Is it a bad idea to purchase stocks now?

I bought some Microsoft stock when it went down to $27.90 per share but now it has dropped another $2.00 per share. I'm afraid to purchase anymore stock, not just Microsoft, because stock prices are continuing to plummet. Should I wait before purchasing more stock?
Additional Details
I am not a stripper...I work at Hooter's.

It is certainly a very difficult time to start investing, as in my opnion stocks are poised to fall much farther, and overall the market is not cheap enough to justify burgain prices (what a stupid idea to "average down"in a bear market). As I doubt you are not super-rich and do not have deep pockets, even though I think buying now would return better profits in 10 years, but the coming bear market will break your portfolio before you start seeing any profits.

However, I do not know how familiar you are with stock research, analysis and picking and I am sure there exists few good stocks that would withstand the bear market. I would guess Microsoft is not at risk of going under in the coming years, and if they are able to enter the online advertising markets or other profitable markets, it would make you a nice return in the next years (and are probably relatively cheap now). Apple is a good stock, but I am afraid, it has gone much up the last few months and they might be due for a correction.

I would recommend you to stay away of financials (even if some are down 90%, they are by no means cheap), be careful about energy and commodity stocks, they are risky now, but look for sound or alternative energy companies, or better try to invest in a diversified energy fund or ETF. Stay away of technology, transportation and high quality manufacturers. Look for strong companies, with sound business models, and ability to generate profits in a recession environment. It is, in the short term, about protecting your capital more than making profits. Most importantly, diversify your portfolio and hedge any risky investement.

If you think Microsoft is going to go out of business then yes don't buy anymore stock. Otherwise think of it as buying them on sale.

if we knew when the market was going to go back up, we would be on wall street making millions!! but aside from that no on can tell you the market is safe or will crash tomorrow. there is no certainties in the market.

a 7% drop in this market is not that big a deal....it probably has room to go down even further to say, $25. considering you probably bought the stock last week, i say hold on to it and dont fret over every tick in price.
good luck.

PS: the 5 year low is $22

look at it this way .. stocks are a bargin now, so load up

Depends on what stocks... oil, natural gas, coal and steel & mining have done well in the last few months even when the indices or general markets have done poorly...

MSFT is still considering a possible bid for YHOO or parts of it. So that probably accounts for the reduction in price.

If you like oil try an ETF that tracks oil futures USO... or natural gas UNG....

You have to ask yourself why did you buy this stock in the first place. If the reasons are still there and you can now buy it at lower prices, you should buy more. As far as buying other stocks, if you are young you should be buying some stock all the time. Set aside a certain amount every month to buy stock with. If prices go up, you buy fewer shares, if prices go down, you buy more shares. So you're getting more shares at cheaper prices and fewer shares at higher prices. The magic of dollar cost averaging. Good luck!

I love hooters
you must be a real hottie
Don't buy anymore stocks
I don't want to see you lose your hard earned $$
We are in a bear market

I'm not sure, but the answer could be Yes. Why ?
Because I think the Market's Way too Volatile right now.
I'd suggest to stay out of the Stock Market right now. The Market's just too crazy right now.
I mean one day Stocks are soaring & the next day Stocks are plunging.
One day the Market gains over 100 points & the next day it looses 205 points or almost 400 points.
So if you want to take the risk then sure go ahead buy some more MSFT stocks, but beware that the Market's very volatile right now. Anything can happen.
The Stock can go up, or it could go way down very fast.

No it is not a bad idea to purchase stocks now.

BAD idea to buy US companies: GOOD for foreign companies.

Microsoft relies on Office/Word to make money. With opensource their profits are headed south fast. Why try and buy Yahoo for $45 BILLION? Paying way over their value--> That is because the internet is the future for making revenue like Google and microsoft has a weak position in that market and they are desperate. Microsoft has to get in that or risk shrinking a lot since Office product sales have stalled. Vista also did not make them billions either and their corporate customers like Intel have declined to buy and upgrade to it. - Microsoft is in trouble - risky bet)

Oversea funds returned on average 19.2% last year
US equity returned 1.9% last year

- it would be better to get a bank account with 5% interest than buy stocks in US companies.

WHY NO to US:
US is in a recession. Nothing in the economy is growing except medical care funded by medicare which is debt fueled, everything, repeat everything is down.

Costs are soaring and the Fed's are saying inflation is 2% and GDP growth is up. To get to those numbers you would have to think gas did not go up 34% from last year or that commodities like milk, soy, corn, etc did not go up 30-90%.

The Fed has said that they will devalue (print more money) the US currency to keep people employed. People may have jobs but salaries are not going up and the cost of living will and is going up instead. In the past devaluing the currency meant a stock market plunge once the currency rebounds (raising interest rates).

WHEN TO SELL US
When the FED raises interest rates do NOT have anything in a US company. You want to have money ready to buy US companies after they hit the fan and melt to nothing. Having cash to do buy cheap US companies by selling your foreign holdings will make you rich. A taxi driver became a billion doing something similar in the 1980's. He borrowed $50,000 became a millionaire by having cash to buy cheap stocks and selling them once the dollar recovered, he then bought real estate with all his earnings and then NY property values went skyward and he became a billionaire.

The emerging markets like China will drop if the US drops hard, they rely on our markets to export to. So stay away from Chinese stocks.

BUBBLE POP:
Fact: the US stock market this Aug./Sept is headed to a huge decline. Fundamentals show it. All the smoke and mirrors will not be able to hide it. Any runs lately have been lies in the numbers from the US Banks. US Banks run the Fed and they are in serious trouble. The fed has been dumping liquidity at a rate greater than that of the great depression to help fight the downturn. Either way, the stock market is a highly speculative bubble waiting to burst. The Banks will survive but your money will not.

BUY WHAT THEN??
China still has a peg to the US dollar, risky
Russia - they exported MORE OIL than Saudi ARABIA so far this year!!!!!!!!! - They are super rich compared to the US. They are also dumping the dollar and selling oil in Rubles. Meaning the US dollar is further going downhill. Oil is going up also because of this and means oil will never go back down. Ruble going up means they can consumer and buy more meaning big GDP growth and their economy expanding. They are spending $1 TRILLION dollars in rebuilding in their infrastructure. The US economy has to borrow billions to stay afloat while our bridges collapse and roads are pot hole hell. The US is a fire sale. Selling US ports, selling toll roads to European companies, etc.

You see where this is going.... The US will have to raise interest rates or risk lots of nations dumping the dollar or causing hyperinflation like the Germany of 1920's-1930's. Germany paid off their debt by just printing money, the US is doing the same. Having money in the US will eventually mean having to pay $20 for a gallon of gas.

Russian picks from my Money Magazine
LETRX (54.4% return over 3 years, 45.8% last year)
JRUAX (J.P. Morgan Russia - a US bank in Russia, some 42% return last year!!)

Emerging markets
Goldman Sachs BRIC (GBRAX) 40.3% return (another US bank that is a safer bet to buy into.

No prices are low - BUY !!!!!!!!!
I suggest corn futures and any company dabbling in green energy.
Like your avatar by the way.
A sexy woman who invests PUUURRRRRR

Buy Oil stocks, they are going up to 500 dollars a barrel

can i have some wings

if u a stripper y u buyin stocks

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