Buying One Share of Stock
Buying one share of stock doesn't make any sense if you want to make money, but it might be fun just for kicks if you are new to investing and can't afford to make a real investment.
Why is Buying One Share of Stock Pointless?
First of all, buying one share of stock will never show you a profit worth talking about. If you own one share of a $30 stock and it doubles in price (which is a HUGE accomplishment) then you just made $30; big whoop. Actually, you didn't even really make $30 because buying one share of stock still costs as much in commissions as buying 100 shares of stock (of course there are slight differences between brokers). Take the following situation for example. Your broker (most likely an online stock broker) charges $12 per trade. This means it will cost $12 to make a trade whether the trade consists of 1 share, 50 shares, or 200 shares (again, each broker will be slightly different). So lets go back to that $30 stock you want to buy. In this example, the total cost for buying one share of stock is: $30 (stock) + $12 (commission) = $42 total for the trade. This means that just to break even your $30 stock will have to increase by $12... that is a whopping 40% increase! In this case, it is unlikely that you will even be able to break even. Not only that, but if you even get a chance to see any profit, it will be very small. So from an investing point of view, buying one share of stock is pointless. But it can still be fun...
Buying One Share of Stock Can Be Fun Though!
If you are new to investing then it can be a fun experience to finally own your first stock. It can be quite a thrill to own your first piece of one of America's most successful companies. I'm sure many people dream of owning their own business, and with stocks, everybody can own part of a business. I highly suggest to every single American citizen to take advantage of the great opportunities that exist every day within our country's stock market. If you want that experience, and if buying one share of stock is all that you can afford, then by all means - go for it!
Have fun investing!