What is a Good Number of Stocks to Own?
The number of stocks in a portfolio can have a major influence on your ultimate results as an investor. Because of this, every investor must answer the question: what is a good number of stocks to own? The short answer is that there is no right answer. The much longer answer is that it depends […]
Should You Be Investing in Defensive Stocks?
“But investing isn’t about beating others at their game. It’s about controlling yourself at your own game.” -Benjamin Graham The majority of investors want to see their money increase in value. Growth is an important objective, but it’s not the only one. A prudent investment plan also protects a portfolio from economic downturns. Defense-oriented equities […]
The 3 Main Elements of Patient Investing: Why It Works
Updated – 12/6/23 The nature of the stock market makes patient investing the BEST investing. Smart people have observed this for many decades. Two easy catch phrases summarize it nicely: “Slow and steady wins the race.” “The tortoise beats the hare.” But being truly patient regarding the stock market can be much harder than it […]
Guide: How to Read Google Finance
Google finance is a great tool to use in your investing arsenal. It’s a great way to get updated ticker information, as well as news, financials, and other key metrics. You can quickly see past price performance (with this special trick), as well as 1D, 5D, 1M, 3M, 6M, YTD, 1Y, 5Y, and MAX. To […]
IFB237: The Impact of Proxy Voting and Investing in Money Losing Companies
Welcome to the Investing for Beginners podcast. In today’s show, we answer some great listener questions: *How do we feel about investing in companies with ESG concerns? *What are our thoughts of investing in precious metals or metals? *How does the Proxy statement work, and voting for our values *How do we deal with companies […]
The 5 Types of Stock Correlation — With Examples and Calculations
Updated 2/7/2024 “The possibility of permanent loss is the risk I worry about.” Howard Marks, The Most Important Thing Buffett’s rule number one is avoiding the possibility of losing money, and many value investors, including yours, truly subscribe to that idea. One way to determine the riskiness of stocks in your portfolio is to analyze […]
Bitcoin, Gold, Stocks, or I-Bonds – What is the Best Hedge Against Inflation?
More often than not, inflation is something that isn’t that pertinent to the everyday person, but that’s not the world that we currently live in. When inflation nearly reached 10% in any year, it’s completely valid to freak out a little bit and start looking for the best hedge against inflation. Key Takeaways: Inflation is […]
Position Sizing for Beginners – The 3 Key Basics to Remember
Position sizing is something that’s discussed more in the trading world, but it’s just as important for the long term investor. Investors like to talk about diversification, and how holding 15-20 stocks seems to be optimal for outperformance. Position sizing becomes less clear when combined with dollar cost averaging (“DCA”). New investors may run into […]
The Short Ratio, Short Selling, and Short Squeezes Explained
Updated 9/25/2023 The short ratio is widely used when understanding the short selling behind a stock. It can tell you how many fund managers or retail investors bet a stock will fall. The short ratio indicates the number of shares that investors sell short over the average daily volume of the stock, on the basis […]
Types of For Sale Securities and Their Accounting Treatment (AFS/HTM/HFT)
Updated 12/19/2023 Have you wondered what all those assets on an insurance company’s balance sheet were? Or why do companies carry such a large mix of marketable securities? Did you know that Microsoft owns over $120 billion in short-term investments, over 70% of its current assets, and over 39% of its total assets? That is […]
