It was a mild spring Friday in Atlanta. I remember this because it was the week after the Master’s. I had driven into the city to go to Brandywine Downs, one of my favorite restaurants that had the best French dip in town. The restaurant was right across the street from the famous Fox Theater, on Peachtree Street. Mort, the owner knew me and we traded jokes and had a good time while I enjoyed my sandwich.
When I got back to my car I discovered I had locked the keys in the car.
Well crap! I walked to a hotel across from the Fox and asked the concierge for the number of a locksmith nearby. The locksmith said it would be about forty-five minutes, so I had some to kill. I walked outside to enjoy the weather and struck up a conversation with a fellow in a suit. We exchanged pleasantries and I asked where he was from. He said Chicago. Also he was with AT&T and was in town for a meeting with Bell South, just a block away.
During that year, I was Day Trading stocks and making a modest amount of money here and there. The fact that he was in town for a meeting with Bell South started me thinking about stocks. I told him that I Day Traded and I knew that fiber-optics was the future of the communications business. Then I said to him that I knew AT&T was making acquisitions and if they were looking to buy a fiber company, which one would they look at? I swear he actually turned his head both ways to see if anyone was listening and said, “Qwest Communications.”
The fact that he looked around said to me that maybe he shouldn’t say anything, but did anyway. Ok, it was Friday and the market was closed, but when when I got home I looked up Qwest and saw that It was trading about $37.00 and had been fairly steady for the past six months.
As fate would have it my Brother-in-law had given me Sunday tickets to a Professional Golf tournament at Callaway Gardens, near Pine Mountain, Ga. I enjoyed it immensely. I followed Davis Love III for about three holes and believe me he is good.
After that I went to sit at the eighteenth hole in the grandstands. When the tournament was over the fans were driven back to the parking lot in trams. The fellow I was seated next to and I began talking about the tourney and I asked him what he did. He said he was a stock broker.
I couldn’t believe how things work out and I told him about my encounter with the AT&T guy. He said he had invested on less information than that. So I went on home and bought Qwest on Monday when the market opened.
This guy I met at the golf tournament must have gotten on the phone with his buddies, and they got on the phone with their buddies, and on and on. I say this because Qwest stock climbed ten points in two days. I sold. The odd thing about this is the C.E.O. of Qwest came out with an announcement on Wednesday that despite the rumors, Qwest was not for sale and wouldn’t be, and was reported on CNBC. The stock went back to its previous value in the next few days.
Coincidence, maybe, but I have always believed that by me telling one broker a story about my encounter somehow started the rumor mill churning. I choose to believe that I moved the market.
You probably did. My brief introduction to brokers was that they were very much steered by rumors, especially from their buddies.
Your story brought back fond memories of my three years in Atlanta. I was on a stock plan with GTE LenKurt for two years back in the 60s… 60 shares I think. My stock certificate was stolen with my briefcase from my car in a snow bank when I went to get help. I think I knew who took the briefcase that I was 100 miles away and couldn't help the police find the guy by his car. Anyway, I paid the 15% insurance fee and got the certificate back.
I designed and built a home in Atlanta when I was there. I sold the stock to help pay for it. In the 12 years since I acquired the certificate, the value had not gone up. It was down a point. I advised my brother coming out of college not to join GTE Labs in Phoenix. He did anyway and got GTE stock as well as part of their plan. Two years later the stock was up 10 points. I asked around how to sell the stock. Someone told me to use the "discount broker" Charles Schwab. I went downtown to their office and sold it. There was a guy in the waiting room on a terminal. Maybe he was day trading. I have been with Schwab ever since. I never day traded, but took some risky tips and mostly lost buying them.
It was a mild spring Friday in Atlanta. I remember this because it was the week after the Master’s. I had driven into the city to go to Brandywine Downs, one of my favorite restaurants that had the best French dip in town. The restaurant was right across the street from the famous Fox Theater, on Peachtree Street. Mort, the owner knew me and we traded jokes and had a good time while I enjoyed my sandwich.
