I need to invest 5000 in stock. anybody recommend any good stock for long term?

The answer to this question is not an easy one because it depends so much on 2 things: risk tolerance and diversification.

Based on your question, I am assuming that you are a young individual who considers $5,000 to be a significant amount of money. In addition, I have made the assumption that you are new to the markets and do not have much if any other holdings. Since you are looking for a long-term investment I am assuming that you have a moderate level of risk tolerance.

So, if you are new to the markets and young and $5,000 is a very significant amount of money to you then I would invest in an index fund...for example, the S&P 500. The reason for this is because most people (including Jim Cramer. lol) cannot outperform the market by picking individual stocks. Furthermore an index fund gives you diversification into many different companies. Statistics have shown that in order to have a properly diversified stock portfolio you must own approximately 30 stocks. With $5,000 you simply cannot own that amount. Since you are looking for a long-term recommendation, an index fund really fits the bill.

With that said, if you insistent upon a stock selection for the long-run and do not care about diversification then you should choose a well established company such as Microsoft. However, it is important to remember that every company (GM, Ford, MSFT, AT&T,etc) that was once considered stable faces competition and changes today that are very different from years past and the future is very uncertain.

Think about it like this, if somebody really knew which stock or stocks were going to outperform the market over the long term, I think that person would be on the beach somewhere trading away! So, when you ask people on Yahoo Answers for a stock recommendation maybe you should ask them why they are here giving you that recommendation rather than enjoying the fruits of their stock picking ability!

I am not saying it is impossible to pick winners...people do and some people (Warren Buffet) are actually very good at it. But the sad truth is most are not and most money managers under-perform the market anyway.

So if you want to gamble your money in stocks then go ahead and pick some biotech names, etc. But my recommendation first would be to build a solid core portfolio base through an index fund before venturing off into one-off names. Once you have an established base, then you can look for individual names to help you generate alpha (excess return) and trade those over a short-medium term.

When you are ready for the short-medium term trades you should consider the markets at that point. For now I would focus on certain types of energy stocks (esp. some high tech energy stocks) and most certainly in the healthcare/biotech field.

Good luck!

watch Jim Cramer's show Mad Money on CNBC and get his book "Real Money", a NY Times bestseller right now, if you are interested in learning to invest. The show is fun to watch while you are learning something. His site is thestreet.com

Cramer's picks are probably 70 to 80% of the time winners

Right now Roth IRA is paying 4% as are some banks. If you invest in stock market, don't be risky unless you can afford to lose $5000. Mutual funds can be good. Talk to people who have invested. Stay with reputable company.

Screw Jim Cramer, he's just a hyperactive loudmouth. You need to think for yourself. What kind of an investor are you? Can you tolerate a lot of risk? How about if your stocks would decrease to 4,000 or even 2,000 or less? Would that make you panic? If you can handle the risk and the swings, look for a small cap value play for the greatest return. Try to divide your purchase to 3 or 4 stocks to provide a little safety. This is a proven method for those who can stay in for a long time horizon. If you cannot tolerate risk or wild swings in values, look for large cap, high dividend stocks that will grow slowly but steadily over time.

Any time anyone recommends a specific stock to you, you need to beware. Do you really trust other people more than yourself when it comes to your money? If you do, please hand over your 5,000 to me right now. You might as well because you are about to lose it all anyway.

A good place to start is to look around where you live. Is there an industry with which you are familiar? If so, consider an investment in the company that looks like it's the best set to do well.

Stick your $5000 in a money market fund. Then join the American Association of Individual Investors at www.aaii.com to learn something about what investing is.

Another good idea ia at www.magicformulainvesting.com, but I wouldn't just start there if you're new at it.

Investing long term means 10yrs+ If your time horizon is that long then the stock market MAY be where you can get the best return, and should you get an average of 8% your money should be about double (that is $10,000).

If your time horizon is less than 10years, then look elsewhere to place your money.

What is the money for? Once you know what the money is for it's easier to work out where to put it so it can earn as much as possible for the time frame.

You are welcome to contact me for more detail.

Good luck

Invest it in yourself. Spend some time developing an idea and with a hard work & a little luck on your side your $5k will become $8k, then $10k and so on. Stocks aren't good if you don't like risk being outside of your direct control... Good luck!

Why does it have to be stock?

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