Photo Credit: Stuart Miles
So, as you may know I got a little itch to take some of my money and buy individual stocks. While my picks have widely fluctuated I can’t help but want to put even more of my savings in stocks. This is kind of weird because as of today I’m down about 10 percent.
Still. I’m finding it hard to resist the urge.
So, before I do anything stupid I decided to further educate myself on evaluating individual stocks. Who did I turn to? Personal finance bloggers. Reading people’s real life experiences is more valuable to me than reading something straight out of a textbook. (Although, I’ve been reading up on investing books as well.)
For all of you who may be in a similar situation I decided to roundup some of the posts I found valuable and that I’ll likely return to for future reference.
Invest in This: How I Pick Stocks by Sarah Gilbert @Get Rich Slowly
I read this article the day after I made my initial stock picks. I was glad that Sarah’s advice was almost exactly the same as the method I implemented.
- Invest In Companies You Lick (Check)
- The CEO is the Main Character of the Stock’s Story (Ummmm…..I have no idea)
- Invest in Sustainable Market Trends (Double Check)
- Invest in Companies Whose Futures are Rosy (Well, I think so)
How to Read Stocks and Evaluate Their Basic Metrics by MMD @My Money Design
One thing I love about posts on My Money Design is that they are so freakin’ detailed. Seriously. He lays out the information for you. And, this is a post I need to read a few times before making any more purchases.
In this post almost everything you see on a news page containing a stock’s metrics is explained. If you have any questions regarding what a certain term means check out this post.
What Should You Consider When Buying Individual Stocks? by James @ Dinks Finance
James has a far more technical approach than the author of the first article I mentioned, which also leads me to believe that his approach is probably a lot safer. So far, I’m just making random guesses but I really want to get to the point where I can properly evaluate a stock.
In a gist here are James’ recommendations:
- Do Field Research
- Put Earnings Under a Microscope
- Evaluate Debt
- Account for the Larger Market
- Consider Macroeconomic Trends
Different Types of Stock Classifications by Jacob @Cash Cow Couple
I had made a goal for 2014 to read at least one investing book per month. And, so far I’ve got two under my belt. Since I read The Neatest Little Guide to Stock Market Investing twice I already knew much of the information that Jacob has in this post, but it was still a nice refresher.
In this post Jacob covers:
- Common Stock & Preferred Stock
- Blue Chip Stocks
- Income Stocks
- Value Stocks
- Growth Stocks
- Plus More
Using the Current and Quick Ratios to Evaluate the Health of a Company by Rob Berger @Dough Roller
Now for a little more advanced technique Rob Berger shares the first thing he does to evaluate a stock. In the post Rob goes in depth to help you evaluate the health of a company.
I’m going to be honest here: I might have to read this a few more times to quite understand. At least I’m trying, right? Luckily, it’s now on my list for reference!
Your Turn
What metrics do you use to buy individual stocks? Are there any blog posts I should add to the list?