My Fella and I are dropping JohnnyDisco off at the Tiffin Motorhome mothership in Red Bay this weekend...
... but I have to share a little story with you first. And maybe you can decide if I'm a sucker or not :)
If you've been reading this blog for a while, you know that I quit my full-time radio job at age 37 and have been living off stock dividends/interest since then. Investing started out as a hobby, but soon became our main source of income. And while this blog revolves around our RV travels, occasionally I toss out some stock talk or give updates on the portfolio.
One of our largest holdings is a company called Student Transportation - trading on the TSX and recently, the NASDAQ. It's a bus company, transporting kids to school in both Canada and the USA. I opened a large position in STB during the TSX sell-off in 2008, and have bought more since then on price dips.
STB is one of our largest stock holdings for several reasons:
- kids will always need a safe way to get to school
- STB management is good with guidance and transparency
- the monthly dividend has been consistent since the company IPO in 2004
This is not a recommendation to buy shares of Student Transportation. I am neither your financial advisor nor your mother; do your own due diligence and consult a fee-only advisor you trust ... and blah, blah, blah...
That out of the way, Student Transportation is a solid company and a great moneymaker for us. Which is probably why I gush about it so much.
Needless to say, I was completely stunned to see a blog comment this morning from Denis Gallagher, the BIG CHEESE of Student Transportation. On MY blog.
"Thank you for investing in our company for the past years. In your travels i'm sure you've experienced bumps along the road, weather, higher fuel costs etc. Well so have we and you know what, kids are still going to school. We have a great company that gives back to our shareholders. please visit our web site at www.ridesta.com and view some of our videos. I'm so glad I stumbled onto your blog. Its cool reading and a neat adventure. Continued good success on the road to excellence."
Denis Gallagher, Founder, CEO Student Transportation, Inc
The comment was made on this blog post written almost a month ago. I'm totally blown away that the very accomplished founder/CEO of one of my best investments left a comment on my silly little blog.
Or was it really him?
Not being completely naive, it has occurred to me that one of my devious pals (looking straight at you here, Laurie) might have left the comment to get me riled up. If that's the case, it worked. I'm starstruck. And gushing.
On the other hand, if it really was you Mr G, thank you for the comment. And for doing such a bang-up job and getting kids to school safely. And for making us so much money $$$ over the years. Continued success right backatcha and everyone at Student Transportation.
And please keep doing smart things with your company, so I can keep gushing.
*edited to add: sorry if you were misled by the title of this post and thought I may have met Oprah or George Clooney or someone... but getting a blog comment from the Big Cheese of one of my fave companies is better than Oprah - trust me :)
Wow! Well done. Interesting comment from the founder and CEO....and let us know if it truly was from him
Posted by: Rene' | January 28, 2012 at 12:23 PM
Rene`
Well the picture in his comment avatar does kinda look like him. I'll definitely keep you updated on this crazy mystery.
(Might as well, now that I've been exposed as a closet CEO groupie :)
Posted by: kelsi | January 28, 2012 at 05:49 PM
Hey there, alway enjoy reading about your adventure. It's very likely you were contacted by the CEO. A lot of companies now have software that allows them to track social media. They choose the words they want to track and are alerted when they come up. The company can respond if it's negative or in your case thank you for a positive. A sign they are doing some things well.
Posted by: Bill Bergh | January 29, 2012 at 06:57 AM
I think it was the STB CEO because your blog posting is showing up on the official STB facebook page. That is how I found your blog.
http://www.facebook.com/studenttransportation
I've also been a long time investor in STB and have enjoyed the ride. An investor friend told me about it back when it was around $2 a share.
Posted by: Larry | January 29, 2012 at 02:30 PM
Hey BillB - great to hear from ya. I MISS you! How's the media biz?
I ran into a very happy shopkeeper in Foley, Alabama last month; when we exchanged pleasantries, she told me she was 'Outstanding!!!' and, of course, I immediately thought of you :)
Posted by: kelsi | January 29, 2012 at 04:29 PM
Hey Larry, thanks for the heads-up. And happy to hear you like STB too. I try avoid raving about a specific stock on my blog cause it sounds too much like pumping, but this one has really been great for our portfolio.
I hope Student Transportation keeps chugging along cause I intend to keep my shares for the long haul.
Posted by: kelsi | January 29, 2012 at 04:39 PM