Lux Investing - I have $20,000 to invest in stocks....so which ones should I put my money in??

I have $20,000 to invest in stocks....so which ones should I put my money in??

I think I would like to divide my money between VISA stock (which will be out soon), Alibaba.com, and several others. Which ones do you recommend will do very well, and how should I divide my stock portfolio?? Remember, I have $20,000. Thanks.

Public Comments

What is your time horizon and risk tolerance? If you have to ask others for stock picks it may be better to check out mutual stock funds. Watch Jim Cramer's "Mad Money" or check him on the web. Don't put your whole bankroll in at once. Maintain some cash reserves. Try bond funds for monthly income. Good luck!
It sounds like you've never invested before. I would HIGHLY recommend not starting out investing all at once. If you're picking your own stocks (not mutual funds or ETFs) I would not invest more than 2,000 to begin with. I WOULD reccommend you invest primarily in mutual funds and ETFs or Index funds. If you want to pick some of your own stocks, I would read books on investing first, do your research, and THEN invest. Without experience and knowledge, you can be burned. You can also end up fine if you get lucky, but do you really want to take that chance? I wouldn't bother with a financial advisor, unless you personally know them from previously.
Learn first. Read. While you're doing that, you can go to yahoos finanical section and click on my first portfolio. With that you can enter the stocks that you want to follow. Kind of a fantasy portfolio. You'll see how you do. Personally, I'd open an online brokerage account and then pick from the mutual funds they offer. Pick about 5, then start putting your money in gradually, as the rules allow (usually there's a minimum to buy in). I pick the mutual funds by looking at the returns they've gotten over time, the risk ratings they have, and what they have in their portfolios. I go aggressive for the high returns tho I do it using funds that have a history of high returns with average risk. You can find all that by just spending time going thru the funds they have. Big thing.. only go for the "no load" funds.. no extra fees for buying or selling. Buying and selling individual stocks is a real crapshoot. Mutual funds, in general, are safer.
I would reccommend you not to invest in stocks. There are other ways to get guaranteed high returns. Email me for a free advice if you really want to earn money. I don't like stocks. I have invested just $5,000 in my own small business. Now I am earning 2% income monthly (24% annually) I am sure I'll double my money in 3-4 years. Good luck
I am using http:www.goldenbullstocks.com check them out and test drive their stocks you will be impressed!
Standard investment advice is that you should invest in a diversified mix of stocks, bonds, and money market funds. You want to buy a diversified portfolio of stocks as individual stocks are too risky. Most folks have a dificult time buying a properly balanced portfoilio of stocks on their own. They will misbalance their portfolio by buying all small stocks or all growth stocks, or some other misbalanced assortment of stocks. Unless you know what you are doing, it is best to buy mutual funds. I like Vanguard.com, other people like Fidelity, TIAA-CREF, and DFA. Buy no-load, low cost funds. If you are like most people you will invest part of your money aggressively in stock funds, and part conservatively in money market funds and bond funds. Vanguard.com has an on-line questionnaire which will give you an idea of how to do "Asset Allocation," determining how much to put in each type of fund. If your company offers a 401K plan at work, try to invest the most you can. The money grows tax free, and some companies will match your contribution. Investing in a mutual fund IRA is also a good idea. If you have children, you may want to consider a 529 plan or other college savings plan that grows tax free. I like index funds. Because of their broad diversification, you are less likely to have a dramatic drop in value. They also have the lowest expenses. For stock funds, I would suggest putting ~70-80% of your money in the Vanguard Total Stock Market Index Fund. and ~20-30% in a foreign stock index fund. However, there are many different opinions out there on what the best mutual funds are. Read the links below and form your own opinion. If you have high-interest debt, like credit cards, it is best to pay this off first before trying most of the investment ideas above. You should also have 3-6 months of salary saved up as an emergency fund in a bank or money market fund before trying more risky investments. Believing advice you get on Yahoo answers can be risky, so read these websites for further information. If you find it too confusing, contact a professional financial advisor. They will charge you significant commissions, however. Sources: http://www.vanguard.com/VGApp/hnw/planningeducation http://www.fool.com/school.htm http://sec.gov/investor/pubs/assetallocation.htm http://www.diehards.org/readsites.htm http://finance.yahoo.com/education/begin_investing http://finance.yahoo.com/funds/basics Asset Allocation Calculators (Determining how much to put in stocks and how much into bonds and money markets is a personal decision depending on your financial status. These Asset Allocation questionaires give you a rough idea how to do this. I like Vanguard best, but try some of the other sites as well.) https://personal.vanguard.com/VGApp/hnw/FundsInvQuestionnaire?cbdInitTransUrl=https%3A//flagship.vanguard.com/VGApp/hnw/planningeducation/education https://ais2.tiaa-cref.org/cgi-bin/WebObjects.exe/DTAssetAlcEval http://www.ifa.com/SurveyNET/index.aspx Web forum: http://www.diehards.org/ (Many investment web forums are overrun by scam artists. This one seems the most legitimate site.) 529 plans: http://www.savingforcollege.com
Definately start with mutual funds. That's my advice. Get a good mix of small-cap, mid-cap, large-cap and something foreign. You need to do some more homework, find out your risk tolerance and find a strategy to diversify with before you invest.
Hi, First off-- don't jump to any decisions without more inquiries. I believe you should be looking at Mfunds and ETF's also, But, without knowing more about you, I cannot, in good conscIEnce, recommend anything. For one, you could sign up (free) to www.moneyrec.com, give some specifics about yourself ie age, occupation etc. and ask your question. There are some qualified people who will answer your question without solicitation. Anyway, good luck- 20,000 is a lot of money and it can grow very nicely for you if invested properly. Bunny
Be safe about it, invest some in the stock market and then invest some in something that your guaranteed a return. You should check out the Real Estate Investment Company I use, their called Global Real Estate. Check them out, www.ncinvesting.org
Hello, sleekblue789! There are many ways to make money. It sounds like you have not invested in the past. Don't go for stocks. FOREX trading also is like a lottery for beginners. Don't start this gambling if you know nothing about stocks and FOREX trading. Since the stock market is not going so well, overseas investments would be the best choice. Alternatively try to invest in someones business. You may receive up to 20% guaranteed interest a year. You will not get such high returns on stocks, mutual funds, bonds or CD's. If you invest $20,000 at 20% annual interest rate, you will get back $49,766.40 in 5 years. I run my own business and my net profit is over 5% a month. Some of the European banks are offering 7% to 14% annual interest rate (3-5 years deposits). Email me at investment4us [at] hotmail.com and I'll give you a valuable advice if you are serious about investing. Please don't forget to mention your nickname and question at Y.A. Beware of Nigerian spammers and scammers (419 fraud). Best of luck! Smart Investor