Blog : 5 Investment Mistakes You are Already Making

by Peter Leeds on August 4th, 2015

 
First off, let's just admit that you have not, and will never, call the Investor Relations contact at the companies you are interested in.  No one does.  Everybody should.  See the best questions to ask each company.
 
Besides that, there are a few trading mistakes you probably are already making.  Eliminating these will help you end up with more money in your pocket at the end of the day.
 

1.  Averaging Down

Most newer investors buy shares of a penny stock, and if is then falls in price... they buy more.  Rather than admit their mistake in the first place, they double down, putting more money into the now-cheaper shares.

If you buy a $2 penny stock, then it falls to $1, you could invest even more.  This brings your average price per share down.  However, there are problems with this tactic.
 
You have now sunk even more money into a penny stock going in the wrong direction.  As well, even averaged down, the shares are still in a losing position.  Finally, penny stocks which are heading towards lower prices typically bring everyone who averages down with them... sometimes all the way to zero.
 
Don't average down - instead average up.  Put more money into the shares you called correctly, and which are going in the right direction.
 
 
2. Most Don't Do Proper Due Diligence
 
Due Diligence means knowing what you are buying.  Many will know just enough about a company to feel like they know what they are investing in.  However, that's like thinking you know what a movie is like because you watched the preview.
 
With penny stocks, they are typically so small and new that they are vulnerable to a wide range of operational risks.  Almost no one actually does proper due diligence.  It requires a look into the financial position (balance sheet, income statement, cash flow statement), their competitors, financial ratios, and growth rates, and that is just for starters.
 
To make it easier, you can see the 29 Point Leeds Analysis here, which we use to uncover the absolute best penny stock investments.  Want to make it even easier?  You can see the winners from our reviews of thousands of penny stocks here.
 
 
3. Poor Position Sizing
 
Most investors invest too much of their total funds into only one or two penny stocks.  If you only have $300, then yes, it's fine to go all in on one investment.  But if you are sitting on $5,000, buying $500 or $750 into 8 or 10 different companies might make even more sense.
 
With position sizing, you want to insulate yourself from any potential calamitous loss.  Too often penny stock investors, especially those with smaller portfolios, will have the "all in" mentality.  If you are putting more than half you portfolio into one investment, for example, then you are most likely displaying poor position sizing.
 
 
4.  Buying Without Scaling In
 
If someone has $2,000 to invest, most people put the entire amount into the penny stock they like.  What you should really do is scale in, with only half or a third of your cash.  Investing all of your money at once typically ends badly.
 
Even if you are sitting on a huge amount of cash, no matter how much you are loving a certain penny stock, don't just buy the full position at once.  Purchase in chunks over time.  To invest $4,000 into any investment, try the approach of buying smaller amounts until you eventually get to the $4,000 point.
 
 
5. Chasing Winners
 
Here's the thing - by the time you and most others recognize the latest hot stocks, the underlying shares have already made their moves.  That is why the vast majority of investors buy into Bitcoin or Pot penny stocks near the peak, just before the collapse. 
 
It is also a statistically-proven fact that stock market returns are directly inverse to the amount of trading activity of an investor.  More trades means lower profits every time.
 
By avoiding these 5 mistakes in penny stocks, many of which you may already be guilty, you should be able to instantly improve your investment results.
 

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