Ceres, Inc. (NASDAQ:CERE)

TMFBlacknGold (99.41) Submitted: 9/26/2012 10:14:21 PM : Start Price: $7.07 CERE Score: +45.44

Ceres may pull you in by what they promise - and don't get me wrong, it is pretty cool and certainly a lucrative market - but believe it or not there are dozens of research labs and companies toying with biomass crops. I could have waited to red thumb this one again (third time) as it jumped to $8 temporarily. But this is investing and you just can't time things perfectly every time. I didn't lose any sleep over the mini-pop because I knew my reasons for shorting the company were sound.

Don't make the mistake of thinking that a company with a cool technology, even one that works, is a good investment. Investing is all about the financial strength and health of the investment. Ceres just doesn't make the cut. The company did a great job of using IPO proceeds to pay off its debt, but the money may have been better spent elsewhere.

Like many other sustainable chemical companies I think Ceres went public to cash-in, not because they were ready to be fulfill their fiscal responsibilities to shareholders. Perhaps it will grow into a healthier company, but there is a long way to go before that happens.