DISCLAIMER: This is not a post to convince you to buy anything, or to make you think I am a giving you investment advice.
I am just listing PERSONAL opinion on MY portfolio of what I own.
I, like everyone else, have no idea what is going to be the next Google, Chipotle, Crocs or any other major money making company will be.
I am just buying stocks *I* believe in.
Also, please don’t ask me to assess stocks for you or give you investment advice.
There are plenty of other great, smarter, much better and cooler investment-focused blogs out there that already do that: Monevator, Money Gardener and Canadian Capitalist to name a few.
I am a huge fan of index funds for very long term investing (20+ years), and heavy into bonds and cash for liquidity.
Yet, I wanted to dip my toe into the ocean of investing for a while but was hesitant for some reason.
So when Canada rolled out the Tax-Free Savings Account ($5000) that can be invested in ANYTHING (stocks, bonds, cash savings account) without fear of its gains being taxed, I felt like it was the right time to start trying out my hand at investing, and started looking into individual stocks.
After some self-convincing, I came to the conclusion that $5000 is a comfortable amount for me to put into individual stocks because I could feel comfortable (note, comfortable, not happy) losing all of it, and it’s a now or never time for me to invest.
Note: I already have $30,000+ invested in very, very long-term indexes which will sit there until I retire, and this is just fun investing money.
I wanted to diversify and take advantage of the low prices on some high quality stock. So I put in the money before the stock market bottomed out (how could I have predicted it?), and have seen some low gains.
The Canadian investing service I use: Questrade.
Costs me $5 – $9 each time to buy shares with no hidden fees or hooks.
It’s a great low cost brokerage because a lot of other ones charged around $15 – $20 per trade.
I’m a small time dabbler without a lot of money in the market, so I didn’t want a high fee to kill my little profits.
So far, I am happy with the service for the most part.
The website for trading is confusing as someone who loves a well organized website, but I’ve since learned its quirks.
My initial (and still applicable) investing style:
I buy what I understand — technology, fashion, makeup.. and steer away from things or industries I don’t understand.
That includes banking industries.
I guess it’s the Warren Buffett style of investing.
I did not want to invest in anything I don’t understand, even if other people who are experts in these industries are smart & know what they’re doing.
I wanted to do this more as a learning experience and I don’t like not knowing.
I don’t really want to hold individual stocks for the very long term — I already have a good chunk in index funds for the very long term.
I’d rather just make money off the stocks in the short to long term, and have fun with it, but not see it as a way to make millions — I just can’t handle that kind of pressure along with the time it takes to monitor the stocks all the time.
I’ll stick to straight, plain stock purchases. I am not that advanced to do options and futures, nor do I want to pretend to be, in the high finance world.
WHAT I FIRST BOUGHT & SOLD
Palm Inc. – PALM
I bought PALM Inc. at $9.00 and sold it at $15.
I wish I had the account earlier, and purchased it when it was at $4. But it took SO DAMN LONG to get my Questrade account set up, that I missed the boat.
At any rate, I bought PALM because of the Palm Pre. I am still a big fan of the phone, hoping to go fondle it at Bell Canada when it hits the stores so I can see how it works.
I won’t buy the Palm Pre however, because I already have a working cellphone that I rarely use, and have no need for a smartphone in my life at the moment.
So the decision to buy a Palm Pre will be made when I have to switch cellular carriers when I move to the States in a year and a half or so.
I still think the phone is fantastic, the functionality and practicality of it being second to none (I am a huge fan of Palm products, all the way back to the first Palm Pilot)… but the phone just doesn’t have the cachet that the iPod and most Apple products seems to have.
To be honest, I would have kept the stock longer, but the deal breaker was that I was hearing and reading uncomfortable reports of Sprint and Palm not being totally transparent and clear on how much they were actually selling and supposedly stocking out in stores of.
I am also not a fan of business that is shady even if it’s to sell the product I am a huge fan of, so I got out when I felt it had hit its peak price at around $15.
It eventually topped out at around $16 from the last time I checked, but meh.
I made enough for what I put in and the time it took.
Today, the share is trading at around $13.
Research in Motion – RIMM
I got into RIMM because I felt it was a good stock to purchase, being the #1 cellphone for business users.
I made less than $100 as a profit on this, because I started to get cold feet with the cellular phone wars between iPhone, Blackberry and the Palm Pre. I found my investing style — something I don’t have to keep track of 24/7, and something that is more stable, with a solid set of earnings and history behind them.
I had luckily purchased it at around $69 and sold it at $73 or so. I didn’t make much, but I made enough to cover my fees and get the hell out of cellphone stock altogether.
I love tech, but that ish is too volatile for me to handle and keep tabs on.
WHAT I STILL OWN & LOVE
ING Direct – ING
The pride and joy in my portfolio right now! 
I am so happy I got them at $11. They had dropped down to $9 at one point, and I was frowning a bit at why they did so badly.
I could have sold the shares, but I would have lost $150, so I just kept them where they were. I also didn’t have other equity left to purchase more shares at $9, so I was hooped to sit and frown.
The frowning must have worked, because they’re now trading at $16.50, and climbing.
I really, really believe in ING. They were one of the few financial institutions not to have gone into bailout money mode in the States (they’re a European bank, however)… and I think their marketing (simple savings) and their whole philosophy of no fee banking is brilliant.
And the entire PF blogosphere seems to be singing ING’s praises in every blog post I read 
That’s always a good sign.
Google Inc. – GOOG
I bought this at around $420. It’s now trading at $472.48. I didn’t buy many of them, because I had a limited budget, but I am happy with the gains so far, for what I put in.
I don’t plan on selling these stocks for a longgggggg time.
I love Google Mail, Calendar, Google Docs and the way everything is so just damn easy (except Blogger).
I am a huge Google Fan, especially after seeing the 2-hour long demonstration on their Google Wave concept.
Genius. I have a real emotional investment in the company and am an avid fan and user of Google, so I feel happy owning their shares.
I think if it hits anywhere close to its peak at $600, I may consider selling off the stocks, but I highly doubt I would if they keep going the way they’re going.
Everyone tells me that Microsoft or Yahoo should have been a better buy because it is cheaper and not around $400 like Google, and you can buy more shares of it.
My response: Why do I want to buy MORE shares of losers?
I’m happy with the 3 stocks I own of Google. Not groundbreaking investments to make me millions, but hey, Google is EXPENSIVE..
And I’d rather own 3 shares of Google than 2 pairs of Louboutin shoes on sale. *gasp* You didn’t hear me say that…..
Costco Inc. – COST
I paid $45 for them, and own around 25 shares. They’re now trading around $56.91.
As with all the stocks I’ve purchased, I believe in them.
I love the idea of wholesaling, and BF and I are now members of Costco, so we’re actual customers who go in 3 times or so a month, and can keep a hands-on tab on how we feel they’re doing.
Have you ever been to a Costco (even a little one) on a Saturday? Total mayhem. My heart soars when I see super long lines there.
Anyway, I feel they’re an undervalued stock with great potential for families and small businesses.
Proctor & Gamble – PG
Business-wise, P&G is an incredible marketing powerhouse. Turn over a couple of shampoo bottles the next time you’re in the store. You’ll more than likely find the names Unilever, Johnson & Johnson or P&G on them.
Why did I pick P&G out of the 3? It was a crapshoot, really.
I own 20 shares, and bought them at $50. They’re trading around $55.64 now. It’s a place for me to park my money for the long term.
Can’t go wrong with toothpaste and shampoo.
So that’s it. The stocks I own. I’m not making millions or even thousands off it.
It’s more of an exercise in impulse and control for me with a bit of fun.
What I’ve learned
It’s exhilarating!
Like gambling but better — it has a better chance of making you some real money.
I am considering a couple other stocks, but that may have to wait until next year when I put in another $5000 (maybe) into individual stocks.
We’ll see how it goes. I may just stick with the $5000 for now and just use it to dabble here and there.
I’ve never been a big fan of watching stock prices every minute of the day, or gambling my money unnecessarily.
I buy stocks I believe in, and that’s it.
Some other ones I considered were McDonald’s and Coca-Cola for their longevity. But ultimately, I don’t eat or drink their products so I feel a bit distant from their consumer base and cannot really feel any kind of tie to them, nor am I able to check on their customer service & product on a regular basis.
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