How to sell stocks without a broker
Instead, all you need to do is push a button to trade stock. You can bypass a broker and buy stock by using a transfer agent, but the costs can be high. You can use direct purchase plans, or stock purchase plans, but you need to be an employee of the company. However, there are still serious obstacles that can bar the average person or retail investor from the stock market. Transaction fees, hidden fees, and trading fees can eat up all or most of your profit, for example.
How to Buy Stocks
While many investors choose to buy and sell investments through a brokerage account , some investors may wonder how they can buy stocks without a broker. Direct investment plans offer the brokerage alternative that those investors are seeking.
If your primary investing goal is to acquire a single company's stock as directly as possible, one of these plans can help you achieve that goal, but be aware of the drawbacks that come with avoiding brokerage services before you abandon them completely. Often, the easiest method of buying stocks without a broker is by participating in a company's direct stock plan DSP. These plans were originally conceived generations ago as a way for businesses to let smaller investors buy ownership directly from the company.
Investors buy-in by transferring money from their checking or savings account. The company will establish minimum investment amounts, both for the initial purchase and for any subsequent purchases. The plan administrators batch the cash from those participating in the direct stock plan and use it to buy shares of the company at regular intervals and at the average market price.
Companies may also offer a dividend reinvestment plan DRIP. These are similar to direct stock plans, except that they automate the process of buying more stock over the years.
DRIPs automatically take cash dividends paid out by the company you own and use them to buy more shares. Depending on the specifics of the plan, this service may be free or there may be small commission fees. In the U. If you are fortunate enough to have such an arrangement, DRIPs don't have as much appeal.
Dividend reinvestment plans are often coupled with cash investment options that resemble direct stock purchase plans. This gives you the ability to buy more stock whenever you want, not just the four times a year dividends are issued. The primary advantage of avoiding brokers and buying directly from a company is simplicity. Apps and websites have significantly streamlined the broker experience, but an investor still has to choose between securities and make decisions about the type of order to place for those investments.
Direct stock purchases and dividend reinvestment plans can be even more simple—just send the money to the right place and you're enrolled in the plan. Direct stock plans also allow for enhanced communication between the company and its investors.
When you invest through a brokerage, any notices from the company will come through the brokerage. For investors with a variety of investments, company notices blend together because they all appear in your inbox as a message from your brokerage, rather than the company. This could lead to some investors skipping messages altogether, potentially missing out on useful information.
By communicating directly, the company and its investors remain in better contact. Institutional investors may have access to extra benefits through direct stock purchase plans, depending on the company issuing the stock.
Special "waiver discounts" allow institutional investors to buy shares at a discount that isn't broadly advertised. The simplicity that direct plan investors enjoy is also the main disadvantage of broker alternatives.
If you sign up for a Home Depot direct stock purchase plan, for example, you will only have the option to buy Home Depot stock. An investor with a brokerage account and an investor with a direct stock plan could acquire the same Home Depot stock at the same price, but the investor with the brokerage account could also acquire any other security the brokerage services. For traders who want to diversify and explore their options, there's no substitute for using a broker. Traditionally, direct plans have also enjoyed the benefit of commission-free, or low-commission trades, especially when compared to the costs of using a full-service broker.
However, that benefit has largely vanished in the digital era. Many brokerages—even major firms like Fidelity and Charles Schwab—have dropped their commission fees for online trades. Direct stock plans also impede an investor's ability to time trades. Cashing out your position isn't as simple as tapping a few buttons on a brokerage app. This is fine for buy-and-hold investors who plan on holding stocks for decades. Investors who mostly care about dividends will also likely feel content with direct plans.
Investors who trade often and enjoy regularly rebalancing their portfolio, on the other hand, will be frustrated by the limitations. The Balance does not provide tax, investment, or financial services and advice. Past performance is not indicative of future results. Investing involves risk including the possible loss of principal. The Home Depot. Shareholder Service Solutions.
Why Not? Charles Schwab. Fidelity Investments. Investing for Beginners Stocks. By Full Bio Follow Twitter. Joshua Kennon co-authored "The Complete Idiot's Guide to Investing, 3rd Edition" and runs his own asset management firm for the affluent.
Read The Balance's editorial policies. Article Sources. Continue Reading.
You can generally buy and sell stock without a broker if you trade directly with the company issuing it through a direct stock purchase plan. While many investors choose to buy and sell investments through a brokerage account, some investors may wonder how they can buy stocks without a broker.
If you felt burned by the stock market following the financial crash of , you are not alone. The financial crash of left many wary of investing in the stock market and working with stockbrokers. In recent years, however, the investment landscape has undergone a transformation. Between the internet and numerous investment apps, it is possible to purchase stocks directly online without a broker.
In order to buy stocks , you need the assistance of a stockbroker since you cannot usually just call up a company and ask to buy their stock on your own. Full-service brokers are what most people visualize when they think about investing—well-dressed, friendly business people sitting in an office chatting with clients.
To buy stock without a broker, start by opening a brokerage account online, using a website like E-Trade or TD Ameritrade. Then, put money in your account by sending in a check or completing an electronic funds transfer.
How to Buy Stocks Online Without a Broker – Direct Stock Purchase Plans
Chris Muller. The advent of discount brokerages has made stock investing so much easier over the years. Today, investors can use an online stock trading platform like Questrade or Wealthsimple Trade to buy and sell stocks. You can get started with these five steps:. Discount brokerages provide an excellent online trading platform for DIY investors to buy and sell securities on their own instead of relying on a human broker to execute transactions.
How to Buy Stocks Without a Broker
Can you be an online investor without a broker? Direct investments are where you buy the stock straight from the company. Many direct investment programs are connected with dividend reinvestment plans DRIPs , where the companies let you use dividend payments to buy, or reinvest, additional shares. Potential commission savings: The fees charged by direct investment programs can be lower than what some brokers charge. Dividend reinvestments: Dividends can be reinvested for free. Not free for all transactions: Some companies even charge commissions that exceed what deep discount brokerages charge for certain services. Setup fees: Although opening a brokerage account is usually free, some direct investment plans charge a fee to get started. Some plans also have minimum initial deposits. Administrative hassles: With direct investment plans, you need to manage all your separate accounts, which could be a pain if you have ten or more investments.
Advertiser Disclosure: The credit card and banking offers that appear on this site are from credit card companies and banks from which MoneyCrashers.
Young investors are understandably wary about investing in the stock market. The financial crisis of severely disrupted our formative professional years, and its spectre still lingers a decade later. Only 33 percent of millennials own stock, according to a Bankrate survey based on 1, telephone interviews, while a Harvard University survey found that just 14 percent of millennials trust Wall Street. For those people, one option for getting started as a shareholder might be to check out direct investment plans, a method of purchasing stock straight from a company, without input from a broker.
How to Buy and Sell Stocks on Your Own
Your investments are not guaranteed; they can decrease in value as well as increase and you may not get back the full amount you put in. A share's a unit of ownership in a company. To work out the value of a share, you divide the value of a company by the number of shares available. It's important to understand this when you're choosing the best shares to buy. But this value can rise and fall, depending on how the stock market performs and other economic factors. Share dealing is a form of investment trading. It lets you buy and sell shares in publicly listed companies using a stocks and shares account. Find an online share dealing account. Use this share dealing comparison table to compare different accounts. This'll help you find the right one for you. Open your chosen share dealing account. Transfer in however much money you want to use for buying shares. When you're ready to buy shares, choose which ones you want and buy them through your account. Then you can start share trading.
Buying Stocks and Mutual Funds without a Broker
While many investors choose to buy and sell investments through a brokerage account , some investors may wonder how they can buy stocks without a broker. Direct investment plans offer the brokerage alternative that those investors are seeking. If your primary investing goal is to acquire a single company's stock as directly as possible, one of these plans can help you achieve that goal, but be aware of the drawbacks that come with avoiding brokerage services before you abandon them completely. Often, the easiest method of buying stocks without a broker is by participating in a company's direct stock plan DSP. These plans were originally conceived generations ago as a way for businesses to let smaller investors buy ownership directly from the company. Investors buy-in by transferring money from their checking or savings account. The company will establish minimum investment amounts, both for the initial purchase and for any subsequent purchases. The plan administrators batch the cash from those participating in the direct stock plan and use it to buy shares of the company at regular intervals and at the average market price. Companies may also offer a dividend reinvestment plan DRIP.
