Tips for Talking to Your Kids About Your Finances

Should Investors Care at All When a Stock Splits?

The summer of 2022 could be known as the Summer of Stock Splits, as several high-profile companies have either split their stock or announced their intention to split. Google’s parent company, Alphabet, is the latest, as it split its stock price by a 20-to-1 margin on July 18th – a move that reduced its share price from over $2,200 to about $110.

Other big-name companies jumping on the stock-split bandwagon include Tesla, GameStop, Shopify, Nintendo, Kinetic Holdings, and Amazon. Amazon went through a similar 20-to-1 stock split, so its stock now trades around $115/share, down from above $2,000.

Why does it matter?

But for all these stock splits, ask yourself: why does it matter? It’s not as if Alphabet (Google), Amazon, or any others will be worth more post-split – their market capitalizations do not change.

Publicly, companies say they are splitting their stock because it makes their shares more inviting to retail shareholders. But another reason is that a stock split might increase the odds of a company being added to the prestigious, 30-stock Dow Jones Industrial Average.

What you might not know?

You might not know that the DJIA is weighted by price (versus other indices like the S&P 500 that are weighted by market value). So if the DJIA included a stock with a crazy high price, that would heavily skew the DJIA’s performance. Apple was added to the DJIA in 2015 – but only after its 7-to-1 stock split in 2014

Reverse Stock Splits are a Thing Too

You might not know it, but in July 2022 alone, there are 19 companies set to split their stock price. But interestingly, only 3 of the 19 are actually splitting their stock (Alphabet, GameStop, and Salisbury Bancorp).

The other 16 are doing what’s called a reverse stock split. Take Enveric Biosciences, for example. Enveric is doing a reverse stock split at a ratio of 1-to-50, which means if you owned 50 shares of Enveric on July 15th, you now own 1 share.

Why It Doesn’t Really Matter?

When you hear of a company splitting its stock, remember the famous words of Hall of Famer Yogi Berra when he said, “You better cut my pizza into four slices because I’m not hungry enough to eat six.” The pizza is still worth the same whether you cut it into 4, 6, 20, or 2 slices.

Schedule a visit with your financial planner!

Initially, preparing these lists and the associated documentation may seem like an overwhelming task. However, once completed, both you and your adult children may experience a sense of relief in the knowledge that thoughtful planning was discussed and implemented according to your wishes

We are here to help.

Should Investors Care at All When a Stock Splits?

Why does it matter?

What you might not know?

Reverse Stock Splits are a Thing Too

Why It Doesn’t Really Matter?

Schedule a visit with your financial planner!

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