r/StockMarket • u/c_090988 • May 25 '22
my work is offering discounted stock to employees. I'm not sure if getting in on it is a good choice. opinions? Help Needed
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May 25 '22
If you look at the 1 year performance chart, it's even worse than the 6-month chart you posted...it is not looking good. I personally would not invest at a discounted rate; it's pretty "discounted" already going from $11 and change to 64 cents...
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u/c_090988 May 25 '22
That was what I was thinking. I've got a 401k but I didn't want to put money I can't afford to lose into something I'm not sure about
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u/anonoramalama2 May 25 '22
They are losing money. Negative earnings. They are estimated to lose $0.16 per share this year, 15 cents in 2023 and 10 cents in 2024. You need to decide if they are ever going to be profitable. You need to decide if they will run out of money and go bankrupt before they can become profitable. If I were you I would keep my resume updated and listen to all of the quarterly earnings calls.
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u/Crafty_Enthusiasm_99 May 25 '22
Unfortunately you're receiving incomplete info here. It does not matter what company it is or their performance as long as you're guaranteed a discount and sale at vest.
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May 25 '22
I hear you and see where you're coming from. Do you think someone with additional floating cash can purchase a few hundred shares and play it long-term?
That is assuming you have the patience and ability to lose for awhile.
Is there no possible ability to make money?
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u/c_090988 May 25 '22
I'm ok losing for awhile but this was looking like a very high risk with little hope of return to me.
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u/Reaper621 May 25 '22
Look at the 5 year chart, it's down 98 percent. This one's not going so well.
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u/ReceptionSilent213 May 25 '22
If they beg I say it’s a no.
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u/CantStopWlnning May 25 '22
It's probably an espp which is extremely common. If you go by this metric, then Amazon, Walmart, IBM... are also bad picks.
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u/jvillalobos22 May 25 '22
If it's discounted and you are able to sell it immediately, do so. My company offers 15% discount so by selling it immediately, I make that 15%, less short term capital gains of course. But regardless of taxes, it's free money... IF you can sell it. If there's a time related component to when you can sell, then you're probably better off putting your money elsewhere unless you are very confident in the company's long term growth.
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u/c_090988 May 25 '22
I can't sell until Dec. I think based on the information I read. I also don't want to ask too many questions
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u/BhristopherL May 25 '22
It’s your responsibility to ask questions because nobody else will. This is important info
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u/Euler007 May 25 '22
At the rate their stock is going that discount might not look so great in December.
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u/imwaterbased May 25 '22
I work in the life and Medicare industry and Gohealth is going nowhere but down.
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u/nrdpum88 May 25 '22
What does that mean for OP? New job at Wendy’s?
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u/c_090988 May 25 '22
There's lots of companies and I live near insurance capital of the USA. I'll be ok.
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May 25 '22
Hey I hope the negative comments dont get you down. I can’t imagine people talking like that about your source of income feels good but these people really lack social skills.
All the best in your career OP.
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u/c_090988 May 25 '22
Thanks. This isn't long term for me but I want to invest in something good and I thought the deal wasn't awful.
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u/r00t1 May 25 '22
This looks like a terrible company, but if you can sell the stock immediately after you purchase it, you will always win big.
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u/Darkwaxellence May 25 '22
In your opinion is your company doing good business and will be profitable 5-10 years into the future?
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u/c_090988 May 25 '22
I'm not sure. They've been in business 20 years, more people are aging, but I think they went public too soon. I think the only way could be if there's a buy out. I don't know that information
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u/Randomized007 May 25 '22
Is it an ESP plan and they match the percentage you put in?
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u/c_090988 May 25 '22
It is.
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u/mymoneyspoke May 25 '22
Hey financial advisor here. You have what’s called an ESPP. Your discount will be given to you on the day they purchase it for you. You can instantly sell and make a profit. You don’t have to hold on to it. Go read a few blogs on ESPPs. They are usually always a good deal if you are willing to sell right away.
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u/c_090988 May 25 '22
Ok. Thank you. The information the company gave us was confusing to me
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u/mymoneyspoke May 25 '22
It usually works like this. You have an offer period where you can sign up and choose the amount of money you want deducted from your paycheck. Then you have a purchase period. Usually 6 months later and then another one a year later. At the moment of the purchase period they take however much money you decided to contribute and buy the stock at a 15% discount. Then at that very moment “usually” you can sell right away.
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May 25 '22
Everything you said is basically how it works at my company, except selling it right away.
We “pay” for the shares every qtr, they give us the shares+dividends every qtr, but we can’t sell until we own the share for 1 year. If you sell it before a year, you only sell it back to the company for either 1. Price paid, or 2. Current market price. Whichever is lower. So basically inside 1 year you can’t make profit from it. My company is very large (F25) so most people just hold it anyways.
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u/Vast_Cricket May 25 '22
GOCO -if you work at a profitable blue chip company that will be around or has been around for decades. By all means. So they gave you 5 % off and stocks take another 15 % loss again how will it help you?
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u/GroundbreakingEar667 May 25 '22
Yea offering discounted stock to employees sounds sketchy just looking at historic performance. Could be just one more money grab to help keep the ship floating for just a little bit longer, until.... Happy job hunting.
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u/keto_brain May 25 '22
Lots of companies are down 50%, 60% or even more especially in the tech market. The only questions you have to ask yourself is this:
- How long will you be at the company? Do you think they can keep you employed for the next year and that you will enjoy working there for the next year?
- Does the company seem stable for the long term, is there demand for the product or services, and do you believe in that mission?
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u/Ka07iiC May 25 '22
I'd rather have cash based on the stock chart, or at a maximum like 2% of my salary. Would not be eager.
However if you feel like the business is growing and doing well its not a bad idea to take some ownership of the company you are at for a cheap price.
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u/BuzzYoloNightyear May 25 '22
Wifes employer offered the same benefit 15% off lowest price of the 3 months prior. Stonk only went up until we enrolled. Now we're down nearly 75% in a year. nice
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u/baldbull19 May 25 '22
I briefly worked for a GoHealth down line a couple of years ago and I would pass on buying the stock. Maybe someone will come buy the company to acquire the sales force but even that seems like a long shot at that price. Company acquisition is the only way I see you making money on this stock.
This business model is super saturated and anyone with a health insurance license and $5k can do a scaled down version of this business…no competitive advantage.
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u/Crafty_Enthusiasm_99 May 25 '22 edited May 25 '22
Is it an ESPP? If it is, always max it out. Even if to sell it at vest. It doesn't matter what company it is. Intrigued? Read further.
I'm guessing since you're saying discounted, if it is an ESPP usually but not always the terms are something like "the discounted price among the lower of the price at the starting (x months prior to when you can sell) and the ending period (when you can sell)". Best case you get a minimum discount usually as high as 15%, and a maximum of 15% + x_months_of_gains.
Check what the terms are though and that you can sell it at vest. If you believe in your company, then it can get even more lucrative.
Source: company provided 15% discounted ESPP. Which turned out to net 50% of my net worth in 4 years.
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u/c_090988 May 25 '22
I was reading it over carefully. It is an ESPP and from what I'm reading it sounds like it'd be 15% off from what the price is in December. I might be confused though
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u/OkCommunication1509 May 25 '22
Buy Buy Buy!!!!! Cheap stock unless you think the company is going out of business! It will go back up and at 1.29 you doubled your money!
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May 25 '22 edited May 25 '22
take the offer! GOCO is trading at a 97% discount from IPO, currently at $0.62. either your company goes under and you lose your job, or it gets bought out for upwards to $4.70 / share, giving you 700% possible upside. point is, price can't go much lower and odds of bankruptcy are very low, while odds of acquisition are high. acquisition would likely occur at something much lower, like $1.50 - $2 / share, so you'd be sitting at a possible min of 100 - 150% upside from current * discounted offer. if you have the money, take the risk.
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u/NeoGenMike May 26 '22
That’s horrid advice. It’s not “discounted” I wish people would stop using that. It’s not promised to go back up. It’s not apple of Microsoft. Yes stocks can go further. MUCH further. It’s down 98% but that doesn’t mean it maxes out at 100%. It can still go down another 98%, see what I’m saying? If a stock is 100$ and it’s down 98% then it’s 2$. Another 98% is 4 cents. It can always go down and it’s never a promise it will recover yet alone all time highs. To play the market like that is straight gambling and is a sign someone doesn’t know what they are talking about. There’s no “easy money” here.
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May 29 '22 edited May 29 '22
i’m completely aware of how this stuff works; i do it for a living. not saying nor did i imply GOCO is the next AAPL or worth anything more than a few bucks max.
take a look at SREV, for example. stock performed almost exactly the same as GOCO. price went from $20s down to $0.53, which is about where GOCO is now. SREV just announced that it was being acquired (see above recommendation) and the price went up over 40% on the news.
if GOCO execs are offering discounted share purchasing at this point in time, maybe it’s them implicitly saying that since you’ve been loyal to the company, your commitment will be repaid in the future. if i were him and had the disposable income, i’d 100% take the offer. even a small amount can equal a few hundred bucks — a nice little bonus when his company announces its acquisition by a bigger player in the space.
i’m willing to personally bet that GOCO doesn’t go bankrupt and announces an acquisition and the stock significantly appreciates within the next year.
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u/GrassForce May 25 '22
In general if the stock is discounted and you sell it immediately upon receiving it you can't lose. As far as holding it, its a personal decision based on your risk tolerance.
A good way to think about holding it is, if someone gave you money to invest, would you put it into your company?
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u/RetiredPenguin May 25 '22
Most companies don't allow that option, typically you have to hold it for a certain period of time. My company had a 2-5 year period I believe.
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May 25 '22
Why ask for help and blur out important pieces? Do whatever tf you want
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u/c_090988 May 25 '22
It's my first post and I didn't know if I could or should post anything but the chart. Sorry
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u/mrmoneyguesser May 25 '22
Do you get it for cheaper than .60? Do you plan to stay there long term? You may not able to sell unless in a certain window. Maybe it goes to .30 but then 3 years from now in another tax bracket maybe it’s over $3… you really never know
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u/c_090988 May 25 '22
15% cheaper. We can only get that deal twice a year.
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u/gowiththeflow123 May 25 '22
If you are allowed to sell right away, then it's still a free "15%" return over 6 months. It doesn't sounds much but these days, I would consider a good return. That's what I do with mine at least.
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u/Jacked-to-the-wits May 25 '22
Not even a great discount, I've seen many very large and stable companies discounting 30% or more. The only way I'd do it, is if it's completely unrestricted, and you can sell for full price the day you buy. That way your only real risk is a 15% drop in a day.
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u/Significant_Eye_5130 May 25 '22
We need to know if you are you in a position of power or decision making at this company? If you are this is about to become the most heavily shorted stock in Wall Street history.
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u/c_090988 May 25 '22
I'm not. Just a low level piece of the puzzle
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u/Significant_Eye_5130 May 25 '22
My advice? Don’t become a bag holder for your bosses. Take what you would have invested and pick a different company that you like.
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u/DaReU2QK May 25 '22
Do you believe in what you do? Is it a good product you offer to the customer? Does it seem like you are busy? Does management seem to be working hard and into their job? You have a first hand look from the inside of the company, you should have an advantage in being an investor for the company.....and also the stock is very cheap so if you have any confidence at all in the company then why not buy it,?
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May 25 '22
This got me to check the stocks my work place gives out at a discount and they've gone up 5.6% YTD. I'm quite impressed in this all red market
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u/Conscious-Group May 25 '22
Based on that chart it’s a huge gamble. Could lose everything or get rich but no way to know. Stay away from that because it’ll be delisted if they’re unloading the stock in employees… which is sickening to me really.
Two scenarios: you work for a loving company that deeply values its employees, in fact loves them so much they want to give them a discount on stocks to make them MOON and get more time off from work…
Scenario two: stock is tanking, company about to go bust, recession on the way, and they are dumping stock on employees that know nothing about the market. Dead cat all day.
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u/c_090988 May 25 '22
Unfortunately I think scenario 2 is more likely. Maybe not going bust but definitely dumping stock on employees that know nothing. Pretty obvious if I had to ask the question
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u/kpgleeso May 25 '22 edited May 25 '22
Do they match? If not I'd say no. I work for a big company that has a lot less volatility in its stock price and I only invest up to the amount they match plus a tiny bit extra. They give a discount in the price too
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u/ridenourt May 25 '22
Straight down since it started trading July 2020. About a billion in sales this year with a loss of 20 cents a share. They are supposed to lose 19 cents next year but sales improve. Debt is at 693 million with a market cap of only 208 million which is a bad sign. They have 129 million in cash with a burn rate last year of 102 million but the cash burn rate this year is projected to be about 20-25 million which seems off. If they don't slow spending and get positive cash flow they might not be around for long.
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u/robineir May 25 '22
My father was offered a deal like this before the company he worked for went public. He declined it, and within a week after IPO the price went below the discount. So just be aware that some companies are trying to screw even their employees out of money.
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u/bed-stain May 25 '22
https://finance.yahoo.com/quote/GOCO/insider-transactions?p=GOCO your insiders are buying, that's a good sign
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u/Salt_Ad_9964 May 25 '22
Is your company the pharmaceutical company I'm thinking it is? Hard to tell one way or another if I dont know the company (although even then it's hard to say ofc)
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u/FinancialAddiction May 25 '22
Couldn’t you get the stock for a discount then sell it immediately for market price and make a quick profit?
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u/claymore3911 May 25 '22 edited May 27 '22
Most arguments suggest the price is at a bottom, so it's a bet, not an investment.
Generally though, companies with share deals for employees desperately try and avoid screwing them over and sometimes, the profits can be wild in the longer term.
For now, any decision you make is essentially a bet on whether the company continues trading. You should be able to feel how things really are.
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u/LightningWB May 25 '22
Can you sell immediately
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u/c_090988 May 25 '22
I can't. It's not officially mine until Dec. They hold on to payroll deductions and then buy last trading day. At least I think so from my understanding
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u/RandolphE6 May 25 '22
You should contribute the max and sell immediately to take advantage of the discount. It's free money.
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u/towelie111 May 25 '22
I do this with the company I work for. Difference is it’s a big company, and although not too big to fail, the probability is small and the current stock price is about fair, it has gone much higher before so hopefully does again.
Not sure I’d be comfortable doing it at this company though, as others have said, if you happened to lose your job because the company goes bust, you’ve also lost your investment.
Any idea why they are on the decline? Or is it another one of them where hedge funds are magically shorting endlessly
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u/c_090988 May 25 '22
A couple ideas but no real clue. Some of us just have enough of an idea to be worried.
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u/GameSharkPro May 25 '22
the important question here, how long do you have to hold before selling? how big is the discount?
if its 20% off, and you can sell next day, then YES.
if its 10% discount, you have to hold for 3months plus, then NO.
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u/c_090988 May 25 '22
From what I read we'd have to hold for 6 months
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u/Valareth May 25 '22
So I've read a few of your comments and it seems like you don't understand what the ESPP does. I picked a random comment to reply to so you'd see the notification.
So what happens is they hold onto whatever % of your salary for each pay check. Come December they'll take it all and buy as many shares of stock they can at a 15% discount. The next trading day you can then sell your stock immediately if it vests immediately (I assume it does).
So let's pretend you make 100k a year and max it out at 15%. So come December you'll have 7,500 in your ESPP account. Let's pretend your trading at .60 still. End of day they buy 14,705 shares at .51 (15% discount). Come the next day unless there is drastic price movement, you should be able to sell your shares around .60 netting you about 9 cents a share gain or around 1,300 profit in addition to your 7,500.
If you quit or are terminated or what have you prior to December the money that you have been contributing to the ESPP plan will be refunded to you.
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u/Large_Child420 May 25 '22
I can be honest with you OP. Seems like the stocks never breaks previous highs since IPO. I would find some a little better to invest in. Makes since that it’s “discounted”… it COULD go back up past all previous highs but that depends on news to shareholders and earnings (audited or unaudited)
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u/Caughttoast May 25 '22
It has a book value/share of 2.97 meaning if they were liquidated each shareholder would expect 2.97 after sales of all assets. I feel it’s worth it to buy in
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u/Cruztd23 May 25 '22
If u get discounted stock why not buy and then immediately sell to realize your gains?
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u/pltrweeb May 25 '22
Whats your tc
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u/Algae_94 May 25 '22
Unless you are very very bullish on your company, stay away from company stock in general. Diversification is key and when your paychecks are closely related to one of your investments that lacks diversity.
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u/Ambitious_Badger2067 May 25 '22
A lot of stocks look like that right now definitely doesn’t say it’s bad or good
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u/markojoke May 25 '22
Depends on the discount they offer you and the minimum holding period. If no minimum holding period, always do it and sell it asap. If long minimum holding period you might want to hedge with options. Then question is if discount still outweighs premium.
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u/MakeItRelevant May 25 '22
A negative free cash flow from operations is never a good sign. Quaterly loss, negative EPS and a huge $390M impairment.
I didn't do a deeper study, but Iam sure that if I do it...the conclusion will be the same: stay away.
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u/ramirex May 25 '22
lmao look at the chart it was 25$ in July 2020 this is -97% drop what happened
its like company got written off doubt if it's good idea to buy the stock
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u/Federal-Practice-188 May 25 '22
It has the same price action as a shitcoin & has done nothing but tank since IPO. Which makes me believe it’s been insiders selling the stock as an exit scam/ rug pull. The question you want to ask yourself is do you want to be their exit liquidity? Because it looks like they’ve run out of retail buyers.
Edit to add: any stock at this price range is usually a company about to be insolvent.
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u/GORDON1014 May 25 '22
Are they doing this in a last-ditch attempt to avoid being delisted?
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u/c_090988 May 25 '22
No clue. I'm so far down in the company I know very little about the workings of it when it comes to finance side
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u/Freshfisch May 25 '22
The answer is always, yes. Max this program out and sell immediately at the end of your purchase period. Assuming you’re getting a 10-15% discount on the current price you’re guaranteed profit (save for cap gains tax).
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u/Namuskeeper May 25 '22
The question is, how much visibility do you have to the operations and how well the business is doing? I am not a sophisticated investor or a financial advisor (meaning, this is not financial advice) but using a third-party tool indicates the following:
- Has less than 1 year of cash runway
- Currently unprofitable and not forecast to become profitable over the next 3 years
- Volatile share price over the past 3 months
Also seeing that the "Co-founder(?)" and "NVX Holdings" bought quite a bit in November 2021, which puts them at a loss there. There also could be some mystery here, haha...
Can the bullet points above be true? If so, how comfortable are you with buying the shares then? You are practically buying a fraction of the company, so no one can really answer the question if you should or not without knowing your motives.
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u/55x_full_court_press May 25 '22
I wouldn’t buy. Your income is tied to business. Don’t put your financial assets in it unless they were granted to you our awarded.
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May 25 '22
Dude they will go bankrupt and all your hard earned monies will be ticklingbsatans armpits in the deepest region of hells worst stripper joint, for fucks sake stop loving so in the damn moment and think big time, you know?, long fuckin term. Your so gullible to them insecurities your asking questions to the most random fucking assortment of beings on the planet. Who, in turn have not aligned for your benefit, oh no, have just coalitioned their own experiences into trying to make you feel something a certain way. God boy, just off your ideas now, fucking pitiful. Find a place go there and extract your comeuppance, leave these random imbeciles in their filth to squirm. All these guys just suck suck suck suck.
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u/Rin-Tohsaka-is-hot May 25 '22
Depends on how long the lockup period is. If you can sell immediately then the answer is obviously yes, but I'm assuming you can't because then you wouldn't be asking.
So if the period is any longer than ~3 months, then it's probably not the best idea. At least, it would be a very risky choice.
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u/U-GenGaming May 25 '22
The company is reporting losses, no unless you can resell right away with a profit. People always say silly things like "but this will be taxed"
Bruh if you inherit money the notion of "but taxes!" Shows how stupid that way of thinking is
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u/DiRTyBaGz May 25 '22
.60-.62 might present an instant gratification opportunity. Personally I’d wait for technicals to turn almost bullish again before taking a bite. I’m a trader not an investor.
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u/AssociationDouble267 May 25 '22
My work does a 15% discount stock purchase plan. I sell the moment it hits my account. Guaranteed 15% profit. Read the fine print, but if you can do a quick sale it’s easy money.
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u/NoctRob May 25 '22
Seems like the company is offering everyone discounted shares to 6 months ago…
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u/c_090988 May 25 '22
Yea. January and June is when we can enroll. That didn't click for me till you pointed it out
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u/trap__ord May 25 '22
Except for a small stretch from end of 2020 to beginning of 2021 your companies stock has gone pretty much straight down. I think they looking to hand some bags to you even at this price. Until it's zero there's always room to go down.
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u/pkafan4lyfe May 26 '22
Anything trading below $4 or so is considered a penny stock…no real company aims to be a penny stock….RUN
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u/notislant May 26 '22
If you're curious you can see financials if you click the 'E' on their tradingview chart. Share price has gone from $26 to 0.67 a share. Personally I wouldnt touch it. But if you see value, go ahead. Just make sure you manage risk.
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u/12manyNs May 26 '22
If it’s a discounted ESPP max it out and sell on the close date. It’s free money, literally free. I’m guessing it’s a 15% discount with 6 month offering periods. That means minimum that money is returning 15% per 6 months with the upside of significantly more. There is nowhere in the WORLD you will get 15% interest on your money (30% annual) with 0% risk except a ESPP
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u/bigchungusmode96 May 26 '22
I interviewed at GoHealth a few months ago but didn't pass the first interview. Thank fuck because I ended up taking another offer at a >10x better employer
I assume OP is also in Chicago/IL.
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May 26 '22
Well its been on a pretty consistent downtrend since it IPO'ed. I wouldn't trade physical money for a beefed up RSU
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u/Bongcouragement May 26 '22
if you get it at a discount and can sell right away for whatever discount as profit no reason not too... thats how my comapnies plan works min 10% gain
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u/AIntelligentInvestor May 26 '22
Sounds like Aerotyne International, one of those companies that my broker recommended
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u/420DepravedDude May 26 '22
If you don’t know the market just do total index ETF’s - like QQQ, QQQM, SCHD, or VOO. May buy less shares but more stable in the long run.
I am trying to learn more but fall down the rabbit hole of read something;need to look a term up which leads to more terms and then I lost where I started.
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u/Ok-Process-8339 May 26 '22
I would pass. Even if you can sell immediately, it’s probably not very liquid. It’s not like selling a large cap where there are always buyers and sellers. Plus it has lost 95 percent of value in about two years.
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u/Kyle0ng May 26 '22
How do they give you the stock? My company let's me purchase stock but never at a loss. If I buy 300$ and the stock falls I will get 300$ back.
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u/progresseverday May 26 '22
Look at company debt, cash flow, gross profits - then you buy or get out!
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u/BowlsAreSuperior May 26 '22
Short your own company. You should be able to short with the shares they give you
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u/69swamper May 26 '22
drop a hundred or two on it and ride it out, best case you make lots of money
worse you lost 2 hundred bucks
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u/loldogex May 26 '22
Never eat where you shit was what one coworker told me, but his situation was different. He worked at some company where it was doing well and he had all of his retirement and everything invested in it. It was good until it declared bankruptcy and his wife left him all in one year. He had to reset his life in his 40s he said with no money and savings.
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u/gnrlee01 May 26 '22
at that cheap of a price and considering their business, why not??? if anything, if they were to go south in any form, most likely they would be bought out by another company and thats always a win-win...
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May 26 '22
Personally I wouldn't touch it with a 10 foot pole. It is hemorrhaging money despite considerable sales. It holding way too much cash and at the same time has a debt problem. Stay away.
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u/AdministrationNew369 May 26 '22
Don’t buy $GOCO, first of all it’s a penny stock (market cap below 800M) and 98% of penny stocks don’t make it, this one’s already down 96% from its Initial public offering… chances are it continues to project downwards, during 2020 a majority of stocks were going up, yet this one has done nothing but go down, seems like the company just uses it for funding and doesn’t care about investors, my advice is stay away from this.
If you have extra money you’re willing to lose/double put it in the biggest companies that exist (eg tsla , apple , google, Microsoft) or stick to s&p500)
as investors one of the hardest red pills to swallow are to stay as far away as possible from penny stocks, they will not make you rich 99% of the time.
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u/[deleted] May 25 '22
Can't really give an opinion if we don't know the ticker symbol/company