Muscle Pharm Corporation (MSLPQ)

[prokopton]

You may want to read up on strategies that hedge fund managers use to make money. But in brief, there are many ways to play a stock.

1. Hold a long position.

2. A trade position.

3. A short position.

4. Options (calls and puts).

If you think a company has good long-term potential your long position should be larger than your trading position, or vice-versa if it has mediocre long-term prospects. With MSLP, my trade positions have always been larger than my long position.

Study the last run. The stock went from $4 to $7.99. You could have made money when the stock went up on your trade position and shorted it when the stock went down. Alternatively, you could have used calls and puts but MSLP is not optionable at the moment, I don't think.

My MSLP long position is insurance in case the company turns profitable or becomes a buyout candidate. I may not agree with some on this board but I don't rule out the possibility that they may be right.

There's a bunch of books out there that makes the game of stock picking fun.