Getting started - buying stocks, shares

cardigan

Getting started

Every now and then I decide I’m going to get a chunk of my money out of savings and into stock. I sit in front of the computer and start reading and end up with no clear direction. I then return to this forum, read some more ask a few questions and still end up no where. One of my last posts here (over a year ago) was a lists of stocks added to my imaginary portfolio with the question – how does it look. I picked those stocks by going through the FTSE 100 and picking out names I recognised to produce what looked like a balanced portfolio. If then I’d have put money into that imaginary portfolio I’d be richer than I am now. So here I am again !!

Reading through some of the posts here I came across one recommending a book Trading in the Zone. I’m happy to invest my money and time in reading a book but I am not sure I want to be in a ‘zone’ (presuming that is buying and selling daily/weekly). I also came across a site offering tips (at a join up fee prices of £73). I have also played with the idea of buying a selection of funds but after a lifetime of cutting out the middle man it really goes against the grain.

I am intelligent, I have spare time (retired) and spare cash; any advice on where to get started?

cardigan

Here’s the portfolio I created. It was on 3rd September 2009. It was under a different username (balaclava) – I forgot the password for that name and so created another account under the name cardigan. I am not allowed to posts links to the thread .

COMPANY . . . . . . . . . . . . price . . . . . . .volume

ANGLO AMERICAN. . . . . . . . .1951.58 . . . . . 500
ASSOCIAT BRIT FOODS . . . . .. 795.50 . . . . . . 1000
AVIVA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .387.30 . . . . . . .1000
BAE SYSTEMS . . . . . . . . . . . . .317.70 . . . . . . 1000
BARCLAYS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .352.84 . . . . . . . 1000
BALFOUR BEATTY . . . . . . . . . 332.80 . . . . . . . 1000
BP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 536.45 . . . . . . . 1000
B SKY B GROUP . . . . . . . . . . . 535.50 . . . . . . . 1000
CADBURY. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 570.50. . . . . . . .1000
CABLE & WIRELESS . . . . . . . . 139.70. . . . . . . 1000
GLAXOSMITHKLINE . . . . . . . . .1177.00. . . . . . 1000
HSBC HLDG . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 644.00 . . . . . . .1000
INTERNATIONAL POWER . . . . .271.90 . . . . . . 1000
LEGAL & GENERAL. . . . . . . . . 68.05 . . . . . . . 1000
LLOYDS BANKING GRP. . . . . . . 99.70 . . . . . . 1000
MARKS & SPENCER. . . . . . . . .341.20 . . . . . .1000
NATIONAL GRID . . . . . . . . . . . 581.00 . . . . . .1000
SAGE GRP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 215.40. . . . . . 1000
SERCO GROUP . . . . . . . . . . . .469.00 . . . . . . 1000
TESCO PLC . . . . . . . . . . . . .. .369.80 . . . . . . 1000
UNILEVER . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1629.00. . . . . . 1000
UNITED UTILITIES GR . . . . . . . . 451.10 . . . . . .1000
WALLMART . . . . . . . . . . . . , . . ??? . . . . . . . . .1000

I included Wallmart because I quite fancy Asda and I presume I can’t buy Asda shares?

bobbyj_2

buy the naked trader book
pm me if you want.

cardigan

bobbyj wrote: »

buy the naked trader book
pm me if you want.

I'll take a look at that. Thanks

cardigan

Ii've just looked at these share prices today (can't figure out Cadbury's so left it the same) and if I'd bought this portfolio last September I would have made 14% profit which 12% more than I've had on my savings!

payless

ftse 100 over since sept 2009 = + 20%, and another 4 % for average div yield, so your 14% seems to imply an underperformance

Theyarv1

do you have the (losable) savings to buy each of those stocks individually and cost effectively (Ie not spending £40 on charges to invest £250 in each company)? Will you need the money any time soon? If so, there's nothing stopping you getting a nominee online execution account. Even if you aren't confident, you can open one and try a few shares, see how it goes and take it from there. Alternatively, you could get a basic ETF FTSE 100.
What is it exactly you are asking advice on?
I use iii.co.uk and tdwaterhouse. The first is cheaper. Both quite easy to set up and understand what you are doing.

snowqueen555

Are you just looking at ftse 100 companies?

I'd try out some funds, I am particlarly interested int he narual resources or commodity funds, I can't see them doing badly this year

Anastasia

Have a look at the Naked Trader to give you and idea of stocks www.nakedtrader.co.uk

I use www.iii.co.uk and invest for the long term. I would advise doing your own research into companies before investing. iii has quite useful discussion boards as well.

cardigan

I've had a look at the Naked Trader site. At a guess there may be 100 different companies he's bought into, companies that I've never heard of. Is it the case that all you people buying and selling shares know the in's and out's of all these companies and God knows how many other companies? I have read reports on companies showing detailed assessment of who they are with calculations of what they have and a formula on whether they're under/over valued and I can understand how a team of fund managers investing millions might (and should) do that in-depth research but (this might sound like a stupid question) is everybody here doing that sort of work spending that sort of time researching all the details on 100's maybe 1000's of different companies? And, if you are, how the hell do you choose company x to research when you've never even heard of them?

cardigan

OK I'll change the above from:
is everybody here doing that sort of work spending that sort of time researching all the details on 100's maybe 1000's of different companies? And, if you are, how the hell do you choose company x to research when you've never even heard of them?
to
is anybody here doing that sort of work spending that sort of time researching all the details on 100's maybe 1000's of different companies? And, if you are, how the hell do you choose company x to research when you've never even heard of them?