading sessions adjacent to the Thanksgiving holiday, the short-term outlook is decidedly bullish. We’ve found that geocentric mirrored and unmirrored Jupiter lines at 34.9 have provided some fairly consistent support and resistance for this stock, making the intersection of the mirrored and unmirrored lines at 18.00 a particularly powerful zone for AMKR. As long as this stock doesn’t close more than once below 18.00, then, we expect it to continue its upward climb. Our plan is to add a long position in AMKR to the Model Portfolio this week, setting our initial stop at 17.48.

Aspect Communications (ASPT)
First Trade Date: 05/01/1990; 09:30 a.m.
Trading Strategy: ASPT is an example of another stock with Jupiter conjunct the First-Trade IC, Mars conjunct the First-Trade Midheaven, and Zeus square the First-Trade Ascendant. In this case, however, First-Trade Jupiter and Pluto don’t get pulled into the act, so there’s not quite as much positive energy at play—transiting Mars conjoins progressed First-Trade Mars instead, adding a potential for volatility but not necessarily price appreciation. There’s one other complicating factor: transiting Hades is currently semisquare the First-Trade Moon, something that definitely makes ASPT less than attractive at this time. This stock is currently struggling to work its way through a congested resistance zone defined by geocentric Saturn at 29.5, geocentric Neptune at 28.4, and geocentric Admetos at 44.0—and as far as we can tell, that effort isn’t likely to be successful. That’s one of the reasons we plan to sell ASPT short this week, setting our initial buy stop at 15.35.
Kos Pharmaceuticals Inc. (KOSP)
First Trade Date: 03/07/1997; 09:30 a.m.
Trading Strategy: If you superimpose two planetary price lines on the price chart for KOSP—geocentric Cupido at 24.0 and geocentric Uranus at 30.65—you get an immediate glimpse of how strongly this stock has responding to planetary influences. During the past 7 or 8 months, KOSP has been going through a steady, solid growth pattern, with the stock basing, consolidating, pulling back, then consolidating again, then jumping ahead dramatically, then basing and consolidating all over again. About a month ago it gapped upward to a higher price range, only to gap back down at the end of last week’s trading. In our book that’s a good thing, since it represents a nice buying opportunity. Currently Jupiter is moving into an opposition with the KOSP First-Trade Sun, which should help move the price back up. Although this stock is likely to meet some resistance in the weeks ahead, we think there’s enough resilience here to sustain an upward trend. Our plan is to add a long position in KOSP to the Model Portfolio early this week, setting our initial stop at 40.40.

Randgold & Exploration Company ADR (RANGY)
First Trade Date: 03/07/1997; 09:30 a.m.
Trading Strategy: RANGY shares a First-Trade horoscope with KOSP; while there is some similarity in their trading histories, it is the differences that are most striking. The two companies are, of course, in very different industry groups. RANGY is a much more volatile equity; its trading hasn’t exhibited the same kind of basing and consolidation that is so characteristic of KOSP. Like KOSP, RANGY has recently had a sharp price advance; unlike KOSP, however, it hasn’t pulled back from that high to consolidate its gains. That leaves it vulnerable at the current price levels, which should prove difficult to maintain. We plan to sell RANGY short this week, setting our initial buy stop at 17.27.

Techne Corporation (TECH)
First Trade Date: 02/09/1989; 09:30 a.m.
Trading Strategy: TECH has Saturn transiting its First-Trade IC right now, setting the stage for a short-term price pullback that can be used as a buying opportunity for a long position or as a chance for a quick play to the short side. We wouldn’t be surprised to see a Santa Claus rally for this stock in about another month; in the meantime, however, our choice is to sell TECH short, setting our initial buy stop at 34.50.


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ECLIPSE PORTFOLIO SEEKS LONG-TERM GAINS

Several of our readers have recently asked us about ideas for longer-term positions in the stock market, as opposed to the more active trading positions in the Financial Cycles Model Portfolio, which we hold for an average of 10.5 trading days. Although a long-term, “buy and hold” strategy leaves us very concerned about capital preservation and portfolio safety given the current market conditions, we do appreciate the desire to find profitable investment strategies that require less time and energy.
To that end, our plan is to add an experimental portfolio to our weekly email letter, starting next week. The stocks in this portfolio all have one thing in common: they each have First-Trade horoscopes featuring a Sun that is directly impacted by this week’s solar eclipse. Our plan is to enter all the positions on Monday, November 24, 2003, which is the first trading day following the eclipse.
Because it is designed as a longer-range investment vehicle, the Eclipse Portfolio will employ much more liberal initial stops than we typically use in the trading positions in our Model Portfolio. If our positions become profitable, we will raise our stops to lock in profits, but our intention is to let our winners run as long as possible.
All of the initial positions in our experimental Eclipse Portfolio will be entered to the long side. Here are the 5 stocks we will be adding to the Eclipse Portfolio on November 24, 2003:

J. B. Hunt Transportation Services, Inc. (JBHT)
First Trade Date: 11/22/1983, 10:00 a.m.
Initial Stop: 15.55

Medtronic, Inc. (MDT)
First Trade Date: 11/21/1977, 10:00 a.m.
Initial Stop: 42.00

Network Appliance, Inc. (NTAP)
First Trade Date: 11/21/1995, 09:30 a.m.
Initial Stop: 14.69

Silicon Storage Technology, Inc. (SSTI)
First Trade Date: 11/21/1995, 09:30 a.m.
Initial Stop: 5.13

Teledyne Technologies, Inc. (TDY)
First Trade Date: 11/23/1999, 09:30 a.m.
Initial Stop: 13.07



FINANCIAL CYCLES (ISSN 1055-8527) is published by Taylor-Bost Consulting and edited by Tim Bost at Post Office Box 1657, Sarasota, FL 34230-1657 USA. Phone: 941-953-3545. Fax: 941-953-3732. Email: timbost@pipeline.com. Entire contents copyright 2003 Timothy L. Bost. No portion of this Weekly Email Update or its printed version may be reproduced without the publisher's written permission. Subscriptions to FINANCIAL CYCLES are $39.00 per month for weekly updates by email or fax, payable by monthly billing to a major credit card. Advance payment options (by credit card, check, or money order) are $228 for 6 months, $432 for 1 year or $815 for two years. All subscriptions are payable in US funds only— Visa, MasterCard, American Express, Diners Club, and Discover/Novus accepted; please make checks or money orders payable to Taylor-Bost.

By providing a source of independent market analysis, the purpose of FINANCIAL CYCLES is to foster the growth of person-centered business and investment astrology; to enhance the development and dissemination of financial literacy and prosperity consciousness; and to explore the use of technical analysis and financial astrology in promoting an esoteric spiritual understanding of economic trends, geocosmic cycles, geopolitical events, and market movements. FINANCIAL CYCLES is a general interest publication which is prepared from astrological information, news reports, cycle projections, and market observations which are believed to be accurate and reliable, but which cannot be guaranteed. Portfolio and trading reports in this publication do not include taxes and transaction fees, which should be taken into consideration by prospective traders and investors. Even with accurate information, past performance is no guarantee of future results. Speculation in securities and commodities involves considerable financial risk, and readers who plan to invest or speculate in securities or commodities mentioned in FINANCIAL CYCLES have the complete responsibility for making themselves fully aware of all the risks involved before they invest. The editor may or may not have positions in the securities and commodities discussed in this newsletter, and the information in FINANCIAL CYCLES should in no way be understood or construed as a solicitation or an offer to buy or sell any products or securities, nor should the material published in this newsletter be considered buy/sell advice.

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posted by Tim Bost @ 11/23/2003 10:43:39 PM