Distinction between investment and speculation

If you invest in a company for dividends, in a sense you buy a part / share of the company. You become an owner of the company and those employed in the company work for you. You invested to get a positive rate on your investment (ROI). Investing in a company that pays dividends is a way to make money in a flat market or a stock that is moving sideways between a floor and a roof.

If you invest in a company because you think the company is undervalued and you assume that the price of its shares will increase, you bet on a price increase. Traders typically do this. Unless they trade exotic products or short the stock, their aim is to buy cheap and sell expensive. By this definition trading is speculation. In other words, you calculate your odds and trade if the odds are on your side. Odds are probabilities.

If you think finance is an exact science like the natural sciences, you should think again. As a trader money management, calculating your risk / reward and a trading system is important. Bandtrading is a technique to make money in a flat, falling and increasing market (where you can replace market with a stock).


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