Review by Rob L., March 30, 2009

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Stansberry & Associates: Phase One Investor

Remember this teaser?

“On March 30, FDA results we’ve waited 2 years to receive could make you $195,600, overnight!”

Well, March 30 has arrived! The results are in! And indeed you COULD have made $195,600…if you had SHORTED Arena Pharmaceuticals instead of BUYING it, the way Phase One pounded the table to have you do! Rather than soar over $10 a share, which could “change your life” and “allow you to literally quit work, forever!”…the stock plunged from $4.50 to a low of $2.85 today, before settling in with “only” a loss of 28%, at $3.23.

I’m guessing people will take the next pronouncements from Phase One Investor with an entire shaker of salt. Of course, since the Stansberry folks write such good copy, they might make it interesting enough to stoke some people’s curiosity. Not mine, though.

Review by Michael Murphy, CFA, April 8, 2009

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Hey, Rob L., Phase 1 never recommended buying ARNA! They said DON’T buy the stock, buy a call spread. They sold the spread after the announcement for a 40% loss and then recommended selling the July $2.50 put for enough money to get the loss back.

But, overall, Phase 1 does not seem to “get” stock valuation, and tends to gloss over the negatives, so a lot of their recommendations hit their 25% stop loss and disappear.

Plus, it is really expensive.

Disclosure: My newsletter, New World Investor, competes in part with Phase 1. Also, after the sharp drop I recently recommended buying ARNA.

Review by PAUL, April 29, 2009

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Never subscrided to this letter. Subscride to S & A report
so I get all the hype S & A dishes out for you to buy this expensive letter. So my comment will be limited to their
“hawking” of ARNA. Such hype—-2 years of research—$200,000 spent for research—invest 5thou or 10 thou and retire.
It was easy to figure out the name of this stock even though I don’t buy the stock letter (thank GOD). ARNA was in the news, on TV. I wonder what PHASE 1 spent their $200,000 on.
Any way stock doesn’t pass phase 1 and tanks. So I asked them
what happened, to which I received no answer. Asked for their ideas on holding the stock for the test results due in the fall—-no answer not a peep. I have serious doubts about a service as expensive as this one that doesn’t address blown
accessments of stocks.

Review by Jim in Edmonds, WA, February 6, 2010

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Interesting to Read/Educational
Customer Service	Not Rated
Value for the Money

Over the past year or so, I have subscribed to a couple of Stansberry & Associates “Investment Letters”. They are interesting reading, I keep them in my magazine rack in the “john”. Although, the majority of the email I seem to get from them, is trying to entice me into buying just one more of their financial letters/reports.

This was the case this afternoon. They tried to “hook” me with their special information regarding the “$59.00 Computer” etc., which of course sounded interesting. When I found out how much they wanted for their subscription, I had to laugh. Even their discounted offer seemed ridiculous.

After reading about their special offer to subscribe to “Phase 1 Investor”, I decided to google Stansberry & Associates, to see if there was any adverse press, regarding their company on the internet. In the process, I came across an answer to a question, by at someone from “Stockgumshoe.com”. The answer sounded honest and to the point. I decided to click on your website. I liked what I saw and signed up for your free email addition.

After completing the signing up process, I came back to your home page, an “Lo and behold”, I discover your discussion about Stansberry & Associates, Phase 1 Investor and the information about the “$59.00 Computer” company they were referring to. Then to find who the company is, that S&A was dangling out there like some golden carrot, that was just icing on the cake!

Now I’m sorry, but to me that qualifies as a “completed circle” with regards to information gathering, along with adding some unexpected enjoyment to my Saturday afternoon.

Thanks a lot, Stockgumshoe.com

Review by Peter Strickler, February 14, 2010

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I have been following them for years and give them some credit that they do have some good ideas now and then like buying FCX when it was 20 bucks, but most smart investors can do that without paying for an expensive newsletter. I did subscribe to their stansberry research, but found that when I got the newsletter it was too late anyway to act. I am also getting all their hype e-mails and with just a little reasearch you can figure out yourself what they are pitching. Recently aside from the $ 59 computer they ran this hype that they flew 12000 miles to discover this great energy company. Buyer beware. It is Inter Oil Corp (IOC)and their balance sheet is harder to understand that the federal goverments budget. Aside from that the stock has already run up and Stansberry is probably shorting it at this point.

Review by Willem Erasmus, February 15, 2010

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I gave S&A a high rating because I think they deserve it.
They take all the legwork out of stock picking. I have had consistent success with S&A. I am an S&A “Alliance” member, and for $159 per year, for life, I get all their publications.
They do state in the newsletters the ‘buy up to’ prices as well as stop losses. Anyone not following this should only blame themselves. I have found S&A forecasts extremely accurate, front running the crowd. They have some excellent trade ideas. I think S&A’s track record speaks for itself.
If you wanna be in with the crowd, buy and do what everyone else is reading (and then buying), then get yourself the business newspaper.
BTW, I also subscribe to newsletters from other countries (the Fleet Street Letter)

I advise people to first subscribe to the free S&A Digest (sent daily) and/or http://www.dailywealth.com, read it for several months and make up your mind.
Offcourse they will send emails pitching their products.

Don’t be put of by the negative comments. One of the secrets of investing is to keep your wealth and build. Fund managers that say they’ve only lost 5% compared to FTSE’s 10% is rubbish… You got poorer ! It should be a 5%/10% gain while FTSE lost 10% ! Now that is more like S&A’s track record. Recording gains when the market is falling.

The S&A crew regularly remind their readers:
Do not put on more than you can afford to loose, Never invest in something you don’t understand, Do not put more than 5% of your net worth in one stock, keep stop losses, keep to ‘buy up to’ prices in mind - wait for price to move into the buy up to prices, do not get emotional about a stock and do your own due dilligence and lastly, markets can stay irrational for longer than you can stay solvent.

Review by arthur, February 17, 2010

THINK YOU HAVE THE BEST RESEARCH
AVAILABLE.
KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK.