My only foray (to date) into shares was an IPO that didn't go up. My logic was much the same as your statement - don't these things always go up on the first da

My only foray (to date) into shares was an IPO that didn't go up. My logic was much the same as your statement - don't these things always go up on the first day? I'll just get in early, get out on day one, make a profit. (I was at university, so making a few hundred bucks and learning on the fly seemed like great returns!) I purchased for 50c / share. Looked set to open at 55c, but a heap of stock got dumped right before it opened so it opened at 48c. I got out at 47c on day 2; the stock was at 5c twelve months later. So I learnt a lot about research and business fundamentals from that. About six months later I tried again but missed out due to oversubscription - would have 4x my money on day one, more for those who bought and held on for a takeover 12 months later.