When thinking about investing in the stock market or wanting to buy stocks, there is a lot to know and a lot of little details that can make or break your experience. Hopefully, after reading this, you will have a better idea and understanding of the ins and outs of investing and investing as a teenager. 

So what exactly is stock? Stock is where you own a very small portion of a company and you get a small share of their profits. When you buy stock, the first thing that you need to know is that you may lose money, but you can also make a lot of money from it. When you buy stock, it is you making a purchase into a company. One place you could lose money is when the company’s profits may not be doing as well and they fall. As a result, the amount of money your share is worth goes down. But if the company’s profits go up, then the amount of money that your stock shares in that company, will go up. 

Most shareholders will hold stock shares up to about 15 years. That gives you enough time for the share to rack up the amount of money it is worth so that when you go to sell the share, you get a larger profit than what you bought it for. The end goal is to walk away with more money than you had in the beginning. 

But even though there is a risk to investing in stocks, it is one of the easiest ways to earn profit because it has one of the best returns. A lot of people don’t know that they can invest as a young child and a teen. It is actually really beneficial to invest as a young person because then you can start bringing in money early and put it away for another time. It can also help to teach young people how to manage their money and save it. When you invest as a teen you are helping to teach yourself financial lessons for the future and helping set yourself up for success. 

There are a lot of different things and companies that you can invest in. If you are under eighteen, it is said that you should start with a custodial account. Custodial accounts are accounts set up for minors. This is where your parents mostly run the investing and what you buy for you. While it may not seem like there is a lot of freedom that comes with it, it is a good way to start if you know nothing about investing and buying stocks. While you may not like not having the freedom, you technically are not allowed to open your own brokerage account under the age of eighteen. 

Hopefully this helps to give some people some insight on buying and owning stocks. There is a lot of information out there that is really helpful and can help point you further in the correct direction to success. Below are some sources that if you are interested in gaining further knowledge on stocks and investing, you can do so.