Manipulation. Especially when there are few or only one market maker, penny stocks are susceptible to price manipulation. A common and easy manipulation is for a broker-dealer to gather a large holding of a penny stock at a very low price.
Speculative stocks aren't for the faint of heart. However, it remains true that penny stocks do make investors rich. They remain one of the quickest ways to multiply an investor's capital. If you can get past limited disclosures and liquidity issues, real money can be made by investing in penny stocks.
At best, penny stock companies are unproven and small, with dubious long-term prospects for success; at worst, the penny stocks are vehicles that con artists use to take advantage of unsuspecting investors. Many penny stocks are traded so cheaply because the businesses behind them aren't worth much more than that.
They may look cheap compared to popular stocks such as Amazon or Apple, but often they're much more expensive, despite their lower price tag. Penny stocks are among the market's most dangerous stocks, so you may pay a much greater price than you first expect, including potentially losing all of your investment.
Penny stocks tend to be high-risk — in part because of their low price, which means a price swing of a few cents can make up a significant proportion of its value.
Once you get your money working for you, it can grow quickly even if you aren't investing a lot. Investing $1 a day can turn into tens of thousands of dollars over a long period of time. You can get started by opening a brokerage account and researching low-cost index funds.
They can rebound emphatically when heavily shorted, rewarding those who invest judiciously during their undervalued phases. Amidst market volatility, investors, eager for robust returns, are increasingly drawn to these dynamic penny stocks.
Can penny stocks make you rich? Although penny stocks have some great attributes, they are not right for everyone. These stocks truly can turn a small amount of capital into a huge sum of money pretty fast, but can just as quickly wipe that investment out.
“Even small, consistent investments like $10 can lead to significant growth in the long run, thanks to the magic of compound interest,” said Baruch Silvermann, financial expert and CEO of The Smart Investor.
(NASDAQ: AAPL). Apple wasn't always one of the largest tech companies in the world. In fact, hardly anyone knew about the company and its products for years. Back in the early 2000s, AAPL traded for under 80 cents per share — a legit penny stock.
It's rare for a penny stock to be a long-term buy-and-hold investment. The sector is built on short-term trades. If you notch a sizeable gain over a short period, book it now rather than waiting for bigger profits that may never materialize.
In addition to Tesla, Microsoft Corp (NASDAQ:MSFT), Amazon.com Inc (NASDAQ:AMZN) and NVIDIA Corp (NASDAQ:NVDA) are among the top stocks hedge funds and Wall Street analysts are buying.
The Bottom Line. Penny stocks are extremely volatile and speculative by nature. As most trade on OTC exchanges or via pink sheets, where listing standards are lax, penny stocks are susceptible to manipulation and fraud.
Making money in the stock market sounds like a dream come true, and for most traders, it's just that: a dream. Unless your name is Jack Kellog, the 24-year-old who achieved $8 million in gains from day trading in 2020 and 2021.
Contributing $50 a month to an investment account can help create impressive savings, even at a moderate 5% annual growth. It's a common myth that you need a few thousand dollars to begin investing.
$10 a week for 10 years
Since there are 520 weeks in a 10-year period, you would eventually have $5,200 to spend. However, if you invest that same $10 per week for 520 weeks, and that investment earns an average return of 7%, your savings will grow to $7,129.
Some companies, such as Amazon (AMZN) originated as penny stocks but later grew into sizable blue-chip companies.
Some professionals recommend that you devote no more than 10% of your individual stock holdings to penny stocks. It's also important to understand your risk tolerance. Generally speaking, the higher your risk tolerance, the more equipped you are to take on the risk that can come with investing in penny stocks.
Sure, some penny stocks turned out to be massive success stories, like Apple, Ford Motor, and Monster Beverage.
Penny stocks are shares in companies that trade for less than $5. They are often very illiquid, meaning they don't trade often. As volume declines, fewer traders are willing to take a chance on companies trading for a few dollars, or worse, pennies and the stocks can often go to zero for lack of interest.
Penny stocks have been a thorn in the side of the SEC for some time. That's because the lack of available information and poor liquidity make micro-cap stocks an easy target for fraudsters. There are many scams used to separate investors from their money.