The share market is an obscure place. Many investors too, subscribe to the feeling. Further, the stock market reports further complicate the issue. For the newcomer to the stock market, the stock reports are quite complex to understand.

The symbols, acronyms and numbers used in the daily stock report are a cause of puzzlement to the newcomers in a stock market. For keeping track of the stock market prices, today in the stock market, it is imperative to understand how to read these reports. Some overview can be gained by reading the quick moving tickers on financial TV broadcasts. They provide various stock analysis results. We at Company Invest rely heavily on technical analysis (the study of stock charts), however, you should always research companies fundamentals, as well as looking at stock reports.

One simple method to help understand and read the stock reports could be to make a note of all the acronyms appearing in the report and keeping track of their meaning as a list. This list could be updated and expanded with time. Using this list while reading a stock report online could then be likened to reading a newspaper with a dictionary by the side.

One of the factors of interest to the investor would be the closing value in the stock market today. This is generally placed right next to the stock symbol. This value can be used as an important tool to compare the prices between different stocks, within the investor’s portfolio.

Immediately following the closing value, the stock report gives the major percentage change figure. Some reports mention the price change, in the stocks market today, between the starting and closing prices, others give a percentage change figure. An up or a down arrow, next, serves to indicate the price movement involving the stock, for the investor. The investor can then compare the change with the different indexes for the industrial sector and thus gain an overall view of the position of the stock in the market.

For long term investors, the next figure is important. This shows the performance and competence of the stock in the last 52 weeks. Detailed information on the moving average in this range may be obtained from websites and business-TV shows. A thorough analysis of these trends, helps the long term investor take a stand in his trading of stocks.

For an understanding of the stock report, the best place to go to is the online trading platforms. They provide the latest trends and charts which help the investor to take quick decisions in the live market. They also provide trend information about a bunch of stocks in the portfolio. Financial television tickers are another source of information, which responds very fast to market changes. But for a newcomer, the high-speed movement of the tickers may not be a very comfortable experience.

The stock markets may remain stagnant, may move up or move down. It is very important for the investor to keep track of the movement of stocks through stock reports and online trading portals, so as to get the latest news and take maximum advantage whether he is a day trader or a long term trader. Proper stock analysis and timely action, backed by a positive attitude is very important for success in the stock market.  At Company Invest, we feel looking at a stock report is another piece of the investing puzzle that can only lead to success.

As Company Invest, we continue writing about the stock market.

When a new corporation decides to sell its shares of stocks in its IPO, it raises investment capital from the market. The corporation invests this capital in buying equipment and hiring employees. The corporation begins its operations, and at the end of the year makes a profit, thus improving its share prices. There are a number of ways the board of directors of the corporation may decide on the disbursement of the profits earned.

After careful market analysis, the board of directors may decide to save the profits in a bank account to be used in case of emergency. It may decide to distribute the profits to the shareholders, and consequently, declare a dividend per share. It may decide to reinvest the profits back into the business to buy additional equipment or hire more employees, thus expanding the company. It may also decide on any combination of the above three options to influence the price of shares.

If the corporation decides to distribute most of the profits to its shareholders, it is called an Income stock. The price trend of an income stock stays mostly flat. Unless the profits increase and the dividends thereby, the market stock prices of the corporation remain constant. People annually get their dividends, and the business does not grow. This would be the case for the stock of a business which disburses all its profits to the shareholders every year.

If the corporation, instead of paying dividends, decided to save its profits and later invested the profits in expanding the business, it is called a growth company. The shareholders may not be receiving yearly dividends, but are owners of a company that is growing. The stock value of the company rises, in the anticipation that the increased investment will bring additional profits. The shareholders, therefore, get additional value for their shares, if they decide to sell them. The buyer will be interested to pay more for the shares of the stock, on account of the increased book value of the company as well as the potential for the improvement in its profits.

When a company’s shares are thus publicly traded, all financial details of the company is made public. The Securities and Exchange Commission is responsible for collecting this financial information and making it public. The value of the stock divided by the earnings of each share is an indicator of the worth of the stock of the company. This is called the price to earnings ratio. Investors use ratios of this type to determine the value of stock of a corporation.

Another method to assess the health of stock prices as a whole is to follow the movement of the averages such as the Dow Jones Index or the Russell 2000 or the S&P 500. These broad market averages are designed to inform you of the general health of the companies trading on the stock market. The market is termed a Bull market, if the moving average prices of a group of stocks have a rising trend. A falling trend, for the moving average prices of the group of stocks, makes it a Bear market.

At Company Invest, we continue to give information about stock market, investment options, etc.

A platform that helps to trade in stocks is called the Stock Market. It uses stock quotes that are governed by supply and demand. Earlier, the stock market would be a place that a group of sellers and buyers gathered at, and traded stocks. At a mutually agreed price, a deal would be struck. Now, in the world of computers and information technology, the traders do not need any paper. A trading account has to be opened with a broker, pay a small fee, and trading of stocks can be started from the home.

The reason why a stock market exists is the same as for the existence of a supermarket. At a supermarket, a large variety of goods is available under one roof, and it is easier for people to shop, without having to run from shop to shop. A USA stock market does just that for shares and stocks. It brings together all the stock at one place where both sellers and buyers can trade under one roof. Just as with online shopping, you do not need to visit a stock market to do your trading. The buying and selling can be done instantly from your home.

The stock market concentrates all buying and selling at one place. This has the effect of a stock price being known every moment of the day. The price of the stocks fluctuates depending on information from the company, the stock market news, media reports, etc. The buyers and sellers take into account all these factors. Any news of a company doing good business jacks up the demand for stocks of that company. Because of the greater demand, the stock prices increase. The converse happens in case of some adverse information about a company. The stocks not in demand lose their value.

Any enterprise willing to sell its shares of stock in the stock market has to become a corporation, by incorporating itself to the government. Another advantage of incorporating is the limiting of the liability of the owners, to some extent. By selling its shares in the stock market, the corporation allows the shareholders to own a part of their business. Consequently, the profit earned by the corporation has to also be shared between the shareholders, in the same proportion as that of the holding of the shares. This is also known as the dividend the company pays to its shareholders.

A corporation is one way to collect the investment capital, from the investors. For businesses, where the capital to be invested is very large, it may not be possible for a single person to invest the total amount. Shares of stocks of the corporation are sold to the public via the stock market. When the corporation first sells its stock, it is called the Initial Public Offering or the IPO. People who buy the stocks of the corporation are, in fact, investing in the corporation, with the hope that they will earn a dividend, if the corporation makes a profit. The corporation may decide to pay a major part of its profits as a dividend. It is then called Income stock. It may decide to return most of the profits earned, back into its business. This is then called Growth stock.

COMPANY INVEST BOTTOM LINE

There is no better place to make money than in the stock market.  It is better than real estate flipping or any other recent trendy money making endeavor.  You will get 2-4 great Company Invest picks per week by being a loyal vistitor at companyinvest.com.  Together, we can make 20-30% per year, every year!   How’s that for performance?

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In these series of articles, we will give information to CompanyInvest.com users on how to be an expert about the stock market.  Combine this information with regular Company Invest picks, and you’ll be making money in no time!

The general health of the shares market is indicated by several averages and their movements. An average of a few of the hot stocks is indicated as moving up or down with reference to their average price at a certain position in time. If the prices as a group have a rising trend, the stock market trade is referred to as a Bull market. If the prices have a tendency to fall, the stock market trade is called the Bear Market. The movement of the averages shows the tendency of the economy as a whole of doing well or doing poorly.

In the United States, there are two large stock exchanges. They are the New York Stock Exchange, NYSE, and the National Association of Securities Dealers, NASDAQ. A company willing to sell its shares lists its stock on one of these exchanges. Anyone who wants to do trading of stocks of any of the companies listed, also goes to these exchanges. It is not necessary to physically visit New York to avail the services of the Stock Market. There are stock brokers authorized to trade, who can be approached for transacting on behalf of the general public.

The US stock market has several such brokers, also called brokerage houses. Few of the popular ones are Charles Schwab, Merrill Lynch and Morgan Stanley. You have to register with them, and they will, on your behalf, go to the stock exchange and buy or sell your shares and stocks. The brokerage house will collect a commission from you to provide you this service. Another way of buying or selling stocks on the exchange is the online trading.

In online trading the investor takes the decisions about the buying or selling without recourse to a human broker, for share market tips. This is usually done through a computer. Real money is still used, but you take the main decision about the stock of the day, you want to sell or buy, and do the trade by yourself. However, several online brokerages do offer advice from human brokers and also provide trading based on assistance from live brokers.

Stock market prices fluctuate based on several issues, both national and international. The best way to predict the nature of the market fluctuations is to study the trend. There can be gradual changes or there could be sharp spikes. The nature of the stock market can be equated to the behavior of a human being. A human reacts differently to certain situations, which can be predicted after studying his personality. In the same way, the stock market may be predicted to a certain extent by studying its trends.

Several factors affect the prices of stocks in the stock market. These include interest rates, inflation, oil and energy prices, and political issues. International issues like fraud, war, climatic upheavals, and crime are also causes of sharp spikes in the prices of stock. Studying the history of individual stocks, market trend awareness, and keeping a close watch on the downswings and upswings, goes a long way in planning to buy and sell shares.

In the not too distant past, if you wanted to trade stocks you had to pay huge fees to use a full service broker. It was so expensive the average investor could barely afford it and many couldn’t at all. However, today there are many great discount online brokers to choose from and most offer free accounts that take just minutes to sign up for. And trading fees are low, way low. As low as $3-$5 a trade.

Choosing the “best” online stock broker is important since the broker will be carrying out your investment trades and maintaining your accounts. However, finding a good online stock broker can be unnerving due to sheer amount of investment firms and banks vying for your business. Everyone claims to offer the “best trades” and the “lowest prices.” So how do you decide which online stock broker best meets your needs?

EVALUATING ONLINE BROKERS

While choosing an online stock broker, the first thing to take into consideration is whether you need a full service or a discount broker. While full service brokers offer a comprehensive range of services, discount brokers generally only execute trades on behalf of the clients. As a result, discount brokers generally charge lower commissions. Some other parameters to compare online stock brokers on are:

Trading platform: Online trading can become quite confusing and cumbersome, if the software provided by the online broker lacks ease-of-use. If the broker’s website takes too long to load or is too confusing, your trade result can be grossly affected.

Products offered: When choosing an online broker, people generally only think of stocks. However, some online brokers deal in other investment vehicles as well, such as futures, options and gold contracts. If you seek diversity in your investment portfolio, find online brokers who manage multiple investments. 

Minimum deposit: Most online brokers charge a minimum deposit to execute, which may be as high as $10,000. Evaluate your financial capacity and choose a broker accordingly. Note that some online stock brokers do not charge any minimum deposit, although this might mean compromising on some additional services.

Customer service: Since online trading may become boggling at times, it is important that the online broker maintains appropriate real-time over-the-phone and online customer service. Lack of proper customer service may leave you confused and frustrated. Also, ensure that the online broker’s customer service provides regularly account statements, for you to track your progress.

Finally, note that the right online stock broker can make or break your progress on the stock market. Good brokers undertake research activities to keep their clients abreast of the best strategies to optimize returns from stock trading.

I’ve used Fidelity, Sharebuilder, Scottrade and a number of other online brokers.  But I found a broker with a mix of all the right qualities: great customer service, an easy to use website, no minimum deposit, great security, fast trade execution and, most importantly, LOW, LOW trading fees. Tradeking takes the prize in my book. They offer . Sign up today. You’ll be glad you did.  It’s free to sign up and it literally only takes minutes.

ALSO KNOWN AS PAPER TRADING

 A stock market simulation game is a great way to practice your investment skills before actually investing any “real” money in the stock market.

Simulation games are usually played on the internet, where people can experience the thrill of investing in the stock market without any risks, costs or any fear of losing money when and if they make a poor investment decision.   This is commonly referred to as “paper trading.”

Many teachers and professors of banking and finance are now using stock market simulation games to teach their students about the rudiments of investing in stocks. Most stock market simulation games come with a fee to get started, but there are some that are free of any charge.

HOW DOES IT WORK?

First, players must register. After registration, players are given an initial sum of “virtual” money to invest in companies of their choice. Players build a portfolio of stocks by buying and selling shares in companies. Most stock market simulation games use real-time market data.

The objective of most stock market simulation games is simple:

To increase the value of your portfolio of stocks so that it is greater than that of the other game players.

TIPS ON PLAYING

Below are some tips on choosing a stock market simulation game:

• Choose a stock market simulation game that is used and recommended by reputable colleges, high schools, middle school, investment clubs, brokers in training, corporate education courses and any other group of individuals studying markets in the U.S. and worldwide.
• Choose a stock market simulation game that is comprehensive and easy to implement in any Finance, Economics, or Investments class. A good stock market simulation game should feature trading of stocks, options, futures, mutual funds, bonds from the U.S. and many of the world’s major markets.
• Choose a stock market simulation game that provides a valuable, reliable, and realistic trading simulation at a reasonable price to members and other individuals who are interested in learning more about investing and trading. The simulation game should also have some capability for testing a variety for investment strategies.
• Choose a stock market simulation game that has a toll-free customer service phone number and excellent e-mail support for members. The support function should be able to quickly answer any questions that members/players may have.
• Choose a stock market simulation game that is easy to use and easy to teach even to those who have never had any real hands-on investment experience.

There are many good sites and discount brokers that offer stock simulators such as Wall Street Survivor
, one of our advertisers.  Click the ad at the right to sign up for a free account.  You can trade just as if you were in the market and there are lots of great prizes! And you can paper trade stocks, options, and commodities.  It’s a harmless way to “get your feet wet” while you are learning how to trade stocks.  www.investopedia.com is one site that offers a nice investment simulation for free.

COMPANYINVEST.COM TRADING UPDATE 

Both of our recent picks, QID and ERY are doing wonderfully.  We added shares of QID to our position during today’s trading.  Tune in tomorrow for another great stock pick!

Despite Ben Bernanke and the Federal Reserve’s $600 billion effort to prop the stock market and economy, it looks as if a correction is in order now.  Now would be a good time to pause, take profits and sell a portion of your long positions, or, if you are aggressive, why not make money when the market goes down?   You can do that by shorting stocks, buying put options, or, our preferred method, buying inverse ETFs.

We know that the market goes down much faster than it goes up because fear is a powerful thing, especially when coupled with money.  Right now the early signals indicate a 5 to 10 percent correction looming in the S&P 500.  And when the S&P 500 goes down, 3/4 of all stocks go down with it so take heed.  If you want to stay in your long positions, that’s fine.  Use a 5 to 8% trailing stop (whatever you are comfortable with).  A trailing stop is a wonderful tool offered by most online brokers.  It is a variable selling point and is great when you’ve already made money and want to lock in your profits.  If you put a 5% trail in, your selling point is always 5% lower than the current bid for the stock or ETF you are in.  That way, if the price keeps going up, so does your stop, however, once it corrects 5%, your shares are automatically sold, and your profits are locked in.

Today’s pick is QID.  QID is a reverse ETF which moves in the opposite direction of the QQQ’s (technology ETF).  That is when the technology sector is going down, QID is going up.

Looking at the chart there are several encouraging signals:

“A” is the slow stochastic momentum indicator.  It has been oscillating in oversold territory since early September!  We think this time the stochastic line has a great shot of going all the way up to 80 (overbought).  If that happens, QID will rally bigtime!  There is a powerful divergence between the stochastic and the price channel.  Look at the severely downsloped price trendline (red), compared to the stochastic lows (green line).  The stochastic line is flat to slightly sloping upward, indicating a change in trend.

“B“is the price chart for QID.  We had a powerful white candle on Friday (typically a selling day) and QID had a positive week overall.  More importantly, are the 3 and 10 day Exponential Moving Averages (EMAs).  The green and red arrows in the chart indicate buy/sell signals generated when the 3 day EMA (blue line) crosses up or down through the 10 day EMA (red line).  As you can see this technique gives wonderful stock trading signals.  The last signal (SELL) occured at the beginning of September.  Since then QID has gotten a 36% haircut! As of Friday’s close the 3 day EMA is EXACTLY the same as the 10 day and is just about to cross to the upside.  Monday could be an EXCELLENT entry point.

“C” is the MACD histogram.  Look at the massive bullish divergence between the histogram and the price channel.  This is a powerful buy signal.

“D” is the ADX indicator.  You get a buy signal when the green line crosses up through the red line (heading that direction but hasn’t happend yet).  However, the ADX line (black line) gives early signals.  The ADX line measures trend, and the trend has been up since early September, however that line is now rolling over and sloping down.

Bottom Line: Look for an entry point Monday and buy 50-100 shares of QID with a stop $1 below your entry point.

UPDATE: We had two wonderful stocks here in X (US Steel) and DGP (Double Gold ETF).  Hopefully you took profits and sold all of your shares now.

ERY:  We recommended it last week, but our stop of $29.20 was triggered.  However, ERY rallied hard on Friday and we really like it again as a trade.  Look to re-enter on Monday.

Alcoa Aluminum Daily Chart

Alcoa Aluminum has enjoyed a nice run from $9.92 per share on 8/31 to $12.22 at today’s closing. Lucky investors who got in at that time would have enjoyed a nice 23% gain in just over a month’s time!

Today’s Analysis:

Look at the green letter “A” in the chart above. If you notice, the stock price has went almost straight up from Sept 7 until today. Seems great right? However, Notice the red “A” at the bottom of the chart. That is a Stochastic indicator which measures momentum.  Notice how it is sloping down at the same time the price is going up.  That is a negative divergence and is a “sell” signal.

The letter “B” is today’s Japanese candlestick symbol, which is a “Hanging Man.” This candlestick appears during an uptrend and is a reversal signal.  Another “sell.”

Letter “C” are the volume bars, which are simply the number of shares traded in a day. Each bar represents a day. Notice how the buying volume has been diminishing while the stock price continues to rise. Another negative divergence. “Sell” again.

Letter “D” is the MACD histogram. MACD is a powerful technical indicator. The histogram bars are a nice predictor of market direction. They have flattened out. Watch tomorrow’s bar. If tomorrow’s bar, is shorter than today’s that is yet another “Sell” signal.

Finally the red line above the stock price (see red arrow) is the 200 day price moving average.  That line marks heavy resistance.  Should this rally continue, it will more than likely stall there.   The blue line near the bottom is the 50 day moving average. It can be considered “support.” So any selloff will likely be contained there.  In the middle is a trading range.

Bottom Line: After a 23% gain in a month, take profits and get out! Or if you’re feeling adventurous, short AA or buy puts.

Simulating the stock market can be a lucrative and educational way to learn the fluctuations and risks before actually doing the investment at the first place. With this way, you can get accustomed with the stock market and foresee the upcoming development before it happens.

Simulating stock market can usually be played on the internet and you can invest virtually by not risking your money without any cost if you make bad investment choices. This practice is actually recommended in the schools and financial institutions to learn the real environment of stock before actually “entering” in it. The simulation games comes with subscription fees as a starting cost or you can play it for free in most websites. Most of them doesn’t need to have a prior knowledge of stock market. In these website, after you register to the website, you are given some virtual money to invest any company you want in the stock market. You can build a portfolio with the companies that you think they will be most successful. Time to time, you get real time data on your investment to learn whether you earn or lose money.

To use the simulation games, you need to check the closest university or financial institutions to learn which simulation website they are recommending. And then, register the website and choose your investment on which class will be assessed. The investment classes can be either in finance, economics or investment class. You can get information about how to trade stocks, options, futures, mutual funds from US or other countries’ stock markets. The simulation game also should be easy to use, reliable and flexible to use different strategies if something goes wrong.

Overall, simulating the stock market is a great way to get accustomed to stock market and learn how to earn most money on the stock market.

“Opportunity Investment’ is a new style of investment where the investors look for the investment opportunities around the world. It is very different style of investment compared to traditional investment options such as bonds, shares, stock market etc.  You need to make decisions daily basis to get the best profit margins. The profit margins can be as high as 1000% in just one year.

The key object in “opportunity investment” is to find investment sources with high profit potentials. These investment sources need to be unexplored to keep the profit highest.

As the internet makes the information reachable so fast, the investment opportunities are everywhere and with structured and well planned investment plans, you can make millions in a short time of period.