It's party time for the ASX.
Yesterday the S&P/ASX 200 closed at another six-year high, in the process notching up a seven-day winning streak.
Can we make it eight?
As I write, the ASX is down 16 points, but I wouldn't count a Friday afternoon recovery out of the question.
One thing is true — the suspense is unbearable, more so for headline writers like me!
C'mon ASX, you can do it.
No such problems Stateside, overnight the S&P 500 closing at yet another all time high. Their party is in full swing.
There was a party in my portfolio too, my Facebook (Nasdaq: FB) shares jumping 5% after the social networking giant posted strong revenue growth.
Like.
I'm now up over 300% on my purchase of Facebook shares, bought at a time when the company was very much UNliked.
You don't get rich following the crowd.
Ever better than the Facebook gains were those of one of our Motley Fool Share Advisor US-quoted stock recommendations.
Under Armour (NYSE: UA) shares soared 15% after maker of compression shirts and other athletic apparel raised its annual growth forecast. Motley Fool Share Advisor subscribers who followed our advice will be sitting on gains of around 50% in just over two months.
We still rate Under Armour a buy, as we do a number of other US-quoted stocks, including one that's already up 766% since we recommended it to Motley Fool Share Advisor subscribers.
I know I've been banging the drum for a while now, but you really are missing a trick if you're NOT buying US-quoted shares.
And with gains like that from Under Armour, plus the Aussie dollar still riding high, now could be the perfect time to get out of the ASX investing comfort zone and take the plunge.
In the States, among individual investors, the average holding period of a stock is less than 160 days.
That's shocking. Remember, we're not talking high frequency traders — these are individual investors like you and me.
How anyone but the brokers themselves make money trading with such frequency is beyond me — it has got "buy high, sell low" written all over it.
Here at The Motley Fool, we like to keep things simple.
Buying and holding good quality companies, bought at good prices, reinvesting dividends, will serve you very well, over time.
Just ask any investor who bought Woolworths Limited (ASX: WOW) shares at their IPO, and still hold today.
We call it Foolish Investing. You might call it good "old fashioned" investing.
In the spirit of keeping things simple, and of reinforcing the concept of Foolish Investing, on this fine Friday afternoon, I present to you…
20 things no wealthy stock market investor ever said
1) The stock market is only for gamblers.
2) If the ASX drops below 5,000, I'm going all to cash.
3) I'm loading up on gold — paper money is dead.
4) The market just can't keep going any higher.
5) I'm waiting for the next GFC before buying shares.
6) Warren Buffett got lucky.
7) Westpac Banking Corp (ASX: WBC) and the other big banks are risk-free investments.
8) I'm only buying stocks that pay a fully franked dividend.
9) House prices only ever go up.
10) I want to be a politician.
11) Based on the charts, BHP Billiton (ASX: BHP) is a strong buy.
12) I'm just going to pop down to the Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA) to get some impartial, independent financial advice.
13) This sideways market is so boring. I'm taking up day trading. Got any hot tips?
14) I don't care what the company does. I'm only interested in the stock price, the lower the better.
15) A 10 cent stock is cheaper than a $50 stock.
16) I'm going to get rich quick by investing in penny shares. They only have to go up a few cents and you've doubled your money.
17) You never go broke taking a profit.
18) The world can never have enough iron ore.
19) The stock market is rigged.
20) My term deposits are going to make me rich.
