The Impala has a name now..HA HA. Great advice, Like I said before, nice to hear from someone that can explain it from experience. Ill keep reading it you keep posting on it

Here's a website that I "use" for general scanning of something I might of missed when looking for dividend stocks. Seeking Alpha has a "section" devoted to DIVIDEND investing. Not to be confused with TRADING! :D

I don't invest based on someone writing an article... I just get "ideas" -- and sometimes I get "reinforcement" for why I already own something.

Here's an article like that... since I already own MO and PM -- but this gives me a quick read on WHY I own them!

http://seekingalpha.com/article/3145...g_income&ifp=0

These kids will be future millionaires from just their allowance!

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/super-...rs.html?page=1

Those kids are smarter than 99% of all the adults I know!


The one kid - says he's invested in Apple (Great!) - Microsoft (SUCKS!) - RIM (SUCKS) .... two BAD choices and only one good one - AND more importantly - he's NOT diversified... so he has some learning to do. But I'd still be proud of him for saving and investing!

Yeah - I made millions off Microsoft -- but that was SO YESTERDAY --- and it's been a nothing stock for 11 years now! Fugidaboudit and move on. That ship already sailed.:D

Greg, thanks for taking time to write all this down. Your solid examples are paint clear pictures of how to invest and dispense with a lot of the technical arguments that keep a lot of people on the sidelines.

For those of you starting out remember, "Perfect is the enemy of good". Go out there and get started!

This thread might be the best one on Lat-G. Thanks again.

I was just reviewing how to describe the "TOOLS" a guy can use to research stocks... and one of the things that people just don't get is what is called TOTAL RETURN. That is the stock - re-investing the dividends - and the stock price appreciation.

Schwab has a "Research tab" -- you can research stocks - or bonds or etfs (exchange traded funds). If you go to the STOCK tab -- you can enter a symbol or name... That will pull up a page with a SUMMARY of the stock... and in the GRAPH that comes up labeled "COMPANY PERFORMANCE" -- there is a underlined heading "Total Return"... when you click on that it will show you a graph comparing that companies total return against the S&P 500 (Standard and Poors 500 stock index) and a selected INDEX fund for the category that the stock you're checking is in. Using Kinder Morgan Partners as an example -- it pulls up the ENERGY ETF (ETF are exchanged traded funds that are a basket of stocks that make up an index - not unlike a mutual fund).

When you look at KMP (Kinder Morgan Partners) you'll see a CHART - and right beside that (to the right of it) it shows IN GREEN the total return for 1 year - 3 years - and 5 years.

Now - everyone wants to hit a "Microsoft" and become an instant millionaire -- FUGIDABOUDIT!

BUT here's real investments that I listed in an earlier post and their FIVE YEAR TOTAL RETURNS:


Kinder Morgan Partners --- KMP -- 129.5%

Altria --- MO -- 104%

Phillip Morse --- PM -- 112.3% (3 year period since they were spun off from MO just 3 years ago)

COKE --- KO -- 59.6%

McDonalds --- MCD -- 161.1%

Johnson & Johnson --- JNJ -- 13.4%

Annaly Capital Management --- NLY -- 113.6%

AT&T --- T -- 5.9%

Con Edison --- ED -- 59.3%

I don't know about you guys -- but 100% RETURN on my money in a 5 year period gets my blood flowing... beats a savings account that's for sure!

wow! solid numbers for sure.


Thanks for all the effort you put into this thread Greg. I certainly didn't expect it to turn into a one man teaching lesson but I'm glad you've spoken up.

+1 Greg rekindled the spark for me. All those companies are on the watch list I created Friday. :hail:

Now where's the market heading :question:

I looked at my crystal ball --- and based on HISTORY -- UP over time.... but it will go DOWN 15 minutes after you buy in. That is, at least for me, the way it seems to work. But I get even in the end by holding (going long) and smiling while the pay me to wait.

I used to "play" in the market.... big numbers... get up in the morning - buy 4 or 5 stocks - and be out and back to playing on cars by noon. That is GAMBLING and it was only "dumb luck" that had me out of the market during the 1999 "dot.bomb" days or I'd have lost a few bazillion dollars. But - here's the difference - what I was playing with was NOT my only money - My house is paid for - my cars are paid for - so it was "okay" for me to take some dough and gamble like that. In the end -- all I really did was to create a huge tax due bill...

When I look back at that era -- and do the math... I'd have been far, far, ahead if I would have just bought those same stocks I was trading - and held on to them. It was those 'lessons' that made me the "investor" I am today... so in that sense - it was educational! :woot:

Best thread on the site IMO. Take the advice, Make money and have your Interior done :lol: