Where can I find reviews on investment companies?
April 11, 2010 by
Filed under investment companies
For example Primerica or Charles Swab. I want to invest in stocks but want to make sure that I’m investing in the right company. I’ve heard of MorningStar.com but I can’t figure out how to read the reviews on the companies.
If you want to invest in stocks, do your own fundamental research on the company itself. If you mean which broker to go through, there are various publications that rate them. Morningstar rates stocks, as well as Valueline and Standard and Poor’s. Morningstar implements a star rating system…the more stars the better.
Yahoo finance has a list of investment companies.
I wouldn’t fund a retirement account with stocks. Stocks are highly volatile. You can make lots of money in short period of time, but you can also lose lots of money. I had a client who invested $50,000 in multiple stocks. 15 years later, his portfolio only grew to $72,000. That’s about a 2.5% rate of return.
Yes there was a growth, but it was not keeping up with inflation. If your rate is working below the inflation rate, you are losing money or having a decline in purchasing power. If he invested his $50,000 in mutual funds 15 years ago, at 10% rate of return, he could have about $222,700.
If you are interested in investing mutual funds, make sure you obtain a prospectus and read it carefully before investing in it. If you don’t like that mutual fund, pick another.