Quit Smoking

Allow me to preface this post by stating that I realize that saying "quit smoking" is much easier said than done.  The purpose here is not to berate or chastise, but to show you the financial benefits you will reap by quitting; not to mention the health benefits.

Although cigarette prices vary from state to state and brand to brand, it is probably safe to assume that on average a pack of cigarettes costs about $2.50.  Now assuming that a person smokes 2 packs a day, then said person is spending about $150 per month or $1,825 a year smoking.

If a person were to quit smoking and invest that money, then how much would that money be worth at the end of one year?  Obviously that would depend on when and where you invested, so let's look at a couple of examples and see just what that money would be worth.  We'll look here at one example where the money is invested in a mutual fund, and another example where the money is invested in a stock.  These will be brief examples just to give an overall picture.  More information on investing will be given in detail in other posts.

From September 2013 to August 2014 the stock price of HENNESSY CORNERSTONE LARGE GROWTH INVESTOR CL (HFLGX) ranged in price from $12.60 to $14.90.  Purchasing $150 worth of shares each month during that year would have netted an investor about 130 shares.  As of 21 August 2014 the stock price was $15.14.  This would mean that the original $1,800 would now be worth $1,976; an increase of 9.7%.

During this same time the price of Apple, Inc. (AAPL) shares rose from about $70 to $100.  Investing $150 a month in these shares would have given an investor roughly 23.5 shares.  At close of business on 20 August 2014 the price of Apple shares was $100.57.  These 23.5 shares would now be worth over $2,360; an increase of $560 or more than 30%.

Granted these are not astronomical numbers, but this represents a significantly larger amount of money you would have versus what you would have via the alternative.  The question becomes which is better: to have more than $2,000 in the bank, or no money and a tray full of ashes?  I hope this has been helpful.

As of this posting I own shares in both HFLGX and AAPL.