Giving Corporations A Blank Check
Special purpose acquisition companies hold many advantages over private equity. Find out more here.
Manage My Own Investments? Are You Kidding?
Investors need not rely on professional advisors, but going it alone isn't easy.
Spotlight On The Solar Industry
Before you buy into the hype, learn how the industry works and how to spot the winners.
Einstein's Stock Tips: Gravity and Growth
Can applying the theory of relativity help you pick a stock? Find out more here.
Four Tips For Buying Stocks In A Recession
Bear markets can terrify even seasoned investors. Learn how to invest safely.
Five Tricks Companies Use During Earnings Season
Don't get fooled by these releases full of company ruses.
Analyzing Auto Stocks
Find out what to consider before taking a ride with stocks from this industry.
Why Warren Buffett Envies You
The Oracle of Omaha can move over - there's a new investor in town.
Taking The Sting Out Of Investment Loss
Get a hold of yourself! Take losses in stride and learn to invest dispassionately.
Which Is Better: Dominance Or Innovation?
Find out how to assess and evaluate both these values in the market and your portfolio.
How Much Influence Does The Fed Have?
Find out how current financial policies may affect your portfolio's future returns.
Sinking Your Teeth Into Restaurant Stocks
Don't put your money on the table before getting a taste for analyzing this sector.
The Art Of Cutting Your Losses
Find out how to keep your capital losses small and let your winners run.
Conglomerates: Risky Proposition?
Investing in a corporate giant may not be as safe as you think.
Investment Services Stump Investors
What you're getting isn't easy to determine. Find out how to get your money's worth.
The Basics Of The Bid-Ask Spread
Understanding the real forces that move stock prices is part of being a good trader.
How Your Vote Can Change Corporate Policy
Shareholders are getting a bigger say in how companies are run. Find out how you can be heard.
Bouncing Back From A Portfolio Hit
If your portfolio has been knocked out, we'll show you how to come back fighting.
Turnaround Stocks: U-Turn To High Returns
Find out which catalysts can turn struggling stocks around to create a tidy profit.
Are My Investments Insured Against Loss?
Money invested in a brokerage account has some protection, but that doesn't mean you can't lose it.
Sympathy Sell-Off: An Investor's Guide
Find out how to tell whether your stock is a bargain or a bank breaker.
Top 9 Questions Investors Should Ask Management
Find out how to get the answers you want without getting the company line.
Battered Stocks That Bounce Back
Companies with falling revenues can be profitable, but choose them with care.
Value Traps: Bargain Hunters Beware!
Find out how to avoid getting sucked in by a deceiving bargain stock.
Evaluating The Board Of Directors
Corporate structure can tell you a lot about a company's potential. Learn more here.
Survival Tips For A Stormy Market
Learn which stocks to watch and which to avoid when the Dow starts to sink.
Analyzing An Acquisition Announcement
These deals can make or break investors' returns. Find out how to tell the difference.
Footnotes: Early Warning Signs For Investors
These documents hold very important information, but reading them takes skill.
Offset Risk Without Investing Abroad
With a little know-how, you can keep risk from topling your portfolio of domestic equities.
Stimulate Your Skills With Simulated Trading
Think you can beat the Street? We'll show you how to test your abilities without losing your shirt.
An Investor's Checklist To Financial Footnotes
Footnotes to the financial statements contain very important information, but reading them takes skill.
Wrap Accounts: A Gift Of Advice?
Fee-based accounts were banned in 2007, but a on a practical level, this service remains the same for investors.
Due Diligence In 10 Easy Steps
Got a hot stock tip? Follow up on it with these tips to avoid getting burned.
Analyzing Operating Margins
Find out how to put this important component of equity analysis to work for you.
Benefit From Borrowed Securities
Find out what your broker is doing with your securities when you invest on margin.
Mitigate Your Equity Risk
If you think holding a few different stocks is enough, you may be in for an unpleasant surprise.
Measure Your Portfolio's Performance
Learn three ratios that will help you evaluate your investment returns.
Tips For Avoiding Excessive Trading
Learn to trade smart instead of gambling with your money.
How Interest Rates Affect The Stock Market
Whether you're buying lunch, a home or a stock, you're influenced by interest rates.
Small Caps Boast Big Advantages
Find out why little companies have the greatest potential for growth.
Think Like Warren Buffett
They don't call him "The Oracle" for nothing. Learn how Buffett comes up with his winning picks.
Peer Comparison Uncovers Undervalued Stocks
Learn how to put one of the top equity analysis tools to work for you.
Short Sales For Market Downturns
This strategy can help in market downturns, but it's not for inexperienced traders.
Breaking Down The Fed Model
Learn what pundits mean when they say that stocks are undervalued according to the Fed model.
Can Good News Be A Signal To Sell?
Sometimes, positive anouncements can mean bad news for a stock. Find out why.
Get The Most Out Of An Investor Conference
Read between the lines to get a sense of where a company is really headed.
Profit With Investment Policy Statements
Defining how investments are managed and monitored can help investors meet their goals.
Revenue Projections Show Profit Potential
Examining how a company makes money can offer clues to its earnings potential.
Assess Shareholder Wealth With EPS
Find out if management is doing its job of ceating profit for investors.
Read This Before You Sell
There are five tell-tale signs that show when to walk away from an investment.
Digging For Profitable Delistings
Deregistration can provide opportunities for savvy investors. We'll show you how to cash in.
Delving Into Insider Investments
Keeping tabs on company executives can provide clues about where a stock is headed.
Investigating The Stock Premium Puzzle
The Three-Factor Model tries to demystify the baffling small-cap and value return premiums.
Top 10 Green Industries
Put a little green in your wallet by investing in these growing areas.
Build A Model Portfolio With Style Investing
This sophisticated approach will add flair to your returns.
The Biofuels Debate Heats Up
Interest in these new energy sources is growing. Should you buy in?
Evaluating Green Equity Investments
Whether you want funds or stocks, find out how to evaluate planet-friendly portfolio picks.
The Biggest Stock Scams Of All Time
Where there is money, there are swindlers. Protect yourself by learning how investors have been betrayed in the past.
Mechanical Investing Not A Golden Key
Direct paths to wealth are getting narrower, fewer and may be locked up tight.
The Ins and Outs Of In-Process R&D Expenses
Are these charge-offs fair accounting or earnings manipulation? Learn more here.
The Birth Of Stock Exchanges
Learn how British coffeehouses helped give rise to the juggernaut that is the NYSE.
A Close-Up On Gross Ups
Learn about this hidden perk and why it's often bad news for investors.
Fight The Good Dollar-Cost Averaging Fight
Stop sitting on the fence and learn both sides of this hot debate.
Enhance Your Portfolio With Active Equity
This strategy provides the potential for larger returns while using less capital.
Four Big Investor Errors
These simple lessons can cut your losses.
Unearth Profits In Oil Exploration And Production
Drill down into financial statements to tap into the right companies and let returns flow.
Insider Selling Isn't Always A Bad Sign
Predated trades at regular intervals can instill confidence, not fear, for investors.
Is Your Stock Headed South?
Don't let your portfolio go with it! Find out which signs to watch out for.
The Pros And Cons Of Institutional Ownership
These big players can both create and destroy value for shareholders.
Is Your Portfolio Beating Its Benchmark?
Compare portfolio manager performance using the information ratio.
Eight Items That Impact Daily Trades
Find out which factors can help you squeeze more profit out of each position.
Reinvesting Capital Gains In Leveraged Portfolios
Don't get forced into action. Learn how to plan properly to avoid making rash decisions.
The Buy-Side Of The M&A Process
With almost $2 trillion in sales yearly, find out how these mergers and acquisitions take place.
When A Dispute With Your Broker Calls For Arbitration
Do you have a claim you'd like to file? We'll take you through this process step by step.
Make Ex-Dividends Work For You
Find out how to keep your dividends out of the tax man's hands.
Strike Gold With Junior Mining
Learn what to watch out for to ensure your "sure thing" isn't another Bre-X.
The All-Equities Portfolio Fallacy
Find out whether this bull-market end-times advice is wise or witless.
Top 5 Reasons For A Stock Slide
Prices seldom drop without cause. Find out what might make your stock hit the skids.
Reining In CEO Rewards
Could bloated CEO compensation be to blame for the widening gap between the rich and the ultra-rich?
How The Big Boys Buy
Learn what those in-the-know look for when acquiring a company.
Spot Hotshot Penny Stocks
Don't flip a coin to find your next investment.
Wham Bam Micro-Cap Scam
Do you know how to distinguish a real opportunity from a fraudulent one?
Small Cap Reseach Can Have Big Impact
Don't rely on Wall Street analysts for information on these stocks.
Mergers Put Money In Shareholders' Pockets
Learn the five ways mergers and acquisitions can increase a company's value.
Pay Attention To The Proxy Statement
Don't overlook this overview of a company's well-being.
Riding The Momentum Investing Wave
Buy high and sell higher. Find out if you could surf these risky waters.
Trademarks Of A Takeover Target
These tips can lead you to little companies with big prospects.
How To Avoid Common Investing Problems
Learn to overcome eight hurdles that can keep you from realizing the best returns.
Choosing The Winners In The Click-And-Mortar Game
E-tailing has changed the way consumers do nearly everything. Do you know how to pick the best retailer?
Terrorism's Effects On Wall Street
Find out how to protect your money against future attacks.
Sorting Out Cult Stocks
Is that crazy product going to be the next big thing? Learn how to evaluate these companies here.
Is That Airline Ready For Lift-Off?
Break through the clouds to see if these stocks will rocket higher, or crash and burn.
Oil And Gas Industry Primer
Before jumping into this hot sector, learn how these companies make their money.
Analyst Forecasts Spell Disaster For Some Stocks
The type of stock that analysts cover can heavily influence their predictions.
Chasing Down Biotech Zombie Stocks
Find out whether you have "living dead" stocks lurking in your portfolio.
Analyzing Retail Stocks
Hit the mall and shop for future investments.
The One-Time Expense Warning
These income statement red flags may not spell a company's downfall. Learn why here.
To Sell Or Not To Sell
Learn some tips on how to exit a position to the best of your advantage.
Guard Your Portfolio With Defensive Stocks
Find out how these securities can protect you from a market bust.
Build A Dividend Portfolio That Grows With You
Balance risk and return to produce adequate income despite inflation.
Evaluating Executive Compensation
Find out how to determine whether a CEO is being overpaid.
Dividends Still Look Good After All These Years
Find out how this "first love" still holds its bloom as it ages.
Selecting A Second-Tier Company
Find out why an industry's "little guys" can be big winners.
IPO Lock-Ups Stop Insider Selling
Ownership plays a key role when companies go public. Find out how.
How To Evaluate A Micro-Cap Company
Learn how to think big by investing smaller stocks.
Barking Up The Dogs Of The Dow Tree
Are these investments show dogs or just mangy mutts?
Choose Your Own Asset Allocation Adventure
There are many strategies to help balance your portfolio. Here are a few to get you started.
When To Short A Stock
Learn how to make money off failing shares.
Digging Into Book Value
This calculation will serve up your portion of the shareholder pie.
Playing The Sleuth In A Scandal Stock
Learn the legwork involved in finding out whether your investment can weather a storm.
How Investors Can Screen For Stock Ideas
Find out how to pick your own investments like a pro.
Removing The Barriers To Successful Investing
Learn how to stop using emotion and bad habits to make your stock picks.
Dividend Facts You May Not Know
Discover the issues that complicate these payouts for investors.
Digging In To 13D Disclosures
This document can provide important clues about a company and its stock.
Pinpoint Takeovers First
Use these seven steps to discover a takeover before the rest of the market catches on.
Choosing Between Dollar-Cost And Value Averaging
Learn a low-risk strategy to avoid getting tangled up in market timing.
Spotting Sharks Among Penny Stocks
To protect yourself from an attack, don't swim in this ocean.
Analyze Cash Flow The Easy Way
Find out how a company spends its money and whether there will be any left over for investors.
Where Top Down Meets Bottoms Up
Find the investing "sweet spot" by combining these two styles.
Use Breakup Value To Find Undervalued Companies
Find out a company's worth if it were sold in pieces - it may be more than you think.
Analyzing A Bank's Financial Statements
Break down the walls around researching financial instutions' financials.
Earnings Cyclicality Exposes Profitable Trends
Learn to explore a company's past profits to find today's opportunities.
Operating Leverage Captures Relationships
Find out how fixed and variable costs interact to shed new light on old companies.
The Global Electronic Stock Market
The way trading is conducted is changing rapidly as exchanges turn toward automation.
Find Investment Quality In The Income Statement
Use these key attributes to uncover top-level investments.
The Importance Of Segment Data
Key financials often fail to provide insight into large cap companies.
Measuring The Medicine Makers
Learn how to find a healthy pharmaceutical investment in a market full of weak drugs.
Analyze Investments Quickly With Ratios
Make an informed decision about your investments with these easy equations.
Overcoming Compounding's Dark Side
Understanding how money is made and lost over time can help you improve your returns.
Trade Takeover Stocks With Merger Arbitrage
This high-risk strategy attempts to profit from price discrepancies that arise during acquisitions.
Taking Advantage Of Corporate Decline
A bankrupt company can provide great opportunities for savvy investors.
Pick Stocks Like Peter Lynch
Learn the basic tenets that helped this famous investor earn his fortune.
A Top-Down Approach To Investing
Use a global view to determine which stocks belong in your portfolio.
Mad Money ... Mad Market?
Jim Cramer's spirited recommendations are a case study in irrational market behavior.
Strategies For Quarterly Earnings Season
Breeze through consenus estimates like the biggest Street forecasters.
Surprising Earnings Results
Consensus estimates can send stocks spiraling - but are they representing reality?
Cashing In On Corporate Restructuring
Companies use M&As and spinoffs to boost profits - learn how you can do the same.
Earnings Forecasts: A Primer
Learn how this key metric is calculated and how it is used to judge market performance.
A Primer On Preferred Stocks
Offering both income and relative security, these uncommon shares may work for you.
Equity Premiums: Looking Back And Looking Ahead
If stocks become less profitable in the future, you may have to change your investment strategy.
Using DCF In Biotech Valuation
Valuing firms in this sector can seem like a black art, but there is a systematic way to pin a price on potential.
Pin Down Stock Price With Real Options
How can you assign a value to what a company may do with its business in the future? We explain how it works.
Sell Growth Stocks The IBD Way
Savvy investing is all about learning some smart rules and sticking to them. We give you the rundown.
Capitalizing On Seasonal Effects
We show you how to take advantage of periodic trends in the equity markets.
A Breakdown Of Stock Buybacks
Find out what these company programs achieve and what it means for stockholders.
The Art Of Selling A Losing Position
Knowing whether to sell or to hold is tough. And no rule fits all. Find out what to consider.
Finding Profit In Troubled Stocks
Find out the difference between a company capable of surviving a share-price beating and one that cannot.
Spotting Cash Cows
We show you why some of these companies stand apart from the herd.
Beta: Gauging Price Fluctuations
Learn how to properly use this measure that can help you meet your criteria for risk.
Venturing Into Early-Stage Growth Stocks
Picking these potential winners is all about sizing up risk. We show you how.
Getting To Know Stock Screeners
Finding good stocks can be like finding a needle in a haystack. But these invaluable tools can help.
An Overview Of Corporate Bankruptcy
As soon as you invest in a company, you face this risk. Find out what it means.
Learning From Others' Mistakes
No investor is flawless. Here are some common investing fallacies and a step-by-step guide on how to avoid them.
Understanding Rights Issues
Not sure what to do if a company invites you to buy more shares at discount? Here are some of your options.
Understanding Pro-Forma Earnings
These figures can either shed light on a company's performance or skew it. Find out why.
Introduction To Convertible Preferred Shares
These securities offer an answer for investors who want the profit potential of stocks but not the risk.
Putting Management Under The Microscope
We tell you where to find the telltale signs of corporate misdeeds.
Introduction To Multi-Discipline Accounts
You get multiple managers, affordable diversification, customization and consolidated reporting all under one roof.
Keeping An Eye On The Activities Of Insiders And Institutions
These transactions reveal much about a stock. We go over what to consider and where to find it.
Measuring Company Efficiency
We look at a retailer's inventory turnaround times, its receivables as well as its collection period.
Introduction to Small Caps
Find out about the pros and cons of small-cap stocks and whether they ought to be in your portfolio.
Is Your Dividend at Risk?
We go over several telling factors that can help you answer this question and avoid losses.
Short Interest: What It Tells Us
Find out how this figure can be a real eye-opener on market sentiment of a given stock.
Achieving Better Returns In Your Portfolio
We look at three risk factors that best explain the bulk of equity performance.
What Is Warren Buffett's Investing Style?
We take a close look at the main principles the 'Oracle of Omaha' uses in assessing a company.
Spotting Profitability With ROCE
This straightforward ratio measures whether a company is efficient, money-making or neither.
Investing Beyond Your Borders
Investing abroad poses risks, but can also help you diversify. Discover ways to invest in foreign stocks.
Beta: Know The Risk
Beta says something about price risk, but how much does it say about fundamental risk factors?
Lifting the Lid on CEO Compensation
Make sure you assess whether a CEO has a stake in doing a good job for you, the shareholder.
Five Investing Pitfalls To Avoid, According to Investor's Business Daily 
Common sense or common folly? Discover some approaches to circumventing typical stumbling blocks on the road to profitable investing.
Doing More With Less: The Sales-Per-Employee Ratio
If used properly, this ratio can give you insight into a company's productivity and financial health.
Understanding Order Execution
Find out the various ways in which a broker can fill an order, which can affect costs.
Uncovering Hidden Debt
Understand how financing through operating leases, synthetic leases, and securitizations affects companies' image of performance.
Great Expectations: Forecasting Sales Growth
Predicting sales growth can be something of a black art - unless you ask the right questions.
The Two Sides of Dual-Class Shares
Find out how dual-class shares can affect a company's performance.
Appreciating Depreciation
Companies make choices and assumptions in calculating depreciation, and you need to know how these affect the bottom line.
In Position
Check out this overview of how to determine and analyze a company's financial position.
It's In Your Interest
Discover the theoretical relationship between interest rates and stock prices.
Getting The Real Earnings
EPS helps investors analyze earnings in relation to changes in new-share capital.
Are Your Stocks Doomed?
When a company is headed for trouble, the warning signs are usually there. Learn how to spot disaster.
The Bottom Line On Margins
Take a deeper look at a company's profitability with the help of profit-margin ratios.
Digging Into The Dividend Discount Model
The DDM is one of the most foundational of financial theories, but it's only as good as its assumptions.
Getting To Know Business Models
Do you know how your companies really make their money? Learn to assess the systems by which businesses generate their revenue.
EV Gets Into Gear
Learn how enterprise value can help investors compare companies with different capital structures.
Don't Get Burned By The Burn Rate
How well do your companies manage money? Learn to analyze how fast they burn it.
Retirement Plan Tax Forms You May Need to File - Part 1
Read this if you've taken early distributions or owe excess-contribution or excess-accumulation penalties.
Z Marks The End
Investors need to know how to detect signs of looming bankruptcy. The Z-score can help.
ROA On The Way
Do you rely too heavily on ROE? Consider using return on assets for a more complete picture.
Can You Count On Goodwill?
We go over how to determine whether a measure of this important but hard-to-price intangible asset is justified.
Evaluating Retained Earnings: What Gets Kept Counts
A company's retained earnings matter. Be investment-savvy and learn how to analyze this often overlooked information.
Operating Cash Flow: Better Than Net Income?
Differences between accrual accounting and cash flows show why net income is easier to manipulate.
Why There Are Few Sell Ratings On Wall Street
We outline reasons that may show why enforcing more sell ratings isn't guaranteed to increase Wall Street's objectivity.
Show and Tell: The Importance of Transparency
Clear and honest financial statements not only reflect value, they also help ensure it.
The "True" Cost of Stock Options
Perhaps the real cost of employee stock options is already accounted for in the expense of buyback programs.
Value By The Book
The P/B ratio can be an easy way to determine a company's value, but it isn't magic!
Relative Valuation: Don't Get Trapped
This method of valuing a company can make a company look like a bargain when it is not.
The Importance Of Dividends
Seven words that are music to investors' ears? "The dividend check is in the mail."
Institutional Investors And Fundamentals: What's The Link?
Big-money sponsorship might make a company look good, but it's not always a reliable gauge of stock quality.
Defining Illegal Insider Trading
The better you understand why insider trading can be criminal, the better you'll understand how the market works.
Keep Your Eyes On The ROE
Can return on equity help you distinguish the lean, mean profit machines from the inefficient clunkers?
Handcuffs And Smoking Guns: The Criminal Elements Of Wall Street
From godfathers to perps, familiarize yourself with the "criminal elements" creeping around Wall Street.
How To Evaluate The Quality Of EPS
Companies can manipulate their numbers, so you need to learn how to determine the accuracy of EPS.
Free Cash Flow: Free, But Not Always Easy
Free cash flow is a great gauge of corporate health, but it's not immune to accounting trickery.
Get Tough On Management Puff
Company managers are often skilled at fooling investors. Be critical and don't believe the hype.
Is Growth Always A Good Thing?
Getting big quickly looks good, but companies can get into trouble when they do it too fast. Find out how to spot this trouble.
What Are Corporate Actions?
Be a savvy investor - learn how corporate actions affect you as a shareholder.
How To Evaluate Pension Risk By Analyzing Annual Costs
Learn how to assess whether a company's pension plan is posing more risks than what the footnotes indicate.
Core Earnings Measure Up
This metric is an attempt to counteract creative accounting, but it poses its own set of challenges.
Buying Into R&D
Investors take note: companies that cut research and development are in danger of saving today but losing big tomorrow.
What Is The Impact Of Research On Stock Prices?
The answer to this question is directly related to the importance of information in the marketplace.
Governance Pays
Learn about how the way a company keeps its management in check can affect the bottom line.
Cash-22: Is It Bad To Have Too Much Of A Good Thing?
It's something companies love to have. But if they are not using it there could be problems.
Working Capital Works
A company's efficiency, financial strength and cash flow health shows in its management of working capital.
Investors Need A Good WACC
Weighted average cost of capital is hard to calculate, but a solid way to measure investment quality.
Wall Street Post Spitzer
Mr. Spitzer's efforts have increased investor awareness, but how effective will this $1.4 billion settlement really be?
Analyzing Pension Risk
Determine the risk to a company's EPS and financial condition resulting from an underfunded defined-benefit pension plan.
Spot Quality With ROIC
Return on invested capital is a great way to measure the true value produced by a company.
Debt Reckoning
Learn about debt ratios and how to use them to assess a company's financial health. You could save a lot of money!
A Case Study: Earnings Manipulation And The Role Of The Media
Here we explore why the media focuses on certain earnings manipulation cases in post-Enron Wall Street.
What Kind Of Research Do Investors Want?
Check out what Investopedia readers think about the role of equity research in the market.
Competitive Advantage Counts
What's the best indicator of a company's future success? Its ability to be different from its peers.
Use Price-To-Sales Ratios To Value Stocks
Take a look at how this effective ratio can be influenced by certain critical factors.
The Changing Role Of Equity Research
Let's take an interactive look at equity research.
All About EVA
Looking for a formula to determine whether a company is creating wealth? Time to learn all about Economic Value Added.
Target Prices Vs Ratings
Revealing more about a stock, a target price provides investors with what they need to make sound decisions.
What Are Fundamentals?
The investing world loves to talk about fundamentals, but what does the term really mean?
Reg AC: What Does It Mean To Investors?
In 2003, the SEC issued a new regulation meant to hold analysts more accountable for their reports. Find out what it means.
Can Earnings Guidance Accurately Predict The Future?
Explore the controversies surrounding companies commenting on their forward-looking expectations.
Stock Ratings: The Good, The Bad And The Ugly
Are stock ratings both loved and hated for the right reasons?
How and Why Do Companies Pay Dividends?
Explore arguments for and against company dividend policy, and learn how companies determine how much to pay out.
Taking Stock Of Discounted Cash Flow
Learn how and why investors are using cash flow-based analysis to make judgments about company performance.
The Hidden Value Of Intangibles
Intangible assets don't appear on balance sheets, but they're crucial to judging a company's value.
"Widow And Orphan Stocks": Do They Still Exist?
Is there such a thing as a safe stock providing high dividend income? It may be time to redefine the terms "widows" and "orphans".
When Insiders Buy, Should Investors Join Them?
Insider tracking can inform your investment strategy, but it requires research and a level head. Find out what to look for.
Impairment Charges: The Good, The Bad and The Ugly
Impairment charge is a term for writing off worthless goodwill, but you need to know what it means and what its potential impact is on EPS.
Consumer Confidence: A Killer Statistic
It's the one key to any market economy, so investors need to learn the measures and how to analyze them.
Earnings: Quality Means Everything
It's quantity that generates all the hype, but there are more meaningful factors that gauge true performance.
The Ups And Downs Of Investing In Cyclical Stocks
This strategy can be profitable but requires careful timing and analysis of various factors. Find out what they are.
Old Stock Certificates: Lost Treasure Or Wallpaper?
What if you've discovered some old shares in bearer form? Follow our tips and find out what they're worth.
Zooming in on Net Operating Income
What long-run profitability measure can a smart investor count on? NOI may be the answer.
The Controversy Over Option Expensing
Read up on the debate over whether or not to expense options.
Using The Cash Conversion Cycle
Find out how to use this figure to analyze a firm's financial condition.
The Controversy Over Option Compensations
Learn the good, the bad and the ugly sides of this type of payout.
Calculating The Dow Jones Industrial Average
We go over the history of this popular index and the way in which it corresponds to a tangible dollar value.
Panic Selling - Capitulation Or Crash?
Find out what it means when investors are selling off their stocks for safer investments.
Disclosures: The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly
A disclosure is meant to reveal the nature of the relationship between analyst and subject company. Find out more here.
Cooking The Books 101
To spot the signs of earnings manipulation, you need to know the different ways companies can inflate their figures.
The ABCs Of Stock Indexes
Indexes can track market trends, but they're not always reliable. Can you trust them?
The 5 Biggest Stock Market Myths
Stocks that go down must come up, right? Wrong. We bust this and four other common market misconceptions.
Inventory Valuation For Investors: FIFO And LIFO
We go over these methods of calculating this component of the balance sheet, and how the choice affects the bottom line.
Three Kinds Of Analysts And What You Need To Know About Them
Analysts on Wall Street produce different kinds of research reports because they have different kinds of clients. The objectivity of reports is an important issue for investors.
Tips For Investors In Volatile Markets
Find out what to look out for when trading during market instability.
The Stop-Loss Order - Make Sure You Use It
It's a simple but powerful tool to help you implement your stock-investment strategy. Find out how.
CAGR: The Good, The Bad And The Ugly
Learn not only what compound annual growth rate is but also what its benefits, limitations and dangers are.
The Short And Distort - Stock Manipulation In A Bear Market
This sinister version of short selling tries to profit by generating fear in the market place. Find out how you can help prevent "short and distort".
Off-Balance-Sheet Entities: The Good, The Bad And The Ugly
This article defines some typical off-balance-sheet items and discusses when they are justified and when they are misleading.
What Is A Small Cap?
If you don't realize how "big" small-cap stocks can be, you'll miss some good investment opportunities.
Finding Undiscovered Stocks
Wall Street tends to focus on large cap stocks, leaving other stocks under-followed and undervalued.
Types Of EPS
The math may be simple, but to make informed investment decisions, investors need to understand the many varieties of EPS and what each represents.
The Importance Of A Profit/Loss Plan
This strategy helps you to recognize your mistakes by allowing you to separate your emotions from investing.
The Murky Waters Of The IPO Market
Thinking of investing here? We give you five tips to remember.
Move Over P/E, Make Way For The PEG
Has the P/E ratio lost its luster? The PEG ratio has many advantages over its well-known counterpart.
Cyclical Versus Non-Cyclical Stocks
Investing during an economic downturn simply means changing your focus. Discover the benefits of defensive stocks.
