Investing101.net is by far the best investing course. It includes a ton of features and tools. Since it is modeled after a college level course, the content is divided into ten information packed chapters. These chapters are filled with easy to read content, lots of pictures and graphs, and very interesting personal trading successes and failures of the author, Mark Brookshire.
Chances are if you're out in the working world or considering investing in the stock market, you've heard of the different investment choices out there. You'll cover these basic choices including banking (yes, putting your money in the bank is a type of investment), certificate of deposit or CD, and money markets. Every bank offers interest rates on their savings accounts, but these are usually very small and won't make you much money. CD's are a time deposit, meaning you deposit a certain amount of money and are guaranteed a certain rate of return. These interest rates are slightly higher because the money will be inaccessible until the time of maturity, which can be anywhere from three months to five years. These are both very safe investing strategies. Money markets are like savings accounts, but there is a minimum balance required and the interest rates are again slightly higher.
None of these strategies will make you rich as the rate of return is relatively low. You'll learn why in this course.
Many people claim that the best investments are in gold and other precious metals. I myself have had some success investing in these materials. This course covers the basics of investing in gold and other currency related topics, such as investing in foreign currency, currency speculation and hedging. Hedging is a really importance concept that is critical to your continued success on the stock market. It is a way of protecting your assets by reducing or eliminating risk in your portfolio. Constantly evaluating your stocks to assess their risk is important to your overall success, and this course will teach you how to do that.
Are you one of the many people that aren't sure what stocks even are? Stocks, or shares, were created as a part ownership in a company. The idea is, that as a company expands and grows, it needs capital to do so. Investors can buy part of the company in the form of a stock, which may or may not gain or retain its value as the company grows. The company gets the capital, you get to own part of the company.
Once you own stock in a company, the question becomes how long you hold on to it. A share holder can sell all or a portion of their stock holdings in a company to another investor or speculator at any time. But how can you make sure you're selling it at the right time? The best time to sell a stock is at the peak of its value, so you make a profit selling it instead of taking a loss. This is called market timing, which this course teaches. Stocks and indexes move in cycles from accumulation, to markup, to distribution, to markdown and back to accumulation. Learning this timing cycle will help you save money and even better, make money.
Everyone has heard the terms bull and bear markets in some context, but in this course you will learn what they really mean. A bull market is just what it sounds like: a confident beast going for the kill. It's market of rising investor confidence. People feel good about the economy and their assets, so they increase their investing in expectation of future price increases. A bear market is the exact opposite. It's a decline in the stock market, marked by decreased optimism and even consumer fear.
An example of a bear market trend.
At this point you may be thinking, this is all way too much information to take in. I'd rather just start investing and learn by doing. That's exactly what makes this stock market course so valuable. Once you get the basic terms and concepts down, you'll actually start trading with their virtual stock market game. You will learn how to look up ticker symbols, how to read and interpret a stock quote page, and everything that goes along with actually trading. Except by trading in this game environment, you'll risk no actual money. You can feel confident trying out new strategies and making mistakes because it is all virtual, no capital is being risked.
It's at this phase of the course that you'll learn about your own personal trading style. Some traders are comfortable with a riskier portfolio because they count on being able to overcome dips in the value of their portfolio over time. Others are more comfortable with stable investments and stocks. You'll learn to diversify in your portfolio and come up with a smart trading strategy that fits your needs and your style.
Don't think that this course just spits out terminology and facts at you. The author, Mark T. Brookshire, also gives you important tips to keep in mind while trading. He has over 25 years of experience trading in the stock market, and his courses have been used at top US universities. He will help you decide when to cut your losses and sell a stock that keeps falling by teaching you exit strategies. He will also tell you how to select a good investment broker and what to look out for when choosing one.
So once you've gained all of this knowledge and started trading, how do you know which stocks to buy? The answer is fundamental analysis, covered in this course. You'll learn to understand earnings and cash flow. One aspect of this is Earnings per Share, or EPS. This is a formula used to calculate the value of a stock. You will learn how to calculate the EPS for companies and compare them, along with other factors, to gauge the value of the stock and whether it is a good choice for your investing strategy.
Nope, the image to the left isn't a creative logo, it is a type of chart pattern, called a double bottom, that you'll learn about in this course. Charting a stock's path, that is, documenting its increases and decreases in share price, allows you to identify stock patterns. You'll learn to recognize these and, combined with other technical analysis, you can forecast its future.
Wall Street is an old institution, but the stock market changes every day. Current trends and events influence the stock market and this course delves into that. Day trading is growing in popularity as well as swing trading and penny stocks. You will learn about these current trends and what they mean for you in terms of investing.
Maybe you've spent a lot of time researching the stock market already or, like me, have taken a couple of courses before. Don't let the term "beginners course" discourage you from giving this course a try. It also covers advanced concepts that I have not encountered in other stock market courses. Options strategies is one of these concepts that you will cover.
Another reason for intermediate or advanced stock traders to take this course is for the invaluable tips and tricks for stock market trading success that the author, Mark T. Brookshire, offers. He will help you develop your personal trading strategy and how to stick to it over the long term. One of his tips is to stay informed. Like I said before, the market is constantly changing and success in the market requires consistently increasing your knowledge and staying informed through newsletters and market news.
“ Mark's tips really made the difference in developing my trading strategy. ”
At the end of each of these 10 chapters you will have a 10 question quiz, a list of recommended exercises, suggested further reading, and a glossary to help you review the key terms covered in each chapter. This course keeps a running tally of your chapter quiz scores so you can see how well you are doing. Don't be afraid of the quizzes--they are there to help you learn and you can always go back and take the chapter quizzes again until you get a perfect 100%.
After you complete this online stock market course, you will receive all 200+ pages in a nice download as a PDF eBook.
This stock market course will give you a solid foundation of investing knowledge. Investing101.net will also give you a free 101 Stock Investing Tips eBook when you sign up. Additionally, Investing101.net also has a Stock Market practice simulator, giving you a chance to hone your newfound skills as you read thru each chapter.
“ The discussion forums at Investing 101 really set this course apart. I haven't come across another community as active, informative engaged as this one. Thank you Investing 101! ”
Many people agree that the best way to learn is from your peers, so Investing101.net has set up a Support Forum to ask questions, share knowledge and learn from other investors. And this course isn't just a faceless web interface for you to learn from -- Mark Brookshire (Stock-Trak founder, stock market educator and investor for over 20 years) offers email support to all Investing 101 students. If you're not sure how great an online course can be, Investing101.net offers a 7 Day 100% Money Back Guarantee to ensure your satisfaction.
After you have taken an online course to brush up on how the markets work, the terminology, and how to look up ticker symbols and research stocks, the second thing to do before you send any money to a real brokerage account is to practice trading on one of the many free virtual trading platforms. This is known as paper trading. Paper trading is a way to virtually trade stock without actually using real money. It is a simulated stock environment used to learn stock trading. You can also use it to learn different trading strategies.