Online Stock Trader

Archive for August, 2009

Current stock prices of publicly traded corporations can be found out easily. A lot of financial internet sites give factsto investors that aid them in purchasing stocks of different companies. Numerous times, you won’t be able to access you online brokerage internet site whether it is privacy or some other reason, and during these times you want to have access to historical stock prices of companies. Google and Yahoo finance sites have adequate real time stock prices that are available for free. Online brokerage websites will provide owners with much more detailed facts about the stock prices than the free financial sites like Google or Yahoo.

It is easier to know the stock price of a business if you know its symbol. Once you know the symbol enter the symbol in the quotes bar in the financial web site and it should display you with the stock price of the corporation. As you being entering the name of the business you will be given a likely list of corporations that might match you. As you enter the name of the business you are looking for, a drop box appears below listing probable business names. Alternatively, if you know the business’s ticker symbol you could just enter it in the Get Quotes bar and hit enter. When you are on the page of a corporation you will be provided with a variety of information including the stock price of the firm. If prices are said to be real time, then the stock price was at that price at that specific time. Usually, most financial websites give stock prices that are delayed by a minimum of 20 minutes.

You should be mindful whether the stock price is a real time stock price or a time delayed stock price. While making a trading decision be sure to know that the stock price is the one at which price it is being traded and not a pre-market or after hours stock price. When you trade stocks, it is best if you do it from your brokerage account and with the material listedthere rather than outdated material elsewhere. With online brokerages you get pay and sell of other trades and up to date stock prices.

There is no doubt that when you are looking to choose a stock broker you should take your time as your decision could have a significant impact on the returns you make from your trading.

There are two main options, firstly there are deep discount stock brokers. These brokers just let you trade, without any extra help.

The other option is a full service broker. A full service broker offers you the basics just like a discount stock broker. They also offer many additional services including retirement planning, trading help and advice, information on tax, risk management strategies and much much more.

For most investors, a online discount stock broker will be the best choice. Most people who buy stocks, especially experienced traders do no require the extra services of a full service broker. Even if an investor would find the services of a full service broker helpful, they are often not able justify the additional expenditure.

Typically discount brokers charge between $3-15 per trade. However a full service broker will often charge well over $125 for every trade. Look out for sites offering discount stock broker ratings.

Clearly this is a huge difference. Paying very big commissions means you would have to make a lot higher returns on your trading activites just to break even after paying all the fees.

There are also other important factors to consider when looking for a brokerage firm. What is their support like? Do they offer trading out of hours? Are there any extra hidden fees in their terms of service? How fast is their execution? Which methods of payment do they take and how rapidly do they send you your money when you ask it? Are they regulated?

Let me show you a quick example of how much of a difference the commissions can make. If you make 20 trades per month and your account balance is $10,000 you will pay $100 per month in fees at $5 per trade and $2000 per month at $100. See how the fees can hurt your account in no time?

Would you like to trade stocks listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX) and do you need a good On line canadian stock broker.

There are many Canadian stock brokers to choose from. Some are undoubtedly better than others. Amongst the better ones include Scotia Itrade and Interactive brokers.

At the moment there are nearly 4,000 stocks listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange for you to trade. Some of these are the major Canadian banks CIBC, Bank of Montreal, Bank of Nova Scotia, Royal Bank of Canada.

The major Canadian oil companies are also listed including Canadian Natural Resources Ltd., Canadian Oil Sands Trust, Cameco Corporation, Husky Energy Inc., Nexen Inc, Imperial Oil Ltd.

When choosing a broker to trade Canadian stocks, it’s always important to consider the amount of commission you will have to pay. If you are going to make money trading stocks, the last thing you want to do is give it back to a greedy broker.

Canadian full service brokers usually charge more than a Canadian discount stock Brokers but they often offer you advice on trading, tax, retirement planning and much more. They will even powder your nose for you if you pay them enough.

Most of the services offered by these brokers can be found freely online. It is not uncommon for full service brokers to charge in excess of $100 per day. In comparison, many discount brokers charge less than $10 per trade.

Personally, I do not think a full service broker is ever worth the additional expensive. Getting good returns trading stocks is difficult enough without having the additional barrier of an expensive and potentially greedy full service broker.

In conclusion, there are many Canadian stocks to choose from that have a good chance of making some nice returns, but as always, have a good solid risk management strategy and always be prepared in case your stock picks go badly wrong (it’s always possible) as you hope and always choose your broker carefully.