Buying Time

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 source: http://www.fortunewatch.com

Ever wonder what are the reactions of various people that are transacting in the stock market today?

Corrections and consolidation are the most feared days by people who have just stepped in a new purchase because such market trend affects nearly all stocks. Thus it seems that they entered the market at a high price; if they could have waited a little longer they could have bought the shares at a lower price.

But again we all knew that the stock market is a very volatile place to place money. One day prices could be up the next will be down; but why do we invest in it even though we knew of such?

For newbies in the stock market correction is the best time to enter(though as many will say there are no such thing as best time to enter the stock market thus anytime is the best time). A little more and prices will near their bottom prices: buyer's time as we say.

That is why it is important to leave some free cash. When time like this come one must pocket gains and for stocks that have potential growth in the next months but dragged by the current situation it is best to cost average but up to some extent, you can't lose further money by keeping on putting money on a stock when you know its price wont be recovering soon. Just wait for its bottom price and buy a considerable amount so that you can lower your average cost to catch up when its price rises.

Again nobody can accurately predict what is to happen in the stock market, but with wise guidance and decisions you can even make money out of the bad and rainy days of the market.

How did I start in investing?

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source: http://www.debtfreeadventure.com/

I have forgotten that I have been babbling about stock investing and online stock investing for sometime now without sharing how did I start about investing.

Let me share with you a long story of my financial freedom quest and the reason behind it.

My consciousness about the importance of money really started when I was in college. When I was young money was not a problem since it is not my duty to worry about it. Also being and studying in the seminary has taken that away even if I know my mom and dad worry about the tuition(yes some seminaries are not free so if you can donate or sponsor a seminarian please do so). The moment I entered college I learned how money really affects each and every one's life. Studying in Manila is not cheap, living there alone is not cheap.

I enrolled in Philippine School of Business Administration-Q.C. My Alma Mater is primarily focus in the area of Accountancy and Management so I ended up taking B.S. Accountancy. As a newbie in Manila at the same time newbie in accounting I am always fascinated about the course I took. Accountancy is not about how to get rich, it is more of how to analyze the business transaction. If you are also an accounting graduate like me I believe you can do Fundamental Analysis which in our accounting language is Financial Ratio Analysis(the subject you hated besides Accounting 7, Management Accounting, Law, and Tax ). 

I know my story is kinda deviating so here is the reason why I got myself to investing.

source: http://www.shepherdsvoice.com.ph/

I read a book written by Eugenio Sanchez Jr. aka Bo Sanchez. The title of the book was "Simplify and live a Good Life". I have read his magazine, Kerygma, and Thank God, His Boss! but in all his works this one greatly influenced me. With my background as a seminarian and the thoughts Bo wrote in this book it made me think why are so many people are tired everyday. They work and work for no reason. They work hard to pay the house they never really enjoyed because 3/4 of the day they are not in it. Money shouldn't be the problem. One must know how to make money work for them so that one wont go to the trouble waking up even though you really don't want to but because you have a house to pay and expenses to pay you drag yourself out of your bed to go to work. I am not implying that going to work is bad, we need to earn a living but most of us are buried in debt that makes our lives miserable.

At the same time at school, we have this subject Corporate Accounting. My professor and dean of the school, Dr. Raul Addatu, would always tell us to buy stocks of SMC(San Miguel Corp.) and wait till it goes up. Yes I learn about stock, stock rights, stock dividend, and so many things about stocks but never about stock investment and stock trading. Dr. Addatu always tells us that in his MBA class, in order for a candidate to be granted the MBA title one must buy a stock and have a profit at the end of the program. That scared me because I was planning to take my MBA but until now I haven't.

So after all those experience I started looking for answers that bothers my mind. I searched publications about investments. I got a primer from a local paper discussing stock investment and my mind started to swirl when I learned that stock brokers require a minimum of 100,000.00 pesos to open an account. Online stock brokers are not yet around at that time. But it did not stop me from dreaming to own stocks of some famous company the likes of PLDT, SMC, and Ayala.

When I was working in my last employer before working here in Guam I already set my goal to be an investor. I have been setting aside money for it. The very first investment I made was at a mutual fund. I just have to make that first move to keep myself going into that direction. It was just a small and right now I don't know how it is already but hoping to check it after five years to avoid charges of early withdrawal of funds. 

While working here in Guam I always check the websites about stock market like PSE, DOW, Bloomberg, CNBC and TV shows like CNBC watching the World Wide Exchange, Managing Asia hosted by Christine Tan, and other programs. I waited nearly two years until I opened my brokerage account. 

source: http://www.shepherdsvoice.com.ph/

In Bo Sanchez's book 8 Secrets of the Truly Rich he mentioned about Citiseconline. So checked them out and even emailed them on how would I open an account even though I was outside the Philippines. And so last November 2009 while on vacation I opened my account with them placing my initial deposit of 25,000.00 pesos. To tell you the truth I was thinking twice and I was a bit jittery about it. Even though I have read a lot about it and even played the online stock trading game it still makes me think how will I do it.

I have eyed on stock of JFC(Jollibee Food Corp.) and have been placing buy order from January 2010 to early March.  It was only in March that I have my first buy transaction. Then SMPH(SM Prime Holdings). I have been holding this two until it made a profit in around April or May and released it. From their on I started bold buy and sell transactions. It came to the point that I was holding 18 stocks and most of them are at the negative. But it didn't bother me. The years of learning and understanding stock market trading finally sink in to me. 

Also I have joined a forum and started this blog to share what I learned about stock investing. It may be scary because it is your hard earned money that is on the line but knowing how to play it and having knowledge about it makes it easy. And so I will re-iterate my and my friends advice when doing stock trading:

1. Only invest free cash

2. When your portfolio is negative you have not yet loss anything

    unless you sell it

3. Buy low, sell high. Lower your average cost per share and take 

    profits when prices is near your target price 

4. Prepare for market correction. Always have available cash for 

    bargain buying

5. Read, research, and learn. 

6. Don't be afraid to ask, you are an investor

7. Always be humble and share your knowledge to others
8. Trade at your own risk. 

How about you how did you start your stock investment? Share your story here in the comments

Investing word of the day: Correction

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source: http://seekingalpha.com

We have seen this lately in the local stock market after the DOW went to the red. Also due to the three or four days that the PSE defied DOW thus this week it is expected to slow down after a great uptrend for the past days, so what then is correction or market correction?

As usual I got this definition from Investopedia.com:

"A decrease in the market price of an asset or entire market after extensive price increases. A technical correction occurs even when there is no evidence that the increasing price trend should cease. It is often caused when investors temporarily slow down their purchases of securities, which commonly leads to a pullback toward a short-term support level."

Layman's explanation:

It is a decrease of the market after a extended uptrend.  Generally when the market has enjoyed a continuous increase in price it will come to the point where it is at its highest point thus it will start to pull back. An analogy used by most is the bouncing ball analogy. Just like the bouncing ball, stock market is not always in an uptrend mode at any point it will go down and it will bounce back again.  

That is why it is important to learn how to time the market. When prices are down it is the best to buy because sooner or later it will bounce back or it may even surpass the previous highs. In relation to the Law of supply and demand when the stock market becomes saturated meaning either the buys or sells is more than the other it will surely create a change. When prices are rising sellers dominate the market because everyone wants to profit and when it is a downtrend buyers dominates it because it is a bargain market. 

The stock market is any ordinary market that we know. It is always buy low sell high. You don't sell at below cost if you are in your sane mind, you are trading for profit. Correction is that time when as Investopedia.com says there is no apparent reason for prices to go down its just that prices are to high and in order to sell prices should be lowered to attract buyers.

So bargain hunters lets go shopping!

Links worth checking:

http://uk.reuters.com/article/idUKLNE63F01120100416

http://www.ctv.ca/generic/generated/static/business/article1582086.html

PSE Website Part 7: Investing in PSE; a comprehensive guide

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Okay it seems that there are so many things that yo wanna know about stock investing in the Philippines right? You have searched and read a lot of blogs and Internet sources but seem not to get it. Well the PSE website has this link Investing at PSE.

All the basic info you need about stock investing are here but I believe you will have an information overload thus I created a one day at a time guide regarding the PSE website. 

Again reminder that having the right information in your finger tips is an edge in stock investing. Knowing where to get an accurate one is another thing. The PSE website is pack with such information but some information regarding the company you are interested has most of their information in there own website. 

I will discuss to you one way to keep updated about a certain company through Google Alerts on the next post.