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Chicago, IL – October 27, 2022 – Zacks Market Edge is a podcast hosted weekly by Zacks Stock Strategist Tracey Ryniec. Every week, Tracey will be joined by guests to discuss the hottest investing topics in stocks, bonds and ETFs and how it impacts your life. To listen to the podcast, (click here: https://www.zacks.com/stock/news/1997930/secrets-of-an-amazing-stock-millionaire)
Secrets of an Amazing Stock Millionaire
Welcome to Episode #334 of the Zacks Market Edge Podcast.
(1:00) - Learning From A Successful Mom-and-Pop Investor
(7:30) - How A Retired Musician Created A Fortune In The Stock Market
Every week, host and Zacks stock strategist, Tracey Ryniec, will be joined by guests to discuss the hottest investing topics in stocks, bonds and ETFs and how it impacts your life.
This week, Tracey is going solo to discuss the incredible story of how Edward Avedisian, a retired musician from the Boston Pops, was able to donate $100 million to Boston University by growing his self-directed stock portfolio to $170 million.
No, he didn't inherit a bunch of money. And he never worked for a company that gave him stock options.
How'd He Do It?
According to an interview with him on Marketwatch conducted by Adam Seessel, CIO of Gravity Capital Management, he didn't even start investing until he was in his 40s.
Avedisian, according to Marketwatch, was a self-taught investor who read investing books, the Wall Street Journal and Investor Business Daily, and watched CNBC and Bloomberg on cable tv.
He liked IPOs and would read the IPO prospectuses in his spare time.
While he didn't tell Marketwatch what his exact investments were, he did say they were well-known companies that everyone would recognize.
Tracey has some ideas about what he might have bought.
5 Big Caps an Investor Could Have Bought Over the Last 40 Years
The first thing Tracey thought when she saw the headline about a retired musician having a portfolio worth $170 million was that he could have been an early investor in Berkshire Hathaway.
There have been many Berkshire Hathaway millionaires revealed over the years. These were people who were early investors and held the stock for decades. In 2004, the New York Times interviewed some of them including one man who bought shares at $175 in 1978 and still owned some in 2004. They were trading at $93,000 per share at that time.
What if he had held on until 2022?
$10,000 invested in Berkshire Hathaway on Jan 3, 1978 and held through Oct 25, 2022, were up 166,896% and would be worth $16.69 million.
But Mr Avedisian told Marketwatch that while he DID own shares of Berkshire over the years, it wasn't the main catalyst behind the portfolio.
Mr. Avedisian did mention Microsoft and Bill Gates in the article. Could he have bought the Microsoft IPO in 1986?
$10,000 invested in the Microsoft IPO in 1986 through Oct 25, 2022, would have been up 261,000% and worth $26.1 million. That doesn't get you to $170 million. But what if an investor had put in $100,000? It would be worth $260 million.
There are a lot of Microsoft millionaires out there.
Or maybe Mr. Avedisian bought the Amazon IPO in 1997. It's been a bit rockier for Amazon over those years, however.
$10,000 invested in Amazon at the IPO and held through Oct 25, 2022 is up 160,699% and would be worth $16.06 million. (On the podcast, Tracey has a much lower number which isn't correct.) But just a year ago these numbers would have been much higher before the shares slid in 2022.
But there are still many "Amazon millionaires" out there who have stayed the course. Was Mr. Avedisian one of them?
Monster Beverage also had an IPO in the 1990s. Perhaps Mr. Avedisian bought that one? Monster Beverage would go on to be one of the top performing S&P 500 stocks of the last 30 years.
$10,000 invested in the Monster Beverage IPO on Aug 18, 1995 and held through Oct 25, 2022, would be up 319,874%. That would be $32 million.
Few people talk about the wealth generator that was Monster Beverage over the last 27 years.
But not all big cap companies have been stock market winners. Take the example of ExxonMobil. In the 1970s, when Mr. Avedisian started investing, the best performing sector was energy.
But ExxonMobil has had big periods of underperformance which have hurt returns of long-term investors.
$10,000 invested in ExxonMobil on Jan 3, 1978 and held through Oct 25, 2022, would be up 3,591% and would be worth $359,000.
That doesn't sound so bad, right? However, the S&P 500 was up 4209% during the same time. An investor could have just bought the index.
Finding the big winning stocks isn't as easy as Mr. Avedisian makes it seem.
What Else Should You Know About This Amazing Stock Investor?
Tune into this week's podcast to find out.
[In full disclosure, Tracey owns shares of Microsoft in her personal portfolio but she did not, alas, buy them at the 1986 IPO.]
Why Haven't You Looked at Zacks' Top Stocks?
Our 5 best-performing strategies have blown away the S&P's impressive +28.8% gain in 2021. Amazingly, they soared +40.3%, +48.2%, +67.6%, +94.4%, and +95.3%. Today you can access their live picks without cost or obligation.
Zacks Investment Research is under common control with affiliated entities (including a broker-dealer and an investment adviser), which may engage in transactions involving the foregoing securities for the clients of such affiliates.
Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Inherent in any investment is the potential for loss. This material is being provided for informational purposes only and nothing herein constitutes investment, legal, accounting or tax advice, or a recommendation to buy, sell or hold a security. No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor. It should not be assumed that any investments in securities, companies, sectors or markets identified and described were or will be profitable. All information is current as of the date of herein and is subject to change without notice. Any views or opinions expressed may not reflect those of the firm as a whole. Zacks Investment Research does not engage in investment banking, market making or asset management activities of any securities. These returns are from hypothetical portfolios consisting of stocks with Zacks Rank = 1 that were rebalanced monthly with zero transaction costs. These are not the returns of actual portfolios of stocks. The S&P 500 is an unmanaged index. Visit https://www.zacks.com/performancefor information about the performance numbers displayed in this press release.
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Zacks Market Edge Highlights: Berkshire Hathaway, Microsoft, Amazon, Monster Beverage and ExxonMobil
For Immediate Release
Chicago, IL – October 27, 2022 – Zacks Market Edge is a podcast hosted weekly by Zacks Stock Strategist Tracey Ryniec. Every week, Tracey will be joined by guests to discuss the hottest investing topics in stocks, bonds and ETFs and how it impacts your life. To listen to the podcast, (click here: https://www.zacks.com/stock/news/1997930/secrets-of-an-amazing-stock-millionaire)
Secrets of an Amazing Stock Millionaire
Welcome to Episode #334 of the Zacks Market Edge Podcast.
Every week, host and Zacks stock strategist, Tracey Ryniec, will be joined by guests to discuss the hottest investing topics in stocks, bonds and ETFs and how it impacts your life.
This week, Tracey is going solo to discuss the incredible story of how Edward Avedisian, a retired musician from the Boston Pops, was able to donate $100 million to Boston University by growing his self-directed stock portfolio to $170 million.
No, he didn't inherit a bunch of money. And he never worked for a company that gave him stock options.
How'd He Do It?
According to an interview with him on Marketwatch conducted by Adam Seessel, CIO of Gravity Capital Management, he didn't even start investing until he was in his 40s.
Avedisian, according to Marketwatch, was a self-taught investor who read investing books, the Wall Street Journal and Investor Business Daily, and watched CNBC and Bloomberg on cable tv.
He liked IPOs and would read the IPO prospectuses in his spare time.
While he didn't tell Marketwatch what his exact investments were, he did say they were well-known companies that everyone would recognize.
Tracey has some ideas about what he might have bought.
5 Big Caps an Investor Could Have Bought Over the Last 40 Years
1. Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.B - Free Report)
The first thing Tracey thought when she saw the headline about a retired musician having a portfolio worth $170 million was that he could have been an early investor in Berkshire Hathaway.
There have been many Berkshire Hathaway millionaires revealed over the years. These were people who were early investors and held the stock for decades. In 2004, the New York Times interviewed some of them including one man who bought shares at $175 in 1978 and still owned some in 2004. They were trading at $93,000 per share at that time.
What if he had held on until 2022?
$10,000 invested in Berkshire Hathaway on Jan 3, 1978 and held through Oct 25, 2022, were up 166,896% and would be worth $16.69 million.
But Mr Avedisian told Marketwatch that while he DID own shares of Berkshire over the years, it wasn't the main catalyst behind the portfolio.
2. Microsoft (MSFT - Free Report)
Mr. Avedisian did mention Microsoft and Bill Gates in the article. Could he have bought the Microsoft IPO in 1986?
$10,000 invested in the Microsoft IPO in 1986 through Oct 25, 2022, would have been up 261,000% and worth $26.1 million. That doesn't get you to $170 million. But what if an investor had put in $100,000? It would be worth $260 million.
There are a lot of Microsoft millionaires out there.
3. Amazon (AMZN - Free Report)
Or maybe Mr. Avedisian bought the Amazon IPO in 1997. It's been a bit rockier for Amazon over those years, however.
$10,000 invested in Amazon at the IPO and held through Oct 25, 2022 is up 160,699% and would be worth $16.06 million. (On the podcast, Tracey has a much lower number which isn't correct.) But just a year ago these numbers would have been much higher before the shares slid in 2022.
But there are still many "Amazon millionaires" out there who have stayed the course. Was Mr. Avedisian one of them?
4. Monster Beverage (MNST - Free Report)
Monster Beverage also had an IPO in the 1990s. Perhaps Mr. Avedisian bought that one? Monster Beverage would go on to be one of the top performing S&P 500 stocks of the last 30 years.
$10,000 invested in the Monster Beverage IPO on Aug 18, 1995 and held through Oct 25, 2022, would be up 319,874%. That would be $32 million.
Few people talk about the wealth generator that was Monster Beverage over the last 27 years.
5. ExxonMobil (XOM - Free Report)
But not all big cap companies have been stock market winners. Take the example of ExxonMobil. In the 1970s, when Mr. Avedisian started investing, the best performing sector was energy.
But ExxonMobil has had big periods of underperformance which have hurt returns of long-term investors.
$10,000 invested in ExxonMobil on Jan 3, 1978 and held through Oct 25, 2022, would be up 3,591% and would be worth $359,000.
That doesn't sound so bad, right? However, the S&P 500 was up 4209% during the same time. An investor could have just bought the index.
Finding the big winning stocks isn't as easy as Mr. Avedisian makes it seem.
What Else Should You Know About This Amazing Stock Investor?
Tune into this week's podcast to find out.
[In full disclosure, Tracey owns shares of Microsoft in her personal portfolio but she did not, alas, buy them at the 1986 IPO.]
Why Haven't You Looked at Zacks' Top Stocks?
Our 5 best-performing strategies have blown away the S&P's impressive +28.8% gain in 2021. Amazingly, they soared +40.3%, +48.2%, +67.6%, +94.4%, and +95.3%. Today you can access their live picks without cost or obligation.
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Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Inherent in any investment is the potential for loss. This material is being provided for informational purposes only and nothing herein constitutes investment, legal, accounting or tax advice, or a recommendation to buy, sell or hold a security. No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor. It should not be assumed that any investments in securities, companies, sectors or markets identified and described were or will be profitable. All information is current as of the date of herein and is subject to change without notice. Any views or opinions expressed may not reflect those of the firm as a whole. Zacks Investment Research does not engage in investment banking, market making or asset management activities of any securities. These returns are from hypothetical portfolios consisting of stocks with Zacks Rank = 1 that were rebalanced monthly with zero transaction costs. These are not the returns of actual portfolios of stocks. The S&P 500 is an unmanaged index. Visit https://www.zacks.com/performancefor information about the performance numbers displayed in this press release.