Top Takes From RealMoney

The RealMoney contributors are in the business of trading and investing all day on the basis of ongoing news flow. Below, we offer the top five ideas that RealMoney contributors posted today and how they played those ideas.

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1. North by East West

By Geoffrey Johnson
12:38 p.m. EDT

Recently I mentioned that I purchased and added to a position in recovering California-based bank East West Bancorp(EWBC Quote). I really like the aggressive manner in which management is resolving problem loans and cleaning up the balance sheet.

The stock has ramped up recently and now trades around tangible book, a valuation at which I am selling financials and insurers unless I can clearly see an earnings recovery story. I don't think East West is an earnings power story yet so I have sold. I still own a number of other banks, insurers and BDCs, all but one of which trade at a discount to TBV.

I hope I get a chance to buy it back because I like the story and management's efforts. Ultimately, this will be a much higher priced stock. However, I have a plan for working the deeply discounted financials and I have to stick with the discipline.

No positions.

2. Overbought Market

By Rev. Shark
12:35 pm. EDT

The danger of shorting a technically "overbought" market is that we can work off the overbought condition by just churning and going nowhere.

That is what happened to set up the move yesterday. We were flat for four days and that was enough to make things a little less frothy and attract buyers for another buying spree.

This market obviously has a lot of folks anxious to buy a pullback and they could easily hold us steady while we churn and become less extended. I'd be very surprised to see a sudden collapse of the indices.

No positions.