In the US, there are 41,731,233 kids and young adults between the ages of 10-19. Wait! Norman Leer in Paintball Arkansas just turned 10 this morning: 41,731,234! That’s more than the number of us old folks between 65-113. There were 40,267,984 of us in 2010.In just 15 years, the teens (they do start younger these days) will be 25-34 and spending more than they make (just like now). So, if you dare to take a lesson from your teenager— what if we bought what they like?
In no particular order, here are some stocks to watch:
Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA): The erudite young love Space X and Hyperloop. Neither are public (yet). But brought to you by Elon Musk, here’s his electric car. With the long awaited market meltdown Monday, Tesla goes for about $335 today, up from about $255 twelve months ago. Watch out for volatility, though; the mountain chart looks like the Rocky Mountains. It may be a bumpy ride.
Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL): Is that a surprise? These kids know iPads and iPhones. Do you think some teen boasts around school that they just got a new Microsoft tablet or a Huawei Honor 6X phone? Come on. Apple is up about to $157 from $33 a year ago.
Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN): This is where they will buy everything, including delivered groceries, in 15 years when they have a paycheck. Is anything stopping Amazon? No. It’s around $1389, up from $800 last March.
Disney (NYSE:DIS): This batch grew up on Disney Kids and Theme Parks. Still, they know DIS is more than theme parks. Think movies, Star Wars, Marvel franchises— $104. vs $110.
Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX): Surprise. I didn’t think they watched television anymore – $262 from $140.
Activision Blizzard (NASDAQ:ATVI): Video game publisher owns the World of Warcraft franchise. Now is $68 down from $40.
SNAP (NYSE:SNAP): The social media of choice among teens is NOT FB, Pinterest, Instagram or others – it’s Snapchat. Currently $13.85 from $24 24.
COKE (NASDAQ:COKE): Teens prefer it. Better commercials and a reflection of their parents’ and grandparents’ generations. Did anybody ever say in the 50s, “let’s go down to the Malt Shop and grab a Pepsi”? They still don’t. Now $186.70, up from 12 months ago when it was $170.
Spotify. They Stream music. Just for fun, watch this one. They intend to list on the NYSE in March or April. However, they are going to go direct to the exchange, rather that issuing an IPO. That means only institutional investors can buy it from current insiders. With no price support from an investment bank, it’s the Wild West. Recently, inside transactions went at $4200 a share. Likely not on our “buy“ list, but interesting to see.
Supreme (private): Never heard of it? It is THE source for Streetware and Skateboarding fashions. Watch this one too.
Of course, the time to buy these was yesterday If you purchased one share of each (not including Spotify) your teen would have $2592 in her “Fun” portfolio.
Buying even one or two of these would be a great way to teach your children something about investing. Forget about earnings estimates and analyst’s opinions. Make it fun. Do you think ANY teen ever got excited and bragged (they do like to, don’t they) about owning a Spyder (SPY?) No! Forget the spelling (they will!). Not unless it was a real one, either Fiat or fuzzy. Do they walk around campus saying, “Wow, my Dad just bought me an ETF”? This is not about creating a college fund; it’s about making a fun learning experience by using one of the fundamentals of investing. Pay the price; it’s for the kids.
Postscript: Two for Adults.
Budweiser (NYSE:BUD). Dilly Dilly. Now $107, up and down from $104.
Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE:BRK.B). Trains are cool. Besides- Warren Buffett. It’s the biggest non tech US company. BRKB now $196.60. Last March, $165.