The Engadget Index
We're not really traders here at Engadget, but we decided to indulge our fantasies of Gordon Gekko grandeur and put together a portfolio of tech stocks. To pull this thing together we enlisted a little help from our friends over at Blogging Stocks; we think besides being a barometer for the gadget industry, perhaps the Engadget Index will serve as a look from a different angle into the massive economy of consumer electronics. Read on for more.
What we're doing
We'll provide updates both monthly and quarter as to the progress and performance of the portfolio. Monthly updates will typically take place on the first of each month, while the quarterly updates will take place on or shortly after the beginning of the new quarter, so as to insure all quarterly reports, information, and adjusted prices can be accounted for.
How we're running the Engadget Index
We "purchased" 1 share of stock from fifty technology companies hand-selected by our editors, at prices dated October 2nd, 2006 -- the first effective date of Q4 2006. Our total investment for the fifty stocks is $1475.16. As time presses on we'll make additions and subtractions to our running list of stocks as necessary. We will, of course, notify you guys whenever the portfolio lineup changes.
We will only be tracking publicly listed companies on the major US stock markets: NYSE, Amex, and Nasdaq. Some foreign companies may be tracked, but only those traded publicly in the US (e.g. Deutsche Telekom); we won't be tracking OTC Bulletin Board or Pink Sheets markets, tech mutual funds, or anything of the like.
A brief disclaimer
We have very strict rules about owning stocks at Engadget -- namely that outside mutual funds and the like, Engadget editors who own stock in a particular company are expected to abstain from writing about or making editorial decisions about that company. Those at Engadget who participated in the Engadget Index own no stock in any of the companies selected, and no actual stock transactions have taken place in the creation of the Engadget Index. That is to say, this is an entirely fictional portfolio -- only the numbers are real.
Please note that this is for edification and reference purposes only, and should in no way be construed as investment advice. Engadget and its parent companies take no responsibility for you losing mad cash on some bum deals (e.g. TiVo). You've been warned!
The list
AAPL - Apple
AMD - AMD
AT - Alltel
BLS - Bell South
CAJ - Canon
CHU - China Unicom
CREAF - Creative
CSCO - Cisco
DELL - Dell
DISH - Echostar (DISH)
DT - Deutsche Telekom
DTV - DirecTV
EK - Eastman Kodak
ERIC - Ericsson
FUJIY - FujiFilm
GRMN - Garmin
GTW - Gateway
HIT - Hitachi
HPQ - HP
INTC - Intel
KYO - Kyocera
LOGI - Logitech
MC - Matsushita (Panasonic)
MOT - Motorola
MSFT - Microsoft
NAPS - Napster
NIPNY - NEC
NOK - Nokia
NTT - Nippon Telegraph & Telephone
PALM - Palm
PHG - Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V. (Philips)
RIMM - Research in Motion
RNWK - Real Networks
S - Sprint-Nextel
SANYY - Sanyo
SI - Siemens
SIRI - Sirius
SKM - SK Telecom
SNDK - Sandisk
SNE - Sony
STX - Seagate
T - AT&T
TIVO - TiVo
TMS - Thomson (RCA)
TXN - Texas Instruments
UTSI - UT Starcom
VG - Vonage
VOD - Vodafone
VZ - Verizon
XMSR - XM
So, did we forget a good gadget stock? It's still the beginning of the quarter and we can shuffle the list for November. Let us know in the comments! Remember, they should be consumer electronics companies or related firms, and be publicly traded on the US markets listed above. (But before you suggest any to us, here's are a few symbols you might think of suggesting which didn't make the cut this time: ADPT, BRCM, BT, CMCSA, COMS, CVC, DSS, EBAY, ELNK, GOOG, IBM, IOM, MU, NVDA, NWS, Q, TMTA, TWX, VOXX, WDC, and YHOO.)
Stay tuned for our first portfolio performance update coming November 1st!
