[bgassassin]

Hey koam. Are you using any trading tools to help you in your stock choices and when to get in and out?

[Fjord]

BRICK INDEX FTW

[Cloudy]

Wow ING already dropped their rates on savings accounts. Might be a good time to jump on a high interest CD if you've been eyeing one...

[FightyF]

My dad has stuck with penny stock, relating to oil related start ups, and that has been doing well for him. The last one he bought at $0.60 at a high volume, and it went up to $2.00 in around a week. I find that more appealing than anything else. I'm surprised that more people aren't doing it...I'm sure there are good reasons, perhaps it's too risky and these could easily drop to nothing.

[Maxwell House]

So in a nutshell. You're only taxed on the profits you made. So if we look at my case. I started off with $6000 and now i'm at $8200. These are both book values. So 8200 - 6000 = $2200 in profit. I'm going to get taxed 40% (my tax bracket) on $1100. In the end, my profit is $1100 + 60% of $1100.

NM, I realized you are in Canada. :)

[yayaba]

My dad has stuck with penny stock, relating to oil related start ups, and that has been doing well for him. The last one he bought at $0.60 at a high volume, and it went up to $2.00 in around a week. I find that more appealing than anything else. I'm surprised that more people aren't doing it...I'm sure there are good reasons, perhaps it's too risky and these could easily drop to nothing.

Whoa, penny stocks. If you really don't know what you are doing then it's highly dangerous.

I lost about $1.3k in penny stocks. My friend lost $10k.

Since then I've been able to make it back and more with mid to large cap stocks.

[Pachael]

My dad has stuck with penny stock, relating to oil related start ups, and that has been doing well for him. The last one he bought at $0.60 at a high volume, and it went up to $2.00 in around a week. I find that more appealing than anything else. I'm surprised that more people aren't doing it...I'm sure there are good reasons, perhaps it's too risky and these could easily drop to nothing.

You've answered your own question.

[koam]

My dad has stuck with penny stock, relating to oil related start ups, and that has been doing well for him. The last one he bought at $0.60 at a high volume, and it went up to $2.00 in around a week. I find that more appealing than anything else. I'm surprised that more people aren't doing it...I'm sure there are good reasons, perhaps it's too risky and these could easily drop to nothing.

I hate penny stocks. I stoped trading them altogether. It takes FOREVER till they fluctuate.

As for my trading tools, i use those sites that i posted in the OP. Yahoo! Finance is an excellent stock site. I also follow trends and use the stock widget to keep track of about 30 or so stocks. It also helps that the crazy chick i'm kinda seeing is a broker so i get info from her. I only buy stocks for companies that i know and ressearch now and since then, i've been making a lot of cash.

The best trick is to try and see what the next big thing in tech is going to be. I've decided it will be OLED screens so i've invested a lot of money on that and i've been making a killing off companies like PANL, OLED and CREE. (OLED was bought out at double price, don't buy that stock).

[bgassassin]

Oh ok. That's stuff I currently use, but I only practice trade for now. I wouldn't mind having a crazy contact like you have. :D

[koam]

Oh ok. That's stuff I currently use, but I only practice trade for now. I wouldn't mind having a crazy contact like you have. :D

Crazy contact doesn't do much though, she'll just give me a few and i'll put them on my watch list and look after them. Just look at stuff that are big now and that will be big. Harry Potter came out a couple months ago, Amazon will release their Q3 numbers soon. Do you think Harry Potter did well? I think so, so you'll see Amazon's stock go up when they release the numbers. I do stuff like that and it works well for me.

Also, keep in mind that most investors are sheep and they'll believe in any hype, so take advantage of that. That's why the apple's stock soared before the iphone was released. Then the numbers came out and it dropped and now, it's climbing again thanks to the new nanos and the price drop. You're on GAF, a lot of news is posted here and even rumors are posted, it's good to keep an eagle eye on threads that involve tech news/rumors.

Stay clear of mining and bio stocks. Way too risky.

[Ether_Snake]

I hate penny stocks. I stoped trading them altogether. It takes FOREVER till they fluctuate. As for my trading tools, i use those sites that i posted in the OP. Yahoo! Finance is an excellent stock site. I also follow trends and use the stock widget to keep track of about 30 or so stocks. It also helps that the crazy chick i'm kinda seeing is a broker so i get info from her. I only buy stocks for companies that i know and ressearch now and since then, i've been making a lot of cash. The best trick is to try and see what the next big thing in tech is going to be. I've decided it will be OLED screens so i've invested a lot of money on that and i've been making a killing off companies like PANL, OLED and CREE. (OLED was bought out at double price, don't buy that stock).

Ever traded through OTC Bulletin Board? There's one company I'm interested in (eMagin: EMAN.OB) but I've never traded on non-major stock exchanges.

This is what wikipedia says about OTCBB: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/OTC_Bulletin_Board

[gkryhewy]

Amazon will release their Q3 numbers soon. Do you think Harry Potter did well? I think so, so you'll see Amazon's stock go up when they release the numbers.

Amazon might continue going up, as it's a solid stock, but they actually lost money on each Harry Potter sold due to price and rapid shipping volume. It was a loss leader for them.

[koam]

Ever traded through OTC Bulletin Board? There's one company I'm interested in (eMagin: EMAN.OB) but I've never traded on non-major stock exchanges. This is what wikipedia says about OTCBB: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/OTC_Bulletin_Board

Yeah, I bought NTDOY stock, they're OTC stocks. I use Pink Sheets to work with. My friend (broker) tells to avoid them because there's no regulations and a lot of frauds on OTC but NTDOY is a pretty big company so i'm safe.

Amazon might continue going up, as it's a solid stock, but they actually lost money on each Harry Potter sold due to price and rapid shipping volume. It was a loss leader for them.

Not that i don't trust you, but do you have proof of that? If you're right, then i'm going to tell her to get rid of her shares.

[gkryhewy]

Not that i don't trust you, but do you have proof of that? If you're right, then i'm going to tell her to get rid of her shares.

Here you go:

Then there’s Amazon. By my calculation, Amazon, with its 49 percent discount, $5 gift certificate and free shipping, is losing more than $10 a book. A spokeswoman, Patricia Smith, would only say that the book was being sold “at slightly below break even.” But even without profits, she said, the company was “thrilled” with Harry Potter. “We love Harry Potter because it gives us a chance to showcase what we can do in terms of a good customer experience, including same-day delivery. There is a halo effect,” she said.

[koam]

Here you go:

Thank you.

[koam]

I just did the math... boy was i off. I started at $6000... i'm at $100 shy of $10,000 now :D:D:D

My new account is active now but it's going to take a couple of business days until i can move my funds in.

The only thing that sucks is that i have a lot of US stocks and the exchange rate is hurting my profits so i need to keep my money in USD and not exchange it at all.

[koam]

God why didn't I buy RIM!!! The Canadian version is at $95.88.. they were at $68 after the split. Garmin, which I added to my watch list after (i think) someone recommended it in this thread is at $116 from $92!!.

A lot of money could have been made in this thread heh.

[lil smoke]

I wish I had the balls to buy more shares. At $68, I'd only have bought 4 shares of RIMM!

Every position I have since starting a couple of months ago has gone up nicely, but the net difference is only about $200.00 amongst 7 stocks. Now if I had gone ahead and put some real cash in, I'd have some profits to talk about. Now that my 500 free trades is over ( I didn't know they had an expiration date?!?!) I feel like what I have is pointless. Monopoly money. Even if I make $500 by mid next year, big deal. But on the other hand, I am afraid to drop +$4000 on a stock, and watch it fluctuate by the hundreds each day.

The only thing I can do is forget about what I have in there. Maybe in 20 years, I'll have made a measly $3000!

[koam]

NTDOY owners unite! $64.50 :D :D :D

As for lil smoke. Sell your stocks and settle down to 2-3 of them. You'll make more money that way. Those 4 Rim stocks would make you $120 :)

[lil smoke]

NTDOY owners unite! $64.50 :D :D :D As for lil smoke. Sell your stocks and settle down to 2-3 of them. You'll make more money that way. Those 4 Rim stocks would make you $120 :)

Nintendo and T2 have done well % wise in my book.

The thing is with my luck, I'll sell the others off and they'll skyrocket! :lol Yeah, some of them have to go, but wouldn't it be a tad bit late for RIMM?

[mrWalrus]

RIMM is trading like a stock from the dot com days. Earnings come out on Oct. 4th.

That should be an interesting day.

[Cyan]

But on the other hand, I am afraid to drop +$4000 on a stock, and watch it fluctuate by the hundreds each day.

So buy index funds. ;)

[lil smoke]

So buy index funds. ;)

Yeah, I hear that alot. How much control do you have over an index? About how long to reel in decent profit? I'm not interested in waiting over 5 years to make huge profit, I'd prefer 1-2 years medium profit (or loss)... obviously relative to the amount I start up with. I'm no pro, so how would I go about choosing?

The reason why I started picking stocks is because I could at least use some common sense with companies that I'm familiar with and interested in enough to dig into their books a bit.

[koam]

Nintendo and T2 have done well % wise in my book. The thing is with my luck, I'll sell the others off and they'll skyrocket! :lol Yeah, some of them have to go, but wouldn't it be a tad bit late for RIMM?

DON'T BUY RIMM NOW. I'm expecting another correction soon, once prices drop then buy it. Although if their earnings are coming out soon, i might be good (if you've got loads of cash) to buy and sell right before the earnings when people are pouring their cash into rimm.

[AstroLad]

Yeah, I hear that alot. How much control do you have over an index? About how long to reel in decent profit? I'm not interested in waiting over 5 years to make huge profit, I'd prefer 1-2 years medium profit (or loss)... obviously relative to the amount I start up with. I'm no pro, so how would I go about choosing? The reason why I started picking stocks is because I could at least use some common sense with companies that I'm familiar with and interested in enough to dig into their books a bit.

Article on why stock-picking is a bad idea for any kind of investment strategy:

The most dangerous investment advice is often that which seems most sensible, which is why the worst investing counsel you will likely ever receive is that you should try to pick "good" stocks and sell "bad" ones. You will get this advice in one form or another from innumerable sources, including (some) investment advisers, friends, colleagues, Wall Street, and the investment media. You should ignore it. Since the dawn of investment time, great stock pickers (there are some) have been revered, and even most novices can proudly recite picks that have produced mountainous returns. ("I bought Google at $85!") Unfortunately, what is smart (or lucky) on occasion often proves dumb over time, and, in the end, most stock pickers do worse than if they had never tried to pick stocks at all. Despite snagging the occasional ten bagger, for example, even professional mutual-fund stock pickers still have depressingly poor odds of beating the market once their losers and costs are taken into account (between 1-in-4 and 1-in-40, depending on how you measure performance). If you pursue a stock-picking strategy, you are almost certain to lag the market. The problem for investors is that even though stock-picking usually hurts returns, it's extremely interesting and fun. If you are ever to wean yourself of this bad habit, therefore, the first step is to understand why it's so rarely successful. The short answer is that the overall market provides most investment returns, not particular stock picks, so most stock pickers get credit for gains that came merely from being invested in stocks generally. Second, competition among stock pickers is so intense that it is extraordinarily difficult for any one competitor to get a consistent edge. Third, although it is relatively easy to pick stocks that beat the market before costs (all else being equal, you have about even odds of doing this), it is much harder to do so after costs. Even if you pick stocks well enough to boost your pre-cost return by a couple of points, the expenses you rack up along the way (research, trading, taxes, etc.) will usually more than offset your gain. . . . .

http://www.slate.com/id/2157319/

There are a couple of other articles that I've posted before, but I know Cyan and I are kind of spitting into the wind here. One thing I think you can't underestimate is that people legitimately have fun choosing stocks, so as long as the entertainment value you get from stock-picking exceeds the costs occasioned by it, I can't knock it, as long as you realize what you're paying for.

[Cyan]

Yeah, I hear that alot. How much control do you have over an index? About how long to reel in decent profit? I'm not interested in waiting over 5 years to make huge profit, I'd prefer 1-2 years medium profit (or loss)... obviously relative to the amount I start up with. I'm no pro, so how would I go about choosing?

Control? You have no more control over an index fund than any other mutual fund. If you're looking for quick profits, index funds probably aren't the way to go, though. An average of a 10-12% gain is what you can expect. Over the long term, that will make you shit-tons of money. Over the short term, not necessarily.

[AstroLad]

Control? You have no more control over an index fund than any other mutual fund. If you're looking for quick profits, index funds probably aren't the way to go, though. An average of a 10-12% gain is what you can expect. Over the long term, that will make you shit-tons of money. Over the short term, not necessarily.

I rarely check my 401(k), but FWIW, I've made a 20% return so far this year on my 401(k) investments, which are all in index funds.

[argon]

NTDOY owners unite! $64.50 :D :D :D

Gah.. I sold at 59... =(

Hopefully there's another buy point after earnings release.

[koam]

Nah, it's all uphill from here on in! :D

[lil smoke]

I should have dumped more in NTDOY @ $59 :/

BTW, I think the fun factor in stock picking is really in the perception of control. Also it really mimics the same rush as gambling, except you can add a bit of foresight. I enjoy it, even though I've only put $2000 into my account so far.

[koam]

I should have dumped more in NTDOY @ $59 :/ BTW, I think the fun factor in stock picking is really in the perception of control. Also it really mimics the same rush as gambling, except you can add a bit of foresight. I enjoy it, even though I've only put $2000 into my account so far.

Yeah, it's also lots of fun! I've almost doubled my investment in 6 months! I'm at 40%! I opened up a margin account which lets me borrow money so i can make bigger investements. It starts getting really risky at this point but i can potentially make LOADS more cash. My crazy broker friend has made $2000+ over the past two weeks off amazon and nvidia (she sold both already). That's pretty much a pay check!

[elostyle]

I sold a bunch of stuff and no I have no idea what to buy... any ideas guys?

Been thinking about financial stocks since they really didn't go back up all that much yet compared to other industries.

Stock picking worked fine for me in the cases where I was truly conviced because I knew the situation and state of the company well. What kills its success is that this is a rare case and that more often you have money laying around and just want something to invest in (like in the above part of my post).

[koam]

I sold a bunch of stuff and no I have no idea what to buy... any ideas guys? Been thinking about financial stocks since they really didn't go back up all that much yet compared to other industries. Stock picking worked fine for me in the cases where I was truly conviced because I knew the situation and state of the company well. What kills its success is that this is a rare case and that more often you have money laying around and just want something to invest in (like in the above part of my post).

Financial stocks aren't going back up because there's still a crisis going on. Tech is the safe bet right now. I'd wait for a correction to happen in the next week or so, price should go back down and then you can buy again. Look out for the big 4, you can always make money on the big 4 (GOOG, AAPL, RIMM, AMZN). There's also garmin that's good and Best Buy might be a good cheaper choice.

If you want to invest in finance i'd recommend canadian banks, like TD or RY.

[elostyle]

Garmin is essentially making only GPS systems, right?

As for banks, I'd only buy european ones anyways, so I'm kinda waiting until it shakes out which were hit the most.

[lil smoke]

Yeah, it's also lots of fun! I've almost doubled my investment in 6 months! I'm at 40%! I opened up a margin account which lets me borrow money so i can make bigger investements. It starts getting really risky at this point but i can potentially make LOADS more cash. My crazy broker friend has made $2000+ over the past two weeks off amazon and nvidia (she sold both already). That's pretty much a pay check!

well, if you are already doing well with your method, don't push it too far with the margins. I may be an amateur but I understand the temptation of risktaking when things are already going good! Good luck!

[koam]

well, if you are already doing well with your method, don't push it too far with the margins. I may be an amateur but I understand the temptation of risktaking when things are already going good! Good luck!

Well the problem i have is that i don't have enough money to buy the bigger safer stocks. I've lost out on so much money because i'm only working with < $10,000. I know i can lose a lot of cash but i'd rather work on margin with safer stocks than on money i actually have and more risky stocks.

Garmin is essentially making only GPS systems, right? As for banks, I'd only buy european ones anyways, so I'm kinda waiting until it shakes out which were hit the most.

Yeah, afaik.

I haven't checked out Euro banks but considering their euro has been on the rise, i suppose they're okay. I just said canadian cause they're safer than american and you can make cash off their dividends.

[_Rafa_]

would it be a good idea to invest in the company that is "supposed" to make the "google-Phone"?

[yayaba]

I sold a bunch of stuff and no I have no idea what to buy... any ideas guys? Been thinking about financial stocks since they really didn't go back up all that much yet compared to other industries.

I dunno if I would touch the financial sector right now. I only have one stock in it and I'm down 18% on it. Luckily I only put $1000 into it.

I've made a pretty penny from my AAPL and RIMM stocks that luckily, I can offset the -18%.

Stock trading is hard in that you always want to put more money into it. When I first started I was ok with trading $1000 worth on a stock. That quickly went to $2k, then $5k, then $10k and now I've dumped over $14k into one single stock. It's dangerous but I it's all risk/reward.

Just make sure you set stop or limit sells that are GTC (good til canceled), otherwise you might get hit pretty bad if something goes horrible wrong for the company one day.

[Tarazet]

Well the problem i have is that i don't have enough money to buy the bigger safer stocks. I've lost out on so much money because i'm only working with < $10,000. I know i can lose a lot of cash but i'd rather work on margin with safer stocks than on money i actually have and more risky stocks.

How do you have a margin account with such a small portfolio? Etrade requires you to have $25K onhand just to open one up.

[koam]

I dunno, i have a canadian broker. They let me.

[Tarazet]

I dunno, i have a canadian broker. They let me.

So they charge you higher commissions and they let you lose a whole fucking lot of money.. I love it.

[Tamanon]

Fidelity allows it on accounts of $5k or more.

And margin is really useful if you can afford the risk. Let's you basically have twice as much working for you.

[koam]

So they charge you higher commissions and they let you lose a whole fucking lot of money.. I love it.

I'm paying $7 per trade? And they let me win a whole fucking lot of money yes.

[lil smoke]

Everytime I see this bumped, it reminds me to check on my babies. Looking better everyday. See, this is why i won't sell anything. I am very confident in my pickings. They won't make me rich, but they make me feel smart!

I love how people with so much experience can be so wrong. That's for a couple of "wall street type" friends who were very mistaken a few weeks ago. There.

[mrWalrus]

Everytime I see this bumped, it reminds me to check on my babies. Looking better everyday. See, this is why i won't sell anything. I am very confident in my pickings. They won't make me rich, but they make me feel smart! I love how people with so much experience can be so wrong. That's for a couple of "wall street type" friends who were very mistaken a few weeks ago. There.

In a time of extreme irrationality logic becomes your enemy.

[Tarazet]

I'm paying $7 per trade? And they let me win a whole fucking lot of money yes.

I thought you said you were paying a lot more than that..

[_Rafa_]

sorry for my bad english:

im a newb. I read the topic and it seems that you agree zecco.com is the best trading site cause it does not have comission fees.

So the fact is that im a french canadian and zecco.com is a us site and i wonder if its a good idea to get an account and start trading. Is there any hidden fees?

and how can we make a deposit from a canadian co-op (desjardins) to the zecco account?

I have about 5000$ to invest, is it enought?

so Koam, master, please take my hand and help me make some big money

thanks

[xsarien]

Nintendo and T2 have done well % wise in my book. The thing is with my luck, I'll sell the others off and they'll skyrocket! :lol Yeah, some of them have to go, but wouldn't it be a tad bit late for RIMM?

Unless you're a day trader with a lot of time on your hands (yet, I repeat myself), checking it all day, every day will drive you insane.

[koam]

I thought you said you were paying a lot more than that..

I was, somewhere in this thread i mentioned i switched brokers an i pay $7 now

[_Rafa_]

so koam, can you help me please?

sorry for my bad english: im a newb. I read the topic and it seems that you agree zecco.com is the best trading site cause it does not have comission fees. So the fact is that im a french canadian and zecco.com is a us site and i wonder if its a good idea to get an account and start trading. Is there any hidden fees? and how can we make a deposit from a canadian co-op (desjardins) to the zecco account? I have about 5000$ to invest, is it enought? so Koam, master, please take my hand and help me make some big money thanks