You are now ready to purchase your first securities for your Portfolio. Please select a total of four stocks. Choose three stocks you think will rise in value. One of the stocks must be a NYSE stock, and one must be a NASDAQ stock. How many shares you purchase is up to you. Each purchase should be limited to $50,000. Finally, you should pick a fourth stock that you believe has a possibility of declining in value. You should sell this stock short. This transaction, too, should be limited to $50,000.

In a Word document, supplemented with Excel, if you think appropriate, please submit a recap of your activity showing the following:

Checklist:

The stocks, including symbols, are involved in the transactions.

The purchase prices of the transactions, both including and not including commissions (assume commissions to be $25 per trade).

A prediction of what price you expect your stocks to be in six weeks of the course and a prediction of your gain or loss from each transaction by six weeks.

Most importantly, an explanation of why you chose the securities you did. You should back up your decisions with sound reasoning based on your Readings, Web field trips, or other information that you have studied.