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When the company makes money, you also get some part of it is the benefit of owning stock. For example, through your research, you learn that one company is building new theme parks in Hong Kong, Japan, and Anaheim.
They also launched go.com on the Internet and one show they telecast is the most popular show on network television. With this information, in hopes that the company will announce good earnings and that the stock price will go up in the future, you decide to buy 100 shares of that company's stock.
You will be rewarded with a higher share price of the stock as a shareholder meaning that you made money. Not only millionaires but also kids, schoolteachers, policemen, housewives, and almost every one can also buy shares of a corporation.
Alternatively, possession of stock is also having its disadvantages. You get a full share of the risk of an operating business when you buy shares of a stock. It does not guarantee that you make money by owning stock.
Irrespective of whether you make or lose money with stocks, you still have voting power in the company. You are allowed one vote per stock share that you own as a shareholder.
You must either attend a corporation meeting or fill out a proxy ballot in order to vote, which is just like an runaway ballot in an election. Another person casts your vote for you with the proxy ballot.
Just like voting for Senators and House Representatives to the Congress, the voting usually decides who will be on the board of directors.
Matters such as the company budget, purchasing other companies, issuing additional stock, and paying a dividend are overseen by the board of directors. In general, the board oversees major decisions made by the company executives.
Owning shares of a stock has its risk and reward. However, you can see from the above examples that if you research a company before buying it, stocks can be profitable. Stock prices may escalate or down on a daily basis.
In the long run, if the company is making money, the share price will go up because as a shareholder you share the profit of the company.