Posts Tagged ‘stock market’

How To Look Into Shares

Written by admin on December 22, 2009 – 11:21 am -

Brought to you by trend trading.

As with gamblers in Las Vegas so it is with stock investments, ‘everybody’s got a system’. The goal of research, however, is to make the activity a lot less like gambling and a lot more like investment.

For those without the time or temperament to carry out research themselves, there are full time research services available - for a fee, of course. Full-Service brokerages, such as Merrill Lynch and other large, well-established firms offer research as part of their value to clients.

But there are firms, both traditional and the newer online variety, that offer research without the advice available from the broker. Whether the research (and the advice) are worth what it costs is an ongoing debate.

For those who see research not as a necessary evil or time-consuming burden, but as part of the process or even an adventure, there are now more sources than could be used in a lifetime.

Starting with the source of data is always a safe bet, since it’s the most unbiased, thoroughly audited information around. That source is the legally required filings of individual publicly traded companies.

In the U.S. those are 10-K’s - more or less equivalent to lengthy annual reports - which can be viewed or downloaded from the SEC’s website (www.sec.gov). (10-Q’s are filed quarterly, 8-K’s for significant financial changes in between.) Other countries have their equivalents, such as the Hong Kong Securities Regulatory Commission (HKSRC).

In those reports you’ll find recent (as of the filing date) financial data about income, expectations, competition and lines of business, current senior management listings and other information useful to those inclined toward Fundamental Analysis. 

Quarterly reports and annual reports are sent automatically to share holders, even those with only one share (though they’re usually traded in lots of 100 or more.) But, they’re often available free by calling or emailing the Investment Relations department; after all, companies want you to buy their share. They contain the same factual data as 10-K’s and 10-Q’s but occasionally wording differs, for those interested in subtle details.

For a modest annual or one-time fee, a blizzard of chart data is available that matches any produced by the in-house research departments of the large brokerages. (Sometimes they’re produced by the same people.)

Newsletters are another potentially good source of information, though opinions about the market vary so widely that researching whom to believe takes as much time and care as researching individual stocks. Sometimes they’re a few dollars per year, sometimes many hundreds - and price is no indicator of quality here.

One direct source of one kind of information are the in-person, on TV, or on the Internet interviews of company senior managers, usually by one or a panel of analysts.

CEOs, CFOs, and others often talk to the financial press and brokerage stock analysts to give their views on where their company stands, what challenges they face, and where they expect to be in the near to long-term future. Often they’re asked about specific pending lawsuits or legislation and to assess its potential impact.

Of course, executives have an interest in painting a rosy picture, but analysts have often heard it all and are very adept at keeping the ’spin factor’ to a minimum. If nothing else, it tells you what the executives want you to believe, which in itself is useful.

Even armed with nothing more than an inexpensive online trading account, the average investor has access to charts of historical and current data, future expectations, and a wide variety of statistical information which would keep even the most technically inclined busy for quite some time.

Be sure to use it all, or as much as you can absorb in the time available, when formulating a trading strategy. And remember, opinions ‘on the street’ are a dime a dozen - including mine.

For more please see What Are ETF Trends? and What Are ETF Trends.

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Red Hot Stocks For 2010

Written by admin on October 3, 2009 – 9:34 am -

It may be still be a few months away however the professional investors will already be preparing their stock portfolios for 2010. Research into various companies, sectors and countries are all a part of this research. So where could be the best place to invest your hard earned cash in 2010?

Now it is important that I a make one thing clear to the readers of this article before I continue; please do not take what you read as any form of financial advice as I am not a financial adviser. I am just an average man who enjoys trying to make cash by investing on the stock markets. I see it as a bit of fun and very much a gamble. By trade I am offer a web promotion service, a stuttering therapy service (I used to have a stutter myself) and I am also involved in company that offers a professional DVD replication company.

I really like the companies that are looking to invest their way through this current crisis. This takes a bit of nerve and a lot of ready cash but is a move that is likely to prove very beneficial in the long run. It has to be said that there has possibly never been a better time to buy a business. There are many small business owners seeking to sell up and this is where a bargain could be had.

The companies who do invest are the ones that are likely to make the most profits when the gloom and doom of this credit crisis lifts. When things improve, which they will, you want your company to be in the best place possible to benefit from the new found confidence.

As for the regions I am looking to invest in; I am liking the look of China, India and Russia at the present time. The Japanese stock market is certainly due a good run however this would be a slightly riskier gamble in my humble opinion.

I wish all of the readers a prosperous 2010! Steve Hill from the UK, invester of the year 2094!

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To Learn To Trade, You Must Know The Trend

Written by admin on July 5, 2009 – 4:07 am -

A funny thing happens when you put up a price chart and ask people to define what the trend is.  Even when its completely obvious to someone like me, as in not any question at all, you will still get many different answers based on the exact same chart.This results from people not knowing how to find a trend on a price chart with any speed or accuracy.  It is actually quite simple, and is a key thing to know if you want to learn to trade.

The first thing to do is to size the chart properly.  There is no point of putting up 5 years of data if you are looking for a daytrade to hold for 5 minutes - that is completely pointless.  So here is a guide for what you need as far as time loaded on a chart:

Daytrade:

  1. 1 min chart:  Have at least 2 hours of data (120 bars) on the screen but no more than 6 hours (1 full day).
  2. 2-5 min chart: Have at least 3 hours of data, but no more than 2 days up.
  3. 10-15 min chart:  Have at least 3 days of data up, but no more than 1 week.

Swing Trades (longer term hold) you will want a 10 to 30 minute chart up and you will want at least 10 days of data up on the screen.

As soon as you have the chart data up on your screen, change the bar type to a "bar chart" style.This makes it much easier to identify the trend.Start by looking for every V bottom area.  Anytime there is a low with a V bounce, make note of it.Additionally, look for / top areas where the price spikes up and then sells off sharply.Focus in on the major ones where it moves significantly away from that area in a short period of time.Next you will want to get your charting draw tool and connect the V to each other V you see.Connect the / to each other /.Connect the low areas on the V, and then the highs of the /.  Again, this is a key to learn how to trade.

Lines that slope up to the upper right corner mean the stock is currently in an uptrend.A line that slants down to the lower right corner means the stock is in a downtrend.  Another easy way:  Find the first bar on the chart to the left and the last price on the right.  Draw a line between the two.if the line is pointing upward - this is an uptrend.if the line is sloping down to the right, then the trend is a downtrend.  The other key thing to look at is the oscillations around this trendline.Does it go up and down 2pts, up and down 1pt, up and down .50 etc - on average, not exact.This gives you a decent sense of the trend strength.The lower the general oscillation in price, the stronger the trend is.The thinking here is that the price hardly oscillates because the buyers in an uptrend chase is up and bid, and the sellers in a downtrend chase it down and offer so it does not really counter move much.

Another thing to keep in mind the more you practice, the faster it gets - the lines are no longer necessary.I can glance at a chart and know the trend and approximate strength within seconds.Additionally, you really need to know the trend direction and strength on the next higher timeframe than you are trading on.One example would be on a 5 minute chart the stock is in an uptrend, while on a longer view (15,30 min) its actually in a downtrend.  This needs to be paid attention to, because the longer term trend can push the shorter term trend back into a downtrend.  In general, you want a higher term chart to be a multiple of 3 vs the chart you are trading.So the way it works is if on a 1 min chart, you also want to look at a 3 minute chart - if you are using a 5 minute chart, you want to look at a 15 min chart also.  Once you can easily tell the trend of any chart, other aspects of learning to trade become much easier.

 

 

 

 

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