My starting stock picks

Okay, I invested $2500 this morning. Here are my picks:

Name                # Shares   Price Each    Total Paid
Corning (GLW)             70       $10.09       $706.30
General Electric (GE)     30        $6.66       $199.80
Microsoft (MSFT)         100       $15.27      $1527.00
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TOTAL                                          $2432.60

I can’t sound like a pro, so I won’t even try. :)

I wish I could afford more.

I picked Corning because I think it’s like Proctor & Gamble in the way that it’s integrated throughout our lives. I picked GE because I’ve read it’s a sound company and in no danger of disappearing anytime soon. Microsoft was a more personal decision based on the fact that I am a C# software developer. (C# is a Microsoft product.) Being a software developer of 17 years, I’ve seen everything the big companies have to offer and actually had my hands in it. I’ve used products by Sun, Oracle, and Microsoft, as well as many other small companies like Borland, and Microsoft not only makes a fantastic product, but they’ve got a huge share of the desktop scene. Yes, I know Linux is making ground, but there is no way Linux is going to replace Microsoft anytime soon on granny’s desktop.

So those are my picks. I feel like these are all safe bets for the long term. I think I am going to take a gamble with some cheaper, riskier stocks. I’ll post those soon as well.