There’s no magical number of shares. the right amount of depends on 3 things: your money, your goals, and your risk.
Here’s how to figure it out:
1.Think in rupees, not shares
Forget “how many shares”. ask “how much money am I okay investing?”
Example: if a stock is 500LKR/share and you invest 10,000 LKR, you get 20 shares. if it’s 50 LKR/share, same 10k gets you 200 share s. the value matters, not the count.
2.Use the 3 rules for beginners
rule 01: Never invest money you’ll need < 3 years
rule 02: Start small, then scale
rule 03: Diversify, don’t go all-in on 1 stock
A common beginner split:
- 60-80% in diversified ETFs/Index fund if you can access them, or 5-8 different solid companies
- 20-40% max in 1-2 individual stocks you really understand
- Never put> 10-15% of your portfolio into single company.
3.Quick formula to decide “how many shares”
Share = Amount you want to invest/price per share
Example for CSE:
Stock: Jhon Keells JKH = 350 LKR/share
You decide: “I’ll put 35,000LKR into JKH”
Shares: 35, 000/350 = 100 shares
But ask first: Is 35k less than 10-15% of your total investment money? If yes, you’re good.
4.What Not to do
- Don’t buy 1-2 share of a 10,000 LKR stock just because it’s “cheap per share”. broker fees will eat you alive.
- Don’t buy 1000 shares of a 5LKR penny stock because “quantity feels big” Quality>Quantity.
- Don’t use all your savings because ” this tip is conformed”.
Bottom line : Start with an amount that lets you sleep at night. for most people in SL, that’s 5k-25k LKR per month to start.
