I Just Bought Microsoft. Really!

[David Mills 4,763]

Like most, I'm thrilled about the new sim in 2020. I think the future is bright, both for flight simulation and for Microsoft as a corporation. A few weeks ago, I posted a half-joking question here as to whether those of us who receive the "Insiders Newsletter" would be guilty of "insider trading" if we bought Microsoft stock based on our "insider knowledge" of the sim. Some of you who know more about these things than I do assured me there was no legal peril.

Because I'm a person of very modest economic means, I never really and truly considered buying stock in Microsoft because I didn't have much money and because I knew nothing whatever about buying stock. I also assumed you'd waste money on stockbroker fees and stuff. I learned during the last two weeks, however, that I was mistaken. I bought $25 worth of Microsoft stock. The brokerage fee for purchasing the stock was 99 cents. So I spent a grand total of $25.99. No, this is not a full share. Microsoft stock sells for $151.38 a share as of Black Friday. So I just own about 1/6 of one share. That's all I could afford. But I am a genuine, legal stockholder now in Microsoft. So anyone here experiencing technical issues with the new sim can report your problem directly to me; and at the next Microsoft stockholders' meeting, I'll personally take up your issue directly with Bill. 🙂

Seriously, you can do a Google search for "stocks by the dollar" rather than stocks by the share (or "Stockpile"). The brokerage house I used even has gift cards in Microsoft stock (and practically every other stock in the universe) in denominations of $25, $50, and $100 for Christmas gifts. This is really not a bad gift idea. At this tiny level, buying stock is more an educational experience than a get-rich-quick opportunity. But I'm now excitedly following the daily ups and downs of the market like it's a thrilling sporting event. It's a lot of fun. And I'm personally up $3 this week! Now, if you'll excuse me, my phone is ringing. It's probably Warren Buffett.

 

Edited November 30, 2019 by David Mills

[overspeed3 410]

If you bought one full share of Microsoft in 2015 it would have cost about $45:  Yes, it more than tripled in value...

[Raymond.Groenendijk 255]

Give my regards to Warren, we talk on the phone every day about my few shares in Facebook and Sony 😉 . But indeed, buying stock can be really exciting and a worthwhile investment when you do not need access to your money for a long time. My 'investment' of €450 nearly doubled in the last couple of years and is now worth over €800. Interest at the bank would never have resulted in such a profit, especially not at the rates of the past few years. But you should always do it with small amounts, like you do, for fun and educational purchases or otherwise with money you won't miss when it evaporates because of an unexpected event in the market. 

Now back on the topic, please use your influence to try and get your 'friends' over at AVSIM a working copy of the sim. The build from the event a few months back would suffice for now. I'm sure you must be able to pull some strings, or maybe Bill can help you with that. 😋 

[cmpbellsjc 2,961]

6 hours ago, overspeed3 said:

If you bought one full share of Microsoft in 2015 it would have cost about $45:  Yes, it more than tripled in value...

Even better, had you loaded up on Apple back in the 90’s you’d be loaded. I once did the math on a small investment at that time of around $15000 in Apple and can’t remeber the exact figure but you’d be a millionaire now.

[overspeed3 410]

Sad but true tale:  Circa 2003, I bought 100 shares of Apple for about $42/share.  Sold when it went down  to 38 bucks - and stopped following Apple stock for many years after.  By then, it was too expensive to buy in quantity...    

[David Mills 4,763]

According to this article on CNBC, a man named Ronald Wayne was an original co-founder of Apple. He owned a 10 percent share of the tiny company. In 1976, he sold his shares for $800. Today, this $800 worth of stock is worth over 95 billion dollars. Talk about regrets!

https://www.cnbc.com/2018/08/02/why-ronald-wayne-sold-his-10-percent-stake-in-apple-for-800-dollars.html

 

[n4gix 4,947]

1 hour ago, KillerKlient said:

You can't own fractions of shares, you don't own any Microsoft stock or the underlying asset.   What you've probably purchased is a leveraged product, which is equivlant to a bet or speculation of the price of something.  As such you won't be entitled to any normal shareholder things like recieving dividends.

That is not precisely true. It is entirely possible to buy a fractional share. There are currently at least three methods that I'm aware of:

1. Direct Stock Purchase Plan
2. An Investment App
3. Gift of Stock

Of the three methods, the second is by far the easiest to use since you have full control over your account via your smartphone, depending on which app you choose. At least one app even allows you to automatically round up credit card purchases to the nearest dollar and automatically invest that in your stock account!

Additionally, fractional stocks do receive their share of dividends!

A good starter's resource for these three methods may be found here:

https://www.wikihow.com/Buy-Fractional-Shares#Giving-the-Gift-of-Stock_sub

[David Mills 4,763]

30 minutes ago, n4gix said:

That is not precisely true. It is entirely possible to buy a fractional share. There are currently at least three methods that I'm aware of:

1. Direct Stock Purchase Plan
2. An Investment App
3. Gift of Stock

Of the three methods, the second is by far the easiest to use since you have full control over your account via your smartphone, depending on which app you choose. At least one app even allows you to automatically round up credit card purchases to the nearest dollar and automatically invest that in your stock account!

A good starter's resource for these three methods may be found here:

https://www.wikihow.com/Buy-Fractional-Shares#Giving-the-Gift-of-Stock_sub

n4gix is exactly right. A brokerage house named "Stockpile" (http://www.stockpile.com) sells fractional shares. Half a share only returns half the dividend of course. But you do own the stock. The Stockpile app is one of the highest rated in the entire app store.

[David Mills 4,763]

Jim Cramer on CNBC talking about buying fractional shares.

 

[David Mills 4,763]

Very entertaining video about giving fractional shares of stock for Christmas gifts.

 

Edited November 30, 2019 by David Mills