Conference nyoss1::market_investing

I'm sure you'll get much input, and I'll provide what is JUST MY OWN 
OPINION...

The "market" IS high, but you'll find an equal number of people saying it 
will fall as will say it will continue to rise. Who knows? 

I'd invest in a regular series of buys (called Dollar Cost Averaging or DCA) 
of whatever funds/stocks I "believed" in. The only fund I'm at allfamiliar 
with that you mentioned was the contra fund. I (again, strictly my personal 
opinion) like the idea.

In order to make wise decisions as to type of funds/investments to make, you 
need to define your investment goals and risk tolerance. How would you feel 
if you lost 20% of your investments value in a day? Are you looking for 
current income, long-term growth in principal, etc, etc, etc.

I wouldn't take a large sum an invest it in one shot in this market, but I 
also wouldn't hesitate to invest regularly or in a particular stock I thought 
was undervalued.

Good luck...

SteveS

    I think you should seriously consider the DCA approach recommended in .1.
    
    BUT
    
    This being a Presidential election year (in the U.S., anyway :-) it is
    not unusual to see a market correction in the following year. So if you
    have some cash to invest you should try to arrange things so that
    you'll have money to invest NEXT year. If you have say $10,000 to
    invest you might consider breaking that up into 8 chunks of $1250 and
    investing one chunk per quarter. Keep careful records for tax purposes.
    
    TIP
    
    Try to make your periodic purchases on or just after the 21st of the
    month. Statistically the market is lower then than say the 1st of the
    month. Not enough to cash in on, given transaction costs etc., but if
    you're going to make regular investments it makes sense to try to get
    a little edge instead of giving the edge away.
    
      John

    Congratulations on starting. A very important step.
    
    The previous replies offer good advice.
    
    If you are in for the long haul, and you have a lump sum to invest,
    then I feel one should put the money into the fund(s). As long as it
    is not an extreme amount. Another approach is to take a portion of the
    lump sum into one fund and dollar cost average into the others.
    
    Investing a constant amount regularly is a super strategy. Rather than 
    write the check, have systematic investments made using electronic fund 
    transer. Many funds allow you to pick one of several dates and you 
    can take advantage of John's comment on investing late in the month.
    
    If you have a PC, consider purchasing and using something like 
    Quicken. You can then track your funds, compare results and 
    keep good records.
    
    Contra has been a good performer. There are many super funds out there,
    take the time to investigate them and pick ones that are appropriate
    for you. 
    
    Have fun. 
    
    Howie (no relation to DJ or the DJIA)

    
    Thanks to all for the information you've given me.  My goal is
    for the long term - 5-10+ years for growth in principal.  I was 
    thinking of investing a lump sum, not understanding the dollar cost 
    averaging approach.  I'm going to put the brakes on that, and 
    take all advice imparted here to carefully weight and measure.
    
    Geez, there is so much to understand.  Kind of scary, but
    exciting too!
    
    By the way, the other two funds that I mentioned - Growth & Income, 
    and Equity 11, are no-load from Fidelity, and have an average
    performance about the same as Contra for the past 5 years.  They
    are less aggressive, however.  In the Sunday Boston Globe, the
    top 20 Funds (maybe it was 10) were listed, and all three of these, 
    along with the Magellan, were top performers.
     
    Thanks again.
    
    Sue-Lane
    Geez, there is so much to understand!!  Kind of scary, but
    exciting too.
    
    

   338  SUBWAY::DAVIDSON     29-DEC-1992    41  Dollar Cost Averaging?

    Personally, I keep some money in a nice non-scary bunch of CDs,
    then I can invest the rest of my funds in the stock market without
    staying awake nights worrying about 1929.
     

I would suggest looking up the Morningstar rating of the
funds you are considering prior to writing them a check.
The one-page description tells you not just the performance
numbers, but also the investing style, volatility, management,
and more.  Any overall rating of "best" has some set of 
measures of what "best" really is -- you need to find the one 
that is best for you.

-Austin

Two more pieces:

Asset allocation - as mentioned elsewhere in this conference, how 
your investments are split among stocks, bonds and cash is a
major factor determining the overall performance of your 
portfolio.  The specific mutual funds you choose are less
important (though you do want to pick ones that do reasonably
well). 

Risk vs. time horizon - the longer until you need your money, the 
more can withstand fluctuations in your investments.  For 
example, if you won't need the money for at least ten years, 
stocks are the way to go, since you can probably stand a
short-term drop in stock prices.  If you need the money next
year, you can't afford a loss of principal, so cash equivalents
(CDs, money market funds, etc.) are the way to go. 

My 2�,

Wes

You should also buy the Mutual Funds '96 Guide by Kiplinger's, on news stands 
now.  For $5, it's not only a current ranking of 3,300 funds, it includes 
some real helpful advice for how to pick funds, sample portfolios, the basics 
of fund styles and "50 funds with the mark of excellence" (inc. Contrafund,
N & B Guardian, and Templeton Foreign)

    Thank you all very much.  You've given me some very helpful
    information. 
    
    SL