Research.
As a novice the temptation, to listen to tips from experienced investors or brokers and then buy those stocks, is huge. Nothing wrong in listening to the tips.
However its important to do your own research.
Some of the criteria to consider while researching are as follows
- Results posted by the company. Look at quarterly as well as yearly. Look for consistent growth. A simple number to look at here would be EPS (Earnings per share). A continued increase in this number generally indicates that the company is in good health.
- Graph of the stock price over a long period of time ( About 6 months to a year is decent ). The trend in the stock price should typically be consistent with market conditions and the earnings growth. Any significant deviation would be indicative of some news around the company or its industry sector.
- Check price to earnings ratio (P/E) of the stock. This ratio generally indicates how costly or cheap the stock is. If its very low but greater than 0 then there is a good chance that the price of the stock may have been hit due to certain factors. However for companies with strong potential its generally a good time to buy.
A corollary to above rule is that a high P/E is generally a good time to sell.
- Check news. Although the 3 parameters mentioned above can help one in making judgement about any stock, news is what really causes stocks to move in a big way and in a relatively short time frame. Its usually difficult for a novice to make good judgements about stock movements based on news. This is however something that only can come through experience. Therefore it is worth keeping abreast news and its impact on the market.
Sunday, May 25, 2008
Tuesday, May 13, 2008
The stock market survival guide - I
Try not to get a heart attack.
As a novice investor I am biased towards deposits as safe investments. The reason is that the chances that my invested principal is lost are virtually zero. (Those who don't know what principal here means, do 10 sit ups as punishment for not paying attention in high school mathematics class). However with the market there is always news about people losing a fortune and falling ill when the market crashes. I remember a friend of mind telling me about an uncle who got a heart attack after suffering loses in the market. Thus I think most of these people would be the ones who are so highly invested in the market that it is a little beyond the comfort zone.
Thus given the risk of loss, I think it is best to invest only as much as one can afford to lose without falling ill (or metaphorically speaking - "getting a heart attack").
As a novice investor I am biased towards deposits as safe investments. The reason is that the chances that my invested principal is lost are virtually zero. (Those who don't know what principal here means, do 10 sit ups as punishment for not paying attention in high school mathematics class). However with the market there is always news about people losing a fortune and falling ill when the market crashes. I remember a friend of mind telling me about an uncle who got a heart attack after suffering loses in the market. Thus I think most of these people would be the ones who are so highly invested in the market that it is a little beyond the comfort zone.
Thus given the risk of loss, I think it is best to invest only as much as one can afford to lose without falling ill (or metaphorically speaking - "getting a heart attack").
Sunday, May 4, 2008
The stock market survival guide for dummies.
Its been 4 years since I bought my first ever stock in the market. The Indian market has been in a phenomenal bull run since. In between it has seen quite a few bear phases too. Naturally as an investor I have learn't a few things. I therefore decided its time for publishing a few survival tips for a first generation novice investor like me.
First what does survival really mean?
As a dummy with the market my known modes of investment are at best fixed interest income instruments. These include bank deposits, saving certificates, provident fund, pension funds. Thus my investments can be expected to grow about 8 % annually as per current fixed deposit interest rates. This of course is virtually zero risk. Thus this marks the benchmark for my expectation of returns from any investment. With this background I consider that one has survived the market if over the long term (per current Indian rules a period greater than a year is considered long term for investments in stock market) one has achieved a return better than the benchmark mentioned above. Thus anything significantly better than 8 % and one would have more than just survived. In such a case consider comparing your returns to a more realistic benchmark (e.g. Market Indices like Sensex, nifty ). That comparison is of course not for the novice so for the posts in this series I'll stick to the benchmark defined before.
First what does survival really mean?
As a dummy with the market my known modes of investment are at best fixed interest income instruments. These include bank deposits, saving certificates, provident fund, pension funds. Thus my investments can be expected to grow about 8 % annually as per current fixed deposit interest rates. This of course is virtually zero risk. Thus this marks the benchmark for my expectation of returns from any investment. With this background I consider that one has survived the market if over the long term (per current Indian rules a period greater than a year is considered long term for investments in stock market) one has achieved a return better than the benchmark mentioned above. Thus anything significantly better than 8 % and one would have more than just survived. In such a case consider comparing your returns to a more realistic benchmark (e.g. Market Indices like Sensex, nifty ). That comparison is of course not for the novice so for the posts in this series I'll stick to the benchmark defined before.
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
My first mobile blog.
I am falling in love with google again. First they brought gmail to mobile. The mobile blog thing has also been around for some time. I know shag tested it long time ago.
However in here in India GPRS internet ain't that good. My first attempt of sending an MMS to go@blogger.com didn't quite yield the desired result. Then I chose to send email to the same address. This time it worked. So here is my first one on mobile. Hopefully bus rides to office and back will be busier with this avenue.
However in here in India GPRS internet ain't that good. My first attempt of sending an MMS to go@blogger.com didn't quite yield the desired result. Then I chose to send email to the same address. This time it worked. So here is my first one on mobile. Hopefully bus rides to office and back will be busier with this avenue.
Monday, March 31, 2008
RAIT prospectus
This article (text pasted below) originally appeared in Jam Magazine many years ago.
"Unofficial Prospectus: Ramrao Adik Institute of Technology..
Previously was: Ramrao Adik College of Engineering.
Speciality: Toppers in Univ. at least in Electronic & Computer engineering (coz other branches don't exist.) It's known for Horizon - the inter-college fest (the top five in Mumbai)!
Crowd: A masala mix of scholars, cyberjunkies, die-hard headbangers, take-it-easy goers, flunkers, Martians, Gujjus etc. People here are into computers, rock music, rock music and computers. Half of RAIT comprises of cyber nuts, the other half sleep
on guitars.
Life in RAIT: It begins at 9:00 am and seems to end at 6:00 pm (People never leave, they seem to fade away. RAIT is never lifeless) It goes up and down as usual (except on Fridays). An added attraction not found in other colleges.
Hangouts: The basement is the site of all underground and nefarious activities. It houses the engg. canteen (EC) and the medical canteen (MC). Medical? Well the engg. & medical colleges are in the same building and the engineering studs share a special relationship with the MC.
Canteen: Strangely enough RAIT canteen (managed by Anna) serves good food at reasonable rates. Smoking is allowed in the EC at RAIT. The canteen speciality includes thali, vada pav (pleeese!), coffee, tea (of course!).
Official Rules: Meant only for the notice boards.
Notice Boards: They exist only to display the so-called outdated official notices and surprise holidays.
Unofficial Rule: Anything goes!
5 Things to do in RAIT:
1) Get ragged on the first day.
2) Learn Marathi (your office-cruising will be much faster.)
3) Sit for lectures for a change.
4) Compete in Horizon.
5) Witness a fight in one of the canteens in the college.
5 Things you don't do in RAIT:
1) Leave your programs unsaved.
2) Try to butter up professors.
3) Try to sweet talk babes.
4) Use the lift on Fridays (invariably the electricity conks off).
5) Try to eat your Lunch alone. (Lukewarm friendships suddenly turn into lunch long ones during your meal time)
Why you should be at RAIT: Life is never monotonous, so you'll never be bored. A healthy mix of both education and entertainment. So if you plan to be an engineer with a difference then RAIT is the place to be in.
"Unofficial Prospectus: Ramrao Adik Institute of Technology..
Previously was: Ramrao Adik College of Engineering.
Speciality: Toppers in Univ. at least in Electronic & Computer engineering (coz other branches don't exist.) It's known for Horizon - the inter-college fest (the top five in Mumbai)!
Crowd: A masala mix of scholars, cyberjunkies, die-hard headbangers, take-it-easy goers, flunkers, Martians, Gujjus etc. People here are into computers, rock music, rock music and computers. Half of RAIT comprises of cyber nuts, the other half sleep
on guitars.
Life in RAIT: It begins at 9:00 am and seems to end at 6:00 pm (People never leave, they seem to fade away. RAIT is never lifeless) It goes up and down as usual (except on Fridays). An added attraction not found in other colleges.
Hangouts: The basement is the site of all underground and nefarious activities. It houses the engg. canteen (EC) and the medical canteen (MC). Medical? Well the engg. & medical colleges are in the same building and the engineering studs share a special relationship with the MC.
Canteen: Strangely enough RAIT canteen (managed by Anna) serves good food at reasonable rates. Smoking is allowed in the EC at RAIT. The canteen speciality includes thali, vada pav (pleeese!), coffee, tea (of course!).
Official Rules: Meant only for the notice boards.
Notice Boards: They exist only to display the so-called outdated official notices and surprise holidays.
Unofficial Rule: Anything goes!
5 Things to do in RAIT:
1) Get ragged on the first day.
2) Learn Marathi (your office-cruising will be much faster.)
3) Sit for lectures for a change.
4) Compete in Horizon.
5) Witness a fight in one of the canteens in the college.
5 Things you don't do in RAIT:
1) Leave your programs unsaved.
2) Try to butter up professors.
3) Try to sweet talk babes.
4) Use the lift on Fridays (invariably the electricity conks off).
5) Try to eat your Lunch alone. (Lukewarm friendships suddenly turn into lunch long ones during your meal time)
Why you should be at RAIT: Life is never monotonous, so you'll never be bored. A healthy mix of both education and entertainment. So if you plan to be an engineer with a difference then RAIT is the place to be in.
Saturday, February 23, 2008
Are Indians secular or racist ?
Racism - a term which commonly denotes race-based prejudice, violence, discrimination or oppression. Its a term that brings to mind the images of Nelson Mandela fighting apartheid in South Africa or pages describing Martin Luther King Jr's struggle in the 1960s in the USA. If we turn the clock a few more decades behind then it brings out our very own Mahatma's non violent movement in South Africa and then in India which of course eventually led to a free India we know today.
The constitution of India went on to use adjectives such as "Secular" for the Republic of India. I grew up reading that definition of the Indian Republic in our text books. However as I grew up and understood the society around me a little better and beyond the text books, I started wondering whether we really are secular people.
It was interesting to note how passionately all the "fairness" creams market themselves on television. Some even talk about reducing 'Melanin' from the skin. My high school science text book talked about the same pigment as an essential ingredient in protecting the human skin against harm from Sun. This means that people living in Tropics naturally ought to have more of it. Yet the overwhelming number of products that claim to reduce the effects of this pigment is surprising. But there should obviously be a good reason why it is so?
The reason, i guess, is our fascination with fair skin. I am not very sure what the roots of this fascination are. It may be due to our colonial past where the English whites were the masters or it may be even the current economic dominance of the Americas and Europe - again areas with largely fairer population. The discrimination based on fair skin is of course not very explicit or rampant as in the past but nevertheless it is present in its own subtle ways.
If the dictionary definition of racism may be extended then, the diversity in India brings in a few more flavours of the same. The English dictionary of course has separate names for these flavours such as casteism, communalism, regionalism. For me though these are simply different flavours of everything wrong that racism stands for.
At the most granular level is Casteism. This is one form of discrimination which is the most Legal everywhere. Indian has several different castes and a history of several centuries of discrimination based on castes. Given this history it is one form of discrimination which should perhaps be banned and it is. However the very constitution which defines India as secular, leaves wide and deliberate gaps to allow discrimination based on caste. This gap is called "Reservation". Reservation for the backward castes in education and jobs. A welcome move 60 years ago when India got its independence and this discrimination was rampant. It was hailed as one move that will present opportunity to the "backward" classes of the society move ahead be seen as equal with rest of India.
60 years is a long period. Most of the first few babies born in independent India have now retired from their jobs. Some have become grand parents. Two generations have come into being since. One would have expected that the equality of castes would now be well established. Yet it remains a problem ingrained in our society. In some parts of India like the remote villages of the underdeveloped states, I would view the lack of political will that manages to divide the society based on this "caste" mentality. On the other hand in metropolitan cities like Mumbai, its the legal "Reservation" that promotes this divide.
For 15 years of my childhood I viewed my classmates as friends and fellow students. We all respected each other for our abilities and strengths and helped each other overcome weaknesses. But when it was time to secure admission to the best education institutes after school - I came face to face with "reservation". Separate admission list for the "Reserved" and "General" category. I was left wondering - we all grew up in similar neighbourhoods, we all went to similar schools, we all gave the same exam, and we all worked hard to get our grades,then why these separate lists? That question of course has several debates and answers in favour and against. For me though this question marked the introduction to casteism and the feeling of being discriminated against - even when I myself never discriminated against anyone. The biggest disappointment was, not that there was discrimination, but the fact that it was all legal. The children of the poor and underprivileged have to struggle hard to get educated. This struggle is theirs to face, and it is so, irrespective of the caste they belong to. Yet the outdated basis of "reservation" continues to be. It begs the question,"Is caste discrimination Legal in India ?" I think this question will continue to have an ambiguous answer for some time to come.
If casteism was not enough to divide the society, then there is another form of discrimination which comes to haunt us. Perhaps in a worst way then it should. That is communalism - specifically based on religion. While I take pride to say that India is home to followers of most religions available in the world, its sad that this difference is sometimes the cause of unnecessary turmoil. This word reminds me of the times when I walked on streets under fear of rioting mobs. This situation has been perhaps best brought out in Mani ratnam's movie Bombay. India has had to witness several riots over the years, for various reasons. The two big ones (1984 and 1992-93) that I witnessed were communal in nature. It is suffice to say that when this communalism raises its ugly head, the melting pot and economic capital of the country, definitely burns....
Then of course is regionalism, a form of discrimination which is not as obvious as the previous two. Even though there is nothing preventing a citizen of India to travel, work or reside in any part of the country, this form of discrimination threatens that very freedom from time to time. I think it is the separation of states based on linguistic majority, that allows for politics that promote this regionalism. The best example of such politics of course is the recent news about comments from politician Raj Thackeray which enraged a lot of North Indians. Yet again it managed to divide a united city of Mumbai.
Today, as a citizen of free India, when I think of the above words I start to think "Are we Indians secular or racist ?". I think its one choice that each of us has to make consciously. I choose to be secular and hope that it is so for the rest of my countrymen.
The constitution of India went on to use adjectives such as "Secular" for the Republic of India. I grew up reading that definition of the Indian Republic in our text books. However as I grew up and understood the society around me a little better and beyond the text books, I started wondering whether we really are secular people.
It was interesting to note how passionately all the "fairness" creams market themselves on television. Some even talk about reducing 'Melanin' from the skin. My high school science text book talked about the same pigment as an essential ingredient in protecting the human skin against harm from Sun. This means that people living in Tropics naturally ought to have more of it. Yet the overwhelming number of products that claim to reduce the effects of this pigment is surprising. But there should obviously be a good reason why it is so?
The reason, i guess, is our fascination with fair skin. I am not very sure what the roots of this fascination are. It may be due to our colonial past where the English whites were the masters or it may be even the current economic dominance of the Americas and Europe - again areas with largely fairer population. The discrimination based on fair skin is of course not very explicit or rampant as in the past but nevertheless it is present in its own subtle ways.
If the dictionary definition of racism may be extended then, the diversity in India brings in a few more flavours of the same. The English dictionary of course has separate names for these flavours such as casteism, communalism, regionalism. For me though these are simply different flavours of everything wrong that racism stands for.
At the most granular level is Casteism. This is one form of discrimination which is the most Legal everywhere. Indian has several different castes and a history of several centuries of discrimination based on castes. Given this history it is one form of discrimination which should perhaps be banned and it is. However the very constitution which defines India as secular, leaves wide and deliberate gaps to allow discrimination based on caste. This gap is called "Reservation". Reservation for the backward castes in education and jobs. A welcome move 60 years ago when India got its independence and this discrimination was rampant. It was hailed as one move that will present opportunity to the "backward" classes of the society move ahead be seen as equal with rest of India.
60 years is a long period. Most of the first few babies born in independent India have now retired from their jobs. Some have become grand parents. Two generations have come into being since. One would have expected that the equality of castes would now be well established. Yet it remains a problem ingrained in our society. In some parts of India like the remote villages of the underdeveloped states, I would view the lack of political will that manages to divide the society based on this "caste" mentality. On the other hand in metropolitan cities like Mumbai, its the legal "Reservation" that promotes this divide.
For 15 years of my childhood I viewed my classmates as friends and fellow students. We all respected each other for our abilities and strengths and helped each other overcome weaknesses. But when it was time to secure admission to the best education institutes after school - I came face to face with "reservation". Separate admission list for the "Reserved" and "General" category. I was left wondering - we all grew up in similar neighbourhoods, we all went to similar schools, we all gave the same exam, and we all worked hard to get our grades,then why these separate lists? That question of course has several debates and answers in favour and against. For me though this question marked the introduction to casteism and the feeling of being discriminated against - even when I myself never discriminated against anyone. The biggest disappointment was, not that there was discrimination, but the fact that it was all legal. The children of the poor and underprivileged have to struggle hard to get educated. This struggle is theirs to face, and it is so, irrespective of the caste they belong to. Yet the outdated basis of "reservation" continues to be. It begs the question,"Is caste discrimination Legal in India ?" I think this question will continue to have an ambiguous answer for some time to come.
If casteism was not enough to divide the society, then there is another form of discrimination which comes to haunt us. Perhaps in a worst way then it should. That is communalism - specifically based on religion. While I take pride to say that India is home to followers of most religions available in the world, its sad that this difference is sometimes the cause of unnecessary turmoil. This word reminds me of the times when I walked on streets under fear of rioting mobs. This situation has been perhaps best brought out in Mani ratnam's movie Bombay. India has had to witness several riots over the years, for various reasons. The two big ones (1984 and 1992-93) that I witnessed were communal in nature. It is suffice to say that when this communalism raises its ugly head, the melting pot and economic capital of the country, definitely burns....
Then of course is regionalism, a form of discrimination which is not as obvious as the previous two. Even though there is nothing preventing a citizen of India to travel, work or reside in any part of the country, this form of discrimination threatens that very freedom from time to time. I think it is the separation of states based on linguistic majority, that allows for politics that promote this regionalism. The best example of such politics of course is the recent news about comments from politician Raj Thackeray which enraged a lot of North Indians. Yet again it managed to divide a united city of Mumbai.
Today, as a citizen of free India, when I think of the above words I start to think "Are we Indians secular or racist ?". I think its one choice that each of us has to make consciously. I choose to be secular and hope that it is so for the rest of my countrymen.
Thursday, November 22, 2007
Black Friday 2007 Thanksgiving High End 17" laptops Comparison
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I've been at it last 24hrs non-stop trying to get the best high end laptop deals. By now I am sure I have covered all the stores and checked all reviews thoroughly. My conclusion is: No in-store offers a great deal for high end laptops or In other words the online deals at websites of HP,IBM,Dell,Toshiba,Sony etcetera are better than what is in store. Guess it makes sense too, Black Friday was always meant for the low end to average buyer.
Here's what I am looking for: Large display (17" plus) + Good processor (A Duo Core T7500-2.2Ghz or T7300-2.0Ghz)
RAM: minimal (1G) why? coz buying unbundled RAM is always Cheaper
OS: Any windows is fine...they can always be topped up with whatever is missing.
HDD: 160G alteast if single slot or 80G
Optical Drive: DVD writer
price: 1000-1300 D
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