Thread: Playing investor keep them or dump them?

About two years ago in November I put 5k in an Ameritrade account. It was just for the experience. I had always wanted to try it out. From that time to the following year I gained a bit over $2000. When one lucky stock shot through to the roof I sold. That gave me the $2000 profit. That went into my moneymarket. I should have left it there but figured you never know what is going to happen I'm one of those people who always thinks the worst. Listening to the other side, in the last six months put 1k back in. Okay this is just a play thing for me. At that point I still had around 7k total in my account 6k in stocks and about 1k in my money market.

In the last 3 months I have seen my account go down and down but since I have so little in it I just figured I'll hold on. Well, now I am down to about $5,100. I haven't lost my initial money but I figure that will start soon. Still I don't want to sell out at this point. How much do you think I could loose? All my stocks have gone down pretty severely already. Stay or sell? I wonder what I should do? If I lost another 2k I wouldn't suffer it would just be a bit depressing. I guess if things went that low we would be in the great depression. i wonder if things are ever going to go up again? Not sure what I am going to do.

I just wanted to share my thoughts.

sell out and take your original money

the sh1t and the fan is still in its infancy

you can always buy back in in about 12 months time

Originally Posted by Rattanaburi

If I lost another 2k I wouldn't suffer it would just be a bit depressing.

If you don't have the guts to ride a storm like we have now, then you shouldn't be buying stocks, period. Most retail investors don't have the attitude to be on the equity market, that's why they go buy mutual funds and income funds, much easier, less headache, and they are right.

Unless you know what you are doing, you shouldn't be buying any of those stocks, no matter how you think those companies will do in the long term, unless you are ready to see your money swings widely over the short run

I agree with buttfrier, and it's not only sentiment and numbers that cause stocks to swing wildly.

I've never traded directly on the DJ, FTSE is a distant memory, and though the SET is very much a manipulated market there are basics in any stock trading you should know and absorb.

The moment you enter the market it becomes your enemy. It's you vs them, with them holding the higher ground by knowing your weaknesses, and the money and control to toy with your emotions. It's a cutthroat place, your goal is to sell at a higher price than you bought, whilst theirs is to coerce you into selling at a lower price than you bought; each time you take profit it is because others have lost, and of course whenever you lose others gain.

In their favour, which means against you, they can smash the undervalued and fundamentally sound stock you bought by 50 or more % so fast that you're caught between panic and greed...sell and watch it recover, as it will, when they are ready, or hold as it drops further daily? They can also pump a hopeless stock as fast, to double or triple its worth, the while sucking in fresh money on the glorious run that'll soon be showing as red on your screen.

Do your own research, take expert advice with the proverbial sack of salt, because they'll happily and persuasively plug stocks they know will leave buyers stranded, and don't risk any money you cannot comfortably afford to lose.

Are you prepared to watch your $ 5,100 drop below $ 4,000 before you see any recovery?

If so then fine, otherwise sell. This isn't over yet.

Originally Posted by Thormaturge

Are you prepared to watch your $ 5,100 drop below $ 4,000 before you see any recovery? If so then fine, otherwise sell. This isn't over yet.

and the rest! maybe drop to $2500!

however, wot butterfly says is essentially correct. ride it out. (provided you are in reasonably safe stocks (and what is safe these days anyway!?)

However, $5000 aint much money and the loss of it aint gonna cause you to go bankrupt or sell the family home, therefore unless you have an absolutely pressing need for that $5000 right now then leave it alone.

Regarding Keda's comments, I think you've focussed on capital gains only. an important, but oft neglected aspect of stock are dividends, personally I like to opt for reinvestment plans, keep pumping profits back into the portfolio. Make it grow.

Basically forget about the stock for about the next few years, let it ride it out and grow a little. These things are 100% cyclical.

Originally Posted by Whiteshiva

Originally Posted by keda

The moment you enter the market it becomes your enemy. It's you vs them, with them holding the higher ground by knowing your weaknesses, and the money and control to toy with your emotions.

You do realise that you sound completely paranoid when you write something like the above. Either that, or you are a bigger player in the market than anyone I have ever heard of. Do "they" tap your phone, monitor your email and try to pollute your bodily fluids as well?

I disagree, he makes some interesting point, he is trying to illustrate mentally the situation and he is right on the money, this is the spirit you must have when trading

have you ever traded WS ?

Nobody knows, historically the greatest surges have followed from times when investors were at their most pessimistic,if you try to call the bottom or the top you will be wrong,stay invested and spread as widely as possible --this is not easy with 5000,if I had that why not one of the big supermarkets ,everyone buys groceries and its a system that cannot be changed by some electronic geek in his back bedroom

Originally Posted by Butterfly

Originally Posted by Whiteshiva

Originally Posted by keda

The moment you enter the market it becomes your enemy. It's you vs them, with them holding the higher ground by knowing your weaknesses, and the money and control to toy with your emotions.

You do realise that you sound completely paranoid when you write something like the above. Either that, or you are a bigger player in the market than anyone I have ever heard of. Do "they" tap your phone, monitor your email and try to pollute your bodily fluids as well?

I disagree, he makes some interesting point, he is trying to illustrate mentally the situation and he is right on the money, this is the spirit you must have when trading

have you ever traded WS ?

A little bit, and I have never had to look over my shoulder. I guess I am too small to matter to "them" I guess....

It is just a game/learning experience for me. I mean even if my stocks shot up to a 100,000 somehow overnight my life would still be as it is. 88% of mutual funds are crap in my view. I see the investment world as a big production company creating a lot of amazing new products that end up doing nothing for customers while making money form commissions and fees for their creators and those who sell them.

Actually I once worked for an investment company in the brokerage department. it was just a job processing outside funds. I just dealt with applications for funds like GTGlobal, Franklin, Templeton, Aim etc They were popular at that time. GT is now Aim. Anyways despite working there I never really got into the market stuff. I made a few commision free trades at that time but closed my brokerage account when I left to come out here to Asia. I've always been a little interested in the markets. Now I just have this basic account. I don't do day trading or anything like that. I guess you might say I do year-trading if that's possible. I'm not looking to make a load. It's just for the experience. A few years back in LOS you would hear a lot from people doing day trading. Now some still do it but it seems the popularity of that has faded. I wonder if the traders gave up or just lost all their money?

So I'm not planning to buy in right now. I have no money to do so anyways. It's always seemed to me that those who put in a lot can make a lot and lose who put in a little make a little. In the current times I would guess that it might be the opposite. This could be looked at other ways. You might also start to wonder who is more knowledgeable the Wall Street Banker who lost everything or the little guy with just a few bucks who didn't? Is it all about the money you have had over time rather than the money that is in your hand at the moment? Who knows?

I'm just thinking of holding or selling. I probably will hold because I am too indecisive to act.

One line of advice would be sell into rallies. The market is way oversold and a large relief rally in the US is due any day. This rally will not hold so it might be prudent to sell 40% of what you have when that rally peaks (or as best you can guess). Then wait for the market to slide and buy back in perhaps 20% of what you sold out. Leave that other 20% as cash.
Reapeat this action until the market forms a bottom. Remember that the market is looking ahead for clarity on when all this chaos will end. When it can see when and where the chaos ends it will start rising even though all around us seems to be still in tatters.
Can you tell us which stocks you have? just out of curiousity?

Originally Posted by Whiteshiva

Originally Posted by keda

The moment you enter the market it becomes your enemy. It's you vs them, with them holding the higher ground by knowing your weaknesses, and the money and control to toy with your emotions.

You do realise that you sound completely paranoid when you write something like the above. Either that, or you are a bigger player in the market than anyone I have ever heard of. Do "they" tap your phone, monitor your email and try to pollute your bodily fluids as well?

Not quite sure what your point is. I was trying to give the best free advice I could to somebody who doesn't appear to be comfortable with whatever he is holding. If that sounds paranoid to you as an experienced investor all well and good, though I guess you too were a novice at some stage.

For others, that is the way I believe they should view it, that is the way I was coached when I began a couple of decades ago, and I'm not about to change that successful mindset to please you.

Originally Posted by keda

Originally Posted by Whiteshiva

Originally Posted by keda

The moment you enter the market it becomes your enemy. It's you vs them, with them holding the higher ground by knowing your weaknesses, and the money and control to toy with your emotions.

You do realise that you sound completely paranoid when you write something like the above. Either that, or you are a bigger player in the market than anyone I have ever heard of. Do "they" tap your phone, monitor your email and try to pollute your bodily fluids as well?

Not quite sure what your point is. I was trying to give the best free advice I could to somebody who doesn't appear to be comfortable with whatever he is holding. If that sounds paranoid to you as an experienced investor all well and good, though I guess you too were a novice at some stage.

Do you honestly think the market is an intelligent entity that knows who you are, cares one toss about your weaknesses and emotions and is out to get you? I honestly think that is going a tiny bit to far, in more than one way....

But if you don't agree, that is fine. I was just trying to give some free advice - if you want to know more, you have to buy me a teakdoor amulet.

Originally Posted by kingwilly

and the rest! maybe drop to $2500!

I think you are being optimistic - wait till the herd starts to cut its losses and loses its optimism as to what all these injections of "funny money" will do.

making money on markets is all about volatility,

the more volatile, the more chance you have to make it big, but it also implies greater risk,

There is a "linear" relationship between risk and returns, that is if you want more returns, you will need to take more risk. That relationship is not always true in reverse, that is lousy returns can also be linked to higher risk,

well , wall street is on an upward bounce now - you can get out before reality sets in at the end of trade

Originally Posted by Whiteshiva

Originally Posted by keda

Originally Posted by Whiteshiva

Originally Posted by keda

The moment you enter the market it becomes your enemy. It's you vs them, with them holding the higher ground by knowing your weaknesses, and the money and control to toy with your emotions.

You do realise that you sound completely paranoid when you write something like the above. Either that, or you are a bigger player in the market than anyone I have ever heard of. Do "they" tap your phone, monitor your email and try to pollute your bodily fluids as well?

Not quite sure what your point is. I was trying to give the best free advice I could to somebody who doesn't appear to be comfortable with whatever he is holding. If that sounds paranoid to you as an experienced investor all well and good, though I guess you too were a novice at some stage.

Do you honestly think the market is an intelligent entity that knows who you are, cares one toss about your weaknesses and emotions and is out to get you? I honestly think that is going a tiny bit to far, in more than one way....

But if you don't agree, that is fine. I was just trying to give some free advice - if you want to know more, you have to buy me a teakdoor amulet.

Yes you are right, the market is a perfectly honourable place and any novice should put all their money wherever they're told will make the most profit. Manipulation is not driven by intelligent design since we know the market is not an intelligent entity. For the same reason, fear cannot be an emotion routinely brought into play with shakeouts, and neither is greed used to suck the inexperienced into artificial rallies. Everything is above board, everyone makes tons of money, and as a novice your best bet is to trust the market and those that wouldn't dream of taking your money as you would your best friend. Pay DD and ask him to prepare my amulet for pickup.

Originally Posted by keda

Originally Posted by Whiteshiva

Originally Posted by keda

Originally Posted by Whiteshiva

Originally Posted by keda

The moment you enter the market it becomes your enemy. It's you vs them, with them holding the higher ground by knowing your weaknesses, and the money and control to toy with your emotions.

You do realise that you sound completely paranoid when you write something like the above. Either that, or you are a bigger player in the market than anyone I have ever heard of. Do "they" tap your phone, monitor your email and try to pollute your bodily fluids as well?

Not quite sure what your point is. I was trying to give the best free advice I could to somebody who doesn't appear to be comfortable with whatever he is holding. If that sounds paranoid to you as an experienced investor all well and good, though I guess you too were a novice at some stage.

Do you honestly think the market is an intelligent entity that knows who you are, cares one toss about your weaknesses and emotions and is out to get you? I honestly think that is going a tiny bit to far, in more than one way....

But if you don't agree, that is fine. I was just trying to give some free advice - if you want to know more, you have to buy me a teakdoor amulet.

Yes you are right, the market is a perfectly honourable place and any novice should put all their money wherever they're told will make the most profit. Manipulation is not driven by intelligent design since we know the market is not an intelligent entity. For the same reason, fear cannot be an emotion routinely brought into play with shakeouts, and neither is greed used to suck the inexperienced into artificial rallies. Everything is above board, everyone makes tons of money, and as a novice your best bet is to trust the market and those that wouldn't dream of taking your money as you would your best friend.

I never said anything to that effect whatsoever - but I guess comprehension is not your strong point, is it? Or did the voices in your head tell you to write the above?

You pull out, then your losses are realized. Keep in and things will go back up. Simple laws of stock market.

Yep, as long as they don't go under they'll bounce back.

update: Well I haven't sold out. As I said I am too indecisive so I just held on. Now my account is at about 4,700. Last night took off $307 dollars. I'm still going to hold on I guess unless the markets shoot up ober 5k again then I might think of selling again.

It seems like the end of the world at times in terms of the stock market. This will discourage a lot people from putting money so easily in once again. I don't see great gains other than an initial jump up a bit. After that people will think carefully about putting lots of new money like they did in the past into the markets. That's worldwide I would guess. Gold's long term stability is gonna be there and it's price may spike over the next few days I would guess. But I may be completely wrong. I should be a farmer.

Originally Posted by keda

Yep, as long as they don't go under they'll bounce back.

No shit, Sherlock!

jesus, what a beating !!!

this is as bad as 1987, funny how the numbers work, every 10 years !!!