The main purpose of investing in stocks and NFTs is to earn capital gains from price increases. But to be honest, predicting prices is difficult, and no one can predict them.
In that case, it's a good idea to enjoy investing by focusing on "benefits"!
The joys of stock investment are not just capital gains and dividends
Nakagawa: With the start of the new NISA, the enthusiasm for stock investment has risen to new heights. I also want to take this opportunity to get serious about investing in stocks, but to be honest, I have no idea which ones to buy.
Kishi: This is a problem that beginners tend to fall into.
Nakagawa: To be honest, even after researching a lot, I still don't know which stocks will go up in price. Also, there is a lot of information on the Internet about dividends and perks, and the yield, but I don't really understand the difference between the two, and in the end, I can't decide which one is better.
Kishi: Beginners tend to get confused about dividends and yields. Dividends are cash dividends distributed to shareholders who own stocks. Dividends are a part of the profits distributed to shareholders in cash depending on the amount of stock they own and the company's performance.
Perks, on the other hand, are more accurately called shareholder perks. This is a system in which shareholders are given company products and services instead of cash. For example, if you work for a restaurant, you might receive a gift certificate that can be used at that company's stores or a discount coupon for cheaper services.
Nakagawa: Does it depend on the company which you get?
Kishi: That's right. There are companies that offer both dividends and benefits, companies that offer only dividends and no benefits, and companies that offer neither dividends nor benefits.
Nakagawa: No dividends or benefits...?
Kishi: People who buy stocks in such companies are looking to make capital gains from rising stock prices. If you buy stocks in a company that only offers dividends, you're hoping for not only capital gains but also dividends.
Dividends are very attractive because you get the money as it is, but there are cases where dividends can be zero depending on the company's performance, so you may need to be able to assess the company to some extent.
Nakagawa: So you do need to be able to assess the company to some extent.