February 5, 2012

How We Used Shares of Coca-Cola to Teach My Youngest Sister About Investing (and Why the Cycle of Consumption and Financial Stress Starts as a Teenager for Most Americans)

Coca-Cola Direct Stock Purchase Plan and Coca-Cola Dividend Reinvestment Plan or Coke DRIP Literature

When I was a senior in high school, I bought my youngest sister, who was first grader at the time, a single share of Coca-Cola common stock for her 6th birthday.  I had it framed with an engraving of the first part of Deuteronomy 8:18 placed under it, "You shall remember the Lord your God, for it is he who gives you power to get wealth". I registered the ownership as a uniform gift to minors, naming our father as the trustee.  He and my mom decided to have $50 each month taken out of their … [Read more...]

Sun Trust Bank and the Coca-Cola Stock

Coca-Cola and the SunTrust Bank Underwriting Fee

I'm reading the Sun Trust annual report and I realized that many, if not most, of you are probably unaware of the Sun Trust connection to Coca-Cola and how it gave rise to one of the greatest investments in history.  (As many of you know, we used the Coca-Cola direct stock purchase plan and dividend reinvestment plan to teach my youngest sister about stocks when she was a child.) When Coca-Cola went public in 1919, the underwriting was handled by two institutions, one connected to J.P. … [Read more...]

The Joy of Cash Dividends

General Electric Stock Certificate Framed

Over the years, I've written a lot about dividends on the Investing for Beginners site at About.com.  In fact, over the past few years it has been one of my absolute favorite topics to cover because through the Great Recession of 2007-2009, those who owned a collection of high quality dividends stocks were better able to ignore market fluctuations and avoid selling their ownership to pay their household bills. It isn't an infrequent thing I'll hear people opine, "yeah, but who has money … [Read more...]

How One of My Family Members Used Shares of U.S. Bancorp to Build Substantial Wealth

U.S. Bancorp Stock

A member of my close family has been using a technique to build substantial wealth that doesn't require a high income or any specialized knowledge, extra work, or effort.  I was so impressed by the way he implemented this program, I thought I would share it with my other family and friends (as well as anyone else who reads my blog) without giving away who it is. Each month, he has a house payment of approximately $1,500, payable to U.S. Bank.  He decided that instead of making an extra $300 … [Read more...]

The Basics of Dollar Cost Averaging

Dollar Cost Averaging Stock Investments

Dollar cost averaging is an investing technique that can lower your risk, increase your profits, make market volatility less emotionally painful, and help put you on the road to financial independence.  When combined with asset allocation, it's a nearly unstoppable force that can grow your wealth far beyond what you ever imagined.  This guide to dollar cost averaging for new investors was created to explain why this technique works and how you can implement it into your own portfolio. What … [Read more...]