FIP102 Stock Investing for Dummies - 20 hours Objectives Want to make money in stocks without losing your shirt? This practical guide gives you proven strategies for weathering the current economic crisis and for selecting and managing profitable investments in either a bear or bull market. You'll navigate the new economic landscape and choose the right stocks for different situations and you'll find fresh real-world examples that show you how to maximize your returns. Get started with the basics understand stock value, assess your finances, set your investing goals, and know your investing style Recognize the risks explore different kinds of risk and weigh risk against return Make informed investing decisions research stocks, understand growth and income investing, and use basic economics to improve your stock strategy Build a strong foundation for your portfolio investigate industries, evaluate a company's financial health, and understand the effect of politics/government on stock investing Capitalize on emerging sector opportunities from precious metals to alternative energy, discover the hot sectors that will make your portfolio thrive Build (and hold on to) your wealth get expert tips and tactics for utilizing brokerage orders, buying with fewer costs, and keeping the taxman at bay Course Outline Chapter 1 - Welcome to the World of Stock Investing. 1. Understanding the basics 2. Preparing to buy stocks 3. Knowing how to pick winners
4. Boning up on strategies and tactics Chapter 2 - Taking Stock of Your Current Financial Situation and Goals. 1. establishing a starting point by preparing a balance sheet 2. Funding your stock program 3. Setting your sights on your financial goals Chapter 3 - Defining Common Approaches to Stock Investing. 1. Matching stocks and strategies with your goals 2. Investing for the future 3. Investing for a purpose 4. Investing for your personal style Chapter 4 - Recognizing the Risks. 1. Exploring different kinds of risk 2. Minimizing your risk 3. Weighing risk against return Chapter 5 - Say Cheese: Getting a Snapshot of the Market with Indexes. 1. Knowing how indexes are measured 2. checking out the indexes 3. Using indexes effectively Chapter 6 - Gathering Information. 1. Looking to stock exchanges for answers 2. Understanding stocks and the companies they represent 3. Staying on top of financial news 4. Reading (and understanding) stock tables 5. Using news about dividends 6. Evaluating investments tips Chapter 7 - Going for Brokers.
1. Defining the broker s role 2. Distinguishing between full-service and discount brokers 3. Choosing a broker 4. Discovering various types of brokerage accounts 5. Judging brokers recommendations Chapter 8 - Investing for Growth. 1. Becoming a value-oriented growth investor 2. Choosing growth stocks with a few handy tips 3. Exploring small caps and speculative stocks Chapter 9 - Investing for Income. 1. Understanding the basics of income stocks 2. Analyzing income stocks 3. Exploring some typical income stocks Chapter 10 - Getting a Grip on Economics. 1. Breaking down microeconomics versus macroeconomics 2. Understanding important concepts in economic logic 3. Surveying a few schools of economic thought 4. Understanding some current economic issues Chapter 11 - Using Basic Accounting to Choose Winning Stocks. 1. Recognizing value when you see it 2. Accounting for value Chapter 12 - Decoding Company Documents. 1. Getting a message from the bigwigs: the annual report 2. Getting a second opinion 3. Compiling your own research department Chapter 13 - Analyzing Industries.
1. interrogating the industries 2. Outlining key industries Chapter 14 - Emerging Sector Opportunities. 1. Bullish opportunities 2. A bearish Outlook 3. Important considerations for bulls and bears Chapter 15 - Money, Mayhem, and Votes. 1. Tying together politics and stocks 2. Poking into political resources Chapter 16 - Choosing between Investing and Trading. 1. The differences between investing and trading 2. Tools of the trader 3. The basic rules of trading Chapter 17 - Selecting a Strategy That s Just Right for You. 1. Laying out your plans 2. Allocating your assets 3. Knowing when to sell Chapter 18 - Understanding Brokerage Orders and Trading Techniques. 1. Checking out brokerage orders 2. Buying on margin 3. Going short and coming out ahead Chapter 19 - Getting a Handle on DPPs, DRPs, and DCA... PDQ. 1. Being direct with DPPs 2. Dipping into DRPs 3. The one-two punch: dollar cost averaging and DRPs
Chapter 20 - Corporate Skullduggery: Looking at Insider Activity. 1. Tracking insider trading 2. Looking at insider transactions 3. Considering corporate stock buybacks 4. Stock splits: nothing to go bananas over Chapter 21 - Keeping More of Your Money from the Taxman. 1. Paying through the nose: the tax treatment of different investments 2. Sharing your gains with the IRS 3. Discovering the softer side of the IRS: tax deductions for investors 4. Taking advantage of tax-advantaged retirement investing Chapter 22 - Ten Ways to Profit before the Crowd Does. 1. Use your instincts 2. Take notice of praise from consumer groups 3. Check out powerful demographics 4. Look for a rise in earnings 5. Analyze industries 6. Stay aware of positive publicity for industries 7. Watch megatrends 8. Keep track of politics 9. Recognize heavy insider or corporate buying 10. Follow institutional investors Chapter 23 - Ten (Or So) Ways to Protect Your Stock Market Profits. 1. Accrue cash 2. spread your money across several stocks 3. Buy more of a down (yet solid) stock 4. Apply long-term logic 5. Use the almighty stop-loss order 6. Place a limit order 7. Set up broker triggers 8. Consider the put option 9. Check out the covered call option 10. When all else fails, sell
Chapter 24 - Ten Red Flags for Stock Investors. 1. Earnings slow down or head south 2. Sales slow down 3. Debt is too high or unsustainable 4. Analysts are exuberant despite logic 5. Insider selling 6. A bond rating cut 7. Increased negative coverage 8. Industry problems 9. Political problems 10. Funny accounting: no laughing here! Chapter 25 - Ten Challenges and Opportunities for Stock Investors. 1. Debt, debt, and more debt 2. Derivatives 3. Real estate 4. Inflation 5. Pensions and unfunded liabilities 6. The growth of government 7. Recession/depression 8. Commodities 9. Energy 10. Dangers from left field