Personal Blogs

Probably one of the most exciting yet dangerous opportunities in the stock market is new issues, the initial public offerings (IPOs) of former privately held companies. Such companies usually “go public” with great fanfare and hype, which can make their stock prices soar immediately after they begin trading.

In the most famous case, when Genentech, the first biotechnology company to go public, made its offering at $35 a share in the early 1980s, its stock soared to more than $80 a share by the end of the first day of trading.

The new issues market is extremely sensitive to the general direction of the stock market. When stock prices are high and rising and investors are enthusiastic, many new issues go public. When prices are low and depressed and no one wants to hear about stocks, it is almost impossible to sell a new issue.

Finance 1980s, Biotechnology Company, Day Trading, Direction, Fanfare, Genentech, Hype, Initial Public Offerings, Investors, Ipos, Stock Market, Stock Prices, Stocks

Most home banking systems make it easy to buy stocks, bonds, mutual funds,
CDs, options, and other investments. One advantage in investing through your bank is that all of your holdings are consolidated in one place. That not only makes recordkeeping easier, but many banks will charge lower fees, or even waive them altogether, if you keep all of your assets at the bank. The more money you keep at the bank, the higher the interest the bank pays on deposits and the lower interest it charges on loans. Another advantage is that you are able to comparison-shop online for yields on CDs and other bank products.

Banks will list all of the different maturities of their certificates with the current yields, so you can pick the CD with the highest yield and maturity appropriate for your needs.

Banks will also automatically update the value of your securities portfolio, usually every night after the stock market has closed. In addition, the bank will keep track of reinvesting stock dividends and mutual fund capital gains distributions and will adjust for stock splits and bond redemptions. The bank also should keep track of your cost basis so that you can calculate your capital gains liability when you sell an investment. All of these recordkeeping chores would be a tremendous burden for you to track on your own.

Business, Finance Assets, Banking Systems, Banks, Capital Gains Distributions, Chores, Comparison Shop, Cost Basis, Current Yields, Home Banking, Investments, Maturities, Maturity, Mutual Fund, Mutual Funds, Recordkeeping, Redemptions, Stock Dividends, Stock Market, Stock Splits, Stocks Bonds