anyone into stocks and investments?
07-17-2006, 11:46 AM
#1
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anyone into stocks and investments?
I am looking for some investment ideas other than dealing with a Bank.
I like risks so I am thinking stock market. Anyone have any suggestions of online sources that might point me in a good direction to get started?
thanks
-Greg
I like risks so I am thinking stock market. Anyone have any suggestions of online sources that might point me in a good direction to get started?
thanks
-Greg
07-17-2006, 12:00 PM
#2
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http://moneycentral.msn.com/home.asp
http://finance.yahoo.com/
http://www.forbes.com
There's a ton of info out there but these should help get you started.
http://finance.yahoo.com/
http://www.forbes.com
There's a ton of info out there but these should help get you started.
07-17-2006, 01:31 PM
#6
i'd stay away from the market right now with all the volatility associated with the mideast crisis, iran, and n. korea.
my opinion is bonds are a safe bet unless you can actually trade during the day (as in waking up at 4AM to start trading) and being COMPLETELY up to date on the companies you're trading. Otherwise, if you're playing the market in general, your money is being held at gunpoint by all these dictators....even if your stock is tech based and has nothing to do with international affairs.
it's not easy.
btw...check out money markets at some credit unions...so far YTD, my money market account has been out gaining the S&P 500.
my opinion is bonds are a safe bet unless you can actually trade during the day (as in waking up at 4AM to start trading) and being COMPLETELY up to date on the companies you're trading. Otherwise, if you're playing the market in general, your money is being held at gunpoint by all these dictators....even if your stock is tech based and has nothing to do with international affairs.
it's not easy.
btw...check out money markets at some credit unions...so far YTD, my money market account has been out gaining the S&P 500.
07-17-2006, 02:25 PM
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i will keep that in mind. its not that i am gonna invest right this minute, i just want some resources to study off of. i will be going to san diego state for business and economics so hopefully after that i will be a good investor 
but i wanna get my feet wet in the next 6 months with the market. i dont have to drop all my cash, I just wanna invest a few hundred to start getting a feel for how everything works, and go from there for now.
but i wanna get my feet wet in the next 6 months with the market. i dont have to drop all my cash, I just wanna invest a few hundred to start getting a feel for how everything works, and go from there for now.
07-17-2006, 02:45 PM
#8
well, I have several friends with MBA...from Harvard, Stanford, Berkeley, & Carnegie Mellon of all places. The concensus among them is, it's all a crap shoot if you're looking at individual companies. Google, Yahoo, and M$ come around about once a decade and you really have to be at the bottom floor to make significant gains with those stocks even.
Personally, at the beginning, I think it's more important to study market conditions in general instead of specific companies.
Oh, and those online places that advertise $7 trades...that's only if you meet a certain number of trades per month. And even if you do get to the mark to qualify for $7 trades, at only a few hundred dollars to trade, $7/trade is gonna eat up all your money in no time.
Personally, at the beginning, I think it's more important to study market conditions in general instead of specific companies.
Oh, and those online places that advertise $7 trades...that's only if you meet a certain number of trades per month. And even if you do get to the mark to qualify for $7 trades, at only a few hundred dollars to trade, $7/trade is gonna eat up all your money in no time.
07-17-2006, 02:46 PM
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I think most people will agree, the earlier you start, the better off you will be. You might try reading "The Automatic Millionaire" by David Bach. That's pretty good. Simplistic, but good.
07-17-2006, 02:59 PM
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Scottrade.com is $7 a trade, no min. amount of trades, no max. Always $7. Real easy to use. You deposit and withdraw money through their physical branch offices so it's pretty safe.
Stocks are mostly down so now is good time to get in while prices are low. If you don't know how to valuate individual stocks, you're better off with some stuff that tracks a wide array of stuff. VTI is pretty good, it tracks the entire stock market so it goes up and down with the whole market.
The money market funds and online savings accounts (currently about 5% yield) are a very safe investments but returns are not all that great when the market is doing well.
Whatever you do, be prepared to hold your investment! Buy quality and hold it through the ups and downs. Buying and selling often will kill you if you don't know what you're looking at.
My stocks (mostly index fund ETFs) have mostly been down this year after a run up in the beginning of the year. The past 2 months have been killer for a lot of people because of the uncertainty in the Fed raising interest rates, gas prices and international stuff like N. Korea's missiles and the Middle East conflicts. On the other hand, a friend of mine did so well last year he went and bought a new G35 on the profit. But then he has over $50K riding on the market.
Stocks are mostly down so now is good time to get in while prices are low. If you don't know how to valuate individual stocks, you're better off with some stuff that tracks a wide array of stuff. VTI is pretty good, it tracks the entire stock market so it goes up and down with the whole market.
The money market funds and online savings accounts (currently about 5% yield) are a very safe investments but returns are not all that great when the market is doing well.
Whatever you do, be prepared to hold your investment! Buy quality and hold it through the ups and downs. Buying and selling often will kill you if you don't know what you're looking at.
My stocks (mostly index fund ETFs) have mostly been down this year after a run up in the beginning of the year. The past 2 months have been killer for a lot of people because of the uncertainty in the Fed raising interest rates, gas prices and international stuff like N. Korea's missiles and the Middle East conflicts. On the other hand, a friend of mine did so well last year he went and bought a new G35 on the profit. But then he has over $50K riding on the market.
Last edited by ZK; 07-17-2006 at 03:02 PM.
07-17-2006, 03:15 PM
#11
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I also use Scottrade. You also get real time streaming quotes which is nice if you are in to day trading.
You want to start slow, you might consider doing Sharebuilder. They have automatic investments for $4 a transaction. On top of that, you can choose to reinvest your dividends for free instead of receiving cash. The downside to sharebuilder is that the $4 transaction only applies to certain days of the week. The great thing about Sharebuiler is that trading is dollar based. Pretty much, you can buy partial shares.
Yeah. Pretty much, do your research in choosing a brokerage and you'll be fine.
You want to start slow, you might consider doing Sharebuilder. They have automatic investments for $4 a transaction. On top of that, you can choose to reinvest your dividends for free instead of receiving cash. The downside to sharebuilder is that the $4 transaction only applies to certain days of the week. The great thing about Sharebuiler is that trading is dollar based. Pretty much, you can buy partial shares.
Yeah. Pretty much, do your research in choosing a brokerage and you'll be fine.
07-17-2006, 03:19 PM
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"Hold your investment. Buy quality and hold it through the ups and downs" <--- what ZK said is basically what you would get if you asked for a million pages condensed into one sentence.
Nobody should make short term investments unless they absolutely know what the heck they are doing. IE they have special knowledge and/or information about the direction of specific industries and markets.
The reality is that there are math pHD's being paid 7, 8 figure salaries a year sitting in front of Bloomberg terminals (which tick market relevant news) 24/7 at hedge funds and investment banks with bilions in cash and a direct line to floor traders to execute deals. What does this mean? Basically, don't day trade.
Nobody should make short term investments unless they absolutely know what the heck they are doing. IE they have special knowledge and/or information about the direction of specific industries and markets.
The reality is that there are math pHD's being paid 7, 8 figure salaries a year sitting in front of Bloomberg terminals (which tick market relevant news) 24/7 at hedge funds and investment banks with bilions in cash and a direct line to floor traders to execute deals. What does this mean? Basically, don't day trade.
07-17-2006, 03:24 PM
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07-17-2006, 03:24 PM
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Originally Posted by verc
"Hold your investment. Buy quality and hold it through the ups and downs" <--- what ZK said is basically what you would get if you asked for a million pages condensed into one sentence.
