Stock or Bonds? What is the best way to invest?

Top 2 Risks of Investing in Stock

1. Stock prices can swing around wildly, as their entire value is based on the potential profits of the company, which are often difficult to predict. So, just as stock prices can go up, they can come down.
2. If the company goes bankrupt, shareholders are last in line to get whatever is left of the company (debt is paid first).

Stocks are shares in a company that offer the investor a number of possible return opportunities, but they also carry a high level of risk.

How Do You Know Which Stock to Invest In?

Stocks vary from shares in new small-capitalization companies to those in big, well-established, large-capitalization companies, like Apple or Microsoft. While most stocks have this structure, the financial information that goes into the stock price is broad and complex. That’s why individual stock investing requires significant research and due diligence.

In fact, it is so difficult to be a great “stock picker” that nearly no one is able to beat the market consistently. As a result, it is often easier and more cost-effective to invest through low-cost Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) or index mutual funds.  These vehicles contain several different stocks, often across many sectors (and sometimes countries), and thus, you end up “owning” the market itself. 

What are Bonds?

Bonds, in contrast, are debts that a company or a government has taken out. When you buy a bond, you’re essentially lending the company money in return for regular interest payments.

To simplify things, let’s get the terminology out of the way:

• Principal: original loan amount
  • i.e. the value of your investment.
• Maturity date: the date on which the principal is repaid.
• Coupon: the interest that you receive as an investor.

How Do I Make Money By Buying a Bond?

1. Interest income: regular coupon payouts to bondholders.
2. Capital gains: if the bond price increases above what you paid, you could sell your bond and make a profit.

Example: If you invest $1000 in a bond that “matures” in 10-years, that pays you 5% interest, you will receive a $50 coupon every year (usually divided into four quarterly payments of $12.50) and after 10-years you’ll receive your original $1000 back. In this case, your return is in the form of interest income. But, if after 5 years interest rates fall and your bond is priced at $1,100, you may decide to sell it to lock in the $100 gain. You would have earned less interest income but you would also have gained value (capital gain).

While no bond is completely safe, their prices are generally more stable than stocks. Since the coupon you receive is agreed upon at the outset, there are no surprises (whereas with stocks the price can fluctuate daily). If the company goes bankrupt, bonds and other debts are the first to be paid from the company’s remaining assets.

What is the Best Bond to Invest In?

All bonds have a credit rating, which is a formal evaluation of how likely the company is to pay back the bond. Normally, as with all investments, the better the credit rating, the lower the coupon (interest rate) as the investment is less risky.

In contrast to a traditional loan, the company does not need to and usually cannot pay back any of the original bond principal until the maturity date. Because of this, bond trading is generally less “liquid” than stock trading. It could be more difficult to sell a bond or get your money back before the maturity date, whereas a stock you can sell at any time.

Either way, we don’t recommend you sit there and read through a menu of bonds to purchase. The more liquid and economical way to invest in bonds is through a well-diversified, low-cost mutual fund, or ETFs.

Bonds versus Stocks: Which is Best for Me?

Investing in stocks, whether individually in each stock or through investment vehicles like mutual funds and ETFs, is inherently riskier than bonds. On the other hand, because of the higher risk, you’re also expected to receive a higher return than if you were to own a bond. Naturally, this depends on the market’s volatility. 

The chart below represents an oversimplification of risk and return for bonds and stocks. Naturally, there are cases where a bond can be riskier than stock or have a higher expected return, but generally speaking the more risk you take, the higher your expected return. Cash is included as it is an investable asset that happens to have the lowest risk and often the lowest expected return.