5th Annual Talley & Company Stock Contest Wrap Up
Profit Ability Article Highlight

Last February kicked off our 5th Annual Talley & Company Stock Contest. We asked readers to test their stock market prowess by choosing up to five stocks amongst which they would spread $100,000. Even with the recent stock market woes, we had a record number of participants this year. As it turned out, this was a great year to be in the market. Over the course of the contest, the Dow Jones rose nearly 30% and the NASDAQ jumped over 45%. Taking first place in this year's contest is Chuck Clark, President of Prosperity Partners based out of Laguna Niguel. Clark turned in a record-breaking total return of 276%.

In the outset of the contest, Clark sprinted out to a quick lead. He remained in first place for most of the contest with the exception of a short period around June, when Jon Jackson, a Talley & Company alumnus, took the lead briefly. For his efforts, Chuck Clark will receive dinner for two and a subscription to Money magazine (in addition to the obvious fame and fortune bestowed upon our contest winners). We caught up with Chuck to get his thoughts on the contest and to find out about his investment philosophy.

First, we asked him why he chose the stocks he did (SuperGen and AVI BioPharma). He indicated that he had been watching both of them for a matter of years. He felt that the timing for SuperGen was right due to certain factors involving the FDA and the nature of their industry (biotech). Well, he was right as SuperGen shot up around 300% over the course of the contest. One question we always receive from readers is whether the winner of the contest actually purchased the stock that put him on top. We are happy to report that Chuck did indeed purchase actual SuperGen shares around the start of the contest. Also, you might be interested to find out that Chuck plans on retaining his shares of SuperGen into the future.

If you ask Chuck about his investment philosophy, he will tell you that proper coordination and planning of investment vehicles is just as or even more important than rates of return. According to Chuck, with so many factors (taxation, market conditions, market timing, commissions, fees, interest expenses, etc.) affecting an investor's real rate of return, it is critical to invest with the appropriate asset mix, position it properly and structure the ownership of said assets in a manner that will allow for higher real rates of return. He says many investors chase higher rates of return without even giving thought to planning issues and in the end, they see their returns whittled away by other factors. If you would like to get in touch with Chuck Clark, he may be reached via e-mail at chuck.clark@cox.net.

While Chuck Clark did take first place by a fairly wide margin, many other contestants fared quite well. Jon Jackson, Talley & Company alumnus, took second place with a return of 168%. In third place was Chuck Lightner, of Airelink, with a return of 150%. Rounding out the top five finishers were Peter Schoenlaub, of Markwood Capital Alliance (104%) and Bob Kyle, of Merrill Lynch (103%). We won't say who came in last place. But we will say that the contestant had a 54% loss and that he will be awarded a $50 U.S. Savings Bond. For contest questions or to request an an entry form for our 6th annual contest, starting in March of 2004, please e-mail requests to info@talleynco.com.