It was six years ago—April 2020.

Remember how you were feeling?

COVID lockdowns. Panic. The stock market plunged to its worst month since 2008.

I (Chris Reilly) was lucky to be working with Stephen McBride and Chris Wood, who were imploring subscribers to keep calm and buy shares in great disruptive business at suppressed prices.

Chris Wood zeroed in on one tiny company in particular: The Rubicon Project, a streaming ad tech disruptor.

The idea was simple, and—sitting in lockdown—felt obvious: As the world moved online and video streaming exploded, the technology routing ads to viewers was going to be worth a lot more than the market realized.

I'm an editor, not an investment analyst. I felt uneasy about buying a little-known stock with so much uncertainty swirling. But I'd been around Chris Wood long enough to trust him. So I took a stab and bought in around $4.75 per share.

The Rubicon Project merged with Telaria, rebranded as Magnite (MGNI), and then proceeded to go on one of the greatest runs I've ever personally profited from.

By early 2021, it had hit $50 per share.

Chris Wood, in his usual disciplined way, told subscribers to take a "Free Ride" during the rally—selling enough shares to recoup their original investment.

Then in February 2021, he called the top almost exactly and told members to sell the rest of their position.

• I should have listened.

I’m not sure why I didn’t. Greed, stubbornness, curiosity at how high the stock could go?

I would cash out later, at around $22 per share. Still a solid 300%+ gain. But I had let a 10-bagger slip through my fingers, leaving more than half my return on the table.

Three lessons learned:

1. Listen to Chris Wood.

   
   

2. A great stock pick is only half the equation. The guidance—when to buy and when to take profits and sell—is where the real money gets made.

   
   

3. Market dislocations offer “fat pitch” opportunities, allowing you to acquire great disruptive businesses at low prices. When you buy a great stock at a great price, you can botch the execution like I did and still make 300%.

• Which brings me to today…

The Iran situation continues to pull stocks down. Although the indexes are hanging in there, many individual names—especially in the tech space—have been slammed.

So what do you do with this information?

My suggestion is to review our research advisory that specializes in small, high-upside growth stocks. This space is rich with opportunity with the current market pullback.

Disruption_X just celebrated its one-year anniversary. The portfolio gained 51.5%—more than double the S&P 500. Four positions have already doubled.

And co-editors Stephen McBride and Chris Wood just issued April's “Best Buy” stock recommendations: a robotics company, an artificial intelligence (AI) platform play, and their handpicked semi-cap basket.

Each one is trading at better prices than we’ve seen in months.

• Here's what I wish I'd had in 2021.

Not a great stock tip. I had that. What I needed was the discipline. 

Disruption_X isn’t just stock picks. It's Stephen McBride and Chris Wood guiding you through the market, telling you exactly what to buy, when to add more, and when to walk away.

And right now—with quality disruptors coming off a dip and the next wave of AI spending just getting started—is the best opportunity to get involved since at least 2024.

If you’d like to see what Disruption_X is all about, go here now to see our special offer.

Full details here.

Chris Reilly Executive Editor, RiskHedge