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How I Used the Stock Market to Turn $1,500 Into $1 Million

Stacy Johnson recording a podcast
Photo by Aaron Freeman / Money Talks News

Imagine investing $ 1,500, then watching it grow to around $ 1.4 million two decades later.

About 20 years ago, I bought 200 shares of Apple stock for around $ 1,500.

When I recorded this podcast on Aug. 26, thanks to stock splits, my 200 shares had grown to 2,800 shares, and each share was worth $ 500. So those 2,800 shares were worth $ 1.4 million. (Note: On Aug. 28, Apple split its stock 4-for-1. So, instead of 2,800 shares worth $ 500 each, I then had 11,200 shares worth $ 125 each.)

Alas, I’ve sold a good bit of my position over the years, but the amount I have left is still worth north of $ 550,000. And some of the money from the shares I sold went into other high-flyers, including Google, Facebook, Microsoft and Amazon.

How did I know to buy these stocks? It wasn’t rocket science. In fact, it’s something you can, and should, learn how to do yourself. That’s the topic of this week’s “Money” podcast.

This week I’m going to share my personal portfolio with you, and explain how I make my investment decisions and why you might not want to put all your eggs in an index-fund basket.

As usual, I share the broadcast booth with longtime financial journalist and fellow podcaster Miranda Marquit.

Sit back, relax and give it a listen!

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Not familiar with podcasts?

A podcast is basically a radio show you can listen to anytime, either by downloading it to your smartphone or other device, or by listening online.

They’re totally free. They can be any length (ours are typically just under a half-hour), feature any number of people and cover any topic you can possibly think of. You can listen at home, in the car, while jogging or, if you’re like me, when riding your bike.

You can listen to our latest podcasts here or download them to your phone from any number of places, including Apple, Spotify, RadioPublic, Stitcher and RSS.

If you haven’t listened to a podcast yet, give it a try, then subscribe to ours. You’ll be glad you did!

About me

I founded Money Talks News in 1991. I’m a CPA, and I have also earned licenses in stocks, commodities, options principal, mutual funds, life insurance, securities supervisor and real estate.

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