Investing in stocks has been a hot topic of late with the popularity of internet forums influencing large stocks like AMC Theatres and Gamestop. “Meme stocks” and internet forums like Reddit have enabled your average Joe and Jane T. Investor to take on goliath venture capital firms trying to do things like “short sell” stocks so that they can reap a big payday when they manage to push a firm into bankruptcy. These are some companies which are targeting the average investor crowd seeking to enter the stock investing ring for themselves. These brokerage platforms make it easy to join the stock trading flurry currently happening online, many of them offering stock trading without fees.
Robinhood
Robinhood offers commission free trades, and they even have a sign up offer where you can get one share of your first stock free (which of course has some conditions). Robinhood lets you invest in thousands of stocks with as little as $1. You can do so via their “Fractional Shares” and they will convert to parts of a whole share. The Robinhood App enables you to keep track of your money so that you can easily manage ad monitor your portfolio. They are also currently offering .30% APY on your uninvested cash in your account, which easily rivals many online banks. Finally, they have excellent introductory resources introducing new investors to what the stock market is and how it works.
Acorns
Acorns is a more hands-off approach to investing for beginners. They let you automatically invest your spare change (if you want), and you can invest as little as $5 at a time. Their “round-ups” round up your transactions with your Acorns linked debit or credit card to the next dollar, and these Round-Ups are grouped together and then invested for you. The investments are spread across 7,000 stocks and bonds, and Acorns does the investing work for you. Acorns invests in twelve difference exchange-traded funds, meaning they are balanced investing approaches, and theoretically less risky than the hands-on approach taken by the online forum investors. Watch this video if it is confusing. They have no account minimums and they do not work on commission – there is a monthly fee of $3 or $5 depending on your account type (plus any associated fees for the ETF’s).
TD Ameritrade
A more traditional option, TD Ameritrade now encompasses both itself as well as Scottrade, which it bought in 2017, and is a commission-free online brokerage where you are both the driver and the passenger, so to speak. They are the #1 overall broker according to StockBrokers.com, and offer zero commission trades on stocks, ETF’s, and options. They also have brick and mortar locations throughout the country which you can visit if you would like in-person assistance, or would like to drop off a deposit check (instead of fussing around with an online bank linking).
In Conclusion
Stocks are a great way to save for retirement and supercharge your investing portfolio. Be wary of the risks if you are involved in choosing individual stocks, as these can be investments which are not as safe as mutual funds (ETF’s) or things like real estate, bonds, or gold. But the potential for returns from the stock market can greatly exceed much safer investments. Just be sure to know your timeline, and use the educational materials available from companies like Robinhood, Acorns, and TD Ameritrade.