Finance Information
Feb 13th, 2008 by Vinny
There is an unlimited amount of information out there on the stock market. One of my favorite finance websites is Google Finance. They correlate news information into stock pricing on a graph which is extremely useful. Just like Google Maps you can drag the price time-line back and forth, and make it larger to see trends over a long period of time. The most useful part of the main page is the sector summary. From a quick glance you can see if the market is having a good day, or a bad day. In the last few months, is varies widely one day to the next and you can never be sure which way to go.
My second favorite site is Yahoo Finance. They have a crazy amount of historical data available for free. You can also use the current trending tools to see which stocks are taking a beating or rising fast during the day. This is accessible under the investing tab, then market stats.
There is always of course the Wall Street Journal, most of the information is free but there is some content that is pay only.
Other sites I check occasionally are the Motely Fool.com, Cnn Money, and Barrons.
Two magazines I read every month are Money and Smartmoney. Money is more geared towards the average person trying to make it and have a comfortable retirement. Smart money is a lot more stock market and company oriented. They compliment each other very nicely, and they are cheap subscriptions.
If you are researching a specific company, check their website in the investors section, or go right to the SEC and search the archives for financial reports.
If you are a TV person like me, there is a show that many have heard of, Jim Cramers Mad Money. Its on every night at 6PM EST on CNBC. Cramer is a great finance mind with a lot of information to share with the individual investor (he can be a little crazy). Cramer advocated 1 hour a week per stock you own if you purchase stocks directly.
The little advice I can offer is to save as much as you can since it will never hurt you!