4/28/20: Investing in the stock market. 7/28/20: Introducing Schwab’s Stock Slices
Investing in the stock market can be a little scary; it has recovered nicely lately but I still have some doubts short term. I am not overly concerned for the long term but I think that continued volatility is here to stay for the next few months, if not longer, especially with the election coming up in a few months.
Take a listen to Wealth Management Insights, an audiocast series featuring some of Morgan Stanley Wealth Management’s most experienced investment strategists to hear about stock market investing opportunities for this time period.
These audiocasts are only 5-7 minutes long and very informative. I encourage you to listen to this one – “Don’t Follow the Investing Pack” by Lisa Shalett, Morgan Stanley’s Chief Investment Officer. It explains why she believes investors should remain broadly diversified. You can check it out here; if you go back a bit.
I’ve always viewed market downturns as the perfect time to buy! What do you think? What stocks or sectors would you choose?
Update 7/28/2020: Schwab Stock Slices
I’ve had a Schwab checking account for years. I got it because, when traveling overseas, I use it to get local currency from any ATM, and, if there are fees for using the ATM, Schwab reimburses the fees. (I use it at home in the US, as well.)
Recently, Schwab has introduced “Stock Slices”, which means that now anyone can own any of America’s leading companies in the S&P 500® for as little as $5, even if their shares cost more.
This is wonderful, if you’d like to own Netflix, Apple, or Facebook stock, for example. You needn’t purchase even 1 entire stock share in these companies, which would be quite expensive…you can get a “fractional share.”
All corporate logos and prices are for illustrative purposes only and are not a recommendation, an offer to sell, or a solicitation of an offer to buy any security.
…even better, if you want to explore dabbling in the stock market further, you can invest $5 in 10 different stocks of interest.
Why buy a stock “slice”?
Let’s say you want to invest in a company, but its stock price may be higher than what you want to pay. Instead of buying a whole share of stock, you can buy a fractional share, which is a “slice” of stock that represents a partial share, for as little as $5. For example, if a company’s stock is selling at $1,000 a share and you were buying $200 worth of it, you would own 0.2 (20%) of a share. With stock slices, investing in the stock market has never been more accessible.
A simple, low-cost way to invest in any S&P 500 stock.
Anytime you buy fractional shares through Schwab Stock Slices, you can buy a single slice or up to 10 slices for as little as $5 per slice. And, you can trade stock slices commission-free online, just as you would regular stocks at Schwab.
Turn it into an educational game!
The 10 stock slices for $50: This would be fun, done with a group of friends, or your kids – you could turn it into a little competition: who can choose the best “portfolio.” At the end of a given amount of time, whoever’s 10 fractional shares have the highest combined value wins!
This is a terrific way to start dabbling in the stock market, don’t you think? I’m going to do this right away, by researching some of the big name stocks and choosing 10.
Which 10 stocks would you choose?
If anyone wants to play with me, I’d love it!
