My 10k Saving Challenge, has me saving $300 in week five, in which I am investing the biggest amount of money so far. My mindset this week was as followed: 

1. I could buy or increase my positions in cheaper stocks so I could get more volume from this $300 or, 

2. I could add more pricey stocks that in previous weeks would have been out of budget.  

In the end I did a little bit of both.  

This is what I acquired. 

International Business Machine Corp. (NYSE: IBM) is a large cap value stock in the information technology sector that focus on IT services. The company operates through five segments: Cloud and Cognitive Software, Global Business Services, Global Technology Services, and Systems and Global Financing. 

This may sound a bit foreign, but it all boils down to the idea that IBM is making sure their company will be able to fit into any environment, whether they need to take care of someone’s data or helping push artificial intelligence (AI) solutions for clients, they will be able to assist them. I added this stock because they filled my need for my information technology sector and they were also able to beat earnings from the Q4 with $2.07. The consensus was $1.79 by 12 analysts. This was a difference of 13.43% which shows that even during hard times this company is still able to perform.  

Intel Corp. (NASDAQ: INTC) is also a large cap value stock in the information technology sector but with a focus on semiconductors and semiconductor equipment. Its segments are Client Computing Group (CCG), Data Center Group (DCG), Internet of Things Group (IOTG), Non-Volatile Memory Solutions Group (NSG), Mobileye, and Programmable Solutions Group (PSG).

Intel Corp. was another stock I added to my information technology sector but this time with a different focus; semiconductors and their equipment. This provided me a chance not only to add to that sector but be exposed to a different area of that sector as well. Intel has found itself into everything in the market. They make CPU, flash memory, graphics chips, and network interface controllers, giving them a lot of market space. Intel added Mobileye to their portfolio which is working on automated driving car which is something that the market is going to want if Tesla is any indicator of the future of cars. Q4 earnings were $1.52 with a consensus of $1.10 means they had a difference of 27.50% which gave me confidence they will continue to perform over time increasing their share price along with their dividend. 

Realty Income Corp (NYSE: O) is a mid-cap blend stock that is an equity real estate investment trust (REITs). As of December 31, 2016, the company owned a diversified portfolio of 4,944 properties located in 49 states and Puerto Rico, with over 83.0 million square feet of leasable space leased to 248 different commercial tenants doing business in 47 separate industries. 4,920, or 99.5%, were single-tenant properties, and the remaining were multi-tenant properties. Out of these 4,920 single-tenant properties, 4,836 were leased with a weighted average remaining lease term of approximately 9.8 years.

Last week I added two REITs to my account: Agnc Investment Corp. (NASDAQ: AGNC) and Gladstone Commerical Corp. (NASDAQ: GOOD). AGNC has a focus on residential mortgage-backed securities on a leveraged basis. GOODs focus is in acquiring, owning, and managing primarily office and industrial properties while also making long-term industrial and commercial mortgage loans. The two areas of REITs now have coverage because of these purchases.  I added Realty Income Corp. because its focus is on long term single-tenant properties, which was an area that I did not yet have in my REITs sector.  

Steelcase Inc. (SYSE: SCS) is a small cap value in the industrial sector focusing on commercial services and supplies. They provide an integrated portfolio of furniture settings, user-centered technologies, and interior architectural products. Their furniture portfolio includes products such as storage, tables, and ergonomic work tools. Included in their seating products are task chairs, which are ergonomic seating that can be used in collaborative or casual settings, and specialty seating for specific vertical markets, such as healthcare and education. They offer services, which include workplace strategy consulting, lease origination services, furniture and asset management and hosted spaces. 

I saw that I needed industrials in my portfolio not knowing where to go so I felt commercial services & supplies seemed like a safe bet. What really made me look at this stock was the integrated portfolio and the seating products because they were specific in areas such as healthcare, making me think that they will be needed for a long time. I also found that they crushed their latest earning by 62.50%, their earnings were $.08 and the consensus was $.03.   

Final Thoughts: 

I wanted to add at least one stock that previously would have not be attainable because my weekly amounts didn’t give me the chance to. I’m still pushing to get my portfolio more balanced so I’m not leaning too heavily in one sector. I feel that what I added this week (IBM, INTC, O, SCS) helped me rebalance it out, however much more still needs to be done. GAIN and GOOD are going to help increase my monthly income followed by T which is going to help with my overall annual income. 

As always, have a great day and keep learning and moving towards your goals, never stop pushing!