Ion Geophysical is a company that surveys the ocean, mostly for oil and energy companies. The reason they're up right now is they provide products and services for the upcoming oil rush, in much the same way shovel companies supplied the gold rushes in the past.

I like the pattern in this picture. I see a jump about every 45 days, or half quarter. Based on this pattern I see $34 a share by the end of March.

In the long run, I see Ion Geophysical getting closer to $100 a share based on what they do and how hard ahead they are of the other companies that do similar.

Mostly, I like the consistient stair pattern. It looks safe to take short gains with.

The NASDAQ website has a handy tool for looking up insider trade records about companies. Basically this covers when members of the board of directors, company officers such as the CEO, or investors who own 10% or more of a companies outstanding shares buy or sell shares of the company they run.

This information is nice to have, a sell off from a CEO can indicate an upcoming weakness in the company, or just a move to cover taxes. The more interesting thing, is when these people are buying shares of their company. This is typically a sign of confidence in the companies future, putting their money where their mouth is so to speak.

I like to look for groups of people, rather than just one insider buying. If the entire board of directors is buying, they must know there's good news coming.


SEC Insider Lookup

I started using an app called Robinhood at the beginning of the year. It's an easy to use stock trading app that's perfect for first time stock traders because there are zero commissions and you can start like I did, with $20 and just keep putting a few dollars a week into your account.

I've been putting $20 a week into my account since the beginning of the year, and already I'm at $250. It adds up quick.

Robinhood is good in that there's no commissions for trades, it simplifies everything and focuses on trading so you're not bogged down with information, customer service is prompt and courteous, the app works as advertised, and it has enough information about companies to make decisions.