New to stocks & day trading

[Hawkman23]

Hey everyone...I'm looking for some advice on the best way to get started in day trading.

I have a pretty small amount of money (5k) sitting in a separate bank account that I want to test in the stock market.

Any help or advice would be appreciated!

Thanks

[skidmarkymark]

Day trading is very hard now. Computers have taken over the show.

[Hawkman23]

Originally Posted by skidmarkymark

Day trading is very hard now. Computers have taken over the show.

I probably shouldn't have said day trading (tells you how little experience I have). I guess more along the lines of just simply opening up an Ameritrade account and buying/selling stocks to play the market.

If I have a $5k bankroll, how much $$$ should I put into one stock? I plan on putting $500 to $1k into an account every month to get it going and established.

[cman]

Welcome Hawk. I have a house in Warrior so we are some what close in proximity.

The first thing is to ask yourself what is your risk level? That will help you determine the type of stock you want to invest in. Are you looking to be an active trader or invest "long"

Then start reading....and just like gambling where you have touts who try and sell you their opinions the same is in trading as soon as you sign in to msn money or whatever site you use to research you will start getting approached about their service.

I would consider myself a long trader I usually choose a stock based on fundamentals and will try and buy at a dip and sell at chosen number that I automatically set up to trigger if it hits it and I am not just watching it

wde

[Hawkman23]

Originally Posted by cman

Welcome Hawk. I have a house in Warrior so we are some what close in proximity.

The first thing is to ask yourself what is your risk level? That will help you determine the type of stock you want to invest in. Are you looking to be an active trader or invest "long"

Then start reading....and just like gambling where you have touts who try and sell you their opinions the same is in trading as soon as you sign in to msn money or whatever site you use to research you will start getting approached about their service.

I would consider myself a long trader I usually choose a stock based on fundamentals and will try and buy at a dip and sell at chosen number that I automatically set up to trigger if it hits it and I am not just watching it

wde

Thanks for the advice CMAN. I am looking to be low risk starting out until I learn more about the market, trends, etc. What would you define as an active trader vs long term? I am looking to buy into 2-3 stocks with the $5k I'm starting up with and I am fine with holding onto them for months if not years if need be.

All in all I'm looking to grow my portfolio and of course to make as much money as I can for retirement, if not possibly before retirement if all goes as planned.

I have been reading through the stocks forum almost daily over the past few months before I decided to take this leap.

[cman]

Personally as a beginner I would choose a low cost index fund for your 5K. Due to the lower fees than individual stock trades (unless your buying a huge block) the index funds which can be purchased at Ameritrade (if that is who you are going to use) usually match or mirror the exchanges. Then when you get your next 5k saved then start maybe choosing individual stocks.

Not terribly exciting but the most stable stocks are usually pricey and a index fund spreads your money and barring a crash you will more then likely make money

wde

[Hawkman23]

Originally Posted by cman

Personally as a beginner I would choose a low cost index fund for your 5K. Due to the lower fees than individual stock trades (unless your buying a huge block) the index funds which can be purchased at Ameritrade (if that is who you are going to use) usually match or mirror the exchanges. Then when you get your next 5k saved then start maybe choosing individual stocks.

Not terribly exciting but the most stable stocks are usually pricey and a index fund spreads your money and barring a crash you will more then likely make money

wde

This is probably a loaded question, but when do you know when to buy a certain stock? A little research and your gut?

I guess with me just getting started, I want to minimize the mistakes I might make when making certain decisions!

[cman]

I read and listen and I tend to target stocks that I have invested in the past. Stocks that have cycles...I have invested in Hanes (HBI) twice this year with modest success. I bought the dips and then got out at the target of 3 dollars higher.

It has also cost me 3 times I have invested in Kroger (Kr)...buying the dips and reselling, twice it worked but the last time it bit me when they missed on buying Whole foods and Amazon bought them.

Nothing is full proof. I have taken a large position recently with Synergy Pharma because I believe they will take a much larger market share with a drug they have approved and are seeking further approval for expanded usage.

Again, they are risky for my taste normally but I know how profitable drug companies can be if they get market acceptance so I may have shorter leash with them then I do with some investments

wde

[Hawkman23]

Thanks for your advice man! I appreciate it.

[AuburnKid]

GhostFirst, go to https://invest.tdameritrade.com/grid...untApplication and open an account. Download their excellent thinkorswim software. They have a "play money" system to get used to the system. Send in the $5,000. They have a system to use a free automatic deposit option. If you want to buy (go long) the S&P index, the margin (minimum amount of cash is $4950) for the /ESZ7 Dec. 2017 ETF ('exchange-traded fund' (ETF)". If you went long the /ESZ7 @ about 9 AM yesterday, you would be down 14X$50 per point or $900. right now. If you had $15,000 in your account, you have day trading margins. You could have bought or sold ten contracts and have your entire account wiped out in one day if you choose the wrong direction. Stick to the longer term SPY stock.

GhostMoney investor Ben Stein has been pushing "Buy SPYDERS" (SPY) for at least 12 years. I personally like the Southern Company (SO) stock. A solid company that you gets you your electricity. This is a boring go from 33 in 2003 to 52 in 2017 stock that pays a nice dividend, It is perfect for 71-year-old men like myself. Get started and I will write a long money story this week about John Nelson.

See SO Historical Prices | Southern Company (The) Stock - Yahoo Finance


Commodity Prices / Quotes & Commodity Charts - Free

See my other posts in the last year.

[AuburnKid]

I first posted at 4:44 when I bought a DOW Jones /ymz7 @ 23356, it is now 10 points or $50 higher. The John Nelson story is coming on Veterans Day.

[AuburnKid]

I was busy watching the market so I missed

I plan on putting $500 to $1k into an account every month to get it going and established.

TD Ameritrade has an automatic monthly donation into your account. This makes it an easy way to "Pay yourself first" plan like how I pay most bills.

[Hawkman23]

I am going to buy my first stock today. How much is recommended that I should put into 1 stock? My starting bankroll is $5k...I am going to put $3k into a low cost index fund so I will have another $2k leftover to feed into a few more stocks of my choice.

Keep in mind that I am probably going to put $500 into my account per month to keep it growing.

What percentage should I put into a single stock with a 2k bankroll?

Thanks!

[AuburnKid]

Which

"low cost index fund?"

For a $6.95 trading commission, you can buy 10 shares of the (SPY) which is at about 257.33 It is highly liquid. (liquid means that a days trading is in the millions of shares traded) Others may trade in the thousands and have a wide spread between buy and sell.

[AuburnKid]

There are more mutual funds than there are stocks. By buying spiders (SPY) you are getting the 500 best companies in the USA. I have not use a mutual fund since 1971.

If you bought SPY on Jan 2, 2017 @ 220, for $2200. ten shares would now be worth $2573.50 and paid a quarterly dividend.

[Hawkman23]

Originally Posted by AuburnKid

Which

For a $6.95 trading commission, you can buy 10 shares of the (SPY) which is at about 257.33 It is highly liquid. (liquid means that a days trading is in the millions of shares traded) Others may trade in the thousands and have a wide spread between buy and sell.

I was thinking the Vanguard S&P 500 (VOO), but I noticed it is $236/share...does it make more sense to get into an index fund that has a lower buying price so that I can get in with more shares? (I hope this makes sense)

Also, I don't think that I mentioned earlier that I get free trades for the first 60 days of setting up my account.

[AuburnKid]

Originally Posted by Hawkman23

I was thinking the Vanguard S&P 500 (VOO), but I noticed it is $236/share...does it make more sense to get into an index fund that has a lower buying price so that I can get in with more shares? (I hope this makes sense)

Also, I don't think that I mentioned earlier that I get free trades for the first 60 days of setting up my account.

Free trades are for the day traders who make a lot of trades. When you buy your shares, you might want to keep them for way more than 60 days.

See book

The Roaring 2000s: Building The Wealth And Lifestyle You Desire In The Greatest Boom In History: Harry S. Dent: 9780684853109: Amazon.com: Books

Harry explains why people who buy higher priced funds perform worse than people who buy SPY and hold. Too long a read to explain here. Maybe later I can give a short version.

[AuburnKid]

I am punching out for the day.

[cman]

I love the Vanguard low fee index funds

they allowed me to build a bankroll and remember any savings are good friend

wde