Smart Balance (SMBL)

Company

"Smart Balance Inc. is committed to providing superior tasting heart healthier alternatives in every category it enters by avoiding trans fats naturally, balancing fats and/or reducing saturated fats, total fat and cholesterol. The company's products include Smart Balance® Buttery Spreads, Milk, Butter Blend Sticks, Cream Cheese, Peanut Butter, Microwave Popcorn, Cooking Oil, Mayonnaise, Non-Stick Cooking Spray and Cheese. Smart Balance Inc. is one of the five fastest growing food companies in the United States, according to Nielsen sales figures." (company website)

smbl(2-1)
SMBL 4-month chart
smbl(2-1)_1yr
SMBL 1-year chart

Buy

8 June 2009. Smart Balance made a double bottom in late 2008 and has been trending upward since. In early May it surpassed the peak made in January, and both 50- and 200-day moving averages are now rising.

  • Percentage price oscillator (PPO) — sharply turned upward last week and is just shy of crossing above the signal line
  • Volume — stable volumes; recent jump in PPO was on solid volume (2x)

Based on technical analysis, MarketEdge does not follow SMBL.

Sell

gain Bottom line
-8%

16 June 2009. I was stopped out of my position when the loss grew to 8%.

smbl_0616 SMBL fell off the cliff just before 1pm ET.

Although SMBL was down most of the session, it plummeted just before 1pm Eastern time. That was just low enough to trigger my sell order.

I don't regret taking a position in SMBL. What I did do was over-estimate how far momentum would carry it before it began to dip again. I had expected it would stretch out the upper Bollinger band for at least a few days; that didn't happen. Now it's retreating back to at least the 50-day moving average.