Over half of Americans have $0 in stocks

CNNMoney ^

[Red in Blue PA]

More American adults drink coffee daily than have money invested in the stock market.

Less than half, or 48%, of American adults have money in stocks, according to Bankrate's Money Pulse survey. Compared to that, about 61% of adults have at least a cup of coffee daily, according to the latest National Coffee Drinking Trends.

[combat_boots]

Gees! Great kudos to her!

[dragnet2]

And now you want everyone else to get rich too.

Why, I should start sending money into the stock-market so I can get rich too.

Thanks for that hot tip.

Very commendable.

[lordpumblechook]

Do what you want with your cash. Nothing could concern me less.

[dragnet2]

Thanks for that approval.

[lordpumblechook]

You’re welcome.

[dragnet2]

No problemo.

[lordpumblechook]

Indeed.

[MSF BU]

Stocks fluctuate and clearly yours has been the wiser course thus far. I am of similar thinking. I buy the stock of solid companies for the dividend and don’t worry about the stock price. Every now and then I’ll buy a Borden but that is more than made up for by Nucor, Sunoco Logistics, P&G, MMM, Coke, Pepsi, etc.

[jwalsh07]

NASDAQ has returned nothing in almost two decades. So if you listened to the gurus 20 years ago and bought and held small growth stocks or funds you earned nothing. The market is irrational so I have zero in stocks right now. I earn 3.75%,on my money and I content with that right now. When the market returns to some semblance of rationality again I will invest in stocks. I do not anticipate that happening any time soon because the fed can not let interest rates be determined by markets. Why you ask? 20 trillion in debt and growing. We can not afford our country’s debt payments at market rates without ballooning the dollary.

[SVTCobra03]

My 401(k) which you refer to as a “lottery ticket” allowed me to retire early and comfortably.

[Red in Blue PA]

When I was in college, a maximum of 7 times earnings was an investment, 10 times earnings was speculation and today most are over 15 times earnings.

That's nonsense. The long-term average is around 17 times earnings, and depending on how low interest rates go, the multiple expands.

Certain stocks or sectors may have traded at 7 times earnings, but not the entire market over a period of many years. That is simply untrue.

[Red in Blue PA]

The time to get out is when taxi drivers are recommending stocks a la 2000.

Now that everyone is out and nobody talks about them, we may indeed be headed up more. Then, when people believe they are missing out, they will all jump in and everyone who can buy will have bought and that will presage a drop.

[SVTCobra03]

She was a year away from retirement

Everyone knows that when you are young you invest in high risk, high return stocks and as you get closer to retirement you invest in gradually lower risk, lower return stocks until about four years out from retirement you invest in no-risk, fixed income equities.

[Red in Blue PA]

NASDAQ has returned nothing in almost two decades.

783 to 4995 is nothing?

This is "nothing"?

[Lorianne]

Being debt free is a lot better than being up to your hair follicles in debt but owning stocks and continually crowing about how well you are doing. One slip of the market and these people are toast ... except they’ll want to be made whole by someone.

[cynwoody]

There is one key difference between owning stock and owning mutual fund shares that bothers me though. While I benefit about as much financially as if I owned individual stock shares, mutual funds give me zero say in the management of any company. The voting power of my stock is in the hands of a faceless mutual fund manager.

If a fund sold AAPL because Tim Cook flamed Indiana, it would most likely be in violation of its prospectus. Few mutual fund prospectuses allow for "ethical" investing, whatever that means.

The main problems with mutual funds are excessive expenses and lack of control of taxable events. Seemingly small expense ratios can really eat into your returns over time.

The best funds to invest in are index and sector ETFs with low expense ratios.

[cripplecreek]

One slip of the market and these people are toast ... except they’ll want to be made whole by someone.

Like bailing out banks and automakers. Unfortunately such things make "little" people poorer and poorer.

My great grandmother used to talk about the depression. She said they did fine because they lived within their means and didn't build up debts on the farm. My great grandfather on the other side went into debt up to his eyeballs trying to be the big man with the most land, finest equipment etc. By the time the depression was over, they were living in a barn at at the first great grandparents home.

By the time I came along all 4 great grandparents were very frugal people.

[montag813]

What do these morons think their pensions are invested in? Obama Love Juice?

[bigdaddy45]

Has the Free Republic been taken over by liberals when I wasn’t paying attention? You know “the markets are rigged, stocks are a rich mans game, etc. etc.”.

Yes, goods and services are being produced. At a profit. Every day. Look around. Look at all the technological advances. Innovation. Creativity. The products that are available to us. You think those products are being created at a loss??

The markets are doing well in spite of Obama, not because of him. But there is money to made in stocks if you buy good companies and hold them over the long term.

[Starstruck]

NASDAQ has returned nothing in almost two decades.

Unless of course you bought a bunch of the stock when it was below 1000.