Comments by "Magic Beans" (@Magic_beans_) on "Stocks | How Equity Earns You Money" video.

  1. US government bonds can be bought directly from the Treasury, I believe some states do that too. Typically though you'd go through a brokerage. They'll have a section of their website labeled "Fixed Income" or something like that. If you don't have a lot of money to invest, you may want to start with a mutual fund (or its close relative the exchange-traded fund) that invests in bonds. That way you can spread your money across several different companies.
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  2. No, it's up to the company's management. Microsoft pays a dividend, Google doesn't. The general tendency is for younger and faster-growing companies to pay smaller or no dividends because they believe they can put that cash to better use (and help you get a better return) by reinvesting it into the company. Companies can also change their dividend from time to time. There are companies that have steadily increased their dividend each year, sometimes for decades. There are also cases like Hawaiian Electric which recently suspended their dividend because they're probably going to be held partly liable for the Maui wildfires and that means they'll need cash.
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