My Stock Market

Today I am going to give you guy's some insight on where and what I am currently trading.

I am currently using Scottrade as my brokerage firm. I was recommended this company back in 2010, and I am very satisfied with their services. (keep in mind, I just do basic buy and sell, no options at this point) Scottrade does offer option trading, but you must fist sign some document stating that you understand the risk that is involved.

The main things that brought me to Scottrade, was their low trading costs. (its $7, per trade) 

When I first opened my Scottrade account, I found it a little difficult to navigate though. My first priority was to load money into my account. (some warning, it does take a couple of days before your funds are transferred) 

For me personally, I am fortunate enough to have excess funds to put into the market. I would not suggest anyone to throw their money into the market in hopes of earning cash fast. In my opinion, the first rule of investment, is to invest an amount that you are comfortable parting with. In doing so, if your investments take a turn for the worse, you will be okay with the current amount lost.

For me, I do research a couple of companies that are currently attractive in the market. I will track them in my Google portfolio and will determine if their 52 week low is either a) currently attainable or b) reasonable.

That being said, I currently purchased Linn Energy, $LINE, I had heard about this company from a friend of mine, and though talk in my Finance classes. I decided to purchase a couple of shares at $11.58. At the time, I felt like it was a good purchase, as the weeks went by and the price of oil dropped, so did the price of $LINE. I was hesitant at first, but knew that my goal was to hold the shares for long term. Today, I placed a buy limit for $LINE at $9.15 and my order was successfully filled.

TIP** The total amount of money invested into a company is very important. If one where to invest $100 vs $1,000 into a company, then the overall profit and break even point would be very different.

For example, if the stock price is $10 dollars, it would be more profitable to invest $1,000 than $100

	Stock $10	Profit per share	Fee	Total Profit	% Gain
$100	10	1.88	14	4.8	0.48%
$1,000	100	1.88	14	174	1.74%

Some times, I find companies on a whim. I will do a quick search and filter out companies based on industry and price. I will then look at their competitors and sometimes end up choosing their competitors over my initial choice. (Although I have a finance degree, I do not put 100% emphasis on key factors such as EPS, market cap, P/E, ect.)