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Because of its relative unpredictability and therefore inherent possibility for hugereturns, the stock market is one of the most popular investment decisions among privateinvestors. The stock market’s constant fluctuation empowers investors with a multitudeof opportunities for substantial profits.This possibility of high returns and theunpredictability of the market are enticing to excitable investors, however with wisedecision-making, the stock market can be a stable, long-term investment opportunity aswell.2.2 BondsBonds are a loan, granted by the investor (“the holder”), to a corporation orindividual (“the issuer”, usually the government).The loan agreement includes aspecified amount of time, after which the bond is said to “mature.” A specified amountof interest is aggregated semi-annuallyduring the time before the bond matures, afterwhich no further interest is accrued. Once the bond has matured, the holder can cash thebond and regain the principle plus accrued interest. The holder usually cannot “cash” thebond before the time it matures without facing a penalty, often resulting in an overall lossfor the investor.Due to their guaranteed ROI, bonds are stable assets in an investor’s portfolio.Investors may also choose to invest in “bond funds,” where a third party broker invests inthe bonds of many companies.The private investor takes a stake in the principleinvestments made by the broker, and receives a portion of the earnings along with theirprinciple. Bond funds can be a more profitable choice for private investors because a14

brokerage can often negotiate the interest of a bond to a higher rate than would beavailable for a private investor.Because of bonds’ stability, guaranteed ROI, andbecause they are unaffected by the stock market,bonds are popular as long-terminvestments, and during uncertain financial times.2.3Certificates of DepositCertificates of deposit (informally referred to as “CDs” or “CODs”) areinvestments made in banks or credit unions in the form of a long-term savings account.A COD works very much in the same way a bond does. The investor loans a bank aprinciple amount, on which the bank pays interest. Like a bond, the investor collects theprinciple and interest when the COD matures.Certificates of deposit have traditionally been a virtually risk-free, guaranteed(they are insured by the FDIC), long-term investment opportunity. CODs are, however,susceptible to interest-rate fluctuations (in variable-interest rate CODs), and inflation.Because many CODs are investments made over many years, the intrinsic value of theprinciple plus interest may not exceed the value of the principal upon maturation due toinflation and poor interest rates. Despite this, most certificates of deposit are a secure,stable, long-term investment opportunity.15

2.4Mutual FundsMutual Funds are an investment in a fund, managed by a fund manager, which isinvested in many different small investments. The fund manager trades these smallinvestments regularly, generating a return for the fund principle. The investors are paid aportion of this return.The value of a mutual fund is determined by it’s net asset value(NAV), or the combined worth of the fund’s holdings (the fund’s investment portfolio).Mutual Funds are usually a medium-risk, medium-return investment. Due to theirprofessional management, mutual funds are an easy opportunity for inexperiencedinvestors. The most common type of mutual fund is an “equity fund” which is comprisedentirely of stock investments. Because of their dependence on the stock market, mutualfunds are riskier than CODs, however they often lead to greater yield.16

3. Stock Market Trading Strategies3.1 Day TradingDay trading is the strategy of buying and trading a stock within the same day.Day trading is a very fast‐paced investment strategy, relying on quick, oftenemotional, decisions from the investor. Day trading relies on the daily fluctuation ofstock values. Investors hope to ideally buy stock at its lowest value that day,sell itlater that day at its peak value, and earn the difference. Day traders do not care asmuch about what company they are buying stock in, only on that stock’s potentialfor growth that day. There are many subtle strategies to day trading, along with akeen sense for stocks that are about to gain value, that make an investor successful.Because of the rapid pace of day trading, it has a notorious reputation forhuge returns, as well as huge losses. Many single investors make millions of dollarsper year solely with a day trading strategy, though this kind of return requires anexperienced investor willing to take significant risks. Day trading can be so riskythat, with a series of poor decisions, an investor can loose their entire workingcapital in one day.With the popularity of the Internet, many investors can make day tradingtransactions from their homes. These investors use websites that offer tradingservices for a small fee. This has led to a rise in personal investors employing a daytrading strategy. Day trading was further investigated in the investment simulation.17

3.2 Swing TradingSwing Trading is the strategy of trading at the peaks of price oscillation overa period of a few days or weeks. This strategy is more involved than Day Trading,requiring an investor with a watchfuleye and a thorough understanding of thecompany they are investing in. The investor must determine when the best time tosell and buy a stock is, based on recent fluctuation activity, news, and the investor’sintuition. Swing trading involves research into different markets, and into whatmakes investors excited about a company. In the case of Apple, investors areexcited by new product releases and tech‐related conferences that showcase newApple technologies. Usually these events will have a direct impact on the price ofApple stock. An investor can utilize the events’ impacts to make a profit. A swingtrader must be able to anticipate the changes of upcoming and current events to theprice of a stock, and employ that information to make educated purchasingdecisions.Due to the amount of research involved, swing trading is usually a less riskystrategy than day trading. Day trading focuses on current growth and fluctuation,whereas swing trading profits off underlying trends in a stocks’ price. Swing tradingcan involve investments lasting a few days, weeks or even months. The flexibilitypresented with a swing trading simulation made it ideal for this short investmentsimulation.18

4. Simulated Investments and Their Results4.1 Goals and StrategiesThe primary goal of this simulation was to gain a better understanding ofpersonal investment opportunities.The financial goal set for this simulated 100,000 investment was a return of at least 4,000 over the span of 3 weeks. Thisrequired an average total gain of at least 200 per day.For this investment simulation a swing‐trading scheme was chosen becauseof its potential for gain within a short time period. A Day Trading scheme was alsoemployed in order to better understand the subtleties that make it profitable. Othertrading strategies were out of the financial scope and timeframe of this simulation.Seven companies were chosen for the swing trading simulation. They werechosen based on a deep understanding of the goods and services they offer, as wellas their reputation in their respective domains. Specific companies were not chosenfor the day trading simulation. Instead the focus was only on the short‐term growthof the stock’s value.4.2 Company Profiles4.2.1 Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)Apple Inc. designs, manufactures, and markets personal computers, portablemusic players, and cell phones [3]. They also sell a variety of software, computeraccessories, and computer training services. Since its inception in 1977, Apple has19

been a leading maker of consumer electronics and personal computers.Thecompany struggled in the late 1990’s with diminished sales, though with theintroduction of the iPod brand mp3 player in 2001, it was re‐established as a leaderin the consumer electronics market. Since its introduction, there have been over151,000,000 [4] iPods sold worldwide, dominating the mp3 player market. Applecomputers’ market share continues to climb, and record sales are consistentlyrecorded every quarter. Apple is notorious for having very avid fans of theirproducts. Fans will often line up outside an Apple store hours, or even days, beforeit opens to be the first to purchase the latest Apple gear.Figure 1: Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) Year To Date Price Chart4.2.2 Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ:MSFT)Microsoft Corp. designs, produces, and markets the Windows operating system, alibrary of consumer software titles, video‐game consoles, consumer electronics, anda modest computer peripheral selection.Bill Gates, among others, founded20

Microsoft in 1975 with the intent of creating a consumer‐oriented computeroperating system. Microsoft Windows is currently used by over 85% of personalcomputers worldwide, [6] however the rise in popularity of Apple computers iscausing a steady decline in Windows market share. Microsoft looks to their newWindows 7 operating system to entice consumers to switch back to Windows.Microsoft has also run a specifically anti‐Apple ad campaign, looking to expose someof the benefits of using Windows over Apple’s Macintosh computers.Figure 19: Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ:MSFT) Year To Date Price ChartMicrosoft’s Xbox 360 continues to be a strong competitor in the video‐gameconsole market. The Xbox 360 holds a steady second place in overall sales in the US(behind Nintendo’s Wii console) [5], and a strong reputation as a significant gamingplatform.Microsoft Office, a suite of business software, has been extremelyprofitable, contributing to the company’s consistent growth.21

4.2.3 Raytheon Company (NYSE:RTN)Raytheon is a major American military contractor that manufactures defensesystems and defense electronics.Raytheon was established in Cambridge,Massachusetts in 1922 and is currently headquartered in Waltham, Massachusetts.It is currently the world’s largest producer of guided missiles, [7] including the MIM‐104 Patriot cruise missile, which played a significant role in the Persian Gulf War.Raytheon also manufactures air traffic control systems, radar systems, satellite andcommunications systems, radioactive materials detection systems, semiconductors,missiledefense systems, and hi‐tech training simulators. Raytheon’s broad scope ofproducts and their wide use throughout the military generate billions of dollars inrevenue for this defense giant.Figure 3: Raytheon Company (NYSE:RTN) Year To Date Price Chart22

4.2.4 Google Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG)GoogleInc. is the provider of the leading Internet search service of the samename.It also provides email, mapping, office productivity, and video sharingservices. Google Inc. was founded by two students at Stanford University in1998,with the goal “to organize the worlds information and make it universally accessibleand useful. [9]” It has been listed as the #1 place to work by Fortune Magazine[8]and is notorious for pursuing unique approaches to productivity and workplaceatmosphere. Google continues to be a leader in web‐application research and websearch research. Google has consistently grown and expanded to become one of thecountry’s largest and most profitable businesses.23

Figure 4: Google Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) Year To Date Price Chart4.2.5 Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ: ERTS)Electronic Arts is a leading producer, designer, and distributor of videogames. Electronic Arts (informally “EA”) was started in 1982 and was a pioneer inthe consumer computer game market. EA has created some of the most well‐knownand longest‐running game franchises, such as Need for Speed, Medal of Honor, TheSims, and Battlefield.The Madden NFL football game series has consistently been thebest‐selling videogame of the past few years, and retains an exclusive license for allNFL team names, logos, and players. Despite their fairly dismal sales last year, EA is24

bouncing back with more blockbuster titles, such as Rock Band, further contributingto EA’s multi‐billion dollar yearly revenue.Figure 5: Electronic Arts Inc (NASDAQ:ERTS) Year To Date Price Chart4.2.6 NVIDIA Corp. (NASDAQ:NVDA)NVIDIA Corp. designs graphics processing units for personal computers,workstations, and video‐game consoles.NVIDIA was founded in 1993 as acompetitor to the popular 3dfx brand graphics cards that dominated the computergraphics market of the mid‐to‐late 1990’s. In 2000, NVIDIA acquired 3dfx andbecame one of the top graphics card manufacturers along with rival ATI. NVIDIA’sGeForce chipset line has been very successful in the consumer graphics card market,outselling competitive ATI models.NVIDIA’s Quadro series is popular withcomputer aided design (CAD) workstations and professional graphics applications.NVIDIA continues to push the boundaries of computer graphics, creating some ofthe most advanced graphics processors in the world. Their bleeding‐edge consumer25

products have driven NVIDIA’s success, generating consistently escalating multi‐billion dollar annual revenue.Figure 6: NVIDIA Corp. (NASDAQ:NVDA) Year To Date Price Chart4.2.7 Intel Corp. (NASDAQ:INTC)Intel is the world’s most profitable computer processor manufacturer. Intelwas founded in 1968, and has been a leading pioneer in computer hardwaredevelopment. Their “Intel Inside” marketing campaign in the 1990’s has made thema household name. Intel’s Pentium brand processors continue to be some of themost powerful consumer processors available. Apple computers transitioned fromthe in‐house developed “PowerPC” processor to Intel’s “Core 2 Duo” line ofprocessors in 2005, adding to Intel’s already strong laptop processor market share.Intel also manufactures flash memory used in USB thumb drives and computersolid‐state disk drives. Despite declined sales due to the recent economic crisis,26

Intel continues to outsell rival AMD and support their reputation as a significantcomputer hardware manufacturer.Figure 7: Intel Corp. (NASDAQ:INTC) Year To Date Price Chart4.2.8 Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (NYSE:AMD)Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) is a manufacturer of computer processors.AMD is the second‐largest global supplier of consumer computer processors, afterIntel. AMD was founded in 1969 with a reverse‐engineered clone of the popularIntel 8080 microprocessor. Since then, AMD’s processors have grown in popularity.AMD’s recent developments have mainly been oriented towards the mobile‐computing market. AMD’s Turionprocessors have been especially popular in themobile‐computing market. In 2006, AMD acquired ATI, the second largest graphicsprocessor company in the hopes of uniting the GPU and CPU into one chip. AMD is asignificant competitor in the mobile‐processing market, and continues to grow.27

Figure 8: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (NYSE:AMD) Year To Date Price Chart4.2.9 Yahoo! Inc. (NASDAQ:YHOO)Yahoo! Inc. is a web‐based company known for its search engine, email,news, web‐portal, and other services. Yahoo! Inc. was incorporated in 1995 andquickly became a household internet brand name. Yahoo! provides many consumerservices including email, IM and SMS messaging. Yahoo! is also a major aggregatorof news and finance information, and a pioneer in web‐application research.Yahoo!’s search feature was recently bought out by Microsoft, and is said to bereplaced with Microsoft’s new Bing search service in the near future. Yahoo!’swebsite receives over 1.575 billion visitors annually, with 3.4 billion page views perday, making it the second most visited website in the world[10].28

Figure 9: Yahoo! Inc. (NASDAQ:YHOO) Year To Date Price Chart4.3 Simulation 1: Swing Trading4.3.1 Week 1: June 17 – June 26, 2009This first week begins on Wednesday, June 17th and ends on Friday, June 26th.I combined the first half a week with the first full week, because I didnot havesufficient data to comment on for the first half week.My initial investment consisted of stock in nine companies. I purchasedApple stock in anticipation of the company’s new iPhone 3G‐S launch, at 135.58 pershare. Apple stock has always been considered a good investment because of itsmoderate fluctuation and general growth trend. Despite these benefits, it is veryexpensive stock and therefore quite inaccessible without a significant investment. I29

sold my 100 shares of Apple stock late Friday, June 19th, after the launch of the newiPhone caused a spike in the stock price, for yield of 288.Table 1: AAPL Transactions (June 17 – June 26, 06/17/09AAPLbuy 135.58100 13,568.0006/19/09AAPLsell 138.66100 88.0025,278.50288.00Figure 20: Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) Price Chart (June 9 June 19, 2009)I purchased Microsoft stock on Wednesday, June 17thbecause of the launch ofMicrosoft’s new Bing search service.News of this new launch has instilledconfidence in investors and therefore caused a jump in the stock value. Microsoftstock has shown somewhat stagnant growth, possibly due to the lack of consumerinterest in their new Vista operating system. Despite this, Microsoft stock priceoscillates quite a bit, presenting the possibility of steady profit. I bought 200 shares30

of Microsoft stock at 23.68. Despite the launch of their new search service, thevalue of Microsoft stock declined. I waited for a relative spike in price and sold halfof my Microsoft stock on Tuesday the 24th for a loss of 20.00.Table 2: MSFT Transactions (June 17 – June 26, FTbuy 23.68200 4,746.0006/23/09MSFTsell 23.63100 2,353.00(20.00)48,258.50160.0006/25/09MSFTsell 23.67100 2,357.00(16.00)101,779.201,742.20I bought Google stock because of my confidence in the Google brand and thestock’s recent fluctuation. Google stock is extremely expensive, and like Apple, quite

The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) was the first stock market to be established in the United States, tracing its roots back to 1792. The NYSE is also the largest stock exchange in the world in terms of capital invested. The combined capitalization of all companies