What are Freetraders investing in in 2020

One of the coolest things about investing is that everybody makes different decisions.

Many Freetraders like to put money into ETFs. Others love investing in green energy, or companies they use products from regularly.

And some Freetraders hold shares in a mix of companies, ranging from bookmakers to gold miners.

We’re all individuals and our investment decisions often reflect that. It’s also that mix of personalities which makes our community so amazing!

If you’ve been keeping up with the Freetrade Community, you’ll have seen our customers sharing their investment plans for 2020.

But for those of you that haven’t (yet) joined the community, we thought we’d share some of the interesting ideas that our customers have for this year.

Before you read, remember that these are our customers’ decisions and shouldn’t be taken as us giving you investment advice!

Aaron, 28

I am new to investing having only used robo-investing apps in the past. This year I have taken the step to start investing in individual shares for myself. My goal for this year is to just learn as much as I can, build up a small but diverse portfolio of companies and to not lose any money. Three goals which I feel are reasonable and within my reach.

I’m most interested in dividend-paying shares and plan on reinvesting any dividends I do get. The long term goal for me is to have a portfolio which pays enough in dividends to cover any outgoings I may have.

Doyin, 27

I’ve got five investment goals for 2020

1. I’ve rebalanced my entire portfolio (which was originally 70% cash ISA, 10% stocks & 20% passive index funds). I’m working on transforming my whole portfolio with the goal of acquiring 50% in passive index funds (including ETF’s such as Vanguard S&P 500 ETF), 25% in stocks and 25% in balanced funds.

2. The goal on the horizon is to hold for the long term (20 years+) and use the compound gain as disposable income in the future or maybe for retirement (who knows!)

3. I’m keen to learn more about alternative markets such as the Green industry, metals and materials and possibly leave scope to invest stock in some companies.

4. Of course, once fractional shares are live, I’ll invest in the likes of Google (where the cost of a share is relatively high) and have a strong hold position for the very very long term!

5. Learn more about the stock market (especially ETF’s) and educate fellow millennials on the benefits of investing smartly.

Phil, 33

For most of 2019, I only had a couple of stocks in Freetrade, but over the last 3–4 months, I started to ramp up my contributions and build out a portfolio. This is how it’s allocated at the moment:

My strategy is to invest in consumer and tech companies that I have personal experience of, or know enough about to be confident in.

There are four things I’m looking to change as soon as possible:

1. In most months I’ve been adding new companies rather than buying more shares of ones I already have. It means I haven’t been “buying the dip” and taking advantage of drops in prices to add more.
2. There are some companies (e.g. Google, Amazon) that I can’t buy because the cost of a single share is so high. Once fractional shares are live, I’ll add them.
3. The allocation of some companies in my portfolio is based on the cost of a single share, so some make up a greater % simply because of their share price. Again, once fractional shares are available, I’ll be able to adjust this.
4. Add a few European companies when they become available. I have LVMH, Airbus and Adidas on my watchlist.

Simon, 24

My plan for 2020 is to…have a plan. My investments with Freetrade over the last 8 months or so have been fairly random but fortunately fairly successful (at least so far). I have about 4 times the amount of £ happily invested in a competitor’s ISA, so Freetrade doesn’t represent the bulk of my savings, but I need to come up with a strategy for my stock picking. For now I will just stick with what I have and keep building.

Steve, 32

I’ve got a full rebalance in motion at the moment that will hopefully be finished in April.

I’m aiming for 70% of my portfolio in diversified ETFs and the rest will be stockpicking — aiming for 30 stocks at 1% allocation each, but free to tweak this if I feel I have a winner!

I’m currently overexposed to the finance sector as I hold:

Barclays

Lloyds

Metro

OneSavings

So Lloyds and Metro are on notice! They’re both in good profit at the moment, but I feel I can eke out just a little more before pulling the trigger.

Next on my list to go is Vodafone, they’re hovering on the one percent loss line at the moment so I’m hanging on for some better news.

I’m also considering ditching Bluefield Solar because the fees are so high. It has done quite well for me though.

The last to go would be ASOS. Feel like I got them at a great time and now it’s time to take the cash, but I’m also feeling super greedy and would like to wait out for their results…

That will leave me with about 23 stocks, should be just enough space for some fractionals and some key pharma and green energy companies I’m interested in when the new features launch.

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Important Information

This should not be read as personal investment advice and individual investors should make their own decisions or seek independent advice.
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When you invest, your capital is at risk. The value of your portfolio can go down as well as up and you may get back less than you invest. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future results.

Eligibility to invest into an ISA and the value of tax savings depends on personal circumstances and all tax rules may change.
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Freetrade is a trading name of Freetrade Limited, which is a member firm of the London Stock Exchange and is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. Registered in England and Wales (no. 09797821).

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