If you are a beginner just getting interested in the stock market, you need a good place to go to get quality information all in one spot. And preferably it should be free!
That is what you have with Morningstar.com which is a website where you can sign up for free and get just about all the news stories and stock information you would ever need as a beginner. They also have a premium account for about $15 a month which has a lot of added features but there is no real need for that if you are someone who is just starting out.
The Morningstar company has been around since 1984 and it is one of the all purpose investments firms on the Internet that provides a wide array of services. They are well known for their stock analysis (which you only get with the Premium account), but with the free account you get all sorts of useful things that will help you get on your feet and on your way to understanding the market.
All Your Financial News In One Place!
Morningstar is great for the stock news they put out and that is why signing up for free seems to be a no-brainer. Rather than scouring the Net everyday for your stock and business news, now you can get it all in one place. My favorite is the section they have every week which takes you directly to their most popular articles which sometimes includes videos.
If you are saving for retirement (you should be!) then Morningstar has frequent news and reports on how to better do that. Saving and growing your money in today's world is big challenge and harder than ever with interest rates so low. Having access to reliable and trustworthy news from Morningstar is great to have and most of that information is available with the free account.
Other Morninstar Features
Are you interested in tracking some of your favorite stocks? You can do that for free by creating your own portfolio and that gives you access to all the latest news for each of those stocks.
Are you a social person who wants to talk and read about what other members are saying? They have a large, active forum that comes with the fee membership where you can connect with other like minded investors.
Do you want to know what the Morningstar analysts are saying about your stocks or industries? There is an absolute ton of analysis available on the site but most of it comes with the Premium membership.
Is Morningstar Good For Beginners?
Yes it is because with all the dubious websites on the Internet today, you can rest assured that Morningstar is a reputable one. It is a great site for beginners who want to begin learning how to buy stocks. The news and information you get there will help you understand what is going on in the market and be your daily learning center. Even if you never pay mre for a Premium account, the easy access to all sorts of business and stock news will help you reduce that learning curve.
Of course Morningstar is also great for established investors as well who want stock analysis from one of the leading online investment websites.
WHERE TO GET GOOD STOCK MARKET INFORMATION
DON'T GET FOOLED BY THESE INTELLIGENT SOUNDING (but mostly meaningless) STOCK PHRASES
One of the things that makes it hard for beginners to get started buying stocks is the intimidation factor. Just watch an hour of CNBC and you will hear all sorts of stock market terminology bandied about by anchors and guests all wearing fancy suits who sound educated and extremely knowledgable.
Its enough to stop a beginner in their tracks and make them give up before they ever get started.
Some of the fancy verbiage you will hear time and time again but may wonder what it really means. It all sounds intelligent (and even seems to make sense) until you really break it down and analyze it. These "sayings"/fancy words include:
1) "The easy money has already been made"
2) A stock is "overbought" or "oversold"
3) "You should buy on weakness"
4) "The market is in a bottoming process"
5) "There is a lot of cash on the sidelines"
6) "We are constructive on the market"
7) "Cautiously optimistic"
8) "Its a stock pickers market"
9) "Stocks are down on profit taking"
10) "We are taking a wait and see approach"
You can find more silly stock phrases in this very well written article that also explains why they are so meaningless. These phrases / words are used to make the analyst sound smart without having him/her commit to any real opinion.
The stock market has its own language and those in the industry who are out there on all the different media are good at using it to convince you, the homegrown average investor, that they are smarter than you are. In many cases they may be (about the stock market) as it is their job but I hate the fact that they often use such meaningless jargon while trying to make themselves look more "in the know" than they really are.
