When you invest in a stock while taking a long-term buying perspective, you naturally expect that it could be five or 10 years before you start to see a reasonable return on your investment. By tracking your portfolio returns, you can hone your buying strategy and learn how to identify stocks positioned for substantial growth.
Understandably, economic recessions can be scary times for investors. But there are opportunities to be found by those who can take the big picture view and know the market always recovers, and who have cash on the sidelines to deploy. For example, if you invested $1,000 in Bristol Myers Squibb (NYSE: BMY) during the last recession, you might be amazed at how much that initial investment would have offered in returns by now.
The Great Recession officially started in December 2007 and ended in June 2009. Assuming you purchased Bristol Myers Squibb shares during this economic downturn, let's see how much your investment would be worth today.