The strategies have yielded different results for the duo. The father saw returns of 77% in 2020, while his son ended the year in the red. But the younger Aldrian says that’s because he was still in the process of figuring out a successful strategy focused on technical analysis. He’s making progress and is up 55-65% in the past month, he says.
He regularly monitors social media for information on stocks, but has learned lessons from his father: don’t be swayed by online hype, be wary of pump and dump schemes and stay on top of reading about crucial company and industry information.
The veteran investor has also picked up a few things from the younger Aldrian. When GameStop started to take off earlier this year, fueled by enthusiastic traders congregating on Reddit, his son pointed out the potential for gains.
“I’m on Reddit every single day and I’m constantly analyzing all social media posts and people on Twitter, so I’m seeing this data way faster than my dad is able to,” Kevin Aldrian said.
He persuaded his dad to buy into AMC Entertainment Holdings Inc., a “meme stock” that also benefitted during the Reddit-driven GameStop frenzy. Both made big gains, they say, after buying in at around $2 and selling at $17.
Joseph Aldrian sees the internet as a tool that’s leveled the playing field between Wall Street and the common investor, because it has opened up access to information. But he also advocates healthy skepticism. “I’ve found that if you follow anyone without having some type of investment thesis, you’re going to get burned,” he said.
Mark Tilbury, 53, from Kent, England, is hoping to bridge the generational divide by engaging with young people on one of their favorite social media apps, TikTok. He’s built up about 6 million followers on the platform by sharing money-related advice from his 30 years of investing experience.
Tilbury—who also has a YouTube channel—believes his videos fulfill the job of a traditional business mentor, and he sees TikTok as a platform that can help more than hurt young investors because it points them to tools on how to manage finances that they didn’t have before.
“It’s a mix of entertainment and education,” he said. “It’s exactly what I would have liked to have seen when I was younger. I would have benefited from that.”
He’s not worried about younger investors making mistakes while they gain experience, preferring to call them “learning opportunities.” “As long as you take from it and learn, and you’re not injured by it, that’s good education” he said. “Let it go, learn a lesson, and move on and be better at what you’re trying to do.”
The problem, of course, is that while the experience of watching the latest viral dance video on TikTok doesn’t necessarily have anything to do with your money, blindly following the financial misinformation that’s rampant on the platform can lead to catastrophe in your bank balance.
As for the Aldrian duo, they trade together every morning in front of a total of seven screens at their home in Virginia. When dad is flying, they still message each other on the Discord platform about the market. Their shared insights also land on Kevin Aldrian’s TikTok account, which features regular appearances by his father.
“I knew that the knowledge that he could give to these newer investors is genuine knowledge,” Kevin Aldrian said.
“I always want to be corny and he always wants to dial me down,” his father responded. “But yeah, I like to do funny stuff.”
This article was provided by Bloomberg News.