investments

[Beef08]

I have been thinking awhile about investing my money into stocks or mutual funds or cattle. Does anyone have any tips or opinions for me? I am not really sure how mutual funds work nor am I very familiar with stocks. I figured atleast someone on here has been successful at one.

 

[Frankie]

I have been thinking awhile about investing my money into stocks or mutual funds or cattle. Does anyone have any tips or opinions for me? I am not really sure how mutual funds work nor am I very familiar with stocks. I figured atleast someone on here has been successful at one.

Here's a link to the Mutual Fund Educational Alliance site: http://www.mfea.com/

Good luck....

 

[ga. prime]

Buy low, sell high.

 

[Caustic Burno]

You really need to read up and understand risk factors and never invest more than your willing to loose.

 

[Brute 23]

Talk with a financial advisor. They are great. YOu tell them what your plans in life are and they set you up, As things change you keep them updated.

The can help you with a little of every thing. They can tell you if it is the right time in your financial career to invest in stocks, real estate, cattle, or what ever else.

 

[TexasBred]

I have been thinking awhile about investing my money into stocks or mutual funds or cattle. Does anyone have any tips or opinions for me? I am not really sure how mutual funds work nor am I very familiar with stocks. I figured atleast someone on here has been successful at one.

Mutual Funds are made up of many many "stocks". When you put money in a mutual fund you're getting some of all of the stocks that make up the fund. Some of the stocks may perform poorly others great but you'll get paid on the net yield of the entire fund. I'd talk with a good financial adviser and avoid those that want to invest in funds that pay them high fees. They overlook the fact that the investment is for YOU. They just want the big fee. (Edward Jones is one of these .. just my experience) Diversify....put some in mutual funds, some in an annuity and some in tax free municipal bonds. If your investment firm is good they will change the investments from time to time to stay ahead of the market changes.

 

[Cattle Rack Rancher]

I used to be in the Financial Planning business. For the most part, those people make their money on commissions. There are basically three kinds of investments. Stocks, Bonds and Money Markets. All mutual funds are a combination of these. The big drawback to funds is that there are management fees attached on a quarterly basis and often Deferred Sales Charge penalties if you get nervous and decide to withdraw your funds. Overall, only 50% of mutual funds outperform the index, which is a list of supposedly 'best' companies. (S + P, Dow Jones, Nasdaq) So, my take has always been that its cheaper to spend one commission and buy Index Participation Units and save on the commissions and management fees of mutual funds. The symbol for the Nasdaq index is QQQQ, The S + P is SPD ( I think) and the Dow Jones is DIA. The first thing you need to do is figure out what your time horizon is. Alot of people make the mistake of saying that they are retiring on a certain date and then thinking that at that point all their money should be out of the market. What this does is shortens up the time horizon that the person has to have their money working for them. What you want to do is use the volatility of the stock market when you are younger to maximize your gains (Stocks always outperform bonds and money markets in the long term) and over time slowly move your funds into less volatile bonds and money markets as your timeline to retirement decreases. The most successful clients that I had were almost 100% in stocks over the long term. The key is that its a roller coaster ride on the stock market. Just buy good companies and don't panic. Good Luck.

 

[Running Arrow Bill]

Being of "reasonably" sound mind and body...

I put my money (for guaranteed returns) in:

• 1. My Bank
  2. My Pocket
  3. My secret rat-hole place

Thus, I pay no commissions, fees, premiums, etc.

The following ALWAYS get their fee or commission, regardless of how the "investment" or "service" turns out:

• 1. Stock Brokers
  2. Financial Advisors
  3. Investment Specialists
  4. Lawyers
  5. Doctors
  6. Commodity Traders
  7. Realtors

 

[Horticattleman]

Whats the interest earnings on the ole pocket and rat hole?

 

[Beef08]

so stocks are the way to go? bout how much $ is needed to get started?

 

[Cattle Rack Rancher]

so stocks are the way to go? bout how much $ is needed to get started?

Well, it depends. For stocks, I usually like to buy about $3500 at a time. For mutual funds, you can start with a monthly contribution of $100 a month or less depending on where you are dealing. As I said, if I was just starting, I'd open an online account with Schwab or someplace like that and buy a position in one of the Index Participation Units that I listed above just to give you a feel for how the market works. Either that or buy a position in a really solid company like Microsof MSFT or Wal Mart WMT or maybe 3M MMM. There are even lots of sites that will let you build a fake portfolio of stocks just so you can watch them. The cost is $0 to do that. Its difficult for me to recommend a good US site, but in Canada, Globeinvestor, BMO Investorline and RBC Action Direct are good ones. Good Luck.

 

[skyline]

so stocks are the way to go? bout how much $ is needed to get started?

Every investment has different risks, which should be considered just as seriously as the potential return. As CB said, don't invest anything that you are not willing to lose, unless it is in a fixed interest account. Individual stocks can be very risky.

If you have a job with a 401k program that has a company match, start there and get the maximum match, as this is the best investment that I know of.

Good luck.

 

[Running Arrow Bill]

Whats the interest earnings on the ole pocket and rat hole?

LOL! None, obviously. However, just keep enough on hand for "petty cash" needs. Rest stays in bank. FDIC Insured, not much interest, but can always get all of my principal back plus a little interest. Considering how volatile "brokerage type investments" are in the market (yes, on the long haul, one "usually" comes out ok), I don't take those type of risks, regardless of how small.

 

[Ryder]

You really need to read up and understand risk factors and never invest more than your willing to loose.

This is the best single piece of advice you are going to get.

Stocks go up and stocks go down. Don't let anybody tell you they don't go down.
Some will tell you that stocks go down, but they always go back up. I will tell you that stocks go up, but they always go back down.
They will show you charts (graphs) of how well the market has done over the long run. Ask them if you had bought at the high in1929 how long it would have taken you to get back even.

Then they will tell you that things have changed and it can't happen today. Then tell them they are stupid if they believe that. (That is nicer than telling them they are lying.)

 

[Cattle Rack Rancher]

Well, you know what they say. The difference between the rich and the poor is that the poor work for their money and the rich make their money work for them. The difference between a 6% and a 12% Return On Investment compounded over time is huge and the longer the term, the better off you are. There is a theory called the ball theory of economics that likens your chances of economic success to a ball that grows every year. The object is to try and get on top of the ball and ride it up as it grows. Obviously when the ball is small and you have a longer time horizon, its easier to get on top of the ball. As the ball gets larger and your time horizon shortens, it becomes more difficult to climb onto that ball until at some point, the ball becomes so large that you are trying to climb from the under side which is pretty much impossible. So, the moral is that the quicker you get on the ball when it comes to retirement planning, the more likely you are to be financially successful. Good Luck.

 

[gerardplauche]

Consider your age when investing in funds or stocks. A good investor's portfolio will be in lower risks accounts as their age increases.

 

[hrbelgians]

Buy low, sell high.

You will always have a bigger following of freinds if.........You buy high and sell low. :banana:

 

[backhoeboogie]

Buy low, sell high.

The trick is knowing how to determine what is low and what is high. I bought some stocks at $19 and they dropped to $13. I sold them a while later at $65. They went to $130 and split and are currently at $68 give or take. I sure wish I hadn't taken all that profit at $65. It also would have been nice to have gotten in on the $13 purchases.

Long term investment is the best strategy IMHO. Every time you sell you pay a commission.

I prefer to swim down river with the current versus swimming upstream.

 

[TexasBred]

Well, you know what they say. The difference between the rich and the poor is that the poor work for their money and the rich make their money work for them. The difference between a 6% and a 12% Return On Investment compounded over time is huge and the longer the term, the better off you are. There is a theory called the ball theory of economics that likens your chances of economic success to a ball that grows every year. The object is to try and get on top of the ball and ride it up as it grows. Obviously when the ball is small and you have a longer time horizon, its easier to get on top of the ball. As the ball gets larger and your time horizon shortens, it becomes more difficult to climb onto that ball until at some point, the ball becomes so large that you are trying to climb from the under side which is pretty much impossible. So, the moral is that the quicker you get on the ball when it comes to retirement planning, the more likely you are to be financially successful. Good Luck.

Well said....funny how we won't invest in a moderate to high risk fund yet we invest in the cattle business. Guess stocks just ain't a big enough challenge. :lol:

If " ifs and buts were candy and nuts we'd all have a merry christmas"......Dandy Don Meridith. lol

 

[gerardplauche]

Well, you know what they say. The difference between the rich and the poor is that the poor work for their money and the rich make their money work for them. The difference between a 6% and a 12% Return On Investment compounded over time is huge and the longer the term, the better off you are. There is a theory called the ball theory of economics that likens your chances of economic success to a ball that grows every year. The object is to try and get on top of the ball and ride it up as it grows. Obviously when the ball is small and you have a longer time horizon, its easier to get on top of the ball. As the ball gets larger and your time horizon shortens, it becomes more difficult to climb onto that ball until at some point, the ball becomes so large that you are trying to climb from the under side which is pretty much impossible. So, the moral is that the quicker you get on the ball when it comes to retirement planning, the more likely you are to be financially successful. Good Luck.

Well said....funny how we won't invest in a moderate to high risk fund yet we invest in the cattle business. Guess stocks just ain't a big enough challenge. :lol:

If " ifs and buts were candy and nuts we'd all have a merry christmas"......Dandy Don Meridith. lol

I bet if we could feed high risk stocks to stimulate growth, we would all be buying them up! :lol2: