Tag Archives: price

I Make 93 CENTS On A Paperback That ‘Amazon’ Sells For $23!

Leave a reply

by Anura Guruge
on June 27, 2023

Follow Anura Guruge on WordPress.com

Click to ENLARGE.

I even got this last month SAYING that I would get ZERO, i.e., $0.00, royalty on some of my books. Yes, I had to increase the list price — as of last week. BUT, even with that. $0.96 on a $23 book — i.e., 4%.

Click to ENLARGE.

I am NOT complaining — not that complaining will get me anywhere.

I am VERY FORTUNATE that I don’t have to rely on any monies I make from my books — for anything. I survive trading options. {SMILE} It is hard life, but I have to make living.

But, I feed bad for those who want to make living as authors. IF you are mega-successful you are FINE. Very fine. If you sell 10,000 books, your .96 cents, will be $9,600. That is not bad.

Yes, royalties are better on eBook BUT I hate eBooks.

What cracks me up is that everyone makes MORE MONEY selling my books than I do!

That is kind of crazy. But, I am OK with that. I can ask for more money & insist that they make less. But, it is not in I to do that. Runs in the family.

I am, among my many faults, is NOT GREEDY when it comes to money (just food, wine & you know what {SMILE}). I am THANKFUL everyday that I am not greedy when it comes to money. From what I can see, those that are tend to be miserable, daily. That I am NOT. SMILE.

38 of my 39 Published Books.

Follow Anura Guruge on WordPress.com

‘Kindle Direct Publishing’ (KDP), i.e., ‘Amazon’ Book Publishing, Is Increasing Printing Costs — YIKES!

Leave a reply

by Anura Guruge
on May 16, 2023

Follow Anura Guruge on WordPress.com

Click to ENLARGE.
Click to ENLARGE. E-mail I got earlier today.

Yikes! NOT good news, certainly not for I.

To be honest I am not that bothered by a drop in my book royalties — mainly because I don’t make that much! SMILE. Kind of sour grapes.

But, NOT making anything from the sale of a paperback, i.e., ZERO ROYALTIES, just seems WRONG. Like a slap in the face. KDP, to its credit, did provide me, via a spreadsheet, a list of all my book that will fall into this dreaded ZERO ROYALTY category. I have no choice BUT to raise the prices. YIKES. And I am SORRY, very sorry.

This price increase, ALAS, also hits my ‘Bold Coast‘ books. Unlike my other books I do sell the ‘Bold Coast‘ books to outlets (i.e., gift shops & motels) so they can resell them. Now I will have to increase, ALBEIT NOT BY MUCH, what I charge them. They in turn will have to increase the prices they charge. Yes, overall, less books will be sold. DAMN! Not happy. Sad day. This did make me kind of sad.

My ‘Bold Coast’ books.

38 of my 39 Published Books.

Follow Anura Guruge on WordPress.com

The New ‘Pixel Fold’ Is Not For I — & It Is NOT Sour Grapes.

Leave a reply

by Anura Guruge
on May 12, 2023

Click to ENLARGE. From ‘Google Store‘.

No, it is NOT the price, though I will readily confess that $1,800 does give one pause. But, given the trade-in I would get for my ‘Pixel 7 Pro‘ I could get it for around $1,000 which is not that different to what the ‘Pixel 7 Pro’ cost when I bought it (though I also had a trade-in for that).

It has ALL to do with how I use MY phone.

As some of you know I MAINLY (like 97% of the time) use my phone to take photos. That is it. My phone, these days, is MY camera.

I am NOT big into phone calls or TXTs. So, I can go for days, maybe even weeks, without EVER having use my phone as a phone! That is I.

I also don’t do e-mail, Facebook, Twitter, banking, etc. on my phone. Do those on my BIG, dual-monitor desktop PC. I also happen to have THREE 10.2″ Android tablets.

So, the Pixel Fold is neither here nor there for I.

IF it was 6.7″ when folded (i.e., same size as my 7 Pro) I would consider it.

Plus, they are saying battery life will not be as good as on the 7 Pro. That is not good. With the 7 Pro I get a day’s worth even when I am using it, extensively, to take pictures. A shorter battery life will make life more difficult.

So, for NOW, I am taking a pass on the Pixel Fold.

2022 Stock Splits Were BAD For AMZN & GOOG — They Attracted A Different Type Of Investor.

Leave a reply

by Anura Guruge
on February 8, 2023

Click to ENLARGE. Charts, of course, from ‘MarketWatch.com‘.

My contention, & it is just that, is that AMZN & GOOG would have fared BETTER in this down market IF NOT for the 20-to-1 splits!

Yes, of course, in early 2022 (i.e., last year) we all expected that AMZN & GOOG will go gangbusters after their 20-to-1 splits. LOT of folks bought these shares ahead of the splits on this assumption — which had been the case in prior, high-profile splits.

With interest rates shooting up (to curb inflation) this has been a difficult & down market. That is a given.

But, I am THINKING that AMZN & GOOG would have been more resilient IF NOT for the split. Why? The 20-to-1 split change the demographics of the ownership.

Prior to the split you basically had to be rich to own a chunk of AMZN or GOOG. When AMZN was $3,000 you needed $300,000 in order to own 100 shares. Not so after the split. You could own 100 for a mere $15,000.

AMZN & GOOG were no longer exclusive.

Let me be blunt. After the split, riff-raff were able to afford these shares. They trade differently than the more refined investor.

That is my thesis. We DEVALUED the ownership.

Just like a neighbourhood. If the prices drop by a factor of 20 the ownership profile will shift dramatically. That is my point.

I am not sure whether this can ever be tested or proved.

But, something to THINK about.

Amazon (AMZN) 2022 20-to-1 Stock-Split: Most Unusual Split Ever!

Leave a reply

by Anura Guruge
on June 3, 2022

Follow Anura Guruge on WordPress.com

Click to ENLARGE & study. Base graph from ‘MarketWatch.com‘ (with thanks).

The most unusual feature is that the split price was 12% LOWER than the stock price the day the 20-to-1 split was announced. That is highly unusual. The price should have gone up.

As you can clearly see from the above graph the price did, indeed, initially go up. That was what was expected. Then it tanked.

Yes, of course, the tanking of the price was due to the interest rate hikes & the fear of inflation.

It was also interesting that there was no flurry of buying prior to the so-called (nominal) ex-split day, i.e., May 27, 2022. Folks finally appeared to have taken heed of my comments that there is NO ex-split day per se other than today, June 3, 2022 — the last day of trading.

Instead we saw the price go up Tuesday, Wednesday & Thursday of this week. That made sense & was par for the course. It was down 2.5% today, the last day, BUT there was two reasons for that: overall market conditions & folks taking profits knowing that they have a chance to buy the cheaper split stock on Monday.

So, the split did NOT help increase AMZN price — THOUGH we all know that AMZN price would be much lower IF NOT for the split. So, that is a relief.

I have been long AMZN for 10-years now! SMILE. Yep.

I doubt whether I will ever sell my AMZN holding! I option trade against my stock. As of Monday I will have 20 times MORE OPTIONS — quite literally! I am sanguine. I am cool. I keep on smiling. I am sure that this time next year AMZN will be around $180 IF not higher. Mark my word.

Markets On Friday, Oct. 29, 2021, Are Likely To Be Down Following AMZN & AAPL, Making Volvo IPO Pricing Even More Compelling.

Leave a reply

by Anura Guruge
on October 28, 2021

Click image to access the ‘Reuters’ original.
Click to access my October 25, 2021 post.

As ever I could be dead wrong. C’est la vie. But, from what I can see both FANG titans Amazon & Apple disappointed. Those shares were down, big time, in ‘After Hours‘ trading. I am sure that will spill over to tomorrow. (Well, I am OK. SMILE. I kind of banked (& that really is the right word) on this. Remember, I am an option trader. Huge price swings is what folks like us dream of.)

AMZN & AAPL can — & should — drag all the markets down, at least for a few hours. (Yes, there could be a dull, bounce late in the day as we head for the weekend.)

IF the Volvo IPO goes live in the U.S., Friday morning, as planned, its IPO price could drop below the initial asking. So, we could see it below $6. Just speculating. I will, when I get back from my 2-hour daily morning amble, have a look. It is unlikely that it will stay below $6 come 2022. But, make up your own mind.

Follow Anura Guruge on WordPress.com

The ‘Volvo Cars’ IPO, In The U.S., Is Slated On The NASDAQ This Friday, At Approx. $6.20 A Share.

Leave a reply

by Anura Guruge
on October 25, 2021

Click to ENLARGE. From ‘Google News‘.

This has been talked about for months. Well, it looks like it has finally come to pass.

The ‘primary’ IPO will take place in Sweden, with U.S. availability slated, on the NASDAQ, this Friday.

Based on the latest data, the U.S. stock price is anticipated to be in the U.S. $6.20 range.

That I have to say is rather attractive & compelling. Less than half the price of a Ford (F) share.

Volvo is trying. They are being very aggressive about electrifying their range. They have had two good years.

I don’t see the stock doubling in a year, or doing a TSLA, but I suspect that it will STEADILY appreciate over the next few years. In the $6 range it is inexpensive enough. Worth a nibble. I might have to end up getting a few. SMILE. The price is right.

I just wanted to make sure you knew of the IPO. OK?

Follow Anura Guruge on WordPress.com