This article was updated on January 9, 2021
This article will discuss how you can buy Apple shares in 2021, and other big names like Amazon.
For anybody looking to invest, especially from countries where it is hard to buy directly, you can contact me on this form, email me (advice@adamfayed.com) or use the WhatsApp function below.
You should consider the benefits of buying funds, including index funds, over individual shares, and the reason why investing for yourself doesn’t work for emotional reasons.
Introduction:
Shares – A ‘Share’ is a term used to represent a fraction of a company or a financial structure. It is used to represent a unit of capital in a company that belongs to a shareholder (a person who owns a share). When a person buys a share in a company, they become part-owner of that company.
When a company is sold, each individual shareholder is paid off with the current market price of the shares after any remaining debts of the company are paid off. Any of the profits obtained by the company are paid to the shareholders known as ‘Dividends’.
When a share is bought by a person and the price of the respective share increases, then the individual can sell that share for the current price and obtain profits from it, which is called as ‘Capital Gains’. The collection of shares in a company can be called as ‘Stock’.
Shares can be traded with the help of a financial facility known as ‘Stock Exchange’. With the help of these stock exchanges, individuals can buy or sell assets such as shares of the companies that are listed in them.
How to invest in shares:
A person cannot directly approach a stock exchange and trade with stocks. However, people can make an investment in shares in many ways. Let us take a look at a few examples of the methods through which people can be able to invest in shares.
The methods for trading with shares are primarily classified into two types. They are: 1.) Exchange Floor Trading and 2.) Electronic Trading.
Exchange Floor Trading – This is the type of trading that can generally be observed in movies where a group of people are seen working in an office making calls and trading in the stocks on behalf of the actual investor. Any person who is willing to make trade calls the broker and tells them on which respective stock they are willing to trade. The broker sends a clerk with that information to a trader. Upon the agreement from the trader, the individual is able to acquire the shares. This type of process is a complex process.
Electronic Trading – The second and very popular as well as easy process is Electronic Trading, which is also known by the name of Online Trading. With the help of Online brokerage Firms, people are able to trade with the shares without having to rely on the screams and shouts of the broker as discussed in the previous method.
Brokerage Account – First and foremost, they can invest in shares with the help of an online broker by creating a brokerage account. Brokerage accounts are the types of accounts that let the individuals buy, hold, or sell the assets with the help of an account. These assets, which are usually traded with the help of a Brokerage account are deposited into or debited from a ‘Demat Account’.
Brokerage accounts can be opened within a short period of time. Nowadays, many online brokers are available for individuals who offer a lot of benefits.
Process of opening a Brokerage Account – While creating an online brokerage account, there are some specific requirements such as a social security number, employment information, Bank Details, etc. Once after getting all the necessary documents ready, there a few steps to create an online brokerage account. These steps are given below:
- First and the very important step while creating an online brokerage account is selecting the online broker. After selecting a specific online broker, an individual has to open the website of the brokerage.
- After opening the website, the individual has to select the “Open an account” option and after that, the person has to select an “individual brokerage account”. After that, the person has to provide information such as Name, Address, Date of Birth, social security, etc.
- After successfully submitting the necessary information, the person can be able to add their bank details and make an initial deposit. Some online brokers require a minimum deposit and therefore it is better to make a deposit with a separate bank account instead of the general bank of the person.
The transfer for the initial deposit might take somewhere around 3 – 7 days and upon successful transfer, the person is notified via email or a phone call.
- That’s it!!! The process for creating an online brokerage account is completed. The investor can be able to make an investment with the help of their brokerage account.
How to buy Apple Shares:
Apple Inc. – Apple is a famous multinational tech company that manufactures mobile phones, laptops, other electronic accessories, and software. It was founded in the year 1976 by three people namely, ‘Steve Jobs’, ‘Steve Wozniak’, and ‘Ronald Wayne’. The headquarters of this company is located in ‘Cupertino, California, United States’.
Apple is a company that always stands first when it comes to the invention of the latest gadgets. Many companies try to beat the performance of Apple when it comes to sales but whenever a new model mobile phone or a laptop with the latest tech features becomes available from Apple, all their efforts become useless.
As per the statistics of 2019, the financial information of Apple Inc. is as follows:
The revenue of Apple Inc. is ‘$260.17 billion’.
Operating Income was estimated to be ‘$63.93 billion’.
The overall income was estimated to be ‘$55.25 billion’.
The assets underlying the company were estimated to be ‘$338.51 billion’.
The total equities of the company were estimated to be ‘$90.48 billion’.
The total number of retail stores of Apple in 2020 is 510 located in 25 countries, out of which, 271 stores are based in the United States, and the remaining 239 stores are located all around the world in different locations. This includes the stores that are temporarily closed for renovation or expansion and does not include the stores that have been closed permanently. The number of employees working for Apple is estimated to be around 137,000.
Apple shares are traded as ‘NASDAQ: AAPL’ with the help of baskets of securities ‘NASDAQ – 100 component’, ‘DJIA component’, ‘S&P 100 component’, and ‘S&P 500 component’.
How to buy Apple Shares – as we have seen about the general information related to Apple Inc. company, let us have a look at the process on how to buy Apple stocks and where to buy them.
- Compare and find a perfect online trading platform:
Depending on the necessities and experience level of the investor, it is suggested to find the best available online trading platform which is apt for their requirements.
For the beginner level investors, there are trading platforms like ‘Robinhood’, with the help of which people can be able to invest in the Apple shares. Robinhood also provides unlimited commission-free trades in assets such as Funds, Stocks, and Options.
For the traders with good knowledge and a substantial amount of experience in trading, platforms like ‘Tasty Works’ might do the job. Traders can be able to make investments in Stocks, Options, ETFs, and Futures with the help of a mobile or a desktop and achieve a hassle-free experience.
Trading platforms like ‘You Invest’ are the best when it comes to building a diversified portfolio. You Invest is also a user-friendly trading platform that provides commission-free trades in stocks, ETFs, and Options. However, You Invest is not FDIC insured and there is no bank guarantee.
Some of the best online trading platforms available for the individuals to make an investment in the Apple Shares are given below:
| Trading Fees (Stock and ETF Trading) | Account Minimum | Annual Fees | |
| Robinhood | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Webull | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Etoro | $0 | $200 | $0 |
| Interactive Brokers | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Fidelity | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Saxo Bank | $0.02 per each share with a minimum of $10. | $10,000 | 0.12% in the UK with a minimum of €10 per month and 0.25% annually for others with a minimum of €5 per month. |
- Open a brokerage account and fund it with money for investment:
As we have already discussed the process of opening a brokerage account, now the investor has to create a brokerage account and fund it with the desired amount of money with which they want to make an investment in the shares.
Almost all online trading platforms offer the availability of funding the account with the help of Bank Transfer. Some even grant access to funding their accounts with the help of a Credit Card or a Debit Card. Few online brokers even allow the individuals to fund their accounts with the help of e-wallets such as PayPal.
- Buying Apple Shares:
After successfully funding the account, the next step is to buy the shares of Apple. With the help of the online brokerage account created, any person can be able to search for the Apple shares (by typing keywords such as AAPL or NASDAQ: AAPL) and then click buy option which allows the respective individual to execute the buy order (which means purchasing the shares).
People have to be clear about how many shares they want to buy from Apple. It is better to buy shares in such a way that the investment portfolio is diversified, and the risk is minimized. Some online brokers might even allow the investors to buy a fraction of shares of the Apple.
While executing the buy order, investors are able to select from different order types, which are market order and limit order. Market Order allows the person to buy the shares for the current market price. Whereas, the Limit Order type allows the person to wait until the shares reach the desired price of the individual and then execute the buy order.
- Regularly monitoring the investment:
The responsibility of an investor is not complete after successfully buying the shares of Apple, it has just started. The investor would have to check their investment regularly and optimize the other assets in their portfolio by balancing the risk factor.
In the long run, any kind of investment is expected to provide returns that are huge and highly beneficial for the investors, but if the investor is trying to do this within a short time span, a lot of effort and dedication would be required.
People who are willing to go for a long-term investment in Apple can sit back and gather all the necessary information by attending the annual meetings. They can also enjoy other benefits such as dividends and shareholder voting rights which help to increase the performance of their stock.
People who want to trade the stocks for a shorter period of time might have to make use of position management tools. They can even set a target price for selling their shares for a profit and they can also use the feature known as stop-loss in order to sell the share after it reaches a certain low price (in order to avoid the further losses).
How to Buy Amazon Shares:
Amazon – Known to be the largest Internet company by revenue, Amazon is a tech company based in Seattle which primarily focuses on e-commerce, cloud computing, digital streaming, and AI. However, the aspect at which Amazon became famous worldwide is its online shopping marketplace.
It was founded by ‘Jeff Bezos’ in the year 1994 in ‘Bellevue, Washington D.C.’. Not only the founder, Jeff Bezos is the Chairman, CEO, and President of the company.
Started as an online marketplace for Books, Amazon expanded its business for selling Electronic Accessories, Gadgets, Fashion Apparel, Stationery, Toys, etc. Amazon is now known to have reached more than 100 million subscribers worldwide.
Nowadays, any person who wishes to buy anything online would definitely check for the availability of that thing on Amazon and 7 out of 10 people who check Amazon for things they want would definitely buy them due to the competitive prices offered by them. They also provide some other famous services such as ‘Prime Video (subscription for watching movies and shows)’, ‘Audible (for listening to books)’, ‘Amazon Pay (an e-wallet)’, ‘Amazon Alexa’, etc.
As per the statistics of 2019, the financial information of Amazon is as follows:
The revenue of Amazon is ‘$280.52 billion’.
Operating Income was estimated to be ‘$14.54 billion’.
The overall income was estimated to be ‘$11.58 billion’.
The assets underlying the company were estimated to be ‘$225.24 billion’.
The total equities of the company were estimated to be ‘$62.06 billion’.
Amazon provides its services to almost all countries in the world. The number of employees working at Amazon is estimated to be around 840,000 approx. Amazon is known to be the second-largest private employer in the United States right after Walmart.
Amazon Shares are traded as ‘NASDAQ: AMZN’ with the help of baskets of securities ‘NASDAQ – 100 component’, ‘S&P 100 component’, and ‘S&P 500 component’.
How to buy Amazon Shares – As we’ve gotten familiar with all the general information related to Amazon, now, let us take a close look at the method of buying the shares of Amazon and where to buy them. The steps of buying the shares of Amazon are similar to the steps of buying the shares of Apple.
- Compare and find a perfect online trading platform:
Find a good online broker depending on the requirements. The necessities can be classified depending on the factors such as experience level, the fee structure of the online trading platform, investment-related tools, financial goals, etc.
Some of the best online trading platforms available for the individuals to make an investment in the Amazon Shares are given below:
| Trading Fees (Stock and ETF Trading) | Account Minimum | Annual Fees | |
| Robinhood | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Webull | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Etoro | $0 | $200 | $0 |
| Interactive Brokers | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Tasty Works | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| You Invest | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Fidelity | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Saxo Bank | $0.02 per each share with a minimum of $10. | $10,000 | 0.12% in the UK with a minimum of €10 per month and 0.25% annually for others with a minimum of €5 per month. |
- Opening a Brokerage account and funding it:
Once the research for finding the best suitable online trading platform is complete, the next step is creating a brokerage account with that respective trading platform and funding it with money. As we have discussed earlier, funding the account can be done with the help of a wide variety of methods such as Bank Transfer, Credit Card, Debit Card, e-wallets, etc.
- Buying Amazon Stocks:
The next step in this procedure is buying the shares of Amazon after the successful creation of the online trading account. Amazon shares can be searched with the help of keywords such as AMZN or NASDAQ: AMZN. After finding the asset, the individual has to decide about how many they would like to purchase. While making the purchase, it is necessary to make a decision that is suitable for the individual based on their financial goals, risk tolerance, etc.
After determining the number of shares to purchase, the individual would have to click the buy option to execute the buy order. Similar to making a purchase of shares in Apple, a person can execute a buy order based on two order types, i.e., market order and limit order.
- Monitoring the Amazon Stocks:
Once after the successful completion of buying the shares of Amazon, the investor is required to regularly follow up with the activity of their respective assets. They would have to create a financial goal (whether the investment is going to be long-term or short-term) and take the necessary measures in order to achieve the profits from their investments.
Apple vs Amazon: Which is a better buy?
Apple (AAPL) and Amazon (AMZN) are both good companies that have always been the preferred choice of the individuals when it comes to trading. But most of the people have a doubt in their minds, which is, “which among these two companies is the most profitable one when it comes to trading?”. To simplify this, let us have a look at the details related to this aspect.
Apple is a very attractive asset, with overall profits of around $98 billion. Not only that, but it is also in the middle of a $100 billion stock buyback plan which attracts even more investors. It is a billion-dollar business that has a substantial amount of money to invest in new innovations.
Amazon, on the other hand, is a diversified company that is prominent for the services provided in many fields such as online shopping, video streaming, etc.
During this COVID – 19 situation, Apple shares somewhat lack performance as all the gadgets have to be assembled in China. However, the shares of Apple are not performing as good as the performance they used to have while the late Steve Jobs was organizing the company’s activities.
When coming to Amazon, due to the COVID – 19 situation, almost all the people of the world would definitely have to shop online. This would definitely increase the performance of the shares of Amazon in the next few months. However, Amazon stocks are known to have a price to earnings ratio (p/e) which is four times that of the Apple stocks.
Both Apple and Amazon stocks are a good choice for a long-term investment choice but when it comes to the next 5 – 10 months, Amazon can be considered as a good choice for investment.
Bottom Line:
Whether you are going to invest in the Apple stocks or Amazon stocks, the most important thing that needs to be kept in mind is that Trading requires a lot of effort, expertise, and dedication. Any small mistake can cost you a fortune and most people have lost a lot of money due to the decisions that have been taken by them.
If you are a person with a lot of cash and are willing to invest a huge amount into the stocks, it is better to think about the risk tolerance and other factors that impact the portfolio. Instead of investing all the money you have, it is wise to invest a fraction of it and slowly manage the portfolio, so that one day if losses occur, you will have the ability to cope with them.
If you are an investor who has a lesser amount of knowledge about trading or if you are a busy person who doesn’t have the time to manage your assets on your own, please feel free to make use of the professional services and financial advice offered by us.
That being said, we hope that this article was helpful for you to find whatever the information that you were looking for and we wish for you to have a bright and successful investment career with a lot of benefits from all your assets.
Further Reading
How can you buy Vanguard index funds from overseas.
