Are you intrigued by the idea of growing your wealth through making strategic stock investment choices? Do you also find the entire process of picking and investing stocks overly complex?

If so, you’re not alone. Making stock market investments is a fantastic way of increasing your capital passively, but it can also be difficult to approach if you’re doing it blindly. 

Fortunately, times have changed. Gone are the days when investing was handled solely on the backs of investment bankers and savvy traders. 

Students, professionals, and everyone in between can easily start their trading journey thanks to the proliferation of accessible stock exchanges, tools, and resources. 

As long as you have money you’re willing to invest in, you can start growing a stock market portfolio.

But before you get too excited, it’s important to take a step back and plan out your approach. It’s all too common for novice investors to hastily rush into the investment process and make investments that aren’t fit for them. This could backfire and lose them a lot of money along the way.

With that said, if you’re keen on making more sound investment decisions, we got you. This article will provide you with some expert tips on building a money-generating stock investment portfolio.

Let’s dive right into it!

Set Clear Investment Goals

The first thing you must do before diving into the stock investing world is to set quantifiable and time-sensitive objectives. 

Anyone can say they want to “earn more money”, but if your execution is as vague as that sentiment, then it’s unlikely that you’ll go far unless you’re lucky—and even then luck can run out.

So as much as possible, develop a clear plan of action regarding your investment strategy. Don’t just whimsically choose the day’s most well-performing stock option without knowing why you’re doing it or when to exit.

That said, don’t be dissuaded from investing if you don’t have a strong reason either. 

Students who are eager to learn about investing can experiment with different stock portfolio allocations and see first-hand how it works. 

They can start with little amounts of money and can use this as practical experience. This can be a great way to learn how to invest—and it can be profitable too.

Conversely, if you’re a professional with a stable career, then that’s reason enough to put some capital in the stock market. Stocks historically tend to grow over the years, so having a portfolio that’s continuously being adjusted for years can be profitable in the long run.

But ultimately, you need a goal. Drill how much you want and what year you aim to have it by. 

By being mindful of your current financial situation and coming up with a viable investment goal, you can propel a plan into motion, increasing your chances of receiving more fruitful outcomes down the line.

Assess Your Risk Tolerance

Another crucial variable you must consider before stock investing is figuring out your risk tolerance. How far are you willing to commit yourself to a certain stock or fund, even in the face of risk?

A certain demographic of people—particularly students, dependents, and folks with loads of cash to spare—can afford to go aggressive at the start. They either have a safety net or a lack of serious financial responsibilities that would completely uproot their financial health.

Conversely, breadwinners, parents, retirees, and business owners are generally more conservative on how their investment behaviour. They can tolerate slow growth as long as it doesn’t risk their capital.

How far you’re willing to invest in the stock market wholly hinges on your circumstances. Are you willing to go aggressive with options? Play it safe with bonds? Or fall somewhere in between?

If you’re new, you generally want to tread on the safe side first. 

Stick with a stock from a blue-chip company that you trust will perform well (based on fundamental and technical factors, more on this in a moment). Then, venture into other stocks and bond types when your feet are planted on the ground. 

Choose the Right Stock Exchange

There are dozens of stock exchanges that feature thousands of public companies that you can put your money into. The most dominant one is the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), boasting a market capitalisation of $25 trillion. NASDAQ is another common one in the US.

Besides that, there are many notable smaller exchanges too. The Australian Securities Exchange is an Australian exchange that has a respectable market cap that also hovers above the $1 trillion mark.

Other developed countries have their own stock exchanges that list local companies too. The Shanghai Stock Exchange, Tokyo Stock Exchange, Euronext, and London Stock Exchange are some exchanges that breach the $1-trillion mark in market capitalisation. 

Each of these stock exchanges can be run on platforms online or handled by investment managers. These platforms list companies and their current graph indicators, like WBC ASX.

A rule of thumb is to pick your local stock exchange as a start. Australians, for instance, can choose to invest in the ASX. This way, you can support your local industries and gain dividend income. 

It’s also usually easier to access information immediately regarding company movements that can affect your stock investing behaviour.

Analyse Your Stock Picks Wisely

Choosing a stock to invest in is ultimately a personal decision, but arguably the best approach is to harness the potency of proven investment techniques: technical analysis and fundamental analysis.

Technical analysis (TA) uses statistical trends from trading activity to predict future market behaviour. These trends analyse price movements, trading volume, and other indicators to make parameter-based decisions on the right action to take regarding a specific stock.

Fundamental analysis (FA) looks beyond the market behaviour and evaluates the company’s financial health and intrinsic factors. It assesses the earnings, market position, management, revenue, debt, and other factors found in income statements.

Informing yourself through both these forms of analyses can give you a comprehensive overview of what stocks are good to pick. Following this habit for multiple other stocks can pave the way for a solid stock market portfolio.

Diversify To Different Fields

A cornerstone principle in stock market investing is diversification. This principle, as the term implies, involves the dispersion of stock investment choices across various industries, risk levels, and exchanges to mitigate risk and capitalise on market opportunities.

By investing in a stock in multiple sectors, you can ride the growth wave of each one accordingly—whether it’s technology, finance, healthcare, mining, or other popular stock options. Diversifying also cushions you against market volatility in one sector.

When you’re building a stock market investment portfolio, you should consider getting growth stocks, value stocks, and dividend-paying stocks as the foundation. 

Avoid getting multiples of each—while this action can reap good results at times, down days can be especially bad if your sector is affected. 

Continuously Monitor and Adjust Your Portfolio

Once you’ve invested in a single stock, you shouldn’t leave it there for all eternity. You should constantly monitor and evaluate whether it’s hitting the performance metrics you want it to reach.

Market conditions and company performances change frequently, and your portfolio’s value will evolve and react to these new dynamics. If you’re unsure how to monitor, take a look at company news and see any developments. 

Are they scaling or downsizing? Are revenues higher than in past quarters? Is there a change in management? New market sentiments?

Keep abreast of these conditions to inform you whether your investment is still worthwhile. Furthermore, also check the technical side and perform financial ratios like P/E, EPS, and dividend payouts to determine whether share prices are on the upswing or downswing.

While market dynamics may change, you should always prioritise reaching your goals and adjusting whenever the time or situation calls for it. This way, you can navigate the stock market successfully.

Good luck investing!