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A few questions.

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Money Talk > Retirement Planning

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CecilHarvey
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A few questions.  Reply with quote  

I've been working for about 6 years and I put around 12% into my 401k.

Also I participate in a stock buying program as well.

Should I increase or lower my 401%? Or should I buy more stock with it?

What would you guys do in my situation.
Post Wed Oct 23, 2013 4:12 am
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CecilHarvey
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Yes, I get a 15% discount on it if I hold onto it for an entire year, no commissions, no fees, either

I put $45 a week into stock.
If I worked 40 hours a week, my gross annual income is a mere $25,792 but I usually make closer to 30,000+ a year on average


I'm also a bit of a silverbug I buy a troy ounce of silver every month or so. I do like gold but its too expensive(even the 1/10th gold eagle $5 is around $160 each and the full $50 gold eagle is around $1450 a troy ounce)
Post Wed Oct 23, 2013 5:36 am
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Wino
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quote:
Originally posted by coaster
Is this your company's stock you're buying?
quote:
Originally posted by CecilHarvey
Yes, I get a 15% discount on it if I hold onto it for an entire year, no commissions, no fees, either


You should research "ENRON" on the internet. If your company goes under (even if for normal business reasons and not fraud or other illegal activities), then you'll lose not only your job, but you'll lose a significant amount of your savings.

I recommend only putting enough into your 401K to get the match, and then putting the rest into Vanguard, T Rowe Price, or Fidelity funds.

I also think you're basically wasting your money on the precious metals. They may or may not go up, but based ONLY on emotion, and nothing at all on fundamentals. Basically, silver is useful for the same purposes in 20 years as it is now, but Apple is useful quite a bit more than it was 20 years ago, increasing its value. The "value" of metals is only what people are willing to pay for them.
Post Wed Oct 23, 2013 8:30 am
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littleroc02us
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I also would pass on the precious metals investments or as the IRS calls them collectibles (no different then collecting coins, art and stamps) which are taxed at 28% if held for longer then 12 months. Plus now that most people feel the recession is over and the economy is improving that Gold has crashed for example over the past year and no one wants it anymore.

As for buying single stock. To me that is scary as well. Just as Wino states, if the company goes belly up most likely all of your money is gone. I'd rather trust 500 (S&P 500) of america's greatest companies with my investments, because most likely all 500 will perform well if the economy is stable. I guess if you are a gambler then single stock can make or break you and that can create quite the adrenline rush. Smile

Risk comes from not knowing what you're doing. (Warren Buffet)
Post Wed Oct 23, 2013 2:49 pm
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CecilHarvey
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I also like dividend paying stocks.
The ones I have in mind are:

Hasbro $0.40 a quarter/$1.40 annually
Pepsico $0.5675 a quarter/ $2.27 annually
GME(Game stop) $0.275/ $1.10 annually
DRI/Darden $0.55 quarterly/ $2.20 annually

and last but certainly not least

WMT/walmart $0.47 quarterly/ $1.88 annually

I understand all investments have risk. Even cash has risk and it even has counter party risk.

Also I thank you all for your input and feedback, thanks.
Post Fri Oct 25, 2013 3:04 am
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Wino
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It sure is tough holding gold during its collapse, isn't it, GR? You better keep pumping it up with forum posts on random google-searched sites so that gold doesn't lose even more of its imaginary value, causing you even more losses.

My suggestion is you sell your gold and silver and invest in companies that are well-run, such as Apple, Google, Home Depot, General Electric, Coca Cola, Exxon, and about 494 others. Or, you can keep watching gold's value percolate along with people's perceptions and your (and others') ability to pump it up to those who are unaware that it is not an investment.

Or, you can bury it in the backyard along with your other valuables and wait for them to increase in value. Had you buried a "telescoping Darth Vader" Star Wars collectible in 1978 in your backyard, it would have increased in value, too, just like your gold, and for the same reason: Someone else is willing to pay more for it than you paid, but for no other reason.

http://actionfigures.about.com/od/historyofactionfigures/tp/top_5_starwars.htm
Post Mon Oct 28, 2013 3:45 am
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614Engineer
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I used to get a discount on company stock too; I'd simply hold it long enough to pay capital gains vs income and sell; eventually it was a synced purchase new / sell old. Use the discount for extra profit, then invest in an S&P500 Index fund with it....
Post Fri Sep 22, 2017 11:53 pm
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boatswain2PA
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As others have said, big risk in being heavily invested in the company you work for. If suddenly the IRS agents are at the door holding a fire sale auction of the company's assets to pay back taxes then you are not only out a job but your retirement assets just tanked as well.

My wife has the same 15% discount option with her company. I have considered buying into that, holding for a year, and then selling. Been meaning to look into whether we could do a rolling purchase/sale mechanism where we buy xx shares a month for a year, and then buy & SELL xx shares a month. Should be able to make 15% extra on that every year.

Regarding silver: Terrible investment mechanism, but there are other reasons for owning it. It's pretty, and when society fails it'll be the currency. Wanna know what it looks like when a super-power fails? Study the fall of the Soviet Union.
Post Mon Oct 23, 2017 3:22 pm
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