Playtex Products Inc (PYX)

Company

" Playtex Products, Inc. is a leading manufacturer and distributor of a diversified portfolio of personal care and consumer products, including PLAYTEX tampons, PLAYTEX infant feeding products, WET ONES, BANANA BOAT, BABY MAGIC, DIAPER GENIE, MR. BUBBLE, PLAYTEX gloves, BINACA and OGILVIE." (company website)

Buy

4-Mar-05. Playtex reached a new high at the beginning of February and then consolidated, pulling back to the 50-day moving average which is rising steadily. PYX looks now ready to push on farther upward. There is strong price momentum (PPO); the trend is strong and strengthening (ADX); money flow (CMF) is modestly positive.

Sell

10-Mar-05. I'm probably going to look back and say, "Should-a held on." But—

Although there was a lot of trading yesterday, in the end, the price moved very little. I'm choosing to read that as a sign that upward momentum is going to slack off. After all, PYX has been riding the upper Bollinger band for almost two weeks, and some consolidation would be entirely expected. Plus, PYX has nearly doubled in price since the low in October (see sidebar).

With the markets so skittish over the price of oil and the plunging dollar, it seems more prudent to simply take small profits whenever it's possible. "Buy and hold" is starting to seem like such a quaint concept.