Investing is a useful way to build wealth for the future, but getting started is not as easy as it might seem.
In fact, whenever you’re getting started with investing, it can seem outright daunting to do so — especially when the stock market is involved. There’s so much research to be done, and the risk involved often makes you think that you shouldn’t be messing around with these things.
But thankfully, there’s plenty of websites out there that can make the task of researching the stock market far easier, which in turn helps you make informed decisions that keep the risk low.
In this post, we’ll go through the best stock research websites of 2022. But first, here are a few important questions to ask yourself before getting started.
Why Should I Invest In Stocks?
So, why should you invest in the stock market? You have to do a lot of research and it’s risky, so it’s better to just not do it, right?
Well, it’s often said that investing is important, but people who say this often fail to elaborate on why that is the case.
The real reason why investing is important is because it takes the concept of “saving for your future” to a whole new level. Investing not only allows you to grow your money for the future, but it also allows you to build wealth while you survive the worst side of inflation through the power of compounding over a long period of time.
If you save $50 a month in your bank account, it would take you nearly 5 and a half years to get to a capital of $100,000. But if you use compounding and investing, it takes you just a fraction of time to achieve the same goal.
How Do I Research Stocks?
Before you start researching stocks, it’s crucial that you have clear investment goals. Diving into investing without a clear understanding of what you want to accomplish can lead to major portfolio issues in the future.
You should also take some time to determine your risk tolerance — once you have a handle on the risks you are willing to take with your money, consider what types of investments align with your comfort zone.
After deciding what you want your portfolio to achieve, you can dive into stock research taking a few basic metrics into consideration. These metrics are:
#1 Revenue
What money is the company bringing in? Does the revenue reflect the value of the stock?
#2 Net Income
What expenses is the company facing? Are thin margins creating a risky investment opportunity?
#3 Earnings Per Share (EPS)
Earnings per share can be determined by dividing the earnings by the number of shares. You can use this metric to compare companies more easily.
#4 Price Per Earnings (P/E) Ratio
The price per earnings can be determined by dividing the stock price by the EPS. You can see what the market is willing to pay for earnings based on the shares.
#5 Return On Equity (ROE)
Return on equity reflects how much the company is able to generate in revenue based on the investments of stockholders.
Although none of these metrics allow for a complete analysis on their own, they’ll allow you to paint a useful picture of a company's financial health when combined.
Once you've done your research and made your choice, it's time to invest. For that, you'll need a trustworthy broker like Capital.
The Best Stock Research Websites
#1 Capitalist Exploits
Capitalist Exploits is a well-respected investment newsletter that does all the hard work for its users. It provides condensed information about market insights as well as giving them dissected investing opportunities.
The main function of Capitalist Exploits is to alert investors of unknown/underrated investing opportunities that could have considerable yields, and their main objective is to filter every opportunity available in most markets by yields and risks. The team behind the company also provides clear guidance on how to execute these investment ideas.
Capitalist Exploits also gives users suggestions and ways to adapt to different situations in case their predictions are inaccurate, which is a feature that other stock research websites seldom have and creates a safe and informed environment to invest in.
#2 The Motley Fool Stock Advisor
Motley Fool Stock Advisor is a newsletter published by The Motley Fool, a company run by Tom Gardner and David Gardner. It was founded in 1993 and it has become one of the most widely quoted investment sources. It has over 700,000 newsletter subscribers.
The Motley Fool Stock Advisor makes direct stock recommendations and has a good track record of doing so. When you sign up for the service, you’ll be provided with two new stock recommendations, and you’ll receive new recommendations (with an in-depth analysis of why you should buy said company’s stocks and what the potential risks are) every month.
The service also provides a Best Buys Now feature, with weekly updates of what they believe to be the 10 best recommendations to buy now. Also, if you're a beginner at investing, you'll benefit from using their Starter Stocks list, which includes 10 stocks they recommend for new investors.
#3 Zacks
Zacks was originally founded in the 1970s, and surprisingly, it's still a trusted source for buy-and-hold investors, day traders, and those looking to do extensive research today.
The platform offers plenty of different tools you can use for stock research and analysis for free, but they also offer a paid subscription to their stock picking service and recommendations for those looking to get the most out of the platform. Investors who prefer deeper fundamental analysis as the core of their stock strategies and like using a wide array of tools will benefit from using Zacks.
The Zacks Rank List is actively managed and updated on business days, and each stock is scored with a rating system. Investors can sort and filter the list by sector, industry, price, date, value score, market cap, and other categories.
#4 The Wall Street Journal
The Wall Street Journal has been around for more than a century and it’s still a solid financial information resource today. The journal offers paperback copies, but it's also available digitally if you enjoy reading online.
They ensure each issue comes with its fair share of financial news, market analysis (including foreign markets), valuable updates on Congress or the Administration, and it also comes with coverage on ongoing events at Silicon Valley.
Of course, it’s advisable to conduct additional research on trends found in the Wall Street Journal, but it’s a good starting point for the latest stock indicators.
#5 WallStreetZen
While it's a newer platform (launched in 2020), WallStreetZen already offers plenty of free, easy to use tools for stock research and analysis. They also offer an affordable Premium subscription for those who want to dive deeper into the stock market.
Unlike most stock research sites which offer their own stock picks (which often makes them biased) – WallStreetZen compiles and analyzes the stock picks from analysts at some of Wall Street’s top banks and brokerages. This data-driven approach lets you find and follow the stock pickers who are consistently identifying winning stocks.
WallStreetZen also has an internal Zen Score, which performs a series of 38 automated due diligence checks on US-listed stocks. It analyzes everything from a stock’s valuation to their financials. This scoring is built into a powerful, best-in class stock screener that’s surprisingly intuitive.They also have a library of free stock ideas, which makes it easy for beginner investors to get started, but also lets advanced investors customize the filters as they see fit.
#6 Morningstar
Morningstar is another well-respected stock research website. In it, you’ll find top-of-the-line investment monitoring tools and stock research, with stock screening tools that were created based on research coming from 150 different analysts.
Some would say their independent equity and fund research is second to none — after all, Morningstar is used and trusted by thousands of investment professionals and retail investors.
Although Morningstar has a free 14-day trial, you’ll need to sign up for the premium option to continue using the platform. It can sound pretty expensive at $199 per year, but considering it's one of the top investment research websites available, that price tag is certainly worth it.
#7 TradingView
TradingView is a great research tool for investors focusing on technical analysis and charting.
The stock research app includes stock charts with real-time data and specific indicators like RSI, Bollinger Bands, Moving Averages, and many others.
This investment research service works well if you're looking to be one step ahead of everyone else — you can do this by using any of the 50+ data feeds and exchanges that the platform offers. The service also offers customized technical analysis with metrics like volume indicators, MACD, backtesting, and more.
#8 MarketWatch
Marketwatch is one of the top stock research websites for reliable and up-to-date market analysis.
They offer detailed investment research for all investors, whether you’re a beginner, a day trader, or are a seasoned buy-and-hold investor. Each contributor brings knowledge and unique insight, which in turn helps everyone make an educated decision.
Marketwatch is constantly publishing articles discussing chart analysis and other technical indicators, and it also comes with a tool for you to research specific stocks, mutual funds, and index funds. The site also has an easy-to-follow economic data calendar, which is updated daily.
Most of these features are free to use, but it’s worth noting that they offer a paid subscription service as well.
#9 Google Finance
Google Finance is a free stock research website that has information on global stock market prices, as well as the latest stock market news for conducting basic stock research.
You can see their earnings calendar, financial market performance, and the most frequently researched companies on a single page.
They also include sources like Fortune, Benzinga, and CCN, along with relevant stocks and their real-time prices. Google knows what’s trending, so this stock research website is a great starting point to see what market investments are worth it.
#10 Yahoo! Finance
Yahoo! Finance is an easy-to-navigate stock research website that has a solid search function and a wide variety of news articles. Readers can also purchase a premium plan, which includes further details about specific companies and exclusive insights.
In Summary
Investing in the stock market can be intimidating, especially if you’re a beginner. You could lose a lot of money if you make a wrong decision, but thankfully, there are now more online resources than ever to prevent you from doing so.
These are our top selections on the best stock research websites and newsletters of 2022. Some of these websites are more suited for build-and-hold investors, while others are more favourable for day traders — you’ll need to carefully consider each one before you commit to any of them, but regardless of their specialty, every website featured on the list will be pretty valuable for researching the stock market.
