Investing can be a little bit of a leap of faith for those first starting out. You have to put your money in what seems like a black hole, only to get these strange prices and codes in return. In the days following your first investment, you might watch your chosen stocks on your computer or phone, feeling like a genius if they go up 1% – or alternatively, a gullible fool if they drop.
In the journey of investing, a turning point comes when you realise these things aren't that important – after all, it's time in the market, not timing the market that is supposed to be important.
So, here are two stocks that I think would make for fantastic first investments.
Argo Investments Limited (ASX: ARG)
Argo is what's known as a listed investment company (LIC). LICs are known for being companies that make investments on your behalf – meaning that when you buy an Argo share, you are really buying a share in all of the companies that Argo has selected (meaning they do the hard work).
Some of Argo's current holdings include blue-chip shares like BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP), CSL Ltd (ASX: CSL) and Wesfarmers Ltd (ASX: WES), but its whole portfolio contains more than 100 investments.
Argo is an old company and has a reputation for making solid, sensible investing decisions, so this isn't a choice that will make you rich overnight. But if you want slow, steady investing with a healthy dividend yield (currently 4.04%), this might be a great pick for your first stock.
Coles Group Ltd (ASX: COL)
If you want to branch out from managed investments like Argo and start out with an individual share, I think Coles is a great option. Everyone knows what Coles is, what it sells and how its basic business works. If you want to check on 'your company', it's likely it wont take more than half an hour to get to your nearest store. I think businesses like Coles can be great to dip your toe in for new investors – and get the hang of owning a part of a company. Coles is also a solid dividend payer, so you can get a nice stream of passive income on the side as well.
Foolish takeaway
If you're building a starter portfolio (or even just thinking about it), I think these two stocks would be great options to consider. If you want to just have other people making the hard calls, Argo might be a great first choice, but if you feel like picking some individual shares yourself, businesses don't come more rock-solid than Coles.
