Ok, who or what is IB? Their fees sound a lot more reasonable than Etrade. Sometimes using acronyms does not help those of us new to the subject. Thanks.

I use interactive brokers.

How would ya'll compare eTrade, Interactive Brokers and Sharebuilder for "real-time" trades?

I have a Sharebuilder account and "real-time" trades are $9.95 per trade, regardless of the type trade or number of shares.

Edited to add - never mind. I took a few minutes to look around and my Sharebuilder is comparable to eTrade in price but not at all like Interactive Brokers. And since there's not a lot of difference in Sharebuilder and eTrade I'll just stick with what I have. I might start paying more attention to it though after reading this thread.

I stopped by a scottrade office today and had a chat with them. limit and stop orders are included in the $7 per trade for online trades

I think instead of starting another thread about this, I will ask here. I know nothing about stocks, but for many years, I sit back and listen to reports of this and that, and watch how businesses make money hand over fist, and I figure, their stock prices keep going up, like apple and wal-mart, for example. Should have invested a long time ago. I have always wondered even, how to buy stock. No clue. Not even sure where to look to learn about it.

Now I run across this thread, and it seems this is the sort of thing I always wonder about. But as I read through this, my eyeballs are popping out, because I am reading a foreign language here.

What I gather, is there are many websites where you can buy stocks, all have some sort of fees, and you can sell stocks also. But if you choose to buy a stock, and then sell, who buys it from you? What if no one wants it? Are you stuck? How do you get your money? Are lots of people on this site making lots of money from this sort of thing?
Is it worth all the trouble?

I see there have been several mentions of eTrade. I will go there and read their info, but I am afraid. I remember when I tried to read up on how to sell on eBay. There was so much fine print, I thought my head was going to pop off.

Another option for a broker and trading platform is Tradestation. The rates for stock is about the same as zong mentioned for IB. A penny a share with a small exchange fee. Futures are $4.70 round turn. I assume the same pattern daytrading rules remain in effect for all brokerages clearing stocks. If you are going to trade an inexpensive stock and take a position of 1000 shares or more, it is cheaper to use the flat rate of a Merrill or eTrade.
Someone in an earlier post mentioned the training involved. That is a VERY difficult problem to sort out. . . there are a lot of scam artist out there who will try to sell you a sure fire system. Believe me, there is NO HOLY GRAIL for trading. Honestly, it is mostly mental and learning how to manage risk and being disciplined.

Setting up an account and trading stocks is truly easier than it sounds.

I strongly suggest you look at Scottrade. I've been more than pleased with them.

One thing I like the most is that they have a local office just 10 minutes away. This made me feel like I had some control if something went awry with my account. I could show up and have a live person to work with to get it fixed!

It seems that Scottrade had a lower minimum for opening up an account. This was huge for me since I didn't have big bucks to open an account with some of the firms.

At my local Scottrade office, they are SUPER-DUPER helpful when answering questions and are wonderful teachers.

Also, don't let all the talk cause your "head to pop off". It really is pretty simple, and most of us are talking about different strategies we use to play the markets.

These different strategies that people have with the market is kind of like people that own cows. Some keep cows for milk, some raise cows from calves for personal meat, some raise show cows only, some feed out bottle calves until they hit 400 pounds, and some, like my uncle, buy calves only when they are cheap, and sell them within a few weeks for a fast profit.

Everyone in the example intend to make money, just like those who trade stocks.

My personal strategy is to buy top quality stock that pays great dividends, and hold the stock long term. I don't have much money to put into the market, so I have to make sure that what I have is invested well. I have traded stocks in the past, and did VERY well for what I was working with.

Does this help?

I don't know. I just read all the intro pages on etrade, and I don't really understand any of it. Their first page says something to the effect of super easy for the first time investor, this is what we offer, blah, blah... I don't even understand most of the terminology. It's no wonder I never looked into it further.

Thanks!!!! I really like my local Scottrade office.

lonelyfarmgirl I have followed stocks off and on for about 18 years including reading quite a few books on the subject so I know some of the terminology for the simpler trades. I always said I was going to set up an account but never did for various reasons.
This year I'm gonna start buying and selling at least until I run out of money. I have decided to use scottrade for two main reasons one being that I only need $500 to start an account. once the account is started there is no minimum balance to maintain the account. online trades are only $7.

this is my plan. start the account at the minumin $500. look for stocks priced between $1 and $5 that looks to be solid investments for the short term. before I buy I will determine at what price I will sell at. I'm not looking for a home run stock. just looking to make a few bucks here and there to build up my account and learn. I am prepared if I lose my $500 to accept it as the cost of my learning. one of those hope for the best but prepare for the worst situations. if things go well then in the future I would like to withdraw my $500 original investment and just use the money that I have made for future trades.

I'm open to any thoughts on my plan and willing to listen to any advise.


ps. scottrade has webcasts on there web site that you can watch that explains stuff for beginners

what do you mean 7$ for trades? Is a trade the same as buying or selling a stock? So each time you buy or sell something it costs you 7$?
What if no one wants to buy what you want to sell? Who do you sell it to? How do you get your money? The etrade thing said something about having to wait 8 weeks to get money.

yes a buy or a sell is a trade which costs $7. other investors buy the shares you are selling. unless you just bought shares of a bankrupt company most shares will have a buyer. with scottrade I could call up the local branch to request my money and a check would be mailed. I didn't ask how long it would take. generally you want to leave your money in the account to work for you. others here can probably give more and better details then I can. as I said before I am just starting so take what I say with a grain of salt. If I was you then I would try to read and learn what I could if you are serious about wanting to invest in stocks.

I don't know anything about any of the others so I will tell you what I know about Sharebuilder. It's now owned by, and part of, the ING family.

Sharebuilder is for people who want to buy stock but don't have a lot of money to invest at one time. The name kinda says it all - you build your shares.

To start with, unless it's changed, there is no minimum to open an account. As a matter of fact, when I joined they gave me $25 credit after something like a month.

The way it works is you buy what you can afford. If I had $25 per week to invest then I'd pick from the 7,000+ stocks they offer and buy $25 per week. I might get 1 share of stock, or 10.28 shares of stock, or whatever, depending on the price of the stock. The plan I am on cost me $4 each time I buy.

Next week, do the same.

A couple weeks ago I had 336.87 shares of a particular stock. I'd been buying it since about 2003 and my buy prices have been from $0.11 cent a share to $1.50 or so. So I've bought small amounts at a time.

I've sold a couple of times. Each time I sell, no matter how many shares I sell, it cost me $7.95. When I sell a stock the funds are transferred to my checking account within 3 business days.

My plan is on hold for the time being. I can turn it back on anytime, online. I've never had to call anyone or talk to anyone. It's been really easy to get around on and I'm happy with the way it works.

Yes, a when someone uses the term 'trade', they are either buying or selling a stock.

Each time you buy shares in a stock, you'll pay $7 as a broker fee, and when you want to sell those shares, you'll pay another $7 to sell them.

When you hear the term 'round trip', that means that the total of the buy and sell broker fees in total. ($7 to buy + $7 to sell = $14 total.) You'll hear someone say, "My trades only cost me $14 round trip."

Do not worry about finding a buyer for your shares when you want to sell, especially if you are buying publicly traded stocks on the NYSE, etc. It shouldn't even be a concern for you at all. I've seen programs that show you, while you are sitting in the comforts of your home, all the buying and selling transactions of a certain stock in real time...it is amazing.

There are some great beginner books at your library. The more you can read about the markets, the better off you are.



I have

I forgot to mention this:

When you sell, the broker, like Scottrade, will handle the entire transaction, and if you are buying or selling, the trade will get executed within seconds. There are millions of stocks bought and sold every second of the day, and the orders are lined up a mile deep.

The money from the sale of the stock will sit in your account for your next trade, or you can withdraw it. Most people leave it in their account.

Scottrade tells me it takes only 4 days to get a check if I ever needed to pull money from my account.

So, if I had to have the cash, I could sell a stock on Monday, and have a check by Friday.

This web site is good at providing definitions for investing/trading terminology:

http://www.investopedia.com/

Good questions lonelyfarmgirl. Transactions in a trading account are guaranteed. The guarantee is similar to banks where each is backed by insurance. FDIC insures your bank balance and SIPC will guarantee the funds in your brokerage account. A trade should never require 8 weeks to clear.

A trade is defined as opening and closing a position. Example: Buy 100 shares of a stock is opening a position. After a period of time you sell the same 100 shares which results in closing the position. If the price is higher when you close the position, you make money. If you want to make a withdrawal of your profits, there is no problem . . . however, if you decide to take another position in a stock and the price of that stock goes against you, the brokerage will not release funds beyond the losses in the current trade.

Someone is always willing to buy . . . the price may not always be where you wish to sell.

IMO, you are wise to seek answers in those areas you do not understand. I have spent the past 12 years trying to understand why prices move as they do.

Great info, everybody!!! :D

Well, yesterday I found once again that TIMING IS EVERYTHING! I sold that ALLT stock just in time to watch it jet up more than $1 a share. ARRGH!

The good news is, my husband also had purchased 500 shares on my recommendation, and cashed it out for a $490 gain. :D

I mentioned something to him about financial advisers getting a percentage of profits *ahem* and he reminded me that it's only because of his brilliant tutelage that I'm trading at all.

Well, when you put it THAT way! :hysterical:

Some maybe not trivial info, since many here mention Scottrade; Scottrade's $7.00 fee is for stocks that have a price of $1.00 or more. If you deal in stocks that cost less than a buck their fee is more as mentioned in their "fine print".......

this is correct $7 plus 1/2%

so, I could buy a stock, and watch the price go up or down on the ticker, and at any time, minutes, or months later, turn around and sell it, with a 99% chance it will be purchased by someone instantly at the going rate, what ever the ticker says. Then the company takes the fees out of your account automatically.

Is this a correct summary?

Yes. You are correct.

When dealing with stocks on the NYSE, your buy and sell price could vary a few cents. Your sale is going to be a 100% chance of someone buying it.

The only caveat would be some penny stocks...I once lurked on a forum where people were buying stocks that were priced at less than one cent for 100 shares. (Yes, once cent for 100 shares.) These stocks are NOT listed on the NYSE, in fact, you would have to seek them out to buy them, and I'm not sure you could buy them through Scottrade. Some of those super risky stocks took weeks to sell.

You are not planning on buying those are you?

Again, if you stay with stocks on the NYSE or NASDAQ, you really have no worries about finding a buyer, ever.

Willow, That is wonderful!!!!

lonelyfarmgirl, clovis is correct in the answer given with one little exception - it is not at "any" time - the market(s) has to be open to buy and sell.......
As to where they are found; all publicly traded stocks are listed either on the NYSE, NASDAQ/American exchange, or on what is called "pink sheets". Each exchange has their own set of rules and requirements to be listed within.
The "pink sheets" are what clovis is mentioning about as in most likely "risky" stocks and are somewhat hard if not impossible to find.
And yes Scottrade will buy and sell "pink sheet" listed stocks although in some instances you do get a flashing alert warning you about the trade. :)

I think that this a good plan. I use etrade.

I hope everyone will pick one or two good companies that have meaning to them personally and get a little to work.

We have been in the greatest recession of modern times. There are still some values that have been beaten down to take into the future as souveniers.

I have been catching falling knives with GE for two years. And some others. Anyone here can buy this company today at a five dollar discount over my basis. My first buys looked pretty bad for a while. With the market recovering, some of dividend additions make me look like a genious...if I don't look back at where I started.

Because I like to buy beaten down companies, I plan on adding a time or two if they keep going down...to a point. Sometimes you have to stand alone for a while and like your own company.

Learning can be the first goal and putting a little to risk is a good teacher.

what if a stock you have is tanking and you want to hurry up and sell before you lose too much, will it still sell? why would someone else want to buy a stock that is in the process of decreasing in value?

Many answers as to why one buys a declining stock. If I believe a support level is below the current price, then I would consider the pullback in price as an opportunity to purchase at a wholesale price. Or, if I was short the stock, I need to be a buyer of the stock in order to close my position. If the market is open and a stock starts to tank, you can easily get out . . . the problem develops when bad news breaks after hours and the stock gaps down the next day on the open. You can really get hurt in that type of situation. Last summer Netflix had an earnings report after the market closed. It was trading at about 120.00 a share on the close. Traders did not like the report, next morning when the market opened, NFLX gapped down below 110 and traded down below 100. NFLX is at 223 today, if you had bought on that flush down, you would be sitting pretty today.

Today I traded all day, and just got churned big time. At the end of the day, I was up 80 cents after all commissions. However, I made 21 round trip trades and generated 91.70 in commissions for IB. Win some, lose some. I considered today to be an absolutely horrible waste of time. A lot of wild volatility due the the Mubarak situation, I shoulda done anything else, anything at all other than spending the day trading oil.
ETA: Just goes to show that no matter how many years experience you have, some days just ain't your day.

Wonderful for HIM .... grrrrr.

LOL :)

But wait, it gets worse! On Jan. 20, I bought 100 shares of FCS @ $16.25. Four days later, I flipped it @ $17.17 for a profit of $72 after fees.

At the time I was happy, but on Feb. 7, that stock went all the way up to $19.44! :eek: :sob:

DH says I know how to pick 'em; I just don't know how to play 'em. :pound:

So, Willowgirl,.... if you know how to pick 'em... Want to let us know where you get your information? What are you looking for in a company? Do you follow trends or charts? Do you follow some sort of recommendations or 'watch' list? I think I have a handle on who the various brokers are and how to set up an account, but now need more information on finding the right companies to invest in. Thanks in advance to everyone who chimes in here!! Even a PM would be appreciated if you don't want to post here. ;)

FWIW, here's my strategy!

I mostly pick stocks based on the earnings calendar, which narrows down the field a bit. I use the calendar at http://www.rightline.net/calendar/index.html, but you can Google others, too. Generally I'm looking to buy stocks that are anywhere from 3 days to 2 weeks from reporting. Often there is a flurry of activity around this time, and that's what I'm looking to cash in on. I want to buy BEFORE the other speculators become interested in a company, if possible!

I use eTrade's "Research" function to get information. I'll also Google the company name (a regular search AND a search for news on the company) before buying. Usually I can tell in less than 30 seconds if a stock is of interest to me or not. I look for ones with strong fundamentals, ideally ones that are trending upward but aren't at the peak of the 52-week cycle. I stay away from troubled companies -- for instance, ones that are facing regulatory issues or closing stores. I'm not betting on any underdogs in hopes they'll make good! Rather, I'm looking for a good company that might be having a bad day because the market is down across the board.

It's important to note that even when a company releases a positive earnings report, sometimes the stock price will go DOWN on subsequent days, as speculators rush to take their profits! So I try to sell BEFORE the report comes out.

My goal is to buy 100 shares of a stock that is likely to go up $1 per share in the short term. I like quick turn-arounds and often will sell for less, but always at a profit thus far. I don't think I've held a stock longer than 90 days. Most of the stocks I buy are in the $30 to $50 range.

Sometimes I'll watch a stock for awhile before buying. I keep a list, along with notations as to why I think they're good or bad and what I expect them to do. Periodically I'll revisit those stocks to see if my predictions panned out. I spend an hour or two a week doing research, usually on Sunday afternoons. I find it interesting. My husband also is an investor, so we yap a lot about the market and the state of the world in general. Hey, it beats gossiping about the neighbors! :)

The Stock Market DEMANDS tuition. You can either pay the Market in unnecessary losses, or pay for some formal education. I chose both unfortunately. It is commonly accepted that the Stock Market is gambling, but if you get educated it slowly becomes clear that it is not. It is more a matter of following the smart-money. They are the shark, I am the guppy, but even the leftovers yield great results. Daytrading is only for the VERY WELL-EDUCATED trader with say 5+ years of active trading. The vast majority of retail traders (including myself) have no business daytrading. I'm not trying to offend - only open some eyes possibly and save someone frustration and $$.

My personal goal is to become a full-time trader in the next year or so. I started this journey in April 2010 and have gotten quite an education so far. I started trading as soon as I learned a couple of strategies and quickly lost 30% of my trading capital trading options mostly. I stopped there and got a "real" education and then started paper trading on thinkorswim. My results have dramatically changed. I am now trading real money again. If I post my results I will likely be called a liar, so I will refrain. The notion that 50/50 wins/losses is good enough is a ridiculous statement. Their idea is lose small win big. I subscribed to this early on. This doesn't sound like a profession to me - does it to you? That is for those that haven't taken the time to learn proper stock analysis.

The toughest part of the education is determining what the current market condition is because strategies must change with the market condition. News is noise so I totally tune out analysts and gurus. The charts do the best talking anyway as they don't lie. I have learned to never tune into CNBC.

The bottom line is get educated and never stop learning. The market is like a living creature that is in constant change. It takes patience and hard work to learn its characteristics, but the results are rewarding. You do need to enjoy research. I have a tendency to immerse myself in something new and this was no different. I'm trying to limit myself to 2hrs a day and spend the rest at work, around the house, hunting, or in the garden. I now update Telechart after market close and study at my leisure that evening and the morning before market open on my days off.

So, TexasGuy, talk more about the scope of this 'education' you seemingly got, and where and how you came about it, as it seems to me, everyone on this thread, myself included, is ultimately after an education. That is why we post.

Well in April of last year I responded to a radio ad from a station in Dallas. They claimed to teach how to trade stocks and that anyone can do it. I went to the two day seminar and had an eye opening experience. I decided that trading was something that I could do. I had traded before, but mostly through my 401k and had no clue how to pick a well performing stock. Their primary training was in options not stocks I found out. I had heard of options, but only enough to be very scared. Over the next few months I used the techniques they taught me and lost more money than I made - much more actually. I slowly determined that they were no better at picking stocks than I was. They did teach me the mechanics of options and I'm grateful for that at least, but they taught that 50% success was good. I was disappointed especially since I had paid good money for their training. So I scoured the web for any info that seemed reliable and tried to self teach. In my searching I stumbled onto Technitrader. They claimed that you should be winning at least 70% of your picks, and they taught methods to do just that. Now they had my attention. I researched the company and determined they were on the up-and-up. They have an A+ rating with the BBB. The other company wasn't a member. I talked with the sales staff a few times prior to purchase then pulled the trigger and ordered it. It is a self-paced home study course with email support throughout and after completing the course. Martha Stokes started the company and is a talented teacher. They teach you how to fish for yourself and not rely on someone else to recommend stock picks. The course isn't cheap, but cost is relative to what you get out of something right? If you diligently apply yourself and listen well then it will be worth it. I completed the course in Nov and have started trading live again. I have no dog in the hunt. There is nothing in it for me for recommending a new student. Stock Market training is a process not a course you complete. It is a journey that I will not likely complete. I have set my mind to do this full-time and Lord willing I'll get there. It will allow me to work from home and spend more time with my family, go to Church every Sunday not every other like my current job requires. I also enjoy this and not so much my current job. So if you are serious about a home-based business that gives financial independence and enjoy this sort of work then I recommend getting solid training and start your own journey. Sounds like an advertisement doesn't it. I assure you I am no spokesman for the company. I just think there is so much misinformation out there about the stock market and it is a shame. It can be fixed. Poke around TechniTrader's website and read/watch some of their free training. It wet my appetite, and it might yours as well - www.technitrader.com.

Oh, I'm not sure the only way to learn how to trade is to either pay for a class, or lose a lot of money gaining experience! That certainly hasn't been my experience, or my husband's. That said, I'm not going to knock anybody for getting an education! And I certainly don't pretend to be an expert on the subject; just somebody muddling along, trying to make a buck. :)

That said, my pick for the morning was ARTW. The company has been publicly traded for awhile -- since the 70's -- and doesn't seem to have done anything spectacular, but farm equipment firms are getting some play right now so I thought I'd roll the dice!

I bought 300 shares when the market opened and set them to sell when I made my usual $100. When they hit the limit, only 244 shares moved, for a profit of $76. Now I'm sitting on 66 shares and wondering what to do?!

Guess I'll hold them awhile, and see if the stock goes up a bit more before it reports on 2/21.

We are in a bull run since S&P 1070. We are over 1300. It is easy money to long and then sell after a few percent. That said, the market has a way of extracting the most from the most.

I get cautious when my barber begins to daytrade. Riding through the early 90's, the tech buibble, the bubble crash, and our recent bull-bust cycle, shows that staying power is the key.

Protect your base capital at all costs. Learn. Learn. Learn.

If it is easy, it will go away even easier. Mark it.

That is good advice Halfway. I trade the index futures, that is my bread and butter. I am 100% a technical trader, fundamentals mean nothing to me. I am sure where stocks are concerned fundamentals are important, that is why I subscribe to a service for my buy and sell list of stocks. I apply my technicals to the list and wait for signals to enter. My stock trading requires very little time, most of my day is spent trading the equity futures. Halfway, you are correct the market has been straight up since November. Everyone has been saying for weeks how overbought the market is and yet it grinds higher. The DOW is now at a critical resistance level. I wish it was simple when these levels occur, truth is the market can continue higher, go sideways or begin the big pullback everyone has been waiting for. Timing is difficult as well, tomorrow, the next day, next week? If the DOW heads south your stock can still go up as the DOW goes down. Many stocks beat the market, just as many stocks under perform the market. Don't get lulled into believing it is simple, buy, wait, sell and make money. Back in the 90's with the NASDAQ that was the formula and it worked well . . . until it didn't anymore. This market will eventually correct down for a while, it always does . . . when? who knows . . . my take is very soon, the DOW is signaling now, pay attention, keep your stops tight and hope is not strategy.

My uncle's strategy is often to buy shares, and sell exactly half of what he has at a predetermined profit.

In his case, if he bought 200 shares, with the hopes of clipping off $200 in gross profit, he will sell 100 shares to lock in $100 gain, and then hold the other 100 shares for a while, whether it be another 20 minutes or 10 days. This way he is locked in on some profit, and it works to hedge against any loss on the last 100 shares.

Since you seem to be missing out on some added gains, would this strategy work for you?

Scaling out of a position is a very good strategy. I do it sometimes and one thing I always do is move my stop to breakeven. Don't let it go against you once your first target is hit. My 2 cents.