2007 Year in Review : Stock Pickings

Society Business and Career
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Well - 2007’s finished, Christmas is over, tax season is here…

But how did your stock portfolio fare? What stock did horrible? Which surprised you? What are your predictions for 2008?

I’ll start with a stock I grabbed as a little joke - Nintendo (NTDOY). I’ve had it for a few years (2004) and have kept it ever since. In 2006 Nintendo’s Wii release made the stock go bezerk. After Christmas 2006 the stock was floating at around $35…this was with the huge supply problem. Finding a Wii became some sort of sporting event and I remember smiling when Faisal proclaimed he had finally found one.

In early 2007, thinking the supply issue had been dealt with, I thought about selling the stock. I did not. Thankfully. This Christmas Nintendo had another supply disaster. The thing with Wii fans is that they dont want a PS3 or Xbox as a replacement. Give a kid that wants a Wii anything else and you’ll have an angry kid. You’ve got to give Nintendo credit… they’ve produced an innovative little gizmo that is affordable - rare. The demand for the Wii is again through the roof and it seems it will persist. I wouldnt go as far as saying there will be a repeat in Christmas 2009, but some people are banking that a supply issue will carry on for until at least July.

The stock itself closed at $73.75 on friday. Score.

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Re: 2007 Year in Review : Stock Pickings

I'd like to start investing in stocks but don't know where to start. How much do I need to start off with?

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Re: 2007 Year in Review : Stock Pickings

My best was and is GoldCorp. Been riding it like a west coast wave. Next in line, a canadian oil co (ERF)

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Re: 2007 Year in Review : Stock Pickings

cricketplaya, you can start with any amount even with $500. More money you put in better benefits you get from your brokerage company. You have to really study the market well before you jump into it. Or it's better using some investment consultant if you are investing a bigger amount. You need to keep your portfolio well diversified - never put all eggs in one basket.

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Re: 2007 Year in Review : Stock Pickings

Here is a very good pick INP. It is an ETF and has been knocked down a bit during January and IMO has an upside potential of between 20 to 25% in 2008

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Re: 2007 Year in Review : Stock Pickings

It is not how much you need to start off with. Although you can open an IRA account with as little as $2,500 and open a brokerage account with as little as $500.

Before you begin to go down the road to invest, educate yourself in the fundamentals of investing. There are tons of books/articles available on setting investment goals and fundamentals of investing.

Investing in a security (stock) for someone who is beginning to invest is risky at best. People get tempted to invest in stocks based upon the anecdotal details and one-off tips from friends and acquaintances. On the average, investing is stocks to reach investment goals don't do that well.

You may want to look at mutual funds as well. Select a mutual fund that will help you reach your goals. My personal inclination is to go with the mutual funds that have been around more than 10 years. Investing in mutual funds may not be sexy, but hey, with a 12% annual return you can double your money in about five years.

Mutual funds are managed by fund managers, who are professionals. They study markets and analyze companies' annual and quarterly financial reports. Managers even go beyond reported numbers and take into consideration management teams (CXO) and secured investors of their portfolio companies. A mutual fund normally invests only in those companies who they determine will be best suited for the fund goals.

The best analogy I can think of is building a house. You won't build your house yourself. You will find the best crew (architect, masons, mazdoors) available and material the money can buy.

Based on the amount being invested, look into diversifying your portfolio in domestic vs international focused funds. Also, diversify in respect to small, medium and large cap for value, blended and growth type funds.

Yahoo Finance screener, believe it or not, is one of the best resources available for free to learn about investing.

G/

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