cookstar

iTrader: (6)

Fancy having a dabble, any suggestions on what to look for?

I have never bought any before, but feel it might be the time to start.

stilover

There was the `Big thing` years ago regarding penny shares.

They only had to go up 1p to double your money.

With Banks share being low, now could be a good time to buy.

Moley

iTrader: (9)

GCM

cookstar

iTrader: (6)

Someone at work says he is buying RBS tonight, and quite a bit of dosh involved by all accounts.

dpb

missed the boat i suspect , but dont take my word for anything

GlesgaKiss

Maybe he knows what he's doing or maybe he'll be lucky, but the fundamentals for RBS are terrible, and it's really not good to be in something like that unless you know what you're doing, i.e. it's a trade with a planned exit in the event of things turning sour. You also need the mentality to deal with making the decision whether to sell or hold on to it, and the majority of private investors taking punts will do something stupid at that time.

If you have to buy something go for large, defensive companies that pay good dividends and have strong balance sheets and low debt. You won't make a killing like the lucky ones but you also won't lose it all like the unlucky ones. There will be bargains to be had for sure.

What about big oil cos like Shell and BP, or defensive food retailers like Tesco?

Do your own research of course.

frodobaggins

iTrader: (5)

yell

dpb

Rockhopper instead of BP

RobsyUK

iTrader: (2)

Should of done BP during the spill... Home retail group and £1.29 and expected to climb.. They were £5.80 a few years back...

mamoon2

RBS would have made a profit this quarter if it wasn't for the PPI claims and Greek writedowns.

Now these are over and done with, hopefully RBS will return to a profit making bank soon. Don't forget it made a profit last quarter

what would scooby do

Okay, pork belly prices have been dropping all morning, which means that everybody is waiting for it to hit rock bottom, so they can buy low.

So go for pork belly.

Top tip buy high, sell low.. or somesuch..

paulr

Isnt this exactly the problem, people looking for a quick buck, instead of the old fashioned way................work.

cookstar

iTrader: (6)

I do my fair share of that.

paulr

I'm sure you do, and it was only a half-hearted comment. However, there is a bit of truth in it.

Chip

I've done my fair share of that hence being able to afford a few bob on shares now.

Chip

Chip

Or go down a penny and you lose everything.

cookstar

iTrader: (6)

I am really after dividend paying shares, so I can start something I can build up over time, I'm not after a "quick buck" rather something for the future.

Chip

Nat grid
Vodafone
Aviva
Chesnara
United Utilities

All pay apout 6-7% div.

Check them out on either www.thisismoney.co.uk
or
www.iii.co.uk

Chip

GlesgaKiss

Standard Life getting cheap now. Was 170 this morning. Yielding around 7%.

Saxo Boy

Excite Energy (XEL)

DYOR

Gear Head

iTrader: (2)

I'm looking to get myself setup with a small portfolio. £50 here, £100 there and see where I end up.
Anyone got any tips?

GlesgaKiss

It's probably not worth buying with such a small amount unless you're looking to hold for a long time. Typical commission on a purchase could be £12/£13, stamp duty 0.5%. Same commission again on sale.

So with £100 you're looking at nearly 25% in costs just to buy and sell the stock. With £50 then it'll be around 50% just in costs. So obviously just to break even from the transaction you need to gain a hell of a lot.

Maybe a better minimum for getting started would be £500 a trade?

cookstar

iTrader: (6)

I punted £500 each on lloyds and RBS this morning. Not mega money I know, but it's my first trade so softly softly.

Chip

Good luck!

cookstar

iTrader: (6)

Ah, what's the worst thing that can happen?

Chip

FTSE down another 2% today

Chip

Make that 3%

alloy

Well ont he brightside the FTSE is the only european index not in a "bear market"

Also FTSE is more oversold than it was in March 09.....the only problem with that is these markets can stay oversold for some time.....

Good luck all

GlesgaKiss

It's interesting how you've got all this selling off of the stock market, yet yields in the places the market is supposed to be worried about are higher. I know the ECB is buying Spanish and Italian debt, but why wouldn't the rest of the market be fleeing them if this is a debt crisis? Or is it just an irrational panic?

alloy

US downgrade means further economic growth concern and also debt crisis. Bonds still seen as a "safe asset class" in comparison to equity, as is USD which is now up against the EUR and GBP......EFSF buying bonds also positive.....

There is so much unknown being priced into these markets hence the volatility.....Futures on the ftse this morning rallied 3.9% off the low to highs and then sold off 4.5% from the morning high to the low about an hour or so ago and then since rallied back 1.3%......it's all pretty erratic....VIX popped it's head above the psychological 40 level now 5% off it's highs......best bet IMO is either be nimble in small size or sit on the sidelines wait for things to settle down, even if that means you miss out on even the first 5% rally, at least you wont be catching a falling knife.....as we say in the markets, "those who pick bottoms, get a hand full of ****"