Investing in Equities is riskier and definitely demands more time than investing in Mutual Funds. However, it can probably be more rewarding than you can imagine and certainly very exciting! Investing in Equity market can be Beneficial.
Why Invest In Equity?
Shares, stocks or equities are basically one and the same thing. Buying a share in a company means buying a portion of the capital of a publically listed company. When an investor buys shares of a company, he practically owns a part of the business of the company. Share prices tend to fluctuate constantly in response to the company’s performance, market scenario and economic environment. Investors buy shares in expectation of an increase in their price in the future. Shares or equities are an extremely popular asset class for investors around the world. Equity markets have historically outperformed every other type of investment and are an attractive way of creating long term wealth by investing in shares of good companies. Share prices of a company tend to increase following the constant revenue and profit. In addition to this capital gain, well performing companies also tend to give dividends to the shareholders out of the profit they make. With the digital revolution online equity trading has become very convenient for the investors.
Investors can buy or sell shares through an agent, commonly referred to as “stock broker”. Investors can simply open an account with the broker and buy/sell shares in a publicly listed company which is listed on any of the major stock exchanges in the country. Opening an account with a broker is a straightforward process and it can be done quickly by submitting documents like ID proof, residence proof and bank details etc. Once an account is opened, an investor can transfer funds according to his convenience and start transacting in shares and other securities like commodities , equity derivatives etc.
What Are Equities/Shares ?
Shares, stocks or equities are basically one and the same thing. Buying a share in a company means buying a fraction of the capital of a publically listed company. When an investor buys shares of a company, he practically owns a part of the business of the company. Share prices tend to fluctuate constantly in response to the company’s performance, market scenario and economic environment. Investors buy shares in expectation of an increase in their price in the future.
Shares or equities are an extremely popular asset class for investors around the world. Equity markets have historically outperformed every other type of investment and are generally held as an attractive way of creating long term wealth by investing in shares of good companies. Share prices of a company tend to increase following the consistent revenue and profit generation and investors who had bought these shares earlier at a lower value tend to benefit as a result. In addition to this capital gain, well performing companies also tend to give dividends to the shareholders out of the profit they make.
Since equities don’t pay a fixed interest rate, they don’t offer guaranteed income. Hence, with equities comes the risk factor. There are various risks involved in equity investment that affects your returns such as changes in economic environment namely, changes in interest rates, inflation, market risks to name a few. While investment in equities is not risk-free because of various risk factors, being regulated by Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) you can be sure that there is no counterparty risk.