I view portfolio management like a game of Texas Hold'Em. The market is against you, and you must be aware of that to succeed. How do you do this? Easy. You have to know your positions cold. You need to know what your exact investment thesis is for each position and what events can derail that thesis. You have to know whether or not you are holding pocket aces. Would you go all in without checking your cards first in Hold'Em? Don't think so. That is gambling - not investing. Knowing that you are holding pocket aces will allow you to stick to your guns and make profits when the market bluffs you with irrelevant news.
Maybe you aren't holding the pocket aces. That's okay too. Knowing what cards you are looking for to make your hand, and folding when they don't materialize, is also a successful investing strategy.
Okay, okay. I'm off my soapbox. Let's talk about the tools. For free news and research, I check the following sites:
The Street - I am signed up for the daily newsletters at The Street, so I can keep up with trending topics in investing news. The daily "10 Things You Should Know" article is a staple in my morning routine. I also use The Street to read research articles and breaking news about the stocks that I am interested in.
Yahoo Finance - Yahoo sources news from various other sites. This source is usually hit-or-miss; however, it is good to get multiple perspectives on popular issues, even from questionable sources. I use the worthless message boards on Yahoo Finance for less popular stocks when there is no other new news available. The boards have notified me of news articles and press releases which I would otherwise have not been aware of.
Seeking Alpha - This has been my favorite news/research site as of late. Seeking Alpha users post research articles outlining their investment theses for their positions. In addition, Seeking Alpha is also my go-to for earnings call transcripts. Having access to the earnings call transcripts allows me to read these at my leisure rather than having to devote an hour or more to a webcast online. I also have a Seeking Alpha app on my mobile device. I input the positions in my "portfolio," and when new articles are posted that pertain to these positions, I get a notification on my device. These articles are great quick reads in my down time.
CNBC - It's a news station. They have to publish news. It is what it is. The CNBC app updates me on major earnings reports and economic data as it is released. Although I don't give the data points major consideration, it's nice to at least be aware of them.
CNBC's Mad Money w/ Jim Cramer - Some people love him - some don't. I don't personally know the guy, I just pay attention to what he says. The daily podcasts of mad money are available for download and are great tools for learning about prospective positions, keeping abreast on market news, and honing portfolio management strategies.In addition to these sources, there are endless others available for news and research. In addition to news and research articles, many of the sources have useful data for valuing stocks, such as earnings estimates, growth estimates, PE ratios, PEG ratios, analyst recommendations, etc. etc. etc. and so on. Find the sources that give you the information you need most. It's all free and only requires common sense to parse through.
As far as literature, any of the Jim Cramer books are great for developing portfolio management skills. Peter Lynch, a previous fund manager for Fidelity, has a few books as well that are very enlightening. These books may have outdated specifics, but the general knowledge that can be obtained from them is pretty timeless.
Common Cents Take: The tools are free. Developing skills requires a bit of effort. Making money in the stock market is without a doubt obtainable by anybody that has confidence in their common sense.
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