Nature's Way

Things come and go. If they occur at the right time, for the right reason, there isn't a problem. Gazing out the window, thousands of gulls are still sitting in the lake, but soon they will move on. The pelicans arrived a few days ago and some have already headed South. Some migrating geese are joining the local guys and too will head off. This phenomenon occurs in humans also.

A division president of Jones Lang LaSalle quit to become CEO of HCP healthcare. JLL is a $4B marketcap company and HCP is an $18B outfit. CEO is better than division president. She was already a HCP board member so her decision was not made in a vacuum. Why wouldn't a manager take a more important position with a larger company, likely for more money? It's the natural thing to do.

Unfortunately, Wall Street also reacts naturally which means stupidly. Today they've taken about $4.00 off JLL's price presumably because of the executive departure. That 4% hit is about 3% more than the market's "government shutdown " impact. While headline panic seems to be the market's natural course, the reaction of a rational investor should be to buy and obtain a 3% headstart. I've been doing so today.

I can't think of another animal analogy, but another favorite of mine, Valmont Industries, has been taken out and paddled lately. It's gone from $130ish to $150ish and now back to $130ish. Ouch. Not for any good reasons that I can determine. So more cash goes from the sidelines into VMI and I hope it will help me go South this Winter.