Topic: How To Invest

Risks and rewards of Internet stock trading

A few weeks ago, we asked TSI Network visitors whether they trade stocks online. A full 88% answered that they did.

Why choose Internet stock trading?

Some investors have made the switch from a full-service broker to Internet stock trading through a discount broker because it offers lower commission fees. Others have switched because they examined their results and discovered that their own investment ideas worked better than those of their brokers.

These investors feel they’ll do at least as well on their own, all the more so with the help of one or more of our Successful Investor newsletters and services. For them, making trades through a discount broker is a sound decision. The fact that this can cut their per-trade brokerage commission by as much as 75% is a bonus.

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Don’t overindulge in the speed of Internet stock trading

Trading stocks online allows for quicker transactions compared to calling a broker. That’s good if you might otherwise abandon an important trade because you had to wait too long on hold, as sometimes happens.

However, carrying out trades in two seconds instead of 20 seconds or 20 minutes is unlikely to have any real effect on your returns. Price changes in that time frame are largely random. You will never get in or out quickly enough to have an advantage over a professional trader who has a direct link to the exchange.

Moreover, the lower costs and higher speeds offered by online stock trading can quickly lead otherwise conservative investors to trade too frequently. This, in turn, leads them to further cut the quality of their investments.

They may even take up short-term trading or day trading. There’s a large random element in short-term stock-price fluctuations, and some short-term trading newcomers do surprisingly well at first. Eventually, though, the odds catch up with them. That’s why most short-term traders wind up losing money. By the time their beginners’ luck fades, many are trading in dangerously large quantities.

Take the long view when Internet stock trading

Instead of short-term trading or focusing too heavily on fees, we recommend that investors spend more time contemplating what they buy and how it fits their investment objectives, as we do when we manage the portfolios of clients of Successful Investor Wealth Management Inc.

This way, you turn the odds in your favour: as your holding period grows longer, chances are your profits will improve, as well.

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