Yet another stockbroker

This definitely is the roomer out there. I look at it this way. Trading of any sort can be dangerous if you don’t know what you’re doing. I recommend that if you’re going to trade options to sink some serious time and study into it before you invest any of your hard earned money. I would say that most successful traders don’t begin to consider themselves profitable until at least a year or two into their education. And these folks didn’t just sign out some books at the library. They likely had a personal coach or mentor or paid for formal education…for example, I recently completed my PhD level of trading through a company called Investools.

Then, a successful trader will study, conduct research on-line reading articles and even blogs like this one. Someone serious about trading is probably always carrying around a good book and the beginner will be trading with a paper trading account. Some brokers have a tool on their web site where you can trade just like it’s real but use fake money so to speak. That would be a paper trading account. For example you can open up a fake $100,000.00 account and trade away. You’ll soon see whether or not your skills will keep you in the green.

I would say that once you begin to make a few profits or even break even over a period of time that it’s ok to throw some real bucks into the hat of a real brokerage account.

Finally, the successful trader will be very disciplined in the area of money management. For example, this $100,000.00 you have, you would never risk more than 5% of your account on any one trade. In fact, I think most traders keep this down to 1-2% risked on any one trade. This keeps you from wiping out your account in a short period of time. If you begin to lose too quickly in your real account you can take a break and go back to the paper account for a while.

If you have any specific questions about the dangers of trading options feel free to send me an email and I’ll do the best I can to get you headed in the right direction.

One final note about the danger. Life is full of people who point out the danger or negative in life. It’s usually the people who go for it that become significant and the others just keep talking about it. So with that said I encourage you to go for it. Just move slow and smart. If you believe in yourself you’ll eventually come out on top. Keep getting your advice from those who believe in you and stay away from the negative finders.

Best wishes.

Rich Strehl is a self made success story who jumped in feet first into stock market education. A year and a half ago he did not even know what the Dow Jones Industrial Average was. Today he trades full time in the market. Strehl claims most of his success comes from a positive attitude, persistence and a solid goals program. A belief in oneself is paramount in succeeding in life. Believe in yourself and you can do anything you can vision… journey without this key ingredient and you simply self yourself short.

Technorati Tags: options trading, online trading, stock options, stock brokers

Investing has become increasingly important over the years, as the future of social security benefits and for other countries, their respective government programs which supports up and coming retiring people. Most, if not all of us, want to insure and take control of our future, and a lot of us know that because of the extra burdens being placed on government or even their retirement plan safety net might not be enough to support them through their non-working years.

Investing is the answer to the unknowns of your financial future.

You may have been saving money in a low interest savings account over the years. Now, you want to see that money grow at a faster pace. Perhaps you have inherited and you need a way to make that money grow or you might even have come across similar articles such as this one from CNN Top 25 Fastest Growing Techs wished that you also could invest in these companies. Not only do you want to own stocks but you want to provide that income to purchase a new home, provide for your children’s college education and other “material things” which we want in life.

If you want or need to make a lot of money fast, you would be more interested in higher risk investing, which will give you a larger return in a shorter amount of time. If you are saving for something in the far off future, such as retirement, you would want to make safer investments that grow over a longer period of time.

The overall purpose in investing is to create wealth and security, over a period of time so as to provide for yourself when you will not be or simply be unable to earn an income.

Favorite blog is http://www.netdollarz.net Containing many work at home,online income,paid survey articles along with off topic articles that interest the author of the blog.

Technorati Tags: stock market, stock investing, online trading, saving money, monthly savings

A trading system consists of a set of rules for viewing markets and making trades. The advantages of trading systems can be hidden when they become associated with trading platforms involving trade order submission and processing. A clarification of their roles can help explain the benefits of using a trading system. This can be done without identifying a particular platform or system. Once the platform infrastructure is isolated, a brief look can be taken at why a trader can benefit from a trading system.

An online trading platform consists of the infrastructure for viewing market prices and making trades. While platforms make use of user provided hardware and the internet itself, platforms consist of software linked to a database while displaying price quotes, enabling order entry and routing orders to an exchange. A platform of software and order routing services is provided by many brokers. It often includes programmable charting software that allows a user to select from an array of formats for price, volume and technical indicators. Links to real time databases are used by day traders while free delayed quotes are quite adequate for position traders who analyze data after the markets close to minimize the emotional stress of changing prices. Platform software saves time and reduces errors by automating repetitive tasks.

Some platform tools have become quite sophisticated, allowing a user to add his personal rules for making trades. Rules tell the software which set of indicators and prices to monitor and the levels at which traded instruments are to be bought and sold. Automated systems trading software are preprogrammed with trading rules enabling them to make trades with minimal user input. These software modules, designed by third party vendors to operate under existing platforms, are based on algorithms that identify price trends and market turning points. Since their accuracy is limited by the presumed market volatility, an algorithm is needed to recognize when market volatility falls outside the envelope for which the software rules were designed. The quality of a set of rules can be estimated from historical back testing on past market prices stored in a database. It is often pointed out that back testing lacks the realism of real time emotional stress and that past performance is not an indicator of future performance. While the latter is valid in all cases, the nature of trading system rules reduces emotional stress to the degree that the rules are consistently followed.

In any case, it is the rules themselves that comprise the trading system. In their purest form, trading systems take the form of a compact set of rules written on paper.

The ability to consistently make error free decisions amid changing prices in an environment of fear and greed is unlikely without the discipline that rules provide. It does little good to have all the price monitoring, charting, order submission and routing infrastructure if one does not have a consistent set of rules for making trades. Most of us find this out the hard way, judging from the statistic that only about 12% of stock traders are successful. For futures traders the number is closer to 5%. It is not just a coincidence that the percentage of traders that rely on a proven trading system is near these same levels. The consistent use of a proven trading system can be most beneficial to traders with all levels of experience.

Seeing the difference between trading systems and platform infrastructure makes the characteristics of a good trading system more obvious. A good trading system explains when trading should not be attempted, thereby, avoiding forced trading under inopportune conditions. It should specify how to independently generate a strong watch list of candidate trades to eliminate the need to chase after the latest hot tip from an advisor. For obvious reasons, a trading system should be easy to use, totally objective, take little of a trader’s time and make consistent profits. It should also avoid large draw downs and give clear trading signals.

A trading system is best learned from a master trader who remains actively engaged in teaching. The master can help the student tailor the system to his personality, financial means, risk tolerance and skill level. The next best approach is to simply read what has been written and adopt it to one’s personal situation. But under no circumstances should one try to wing it without the support of a set of trading rules. The advantage of rule based trading systems lies in their objectivity and consistency. When followed consistently, emotional trading and its associated errors are removed from the equation. As an investment, trading systems more than pay for themselves, not only in profits gained, but also in the amount of capital preserved. This is true not only for advanced automated trading systems but also for a compact set of rules on paper.

James Andrews publishes a newsletter at http://www.wisertrader.com where one can read about compact trading templates and advanced automatic trading systems. © 2005 Permission is granted to reproduce this article, as long as, this paragraph is included intact.

Technorati Tags: trading+systems, stock market, trading software, trading program

10 Simple Tips To Help You To Be Successful At Stock Investing
By Roger Overanout

If you’re looking for success with stock-market investing then you should apply these 10 simple tips to help you.

1. There’s an old Chinese proverb that goes something like this “Prophecies are hard, particularly with regard to the future!” The one fundamental thing you have to accept when you are investing in the stock market is that you cannot predict what is going to happen. No matter what software you use, or which Guru you follow it is impossible to predict what the stock market is going to do next.

2. At the end of the day all that really matters is the price of the stock, everything that is known about the stock, everything that is thought about the stock and everything that is hoped about the stock is in the price. The price is what the market is prepared to pay for that stock right now .

3. If you want to make money as a personal stock investor you’ve got to think in a different way to the big stock investors i.e. the insurance companies the money funds etc. Big-money funds usually follow the index, because of their size is very difficult for them to do anything else. As a private investor you have the ability to pick out individual opportunities which are too small for the big institutional investors. You can be in and out of the market for a quick profit while the big funds are still thinking about how a particular trade will fit in with their overall investment strategy.

4. Technical analysis of stocks and shares is great fun and it produces some very pretty charts, but at the end of the day most of it is a load of rubbish. On any chart it is usually possible to see examples of why a particular system works and also why it doesn’t work both at the same time. Charts are useful, it is well-known that a picture is worth a thousand words.The best way to use stock charts is to look at them and study what you are seeing and then apply that information to your trading.

5. Always ask questions, never accept anything at face value particularly stock-market tips.

6. If you are unsure about any stock you are holding then you shouldn’t be holding it. If you have any doubt about an investment you have made or you feel you have to ask somebody else’s advice about whether you should carry on holding the investment then is time to get out of that trade.

7. You are investing in the stock market for one reason only, to make money, you cannot beat the market go with the flow, in a bull market anybody can make money but be prepared to sell your stock and put the cash in the bank if conditions change, don’t give your profit back to the market.

8. It’s a fact that some people do not have the temperament to take part in stock-market investing. If you find you’re always worried about your investments if you’re more worried about losing than you are excited about winning then perhaps stock-market investing is not for you.

9. The market is always.

10. There is life outside the stock market, trading the stock market is not the be all and end all of everything, the only reason for making money is so that you can enjoy it with the ones you love.

For more exciting fresh information about all aspects of Stock Investing visit http://www.stockinvestingforbeginner.com

Technorati Tags: stock market, stock investing, day trading, make money, trading program

Despite what some people may lead you to believe; day trading, swing trading and trend trading is not anywhere as difficult as they would like you to think. It really boils down to two key components.

First, you have to have an approach that helps you identify trades that have a consistently high probability of making money. Once you have this you must exploit this “edge” over and over again.

The only way to do this is to use the necessary discipline to never deviate from your system. The minute you start tinkering or tweaking things is when you will lose your edge!!!

You will most likely be tempted to do this after you have had a few losers. This is the time however to keep your focus and remind yourself that your system has a statistical advantage that has held up over time.

Think about this for a moment? If you go gambling in Las Vegas and can even gain a 1% advantage over the house you can make a literal fortune by exploiting this edge. That little one percent advantage can make the casino lose a whole lot of money over time. As a matter of fact the minute they notice that you have a viable system they will label you a cheat and ban you from the playing. It sure is a good thing that can’t happen to traders!

Now consider what happens if you have a trading strategy that produces trades that go into the money more than 60 to 80% of the time?

Now the second step to success is to manage your emotions. Two of the biggest indicators of a trader who is not managing their emotions are FEAR & GREED. These two emotions will wipe out every trader over time, both experienced and inexperienced alike.

Let’s talk about them for a minute…

FEAR: Fear of losing money or fear of being wrong is what causes traders to have this emotion.

“Trading with scared money” often causes the fear of losing money. This is when a trader is risking money that should be used for the rent, food, children’s education etc. If this is the case the only solution is to find additional funds that you are willing to put at risk. This helps to put the mind at ease and reduces the fear.

Fear of being wrong is simply the part in all of us that just doesn’t like to be wrong. The cure for this is to simply realize and accept that losses are part of this game. Think about this? A baseball player only need hit the ball once for every three times at the plate and this will get him into the Hall of Fame.

I feel this every once in a while and remind myself that… My approach for trading has both historically and real-time produced consistent winning trades. This gives me the confidence to step up to the plate and keep swinging. Also I tell myself that the only way to earn the big money is to get into the game.

GREED: Traders who are greedy are often the exact opposite of the ones who are fearful. They have no fear and this can get them into trouble. They will tend to over trade, not follow the rules and basically “wing it”. Sometimes this will work, but it always ends up back-firing.

One of the biggest problems when greed sets in is the inability to know when to take profits. These traders are so bent on making a killing that they are never happy. If they are up 10, 20 or 30% they don’t even think about cashing out, as they want more. This often leads to the inability to see the trade turning against then and they will allow winning trades to turn into big losing ones.

One solution for this is to realize that making 3, 5, 10 or 15% on a regular short time basis adds up really quick. I know for me personally, once I was confident in my methodology, I no longer felt the occasional feelings of greed. Now I don’t worry about “going for broke” as I know that there is always another good trade waiting for me.

Dr. Jeffrey Wilde, a trading veteran with 16 years of experience is a trading coach to over 3500 traders in 63 countries. His new blog http://www.askjeffwilde.com offers free trading articles, tips and advice. He also teaches a variety of courses found at http://www.win-at-trading.com and http://www.fastforexprofits.com

Technorati Tags: trading, greed traders, trading system, stock market

Commodities are products traded solely on the basis of price. The products are undifferentiated products, goods or services that are not traded based on quality and features, only on price. Historically, commodities were items of value, of uniform quality that were produced in large quantities by many different producers. The items from each different producer were considered equivalent. Commodities are defined by an underlying contract and standard, rather than the quality of the product.

History

Chicago was the birth place of the first commodities market, way back in the 1840s. Farmers would bring their wheat to the market and exchange it for good, hard cash. Futures contracts developed from there. A farmer would contract with a dealer to sell a set amount of produce to him at a set date for a set price. It was comforting for both parties – the farmer knew how much he was going to get paid and the dealer knew exactly how much he was going to pay for these commodities.

This practice of commodities trading evolved over the years that ensued. The farmer would decide not to sell and cede the contract to another farmer to fulfil, or the dealer might decide that he did not want the produce anymore and then on-sell the contract to another dealer.

Naturally supply and demand entered the equation. If the harvests were poor, the produce would fetch a much higher price and if the crops were abundant, a leaner price prevailed. Before long, speculators were in on the act. They started trading the futures contracts in the hope of buying the commodities at a low price and selling these for a handsome profit.

What defines a successfully tradeable commodity?

To successfully trade, commodities must:
Be standardized. If the commodities industrial or agricultural, it must be unprocessed. Have an adequate shelf-life, if these are agricultural.

There should be sufficient fluctuation in supply and concomitantly price. The reason for this is that without the risk factor, profits are meagre and unappetising. Examples of commodities are: electricity, wheat, chemicals, metals, pork bellies, RAM chips, labour and currency.

Difference between commodities and stocks The main difference between stocks and futures contracts from a trading perspective is that, unlike stocks, which you could keep for a very long time, commodities are held for a very short time only. Futures contracts are used to hedge commodity price-fluctuation risks or to take advantage of price movements, instead of trading the actual cash commodities.

How are commodities traded? Commodity Future and option trading take place at exchanges such as the Chicago Board of Trade, Euronext.liffe, London Metal Exchange and the New York Mercantile Exchange, and other online trading systems. At the exchanges, areas are provided, each designated for a different futures contract. Those trading on the floor must be members of the exchange and registered with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. Those traders, who are not members, work through brokerage firms who are.

To conclude Commodity future option trading is both complex and risky, so the shoe may not necessarily fit just anybody’s foot. If you are considering commodity future option trading, you should evaluate how much you are prepared to lose should push come to shove. Choose a trading method that you are comfortable with and that is best suited to achieving your objectives. The bottom line in commodity future option trading is that, if you exercise good judgment and manage your risks effectively, commodities trading are likely to richly reward your efforts!

Discover awesome, proven techniques for trading online; stocks, shares, currencies, FOREX etc. for both the novice and experienced trader at http://www.TradingOnline4u.com

Technorati Tags: commodities trading, stock market, commodity market, options trading

Investing your money online can be quite a difficult task, but by learning the basics you will feel more confident about your investment decisions. By using your computer and a fast Internet connection you have access to a wealth of information to help you with your online investing decisions. There are many services that offer excellent information about both stocks and mutual funds, these information services are independent and accurate and normally not biased in anyway so you can feel confident about using them.

The biggest single improvement for the private investor has to be the ability to go online and get independent information such as market summaries, news, stock quotes, investment ideas and forecasts from a range of different sources at no cost. A few years ago this type of information was only available to large financial institutions or wealthy private investors today it is freely available to you via your computer and the Internet. Taking advantage of the information available and the control you can exercise over your investment decisions that online investing gives you will save you a lot of money during your investing career and significantly improve your chance of success.

One of the best tips I can give you is to consult several different sources of information if they all seem to like the stock you are considering investing in then it will probably be a good investment, if they have a divided opinion perhaps you should look elsewhere or delay your decision for now.

The other very significant advantage that private investors are now able to enjoy by using online services is the very low commission rates are charged. If you are happy to do your own research and make your own investment decisions and do not expect any help or advice from the broker you can save considerable amounts on the commission charges that are made. If you’re still require help and advice of courses this still available via a full service broker, but you will have to pay correspondingly higher commission rates.

One advantage that is frequently overlooked about investing your money online is the ability to may your investment decision immediately at any time of the day or night, also of course you can conduct your research whenever you want to the Internet is always open unlike a Stock Broker only keeps office hours.

The Internet has made low-cost informed investment decisions available to anybody who makes use of the wealth of services that they can now access, this will significantly improve your chances of success in your investment endeavours.

For exciting new information about all aspects of Investing Your Money Online visit http://www.stockinvestingforbeginner.com/

Technorati Tags: online investing, stock trading, online trading, investment decisions

After getting into the market with stock trading, online traders tend to look for the next challenge. Options are definitely a challenge as much for the amateur investor as the seasoned broker. Since options demand rapid response, online trading access is the way to open this money making opportunity to anyone with the cash and nerve to play.

Options have the reputation for high risk. No question that reputation is earned. The flip side is that hitting an option at the right time yields a fat payday. The lure of big bucks might be appealing to novice investors but it’s a strategy for experienced traders. Even veteran stockbrokers can get caught on the wrong side of a trade and lose millions in minutes with options trading.

Enough gloom, let’s look at the upside of online stock option trading. Traders can limit the financial risk while keeping control over a block of stock. The difference is that options are perishable. Think of stocks as the baked potato and options as the butter melting on the hot potato. The stock will be around a long time but an option has an expiration date. If the option is set to expire on Friday, then the trader must be prepared to deal with that timeline.

Online stock option trading follows the same rules as any options trading. If your option expires “in the money” then you can choose to purchase the stock or redeem the option for a stated value. But if your option ends up “out of the money”, then you lose your investment. It’s an all or nothing play.

The winners in online stock option trading make their money by educated guessing. They prepare for this high stakes contest by learning the fundamentals of puts and calls options. With more experience, online option traders move into more complex strategies using strike prices and straddles. Some traders vary the strategy used while others find their comfort strategy and stay there. While a stock trader is looking for upward or downward movement, the options trader needs to pinpoint the degree of movement. Using the complex strategies does not necessarily result in better gains than with basic puts and calls. Again, online stock option trading is a game of skill and moxie regardless how it’s played.

Online stock option trading can be used to reduce risk and minimize losses. Regardless of whether the stock market is going up or down, stock options can still be winners. Some traders may move between trading stocks to options trading based on what is the best opportunity for the current market condition. Online stock option trading makes it possible to combine the options trade with the stock trade in a strategy that either goes for maximum profits or protection of the stock value.

Online stock traders owe it to themselves to explore the potential for options trading. Using the same research and background information, traders can use online stock option trading to boost profits and add an element of excitement to the process.

Get your Momentum Stock Trading System and sign up for my free weekly online trading system newsletter here at: http://www.stressfreetrading.com

Technorati Tags: online trading, stock options, stock trading, options trading, stock market

Day trading stock online gives the thrill of the hunt from the convenience of an easy chair. While day trading can be intense and risky, it also holds potential for fast profits. The most successful day traders understand the process and are willing to commit the time necessary to monitor the markets for hours to catch the slightest favorable change. Day trading combines research and instinct with fearless action. If this sounds appealing, start with the 10 commandments for Day Trading Success.

1. Set limits on trading funds. Newcomers to day trading need to gain hands-on experience in the market. Since the potential for profit or loss is great, start with a reasonable limit of money that you can afford to lose without sacrificing the car payment.

2. Set limits on losses. Why ride a downturn hoping for a miracle upswing? As the old saying goes, “know when to cut your loses”.

3. Manage your expectations. Sure, day traders can hit the right time and double their money in a matter of minutes. They can lose just as fast. Day trading offers good profit making potential but does not come with a guarantee. Be satisfied with gradually increasing the value of your trades and avoid betting it all on one stock. Day trading is about risk taking not mindless gambling.

4. Determine a trading strategy. Day trading requires keeping up with trends and ranges but does so on a shorter timeline. Another useful approach is to focus on specific types of businesses or industries to develop expertise.

5. Trading is the means, not the end. Day trading is fast pace that occasionally needs to slow down. Trading repeatedly just to keep trading only makes money by generating fees for the online brokerage. Take your hand off the mouse and think before you click. Day traders might make 3 trades in a day or 12; it’s not the number of trades but the result that counts.

6. Find the trends. Trend analysis shows changes that indicate an up or down move in stock prices. Since day trading is so active, you may choose to subscribe to trend reports rather than take time to develop charts.

7. Lose the emotion. The thrills and chills of day trading must be kept in check so that the buy/sell decisions are based on informed choices. If you lose, let it go. Dwelling on the loss only blunts decision making for the next trade. Put your emotions within a range, neither too high nor too low.

8. Block the fear. After tanking several times it’s easy to start second-guessing your day trading decisions. Successful online traders have to rise above the fear of picking another loser and either work your trading strategy or make changes to improve it.

9. Ignore hype. No matter how much a stock is touted in the tip sheets, if it does not fit your day trading strategy then it’s not right for you.

10. Look backward. Set a regular time to review past trades for profit or loss, application of trading strategy and information sources used. And be honest, was the trade based on tips, facts or emotion. You have to know what drives your day trading strategy to make it work for you.

Get your Momentum Stock Trading System and sign up for my free weekly online trading system newsletter here at: http://www.stressfreetrading.com

Technorati Tags: day trading, stock market, investments, trading strategy

By definition, value investing is the process of selecting stocks that trade for less than their intrinsic value. A value investor typically selects stocks with lower than average price-to-book or price-to-earning ratios. Of course, it is not nearly this simple. Value investing is the corner stone of long-term growth. Those who practice it survive the ups and downs of the market and are more likely to emerge wealthy than those who ride the market, in principle, due to the higher quality of the companies falling under the prerequisites of the value investor. Value investing is essentially concerned with getting the most profit at the lowest cost. The basis of value is profit. Value investing is an investment style which favors good stocks at great prices over great stocks at good prices. Value investor extraordinaire Warren Buffett has used this style to become a billionaire.

It’s important to keep in mind that value investing is not concerned with how much the price of a stock has risen or fallen necessarily, but rather what is the “intrinsic” or inherent value of the stock, and is it currently trading below that price, i.e. at a discount to it’s intrinsic value. The important point here is that when looking at stocks that are trading at or above their intrinsic value, the only hope for gaining value is based on future events, since the stock price already represents what the company is worth. However, when dealing with stocks that are undervalued, or available at a discount, unforeseen events are unimportant in that without any new earnings or additional profits, the shares are already “poised” to return to that inherent value which they have.

The question now, of course, is “why would stock prices not always reflect the true value of the company and the intrinsic value of its shares?” In short, value investors believe that share prices are frequently wrong as indicators of the underlying value of the company and its shares. The efficient market theory suggests that share prices always reflect all available information about a company, and value investors refute this with the idea that investment opportunities are created by disagreements between the actual stock prices, and the calculated intrinsic value of those stocks.

Finding Value Stocks

Value investing is based on the answers to two simple questions:

1. What is the actual value of this company?

2. Can its shares be purchased for less than the actual (intrinsic) value?

Clearly, the important point here is, “how is the intrinsic value accurately determined?” An important point is that companies may be undervalued and overvalued regardless of what the overall markets are doing. Every investor should be aware of and prepared for the inherent market volatility, and the simple fact that stock prices will fluctuate, sometimes quite significantly. Benjamin Graham has often said that if investors cannot be prepared to accept a 50% decline in value without becoming riddled with panic, then investing may not be for them…or rather, successful investing, as it often takes significant losses in a particular security before gains are made, due to the idea that value investors do not try to time the market, and are focused on the underlying fundamentals of the companies. Furthermore, the quality of the companies targeted by the value investors’ screening methods should be, over the long term, less volatile and susceptible to market “panic” than the average stock.

This is also a two way road of sorts. On one hand, there is no sense in worrying about depressions, upturns, and recoveries due to the underlying quality of the value investments. On the other hand, investments should only be made in companies which can flourish and do well in any market environment. Doing solid investment research and making equally solid investment decisions will take investors much further than trying to forecast the markets.

How Many Different Stocks?

In terms of diversification, there are many discrepancies over exactly how many different stocks a solid portfolio should be made up of. My personal view is that there should not be as many stock as normally make up a mutual fund. Many will disagree with this, but what it’s worth, I think that owning a portfolio of 100, 200, or even more companies not only serves to limit risk, but it really limits the possibility for reward as well. Also, as Warren Buffett has said many times, the more companies you own, the less you know about each one.

As I write this, there are 42 stocks in our recommended portfolio. This number may very well grow in the coming months, as it may decrease in number, but one thing to keep in mind is, out of the thousands of companies available for purchase, only a very small percentage meet the stringent requirements of the diligent value investor. This is both a blessing and a curse. Very often, there is simply nothing to buy, and this is fine. The trap to avoid falling into is to lower your requirements for a stock when there simply isn’t anything meeting the normal requirements. This is how many an investor has fallen into making poor investment decisions, putting money into companies not really adequate for their respective portfolio, and it will certainly have a long term effect on gains.

David Pakman has been writing about politics and investing for years now, and runs the websites http://www.heartheissues.com and http://pakman.thevividedge.com

Technorati Tags: investing, stock market, online trading, stocks value