08-19-2014, 04:27 PM
(This post was last modified: 08-19-2014, 04:29 PM by Dividend Watcher.)
Interesting start, twil, but I fear you have some work to do.
First I recommend you develop some kind of plan. Include things such as goals, strategies, what's acceptable and what's not, how you're going to go about achieving these goals, etc. I've posted mine here. Read all the ensuing comments also. Others have posted their plans here or on Seeking Alpha. Speaking of Seeking Alpha (say that fast 3 times), look up Bob Wells or David Van Knapp as they've also espoused developing a plan and their examples are good also. It doesn't apply just to retirement accounts either.
That being said, you do have an interesting list of stocks there.
First I think you ought to throw out GM & F. Both are cyclical companies whose market seems to crater in every business downturn. From listening to others, Ford may not be so bad -- I don't know, I've never delved into the business -- but GM is a basket case. Their new CEO seems to be trying but I'm afraid that either the board is nixing her efforts to improve the corporate culture or she's becoming infected with the dreaded GM virus that seems to have infected the executive offices of that company for the last 30 years or so. Funny since I drive cheap, used GM vehicles until they're dead.
The rest seem like good candidates to which I would add MMM, PEP, GIS & EMR to pick from. I'm not going to pick any specific ones because I think you need to at least read about each one that really interests you so you get a feel for the business. Boring, I know but if you can develop that now, it makes your investing life easier in the future.
Then you're next task would be to determine which of those seem at a decent value at today's prices. We've discussed valuation here and there's a lot of information at Seeking Alpha (I only mention it again since it is a good aggregator of thoughtful information) or you can look through the resources section here to find other web sites to peruse.
As to how to split up your limited starting capital, to me 2 or 3 starters may be the best way to begin. You're young, in fact I have socks older than you, so you have lots of time to build and diversify your portfolio. You don't want to become bogged down monitoring a bunch of companies while trying to learn the ropes.
Hope that helps and good luck although I don't think you'll need it.
OK, I posted mine right after Eric. He must have been looking over my shoulder whilst I was writing since I see he plagiarized me.
First I recommend you develop some kind of plan. Include things such as goals, strategies, what's acceptable and what's not, how you're going to go about achieving these goals, etc. I've posted mine here. Read all the ensuing comments also. Others have posted their plans here or on Seeking Alpha. Speaking of Seeking Alpha (say that fast 3 times), look up Bob Wells or David Van Knapp as they've also espoused developing a plan and their examples are good also. It doesn't apply just to retirement accounts either.
That being said, you do have an interesting list of stocks there.
First I think you ought to throw out GM & F. Both are cyclical companies whose market seems to crater in every business downturn. From listening to others, Ford may not be so bad -- I don't know, I've never delved into the business -- but GM is a basket case. Their new CEO seems to be trying but I'm afraid that either the board is nixing her efforts to improve the corporate culture or she's becoming infected with the dreaded GM virus that seems to have infected the executive offices of that company for the last 30 years or so. Funny since I drive cheap, used GM vehicles until they're dead.
The rest seem like good candidates to which I would add MMM, PEP, GIS & EMR to pick from. I'm not going to pick any specific ones because I think you need to at least read about each one that really interests you so you get a feel for the business. Boring, I know but if you can develop that now, it makes your investing life easier in the future.
Then you're next task would be to determine which of those seem at a decent value at today's prices. We've discussed valuation here and there's a lot of information at Seeking Alpha (I only mention it again since it is a good aggregator of thoughtful information) or you can look through the resources section here to find other web sites to peruse.
As to how to split up your limited starting capital, to me 2 or 3 starters may be the best way to begin. You're young, in fact I have socks older than you, so you have lots of time to build and diversify your portfolio. You don't want to become bogged down monitoring a bunch of companies while trying to learn the ropes.
Hope that helps and good luck although I don't think you'll need it.
OK, I posted mine right after Eric. He must have been looking over my shoulder whilst I was writing since I see he plagiarized me.
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“While the dividend itself is merely a rearrangement of equity, over time it's more like owning an apple tree. The tree grows the apples back again and again and again, and the theoretical value of the tree doesn't change just because of when the apples are about to fall.” - earthtodan
“While the dividend itself is merely a rearrangement of equity, over time it's more like owning an apple tree. The tree grows the apples back again and again and again, and the theoretical value of the tree doesn't change just because of when the apples are about to fall.” - earthtodan