How to invest in shares

Investors can buy shares in publicly listed companies using a specialist stockbroker, financial adviser or by opening a share-dealing account with an online investment platform. Investors can then choose to own the shares directly or pool their funds with others into an investment fund. The investment fund manager then selects the shares to be bought and sold in the fund. Some investment funds also purchase shares in unlisted companies.

The first step to investing in shares is to open an online share-dealing account with an investment platform. This is the cheapest and easiest way to buy shares and invest in the stock market. You will then need to add funds to your account ready for buying shares. Your chosen online investment platform will include information about the performance of different shares and funds. You can then select the shares you want to buy and start trading. You can also sell your shares too.

Market changes and volatility is all part of investing in shares. For this reason, investors should as a rule, consider shares a minimum five-year investment. Holding all your investment in the shares of one company poses the risk of losing all or some of your money should the company performance fail. You should think about spreading your investment across a range of companies shares to help reduce this risk.

Deciding on the timing to buy and sell shares is very difficult and it can be hard to second guess the stock market. Making regular investments, also called ‘drip-feeding’, can help to smooth out any increases or decreases in the value of different shares.

When investing you should remember to:

• Diversify your investments and spread your risk
• Understand that greater returns usually come with a greater risk
• Remember you should be investing for at least five years to allow for market ups and downs
• Keep an eye on your portfolio and its performance so you can buy or sell shares if needed
  
  

You can make money from investing in shares either by receiving a dividend payment or by selling them at a profit. If the company you have bought shares in makes a profit it can decide to pay its shareholders a dividend. Dividend interest is a form of income and this can be tax-free if you hold your shares in a stocks and shares ISA. Outside of an ISA, dividends can be paid up to £1,000, reducing to £500 in April 2024. Over this amount, it is 7.5% tax for basic rate taxpayers, 32.5% for higher rate taxpayers and 38.1% for additional-rate taxpayers. Some investors choose to hold their shares in a Self-invested personal pension (SIPP).

A share dealing account allows you to buy and sell shares in listed companies. A share dealing account can be opened online using an online investment platform or through a stockbroker. When you buy and sell shares you can do this on an execution only basis, advisory or discretionary basis.
Online investment platforms are usually provided on an execution only basis. This is where you receive no advice for your investment choices and will be completely responsible for these.

When you use a stockbroker to buy and sell shares, they may offer you advice on an advisory or discretionary basis. The former means they will give you guidance on your investments and you then make the final decision, while discretionary advice allows the broker to trade on your behalf. If you bought shares through an investment platform then you will need to use the same platform to sell your shares. You can sell shares either as a specific number to sell or by value.

Share dealing accounts may charge you an account fee and a transaction cost for when you buy and sell shares. If you decide to pool your funds and put money into an investment fund instead of purchasing individual shares, then some platforms may only charge the account or management fee as a percentage of the value of funds invested. Some investment platforms will reduce the cost of each transaction on a sliding scale as you make more transactions. Some platforms may charge inactivity fees.