Well, I'll freely admit that before 3+ years ago I was "financially illiterate", as I hadn't yet found my way to BH. And I haven't switched employers since I became a BH. So I haven't "tested" myself for what I'd do going forward... (Although at this point, I can't imagine switching back to an employer without some form of RSU/options/ESPP/etc. - so I think I'd likely be able to get my exposure through that...)epargnant wrote: ↑Sat Sep 18, 2021 3:15 pmOh that is an interesting perspective. Perhaps since it's never occurred to me to buy a single stock, it would never occur to me to buy my company's stock either. Do you buy other single stocks of companies you like? Or is it solely ones you work for?SnowBog wrote: ↑Sat Sep 18, 2021 2:58 pmProbably very few...epargnant wrote: ↑Sat Sep 18, 2021 2:45 pmIsn't it interesting, though, that usually the only people to ask themselves that question are people who are given company stock? Does anyone ask themselves that question if they work for a publicly traded company who does not provide any stock to employees?
But I did/have... Personally, I like being "invested" in my employer - even if a token amount, as I take some naive value from "working for myself" (as being a shareholder).
This has been true in all but one (my first) of my publicly traded employers. Only the most recent has RSUs. Some of the others had ESPP, options, etc. But I have bought - with my own cash - employer stock before.
So I'm not opposed to people having some investment in one's employer. But there's a huge difference in risks between having <= 5% of one's portfolio vs. > 15% in an employer stock, which I think grows exponentially as that % increases.
That said, I have bought 2 individual stocks since becoming a BH... Less as "investments", more for the potential benefits. Previously to COVID we've enjoyed cruises, and hopefully will get to return to cruising again in the future, and maybe even more when we retire someday. Some cruise lines give benefits, like onboard stateroom credits, for "shareholders" (I think minimum of 100 shares is required). As prices were crashing in early 2020 I took a gamble and bought 100 shares of CCL for < $1000, figuring we'd likely make that up after several cruises (assuming they don't go bankrupt, but the < $1000 wasn't going to ruin our plans if they did). We've since booked a cruise on NCL for 2022, and at the time bought 100 shares (unfortunately not at as highly discounted prices), again thinking that we might break even just on the onboard credits over our lifetime. But combined these are well under 1% of our portfolio - so aren't going to make a big difference either way...
I have no plans to "invest" in any other single stock (outside of maybe a small tilt to my employer).