Buy-and-Hold Investor’s Lamentation

I was fascinated by “ ‘Swing Trading’ a Growing Lure for Online Investors” [Feb. 13], particularly by the graphic showing Deborah McClure’s success in buying and selling shares of Optimal Robotics.

She made a stellar profit of $4,958.75 by buying and selling seven times over a three-month period during which the share price moved from $18.94 to $38.50. To my relief, it wasn’t noted that if she had bought 600 shares at the lower price (a lower capital outlay than her purchase of 600 shares at $32.50) and held them for only two months, her profit would have been a whopping $11,718.05 after the commission cost.

I’m worried that as soon as someone coins a snappy term for buy-and-hold trading, everybody will want to be doing it--making it hard for us stodgy, old-fashioned investors to make a quick buck!

NATHAN DALLESKA

Los Angeles