Stocks and how to invest?

[Bullseye]

I want to buy stocks to invest some money but I don't know how that works... can anyone give me the most useful basic info out there..i don't even know how to read them, I just know that red is bad and green is good...I was wondering if I should invest in Apple, Facebook, Yahoo..what do you think is the best? any other out there that is good? how do I buy and how do I sell? please help!!

[Tom Tomorrow]

Try some good books like Investing for Dummies, The Complete Idiot's Guide to Investing, and Mutual Funds for Dummies for a good intro. If you really want individual stocks, try Stock Investing for Dummies.
Don't do ANYTHING until you know yourself first.

The question you need to answer is WHY you are investing. Different people have different goals. Is it for more income? For retirement? For someone's education? Plus how old are you and how long do you want to invest? How much risk are you willing to assume?

These are all very critical questions and they will determine what kind of investments are right for you. Don't believe anyone who has a "one size fits all" kind of investment. For stocks typically you are talking about at least a 5 year investment period. If less, consider getting into bonds or a bond fund instead. Many people choose an appropriate mix of the two.
Also be aware that online you'll never find a shortage of flim-flam types or people pushing very risky activities. Know the difference between investing and speculating - and avoid the latter no matter what - at least for several years until you are experienced. Otherwise, you could lose your shirt.

If you want to get into the market but don't know what stock to pick, consider an index fund. Instead of throwing all your eggs into one basket (one company), index funds can invest you in dozens, hundreds, or thousands of companies all at once and so there is less risk. This protects you if any one company or industry runs into trouble. They're also professionally managed, by experts doing more research than you could ever dream to. For bonds, the returns are less, but more solid.

If you are thinking of retirement, consider a Roth IRA. Your money grows tax free, and when you retire you can withdraw it tax free as well.
You first need to pick a company to invest through. Some of the best are Vanguard, T. Rowe Price, Fidelity, and Schwab. Avoid the big banks like the plague. Don't let them rip you off with loads (sales charges) and fees. Check how much the company charges you as an expense ratio. A good one might charge you 0.2-0.8 %. If they charge more than 1% than go somewhere else. And if they charge any kind of 12b-1 fee, hold on to your wallet and RUN.
Getting individual stocks make more sense if you really want to buy stock at a place you work at, or want to really get involved and are the hands-on investor type. If you want to be more passive and have things grow over time, index funds make more sense. If you want to see some of the variety out there,
For more information, try looking at
https://personal.vanguard.com/us/funds/v...torder=asc
and play with it, comparing funds with more or less risk.

[David]

start with researching.....

1. Investopedia
If you are just beginning to learn about the world of investments, Investopedia is your one-stop shop for anything and everything. Here, you can look up definitions of terms, register for newsletters with valuable information, use their stock simulator to see how much an investment earns or loses over time, and much more. Y
2. Yahoo! Finance
Yahoo! Finance is just too good. Aside from the myriad of company reports, which you are required to pay for, all of the information at Yahoo finance is free for the taking.
3. Motley Fool
Whether you are looking to do your own research, or prefer the advice of a seasoned veteran, The Motley Fool has it all.
4. The Street
If you pay any attention to the world of investing, you know the name Jim Cramer. Personally, I think he is little more than a caricature, but some people swear by him. Mr. Cramer is one of the “big name” contributors at The Street. That not withstanding, The Street is, in my humble opinion, the best website for investing related articles. The writers have vast knowledge and fantastic insight, without losing focus on what is important – the investors for whom they write.
5. Wall Street Journal
For decades, the Wall Street Journal newspaper has been a staple for information and research for investors. The Wall Street Journal online delivers even more valuable information than its nearly obsolete predecessor. Nowadays, the Journal’s online presence includes The Wall Street Journal, MarketWatch, Barron’s, and SmartMoney, among others. All of these sites are valuable resources for investing information, especially when seeking out company-specific news.
6. MSN Money
Microsoft tends to be a pretty self-serving company, at least in my opinion. Even so, once you learn to glance over all of the Microsoft related news at MSN Money, what you get is another fantastic avenue for portfolio boosting. The one complaint I have with MSN Money is the formatting. When looking at stock quotes, there are no lines distinguishing ads from news or charts, which occasionally will take you off-course by clicking an advertisement by mistake.
7. Zack’s Investment Research
Zack’s does require a membership in order to get to the juicy stuff, but the membership is free and well worth the three minutes it takes to sign up. Here, you will be able to do in-depth research on both stocks and funds. You will also have access to many public and independent reports that will assist you on your quest for the perfect personal investment portfolio.
8. Investor Guide
Investor Guide has many of the same features you’ll notice on other sites on this list, so why does it make my top ten? The stock helper tool. First, this tool helps you to determine an optimal investing strategy and style. Then, it provides a list of companies for you to research. Once your list is complete, you will see what others think of each company on your research list. Investor Guide does a great job of aggregating this information from many different sites for you. You will then evaluate the company’s competition, decide what to buy, and reap the benefits.
9. Seeking Alpha
Seeking Alpha is amazing. My one complaint is that there is actually too much information packed into one page, which at times can make it difficult to navigate. If it weren’t for the massive amount of content on Seeking Alpha, it would be much higher on this list. Company news is the main focus of the site, so if you have a list of companies to research, this is a pretty good place to start.
10. Online Brokerages
Personally, my account has been housed at Sharebuilder for years now, and their research tools are very good. In the beginning, they had a clumsy interface that was slow and filled with glitches. Since then, they have done an amazing job of streamlining and improving content to the point of near perfection. No matter who you invest with online, be sure to use their research tools, as most of them have easy to use interfaces with plenty of information to sort through. Some of the more popular online stock brokers include E*TRADE, TradeKing, Scottrade, and OptionsHouse.

When you are looking to conduct your own investment research, closely monitor where you go online. It is very easy to end up on “hot stock pick” sites, penny stock investing sites, or poorly executed attempts at legitimacy. Many of these sites are fronts for someone to sell you their “foolproof system” or something similar. Everything I have provided above is free of charge, though a few of them offer paid services above and beyond what most of us need.

[kelby7670]

Look up the "Fox Fifty" on the net. These are the top companies. Start crossing off the ones you are simply not interested in. Pick a symbol and type it into Google. Take a quick look at buy-hold-sell advice from investment advisers If it is a buy, read a little more about it's prospects Say you have 5 stocks you like. Do more research on each one. As you research each stock you will learn more and more about what is involved. Compare the charts of each stock. See what it did during the Bush recession. Keep comparing and eliminating until you have one stock left.
Go to Fidelity.com, sign up for a brokerage account, fund it, and buy the stock.