What You Should Know About Stock Market Investing Although many people world-wide have started to invest in the stock market, few of them really know what they are doing. A large number of people put money into stocks without alot of research or thought, often times they end up with less than perfect results. If you wish to know all you can before you start taking a risk, read on for all the information you need to get started. It is a good idea to spread around your investments. Like the old adage says, do not put your eggs into one basket. As an example, suppose you invest all of your money into one stock only to have it tank. You wind up losing your hard-earned savings. Try to choose stocks capable of bringing in profits above those generally achieved by the market as a whole, because an index fund would be able to give you at least that much of a return. The growth rate of projected earnings added to the yield of the dividend will give you a good indication of what your likely return will be. Stock with 2% yields and 12% earnings can result in a 14% return. If you feel comfortable doing research on your own, you may want think about utilizing an online broker. The fees to trade and commissions on these online brokers are much cheaper that a discount or full service brokerage. Since profits are your goal, lower trading and commission costs definitely help. Beginners should know that stock market success does not happen instantly. Often, it may take a bit before stocks become successful, and many give up. Patience is a virtue you need when investing. Give short selling a try. This is when you utilize loaning stock shares. The investor will borrow the shares under the agreement that they will later deliver the same amount of shares back. An investor sells the shares and repurchases them when the price of the stock drops. Consult with a financial advisor, even if you will be trading on your own. Professional advisors can do more than help you pick which stocks to invest in. They will invest time in working with you and your goals. You can both then develop a customized plan that will help you to achieve your goals. Penny stocks are popular with many small time investors, but don't overlook the potential value of blue-chip stocks that grow over the long term. Decide on a few large companies to form your base and then add stocks with the potential for strong growth. These large companies are very reliable in their growth. Therefore, their stock is probably going to do very well on a consistent basis. Prior to purchasing a company's stock, do some research on this business. People are often too quick to decide that a new company is a good investment after reading about it's existence. If the company fails, you stand to lose a substantial amount of money, so a little research is worth the effort. Think about purchasing stocks what yield high dividends. When use this investment strategy, when the stock price declines a little, you might still capture dividends to offset the loss. And if the price rises, then the dividends make for an added special bonus on your bottom line. Dividends can also