Posted by Davy on February 19th, 2009 in Pro's Picks, Reader Questions
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Some readers have submitted further clarification on the Jim Puplava stake in Tyhee Development Corp, a junior gold exploration company. I had noticed Tyhee was no longer listed in the 13F SEC filing and mistakenly assumed he divested the stake. Rather, it appears Puplava is not required to disclose stakes in companies of that nature and so did not list Tyhee in the filing (though he has in the past).  Apparently, he still owns a sizable stake.

Along those lines, I should repeat my disclaimer about these 13F filings, which are incomplete information at best. Keep in mind that we can not see shorts, derivatives, bonds, foreign issues, cash positions, etc. So any ideas uncovered in these filings should be taken as a starting point for further research. My observations should also be treated similarly — it’s very possible I may be jumping to erroneous conclusions.

What’s the old saying about don’t assume — it makes an ass out of u and me?

And speaking from personal experience, piggybacking Puplava’s ideas can be a harrowing experience. I bought some shares of Kimber Resources (KBX) a few years back and swore off that type of speculative buying. I don’t say this because of the actual returns or because of any view toward the company or its prospects. I really have no informed opinion about its prospects and that was the problem. I don’t know how to interpret drilling results or any of the geological data that drives the junior exploration space.

Holding onto a falling stock in which I have conviction is hard enough. But when I didn’t have a clue why I owned the stock (other than Puplava’s a smart cookie and penny stock speculation is fun), it was much tougher to ride it out.

Please note that I’m not “blaming” Puplava or saying his pick in KBX was poor. I’m saying I acted like a complete dumbass for buying a stock I had no business playing with. Puplava has decades of experience and access to extensive research and scuttlebutt in the gold industry. He will probably make a lot of money off that investment. But I only like to make informed speculations and it’s clear that I can’t do that in the junior exploration space.

As always, YMMV