TAKING STOCK

They can't have a sucker without 'u'

by Malcolm Berko

Dear Mr. Berko:
I know that you don't like most stock market services that claim subscribers earned much better returns than the Dow Jones. In fact, I invested in one of those services, which cost me over $4,000, and lost my shirt. I just wish I had read your column on that one prior to wasting several months' time plus $4,300. The name of this stock market service is called iDayo and the cost is only $3,000 a year. But their record is the most impressive I've ever seen. In 1999 iDayo returned 100 percent, in 2000 iDayo returned 84 percent, in 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006 and 2007 iDayo returned 16 percent, 18 percent, 55 percent, 13 percent, 17 percent, 53 percent and 32 percent, respectively. That's an average annual return of over 43 percent and only requires 15 minutes of time a week in which they give me three to five stocks. Show me another stock market service that was up 84 percent in 2000 when the Standard & Poor's was down 11 percent or in 2001 iDayo was up 16 percent when the S&P was off 13 percent and in 2002 when the S&P was off 23 percent iDayo was plus 17 percent. These people are magicians and you can verify all these claims on the Internet by going to www.idayo.com. Please tell me if you can find a hole in their work because if you can't find fault with iDayo, I'm going to subscribe to their program and hopefully begin to make some decent money. I know seven stockbrokers and not one of them have made returns as good as iDayo. And I've had four stockbrokers over the past 20 years and not one has come close to iDayo's results.
L.T.
Syracuse, N.Y.

Dear L.T.:
I thought that "iDayo" was a song by Harry Belafonte in which he sang about a bunch of bananas. Now I discovered that it's a stock market program that boasts of extraordinarily impressive results. And yes, your math is good but short - iDayo claims a 50 percent average annual return since 1998 on its Web site. Pure tommyrot and trash!
I called their offices in Loxahatchee, Fla., and right off the bat had trouble understanding the woman on the phone who spoke as if she had a golf ball glued to her tongue. Strike one.

She did tell me that Tom Barrett and John Layborn, the developers and promoters of iDayo, were recently developers and promoters in the construction business. In fact, the current iDayo business phone number and business address is the same phone number and business address that Messrs. Barrett and Layborn used for their construction business. Strike two.
I called Barrett and he demanded to know how I got his office phone number. It's on the Web site, stupid! Now how can two developers and promoters, who recently exited the construction business, construct a super-sophisticated stock market program with an incredulous 50 percent average annual return for 10 years? Strike three ... four and five. Heck, strike out!

I must tell you that the track record provided by Barrett and Layborn is mighty impressive and I've never seen a 10-year track record with performance that is even half as good. Their 10-year, 50 percent average annual return is expialidocious but as my dad used to say, "It's easier to believe a big lie than a small one." Heck even if that 10-year record was cut in half (25 percent), I still wouldn't know of a single mutual fund, professional trader, major brokerage house analyst, hedge fund manager, private bank, floor broker or individual investor who averaged even 25 percent a year over the last 10 years.

But just in case my knowledge was faulty, I rang three mutual and hedge fund managers, and two major analysts plus a very successful floor trader. And each of these professionals believes that a 10-year average annual return of 50 percent is possible but not one of them believes that it's probable. So I said: "what about a 10-year average annual return of 25 percent?" They all gave the similar answers: "scam, man," "whatchasmokin?' and "I can't believe people fall for that bull...." One fund manager, said, "I'd pay $100 million for a program that can produce a 10-year 50 percent average annual return plus another $100 million if it only requires 15 minutes of work a week."

Now I'm not saying that these lads are cooking the books or fudging the chocolate. And frankly, it's possible (so is winning the lottery three weeks in a row) that these good lads are really bringing in a 50 percent average annualized return for the 10 years. Good golly, Miss Molly, them's certainly bodacious numbers!

For your information I'd like to ask you four simple questions.

1. If those boys can make 50 percent a year, why are they wasting time selling their secrets at $3,000 a pop to suckers like you?

2. How come those results are not audited according to generally accepted accounting practices?

3. What is the truthful business background of those two birds who claim they averaged 50 percent a year for a decade?

4. How come not a single one of the 15,000 or so mutual fund managers, portfolio managers, pension fund managers, hedge fund managers, securities analysts or professional traders here or overseas uses the iDayo system?

Please address your financial questions to Malcolm Berko, P.O. Box 1416, Boca Raton, FL 33429 or e-mail him at malber@comcast.net.
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