Your Portfolio (9 Viewers)

Gazolba said:

I don't invest in individual stocks or bonds. I invest in stock and bond funds.
Some of the funds are even a mix of stocks and bonds.
The funds have managers that do the work of buying and selling within the funds parameters.
Presently, I have about 20 different funds, some more agressive than others.
I'm well diversified. Even within stocks I'm in funds of small companies, large companies and in different market sectors.
I periodically look at my fund balances and occasionally will switch between funds.
But mostly I just leave the money where it is. I never react to the ups and downs of the stock market.
Attempting to time the market never pays off in the long run.
I have done extremely well over the years, I've earned as much from my investments as I have in salary from my job.
Unfortunately, everything is down at the moment due to the Coronavirus.
But it will come back up, it's only a matter of time.

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I do exactly the same. Long term, this is a good way of doing it.

Gazolba said:

You guys looking for a quick return by timing the market are following a fools game.
The best strategy is to buy a diversified selection of stocks (stock funds are a million times better) and hold onto them for the long term, ignoring short-term ups and downs.
Do you know how much you'd be worth today if you had invested in Microsoft or Apple 30 years ago and just held onto the stocks?

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That’s where i want to be to be honest, nice to talk to some people who have done it for a while and have no biased. Want to build a nice portfolio over time but start small

Greggs said:

Companies usually release financial reports every 3 months. Tag a couple of news feeds regarding your investments to your Google home page. A steady source of info on your investments cab help you understand the business a bit better.
Good luck mate

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Cheers appreciate the advice and look forward to this page going on with hints and tips!

Greggs said:

Thinking of selling my Sipp and taking a 4k loss on Canopy Growth, moving it to Shell. Can't see any movement in cannabis sector for very long time now. Testing my patience!

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Wouldn't be so sure about your cannabis investment
After 10 years of austerity we've just had to go on another borrowing spree.
There's a huge industry there waiting to be legalised and taxed to bring money into the coffers. I can see it happening.

Covstu said:

That’s where i want to be to be honest, nice to talk to some people who have done it for a while and have no biased. Want to build a nice portfolio over time but start small

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Maybe try a monthly payment into an Investment or Unit Trust then you get the averaging effect on your buys.

So who is worth watching at the moment?

This thread is even more highbrow than I first thought it would be. Its rocketed and might be due a fall soon. Might be time to sell.

Greggs said:

Long term investors don't tend to sell mate. Try not giving dodgy advice. Find a traders forum if need be

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Oh for fucks sake it's a joke. Pull your head out of your very important arse.

As it happens I have I have been investing since the late 1980s but and I don't give any advice on a football forum about where to invest as I'm not a professional . If you feel so inclined to do so that's up to you, but don't pretend you're so important that you can't take what is clearly a joke

Long term investors always sell eventually when the price is right or their circumstances dictate. Perhaps its you that should consult a professional.

Greggs said:

The joke weren't funny first time, yet you came back and tried again. Fuck off you boring prick

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Boring ? Have a read of your contributions.
You really are Mr self important aren't you?
If you're going to start throwing insults this early then you're fair game matey.

Greggs said:

Why are you here? I opened this
thread to talk about the topic. Plenty of other threads on this site for you to be annoying. You mention my importance like is an annoyance to you? Surely discussing the topic of a thread is the point of a forum? Very odd behaviour, maybe seek professional advice. Goodnight

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You told me to fuck off. That's based on a clear joke I made.
You obviously feel you " own" this thread because you started it and you don't want anything other than serious investment talk.
Yet you tell me that long term investors don't sell which is absolute bollocks. Everyone sells.

For someone who feels confident enough to start a thread on this subject and tell me to fuck off, you know fuck all about the basics.

Greggs said:

Your negativity is infectious and nothing I want a part of. Please don't keep pestering me. If you have a serious issue, PM me.

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Ah, so you can tell me to fuck of and that's okay but when I respond it's not fair.

Greggs said:

I don't see anything in my inbox

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Should you ?

Greggs said:

I've asked you to stop pestering me. If you have a problem, send me a PM and we can discuss it.

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Now you're squealing to the audience.

Greggs said:

Thought not. Typical pussy hiding behind a spunky laptop. Answer my PM

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You know, you beat me to it. What's a spunky laptop btw ?

Greggs said:

Playing the victim card via PM. Nice one. Coward

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Making threats to "sort it " ?

Greggs said:

Playing the victim card via PM. Nice one. Coward

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You asked me if I wanted to "sort it " . I'm guessing you mean violence . I don't know why you asked me to PM you and then make a comment on here about it. But I have to respond accordingly. I'm guessing you've done that before, making threats.

Greggs said:

You've guessed wrong. I want to sort what your problem with me is. I've asked you numerous times to leave me alone now.

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Don't backtrack. You wanted to meet up and "sort it" . You'll do the sensible thing now and back off. I don't take kindly to threats. Particularly physical threats.

Back on topic...

I am looking to have a go an investing a small amount of funds (a few hundred quid), I appreciate its small but I'd be happy with a sound return in a few years. All my other investments will be in a liftime ISA which has 25% interest on anything I deposit up to £4k per annum which can be used as a lump sum pension pot. But that is a continuous investment year on year instead of one inveetiment and watching it grow as the share price increases.

Is it worth trying the app that has been advertised (Trading 212) to get a flavour before real money is invested?
What websites are used for buying shares and what research do you do before choosing a company to invest in?

skyblue1991 said:

Back on topic...

I am looking to have a go an investing a small amount of funds (a few hundred quid), I appreciate its small but I'd be happy with a sound return in a few years. All my other investments will be in a liftime ISA which has 25% interest on anything I deposit up to £4k per annum which can be used as a lump sum pension pot. But that is a continuous investment year on year instead of one inveetiment and watching it grow as the share price increases.

Is it worth trying the app that has been advertised (Trading 212) to get a flavour before real money is invested?
What websites are used for buying shares and what research do you do before choosing a company to invest in?

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I think if your nervous about it prior to investing then might be an idea. I had a play prior to dipping in but that was to understand how it all works. Ultimately still a complete novice and welcome the advice of the chaps on here

In my experience, above all else understanding your own and the market's behaviours to (either positive or adverse) price movements - controlling yours, and predicting others' - is the key to successful trading/investing. Possibly the two most important cognitive behaviours to understand and work on are loss aversion and confirmation bias.

Of these, even after a good number of years of trading/investing I still find myself either taking some losses or else cutting short my profits due to loss aversion. The fact of loss aversion - that we prefer to avoid losses to acquiring equivalent gains - is the reason why trying out 'virtual' portfolios is actually not a great idea. When there's nothing to lose, why not slap a hundred quid on a share to see what it does? And if it comes in, slap the profit around and see if those multiples really grow. If the bet comes off you're a genius; if not, no matter, there's no pain.

When it comes down to gambling on the markets for real, loss aversion means that you are less likely to slap that hundred quid on that share, but instead a tenth of it. Yes, it may come good, but your profits grow are much slower rate (which can get frustrating so lead to more risky behaviour) - vs. if the share halves, such is the felt loss aversion that you sell it. Not only that but loss aversion means that your next bet is just 5 quid, not 10, but now you have to get back not only the tenner you lost but also try to find profit on top.

In real life what this merry go round teaches you is to be patient. If the reasons why you bought the share still hold, then hold. But then you might fall into the loss aversion paradox of 'doubling down' - buying more shares in the company at a lower price, to lower your average price paid per share, but more of them and so more risk. You're now starting to stretch that investment pot such that you don't have much you can be elsewhere to catch profits elsewhere. And so on.

You might start of with the intention of buying a passive fund that tracks the market, so earning a few percentage points over the rate of interest over the long term, or buying a share in a ftse 100 that waxes and wanes and waxes slowly, whilst you pick up a small divi from it. But then the hunger for quicker profits comes in, so you hear about the Alternative Investment Market (AIMS) and the money to be made on penny shares, many of which are run by shysters who simply rinse the punters year after year. That game can be won by understanding how other private investors react but again, you'll have to keep your loss aversion in check. If a punt doesn't come off, don't double down or perhaps just hold the share for the next pump and dump that comes round yearly, and so on.

Unfortunately, there is no substitute for real experience. And it can costly getting that experience. I think you have to think about whether you simply want to own some trackers or maybe some blue-chip and let it ride long term, or else dip into the massive amount of online help and knowledge is there is around to begin understanding the markets, and maybe put a little aside to gamble, say, on a AIM market share. By following your blue chips and/or AIM share, you'll learn loads both about the company but also about market behaviours, as well as learn a lot about yourself. The latter is the most important. If you can understand your reactions to share losses and profits and are able to begin to rationalise these and act accordingly, then you'll dramatically improve your chances of success.

Just started with Moneybox last week.

tom88 said:

Just started with Moneybox last week.

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I've heard about Money Box

From my high level understanding its an app that is linked to your Credit/Debit card that rounds up any payments to the nearest pound and banks the different.

E.g. a £3.50 coffee would cost £4.00 and the delta 50p gets saved.

On the face of it, it looks a great idea to encourage saving, but is there a catch to it (i.e. monthly fee)?