[Amazing] 25 Little Known Insights Into The World Of Stocks And The Stock Market
Although it is the target of numerous conspiracy theories, along with a lot of hate, the stock market performs very vital functions in our society. For one, it provides firms with financing, which in turn creates jobs and employment. So, it’s not all that bad! Of course, just as the best things on Earth have their dark sides, so does the stock market. There are few places outside of government that human greed can be allowed to flourish so incessantly. In spite of the good it does for society, it has also caused a lot of pain. Recent global downturns and economic crises have all traced their roots back to bankers and financial institutions.
So what does Wall Street do exactly? Well, to figure that out you’ll probably have to consult a textbook but today we’re going to look behind the scenes at some things that all of us average Joe’s would understand. So, although we’re not going to explain the inner workings of the stock market, or give you any tips on how to get rich quick, we are going to provide you with some amusement to liven up your day. These are 25 Little Known Insights Into the World of Stocks and the Stock Market!
Featured Image: wikipedia
In 2011, rapper 50 Cent made nearly $10 million by telling his twitter followers to invest in a penny stock that was failing
Source: wikipedia, Image: wikipedia
In 2002, just before he died, SEGA president Isao Okawa donated almost $700 million to save his company due to the failed Dreamcast console.
Source: cnn, Image: wikipedia
Takashi Kotegawa, a Japanese day trader started with $13,000 and over the course of the next 8 years he turned it into $156 million. He claims it is better to not eat large meals because they make you sleepy, so he eats ramen noodles for most meals.
Source: nytimes, Image: KoiQuestion via Flickr
An average Wall Street employee makes $363,000. An average PhD in the US makes $81,400
Source: payscale.com, Image: wikipedia
During the 90s many senators were allegedly beating the market by 12 percent per year. Corporate insiders typically only beat it by about 5%
Source: csmonitor.com, Image: wikipedia
Microsoft prevented Apple from going under when it bought up 150 million shares of Apple stock in 1997. Contrary to some urban myths, however, the deal wasn't necessarily all that altruistic as Microsoft had a vested interest in buying the stock
Source: zdnet, Image: wikipedia
The words "bear" and "bull" used to describe the market are said to have originated in California when cowboys pitted California Grizzlies against bulls in fights. Bears would swipe downward while bulls would hook upward and so "bear markets" are declining while "bull markets" are increasing (the truth behind this popular story is somewhat questionable)
Source: wikipedia, Image: wikipedia
In Somalia there is a "pirate stock exchange". Locals can invest in pirates that are heading out on raiding missions
Source: reuters, Image: wikipedia
Since 2009, Costco's stocks have doubled. They also have the happiest employees!
Source: businessweek.com, Image: wikipedia
In 2005, more than 30% of stock trades in the US an the EU were all performed by computers. In 2014, nearly 80% of stocks in the developed world were bought or sold by computers.
Source: wikipedia, Image: wikipedia
Mark Twain once said, "October. This is one of the peculiarly dangerous months to speculate in stocks. The others are July, January, September, April, November, May, March, June, December, August, and February."
Source: wikipedia, Image: wikipedia
The Dutch East India Company, founded in 1602, was the first multinational corporation ever. It was also the first to issue stocks.
Source: wikipedia, Image: wikipedia
Immediately after the Challenger Space Shuttle disaster almost every company involved in its creation saw its stock fall sharply. Within 24 hours they all rebounded except for Morton Thiokol. Several months later it was found that this company was responsible for the disaster.
Source: slate.com, Image: wikipedia
Jonathan Lebed, a 15 year old from New Jersey made almost $80,000 per day in 1999 by using forums to manipulate stock prices. Although he was eventually caught, he managed to keep nearly $500,000
Source: nytimes, Image: 401(K) 2012 via Flickr
When Gil Amelio was CEO of Apple, the stock hit a 10 year low in 1997. It was later found that Steve Jobs had partially caused this by selling 1.5 million shares and then convincing the board to get rid of Gil. Steve then resumed his position as CEO.
Source: wikipedia, Image: wikipedia
Norway has a fund containing over $500 billion. In fact, this fund accounts for nearly 1% of all publicly traded shares on Earth and is the largest sovereign wealth fund of any nation
Source: wikipedia, Image: pixabay
To get ready for his role in Money Never Sleeps, Shia LaBeouf spent time with traders and investors. He even invested $20,000 and ended up making nearly half a million. Several of the investors who trained him were later arrested for illegal trading practices.
Source: imdb, Image: wikipedia
In 2001, German entrepreneur Kim Dotcom bought over $400,000 of a failing company. He claimed that he would invest another $50 million and in the next few days the company's shares tripled. He never had $50 million.
Source: wikipedia, Image: wikipedia
After their stock dipped exceedingly low in 2009, Dominos changed their pizza recipe and their shares rebounded by over 200 percent
Source: wikipedia, Image: wikipedia
Lou Pai, the former CEO of Enron, sold his stocks for nearly $300 million right before the company collapsed. He then divorced his wife, married an exotic dancer, and bought a bunch of land in Colorado
Source: wikipedia, Image: wikipedia
In 1954, economist Armen Alchian figured out the chemical composition of the hydrogen bomb by analyzing the shares prices of chemical companies
Source: econlib.org, Image: pixabay
In 2013, the AP twitter account was hacked and somebody tweeted that the White House had been bombed. The stock market just about crashed but almost immediately recovered when it was determined to be a hoax.
Source: huffintonpost, Image: jisc.ac.uk
Walt Disney's housekeeper got Disney stocks for her birthday every year. She was a millionaire when she died
Source: people.com, Image: wikipedia
In 2009, General Motors went bankrupt, received a huge bailout from the government, and issued new stocks. It never compensated shareholders for the old stock.
Source: wikipedia, Image: wikipedia
Ronald Wayne was the third founder of Apple along with Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak. The reason nobody knows him is because he sold his shares in 1976 for $800. If he had held his stock then today he would have been one of the richest men on Earth with nearly $40 billion.
Source: wikipedia, Image: wikipedia
