Going Up? November 28, 2001February 20, 2017 Day trading R not us. Or not me, anyway. I like to sink my teeth into some wacky, bedraggled homeless little stock no self-respecting pension fund manager would dream of touching and hold on to the bitter end, like a pit-bull, through the throes of bankruptcy, humiliation and, ultimately, that letter your broker sometimes sends telling you your security has become ‘worthless’ – pft. This is not, needless to say, what you should do. You should buy index funds and I-Bonds. But I persevere, in part to amuse you (an obligation I take seriously, my political screeds notwithstanding) and in part because once in a while – not often – these things actually work out. Look how nicely we did on Calton Homes, first written up here on August 13, 1998 – a five-fold profit in little more than a year. (Long time readers will know there were some twists, turns, $5-a-share distributions, and a reverse-split along the way. And that currently, just a tiny stub remains that really may go to zero. But I hold onto that stub, too, having come this far. A wipeout on this last little piece would barely dent our earlier good fortune.) Wackiest of all has been Borealis.com, first written up here in November, 1999 (A Stock That’s Surely Going to Zero), and then again in March, August, and November of last year, and, most recently, this past May, when it issued a press release, with the apparent acquiescence of Boeing, that suggested that maybe, conceivably, there was actually something here worth looking at. (Because if the company’s claims prove true – all in plain view on its web site – then it is presumably worth not $25 million, which is how the market values it today . . . about 5 million shares at about $5 each . . . but perhaps billions. And I needn’t tell the math whizzes in the crowd what that would ultimately do to the stock.) So now comes another press release (Boeing, for its part, thus far remains mum), this time from a Canadian company called Beckett Elevator Ltd., that makes . . . well, elevators: GIBRALTAR–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Nov. 27, 2001–Chorus Motors plc, a subsidiary of Borealis Exploration Limited (BOREF), has entered into a licensing agreement with Beckett Elevator International Limited, also of Gibraltar. Under the agreement, Beckett obtains an exclusive worldwide license for the use of Chorus(TM) technology in the elevator market, and will design a radically new hoist motor for the global elevator market jointly with Chorus Motors plc. Dermot E. Camack, president of Beckett Elevator, says “Beckett’s mission to meet and exceed the exacting requirements of today’s elevator marketplace will be well served by adopting this new technology. We are confident that elevators using the Chorus(TM)/Beckett Technology will increase the reliability of tomorrow’s elevators.” Chorus Motors president Isaiah W. Cox says “We are delighted to be working with Beckett and Dermot E. Camack. Beckett is an old and trusted name in the elevator business and our respective skills should enable us to take a commanding share of the worldwide elevator market.” Characteristics of the Chorus(TM) Motor include very high start-up torque and greater efficiency, within standard operating temperature limits. Tests have shown marked improvements over conventional AC motors. See the Chorus Motors plc web site at www.chorusmotors.gi for more information. Beckett Elevator Limited, an associated company, is one of the most successful elevator manufacturers in Canada. Founded in 1953, it maintains the highest standard for quality with modern equipment and advanced technology. Since 1986, Beckett Elevator Limited has concentrated on supplying both partial and complete systems to the elevator industry and continues to invest a large portion of its operating budget in research and development to maintain its strong position in the marketplace. Borealis Exploration Limited (BOREF) is a research and development company founded in 1968 and based in Gibraltar in the European Union. It has 4.942,197 shares outstanding. Borealis’ business is reinventing the core technologies used by basic industries, including electric motors, steelmaking, electrical power generation, cooling and refrigeration. What’s gotten into these companies, Boeing and Beckett, that they would even get to the press release stage with Borealis? Could it be a ‘B’ thing? Is BMW next? Belgium? I am counting no chickens. The stock was about $3.50 a share two years ago and, at $5 or so today, remains essentially unchanged, as does the prognosis: it will either be zero, eventually, for the reasons set forth in earlier columns (or other reasons I haven’t thought of) or, one would imagine, it will be valued at many times its current $25 million. (There are paintings that sell for more than $25 million.) And what a nice bonus if, in addition to business success, it actually manages to make the world more energy efficient, as suggested by the claims on its web site? As before: if you do dabble in this preposterous speculation, promise me you will invest only money you can truly, truly afford to lose. Because you probably will.