Buying just a few stocks..... where/how??

[pjlla]

My 18 year old DS has developed an interest in doing a bit of investing..... but I haven't got the FOGGIEST notion how he can go about buying small amounts of a few stocks. Unfortunately, the stocks he is really interested in are not exactly "penny" stocks, so he could only afford to buy a FEW shares (like 3-10) of each one. I don't even know where to begin helping him with this. Any ideas/suggestions?........P

 

[tvguy]

Any online brokerage can help. Just set up an account.

 

[Brancaneve]

Buy Disney stock! It pays dividends and it would be fun to follow. I think it's at $95 right now.

 

[morgan98]

I think an easy way to do this would be to set up an account at CapitalOne360 (formerly ING). They have a relationship with Sharebuilder and you can instantly transfer money from your CapitalOne360 account into you Sharebuilder account and buy shares immediately.

I do this as I do track the market somewhat and I get the urge to invest in something I read about, etc. I have even day traded a little bit at times (as a fun little hobby).

 

[runwad]

Me and my kids have accounts at Scottrade, it's easy to set up just follow the screen prompts
https://www.scottrade.com/?gclid=CO...e.com&ef_id=VNFPXAAAADYK7XJ6:20160226013018:s

When it comes to individual trades, Scottrade charges a flat fee of $7 for stocks and exchange-traded funds, while E*TRADE charges $9.99 for anyone who trades between zero and 149 times per quarter, and $7.99 for those who make more than 150 trades in a quarter.Apr 14, 2011

 

[ktmo]

I think an easy way to do this would be to set up an account at CapitalOne360 (formerly ING). They have a relationship with Sharebuilder and you can instantly transfer money from your CapitalOne360 account into you Sharebuilder account and buy shares immediately.

I do this as I do track the market somewhat and I get the urge to invest in something I read about, etc. I have even day traded a little bit at times (as a fun little hobby).

I also use CapitalOne360. It is pretty straight forward and easy to use. I have automatic investments set up. I buy Disney stock for my DDs. A little each month. It has grown considerably over the years.

 

[xlxo]

Buy Disney stock! It pays dividends and it would be fun to follow. I think it's at $95 right now.

https://ca.finance.yahoo.com/q/bc?s=DIS&t=5y

 

[RitaE]

Two newer brokerages that charge no commissions or trading fees, which is very important when investing small amounts of money or fees can eat into all the profits

http://www.loyal3.com - a bit different in that he can invest as little as $10 at a time in fractional shares, but a limited slate of stocks offered. However Disney is one of the stocks they offer.

http://www.robinhood.com - No commissions to buy or sell.

 

[Minnesota!]

I use ShareBuilder through CapitalOne360. Super easy.

 

[MrInfinity]

You just open an account. It's no more difficult than opening a Paypal account. I like ETrade. But the other ones mentioned above are fine too. Entering a buy order for a stock is as easy as entering a buy order for something at Walmart.com. Really. It's not like the old days where you needed to do more work. Small numbers of shares is fine, tho shoot for a few hundred dollars worth in a purchase. If your 18DS can navigate his own bank site to make deposits and such, then this is basically the same level of difficulty. Have fun! It's a great step to take.

 

[jedijill]

You can also buy stocks directly from the company. I know that Disney has a DRIP program.

Jill in CO

 

[pjlla]

Thanks all! He may invest in some Disney stock, but he is a tech geek and wants to grab some tech company stocks primarily. I gave him all of this information and hopefully he will do well! Thank you again!..............P

 

[DisMommyTX]

I used ScottTrade a couple years ago. They were nice and helpful, wouldn't hesitate to use them again if I wanted control of a few small trades.

 

[Iowajes]

I would have your son do some research into investing. Buying "just a few stocks" usually isn't a good plan.
Why has he decided he wants the company's he wants? Is it just because they are companies he knows are popular?
Are they at a good value right now? Has he decided they are not overpriced? What is their P/E ratio? What is the debt ratio of the company? What is their free cash flow?
Does he have an asset allocation plan? Will he diversify his selection among small, mid and large-cap stocks? What is his goal? Does he want short term investment that he will then sell? Is this a buy and hold plan?

As for where to open a brokerage, I really like Vanguard, but I I'm a big plan of their low expense index funds. The "buy a popular stock" plan I took in high school didn't work for me. Enron and Lucent both went to zero. (Pfizer and IBM did okay for me.) But mostly, the money disappeared. Enron and Lucent were HUGE at the time I bought them, I made some money, and then the company's went bankrupt.

 

[NJtoATL]

bump