Why do small investors get ‘cheated’?

The cynical answer to the question is: Because they deserve it. The cynicism can be explained by a recent incident during my last visit to the local market.

I was buying half a kilo of Kashmiri apples – the small, roundish kind with alternate patches of bright red and light green colours. They have a crisp, lightly sweet and fresh taste that takes me back on waves of nostalgia to my only trip to Kashmir more than 50 years ago. A place of such pristine and gorgeous beauty I have rarely ever seen again. But I digress.

As is my habit, I asked the rate per kilo, and was told by the young fruit vendor that it was Rs 80. As the young fellow was weighing the fruits, a middle-aged gentleman came by. He wanted to buy half a kilo of the Kashmiri apples as well, and proffered a Rs 50 note with this comment: “It is Rs 100 a kilo, isn’t it?”

The fruit seller glanced at me quickly, and observing my blank expression, simply nodded his head and promptly took the Rs 50 note. Now, being overcharged Rs 10 for half a kilo of apples may not seem like a big deal. The point is, the buyer unnecessarily tried to show-off that he was a knowledgeable buyer, and allowed himself to be ‘cheated’.

Should I have pointed out the correct price to the buyer and saved him Rs 10? That would have broken the mutual trust that has developed between the young fruit vendor and me over the past several years. I pay him whatever rate he asks, and he always gives me the best fruits from his pile.

What does all this have to do with investments? Change the ‘half a kilo’ to ‘500 shares’; ‘Kashmiri apples’ to ‘Dabur India’ (say); and ‘young fruit vendor’ to ‘Rakesh Jhunjhunwala’ (or, Ramesh Damani). A small investor could have bought Dabur shares for Rs 80 a few months back, but may choose to buy them at Rs 100 now. Due to the bear phase, the stock goes nowhere. After a couple of months, the stock’s price may drop to Rs 90, and the investor will probably exit in a hurry with a Rs 10 loss. Except that the loss is not Rs 10, but Rs 5000 – since the original quantity bought was 500 shares.

The investor feels ‘cheated’ because he bought a well-known FMCG stock, and still lost a decent amount of money. The fact that he made a couple of serious mistakes - buying at a higher price, and then selling at a loss because of a short-term mentality – may not dawn on him. A few more similar experiences may keep the investor permanently away from the stock market – with the feeling that the market is ‘manipulated by operators’ to ‘cheat’ innocent investors.

The moral of the story? Don’t allow yourself to be cheated. Do some prior preparation and planning. Talk to veterans of the market. Read a few books. Understand how the game is played. Opening a demat account and a trading account is a necessary formality but not adequate preparation for buying stocks.