Official Stock Market Investing Thread

[TranaGreg]

I dont know about Motley Fool, but I do end up there a lot, for some reason I like them better than the others but that doesnt mean they are any better. Maybe I'll try IBD for 2 months and see how I like them and then try someone else to compare.

I got a good faith violation, so had to learn what that was. Sucks because I didnt mean to break any rules, I just didnt know.

if you're gonna play the game better learn the rules first.

[Sour Masher]

I've thought of doing this, but the money involved for me would be so small, I don't think it is worth having to deal with the tax liabilities.

[cardboardbox]

if you're gonna play the game better learn the rules first.

wha? Is that like reading the instructions first?

[Pauly]

Wow the market has just been insane and awesome, especially today. I've been doing so much studying of stocks and watching the markets lately that it has pretty much filled the void left by fantasy baseball research. The damn ticker is better than a scoreboard.

[Steve 2.0]

if you're gonna play the game better learn the rules first.

Buy low, sell high?

[revo]

Wow the market has just been insane and awesome, especially today. I've been doing so much studying of stocks and watching the markets lately that it has pretty much filled the void left by fantasy baseball research. The damn ticker is better than a scoreboard.

Just insane. Today's unemployment report wasn't even in the realm of possibility of analysts.

[Judge Jude]

nearly got a twofer.

had nearly all of my savings in a 401K as of last year, which really was too much for my age and I knew it.

well, in December my 401K company announced it was ending its existence. so I decided to take ALL of it out of the market and park it on the sidelines. ka-ching, when March arrives.

got a proposal from my broker about a month ago with a diverse portfolio that, to oversimplify, puts only about half in stocks.

I mailed it last Wednesday - ka-ching?

not quite. turns out that the "no postage necessary" pre-printed envelopes end to take about a week to be delivered. so my paperwork is only being processed today and effective Monday - so I'm buying higher than I otherwise would have been.

came out a bit ahead, net dollars-wise, and avoided agita in March, April, and May.

it really IS tough to time the market!

[Steve 2.0]

nearly got a twofer.

had nearly all of my savings in a 401K as of last year, which really was too much for my age and I knew it.

well, in December my 401K company announced it was ending its existence. so I decided to take ALL of it out of the market and park it on the sidelines. ka-ching, when March arrives. (well, ka-ching meaning no ker-plop.)

got a proposal from my broker about a month ago with a diverse portfolio that, to oversimplify, puts only about half in stocks.

I mailed it last Wednesday - ka-ching?

not quite. turns out that the "no postage necessary" pre-printed envelopes end to take about a week to be delivered. so my paperwork is only being processed today and effective Monday - so I'm buying higher than I otherwise would have been.

came out a bit ahead, net dollars-wise, and avoided agita in March, April, and May.

it really IS tough to time the market!

Did you post twice to drive home the twofer point?

[Judge Jude]

I wish I was that clever!

[Steve 2.0]

I wish I was that clever!

Did you delete one of the posts just to make me look bad? I'm quite capable of that on my own, thank you!

[revo]

I've been successfully investing for 25 years now. First it was with mutual funds, then individual stocks. And I read a LOT of books on investing, because you never know everything. So I wanted to learn more about options, which I never used before. Now many investing books I find to be either way too basic or kind of inconsequential. But I read one particular book that really opened my eyes about options trading, and damn! Like I tell my friends (not my clients, lol) I feel like I've been using porno mags all these years and had no idea about internet porn, LOL. I mean, WTF was I doing all these years???

Anyhow, I still have some core holdings in stocks but sold off most of them. The problem with individual stocks is you really have to hit a HR to make real money, especially if you're a small investor. But by using options, you get to control 100 shares per contract for a fraction of the cost, but the catch is that it's only for a limited time. But if you have a gameplan, like I do, where you know when to buy, you can make a fortune.

In just a few weeks of options trading, my average trade has generated a 100%-150% return. That's not a typo. I have a few that I've held just a few days and am up 300%-500%. It's insanity. Now of course there's downside, because the clock is ticking. And I've lost on a few bets, but your downside is limited to only the amount you put in -- which again, is a fraction of the amount of the cost of the stock. Yet you participate in the entire gain. And you get to go both ways, bearish or bullish.

I will never buy a stock, or a mutual fund, for myself ever again. I'm trying to figure out a way to incorporate this for clients, but it's difficult due to the lack of block trading and needing to keep an eye on expiration dates.

[DMT]

I've been successfully investing for 25 years now. First it was with mutual funds, then individual stocks. And I read a LOT of books on investing, because you never know everything. So I wanted to learn more about options, which I never used before. Now many investing books I find to be either way too basic or kind of inconsequential. But I read one particular book that really opened my eyes about options trading, and damn! Like I tell my friends (not my clients, lol) I feel like I've been using porno mags all these years and had no idea about internet porn, LOL. I mean, WTF was I doing all these years???

Anyhow, I still have some core holdings in stocks but sold off most of them, but the problem with individual stocks is you really have to hit a HR to make real money. But in options, you get to control 100 shares per contract for a fraction of the cost, but the catch is that it's only for a limited time. But if you have a gameplan, like I do, where you know when to buy, you can make a fortune.

In just a few weeks of options trading, my average trade has generated a 100%-150% return. That's not a typo. I have a few that I've held just a few days and am up 300%-500%. It's insanity. Now of course there's downside, because the clock is ticking. And I've lost on a few bets, but your downside is limited to only the amount you put in -- which again, is a fraction of the amount of the cost of the stock. Yet you participate in the entire gain. And you get to go both ways, bearish or bullish.

I will never buy a stock, or a mutual fund, for myself ever again. I'm trying to figure out a way to incorporate this for clients, but it's difficult due to the lack of block trading and needing to keep an eye on expiration dates.

Which book?

[revo]

Which book?

"Big Money, Less Risk" by Mark Larson.

[DMT]

"Big Money, Less Risk" by Mark Larson.

Thanks I'll check it out.

[Gregg]

I've been successfully investing for 25 years now. First it was with mutual funds, then individual stocks. And I read a LOT of books on investing, because you never know everything. So I wanted to learn more about options, which I never used before. Now many investing books I find to be either way too basic or kind of inconsequential. But I read one particular book that really opened my eyes about options trading, and damn! Like I tell my friends (not my clients, lol) I feel like I've been using porno mags all these years and had no idea about internet porn, LOL. I mean, WTF was I doing all these years???

Anyhow, I still have some core holdings in stocks but sold off most of them. The problem with individual stocks is you really have to hit a HR to make real money, especially if you're a small investor. But by using options, you get to control 100 shares per contract for a fraction of the cost, but the catch is that it's only for a limited time. But if you have a gameplan, like I do, where you know when to buy, you can make a fortune.

In just a few weeks of options trading, my average trade has generated a 100%-150% return. That's not a typo. I have a few that I've held just a few days and am up 300%-500%. It's insanity. Now of course there's downside, because the clock is ticking. And I've lost on a few bets, but your downside is limited to only the amount you put in -- which again, is a fraction of the amount of the cost of the stock. Yet you participate in the entire gain. And you get to go both ways, bearish or bullish.

I will never buy a stock, or a mutual fund, for myself ever again. I'm trying to figure out a way to incorporate this for clients, but it's difficult due to the lack of block trading and needing to keep an eye on expiration dates.

Just trying to understand, no offense meant:

Why wouldn't everybody be doing this?

What type of investment would I need to try this out? Can a real noob understand the book enough to make some profit?