There are a lot of tools available for you as an investor, but it’s easy to get lost on the internet.
This list will help you cut to the chase and find the best sites quicker.
Here are the 20 best online tools and websites for value investors:
1. The Company’s Own Investor Relations Site
The first source of information should be the original source, and by that I mean the annual report, quarterly statements, and other information from the company itself.
There should be a link to the subsite for investor relations on the home page.
If you still can’t find it, just google the company’s name + investor relations.
2. Google
You should google the company to see what comes up.
There could be awful – but truthful – reports from short sellers (people betting on the stock falling), big insider selling, or some lawsuit that hasn’t been settled yet.
Always, always google the company you are researching.
3. News Media
Take a look at the headlines on the major news sites every day.
I check:
- The New York Times
- The Wall Street Journal
- Barron’s
- The Atlantic
- …and some local papers
Make it a part of your daily routine to check the websites. You don’t have to read a lot of articles from start to finish – this is about getting the big picture.
4. Reuters
Reuters.com contains a stock site that can be really useful to get an overview of a company’s development.
You can use the search function to find the company.
On the “profile” page of the company, you can see things like how many shares there are. You’ll need that for several calculations when you want to figure out what price you would want to pay per share.
5. Bloomberg
Bloomberg.com is similar to Reuters – they both sell data to the financial sector.
Bloomberg has a more aggressive paywall on their website though, but you can still use it to look up the numbers of shares outstanding.
6. Insider Monkey
InsiderMonkey.com is useful for checking if insiders are dumping the stock.
You don’t want to touch something that the insiders are doing a fire sale of.
History has shown us that insiders often try to unload the stock they own before it’s obvious to the public that a company is going bankrupt.
7. Gurufocus
Gurufocus.com showsou what the big value investors invest in.
You can see the portfolio and their latest trades. Just be aware that the investors only have to report their US investments every quarter, so the information is never going to be completely updated.
8. Dataroma
Dataroma.com is a more simple version of a value investor tracker.
It includes different investors from Gurufocus, so it’s a nice addition – Li Lu is on Dataroma, but not on Gurufocus. Who wants to miss out on what Li Lu is doing? Charlie Munger trained him, and some people speculate whether he has a future role to play in Berkshire Hathaway.
Whalewisdom
Whalewisdom also tracks the big value investors. I like their heatmap.
10. Seeking Alpha
On Seekingalpha.com you can find a lot of investors’ analysis and stock ideas.
They have a morning briefing podcast called Wall Street Breakfast. You can find Seeking Alpha’s podcasts here.
11. Investopedia
Investopedia.com is for investors what Wikipedia is for normal people.
If you find something in an annual report that you don’t understand, try looking it up on Investopedia before you panic.
12. The Motley Fool
The Motley Fool, also called Fool.com, is run by two brothers, and it helps you invest through blog posts, podcasts, videos and so on.
It’s possible to receive stock recommendations if you sign up for the paid version.
13. Morningstar
I use Morningstar.com for researching ETF and other funds. It’s an easy way to look up their performance and costs.
You can also enter and track your portfolio on Morningstar.
14. Yahoo Finance
You can use Yahoo Finance for a lot of stuff, like setting up a stock screener, entering your portfolio, creating a stock alarm, and many other things.
15. Trading View
Tradingview.com is great for charting.
It’s got plenty of other functions like a stock screener. If you’re into Bitcoin and other cryptos, you can chart them here too.
16. Finviz
On Finviz.com you can chart, build portfolio and stock screeners, get an overview of the news, backtest your latest trading idea, and much more.
17. Market Screener
Marketscreener.com lets you chart, build a portfolio, a screener – and many of the other features that the two previous financial sites also offer.
You’ll have to test them and see which one suits you the best.
18. Simply Wall Street
Simply Wall Street is a value investor site that evaluates investments for you.
I get a little confused about the warning signs that they show, so I prefer to do my own analysis, but I see no reason why you can’t get inspired by Simply Wall Street – as long as you go to the original source (the company’s report) and do your own analysis as well.
19. SEC Edgar
The Securities and Exchange Commission’s website Sec.gov contains a lot of information… if you have the patience for the not-so-user-friendly system.
The funds trades are there – which means you can find all the big investors investments and trades.
Be careful though – you might click on something that fills your screen with code language or html.
The SEC communicates in a semi-cryptic language – here are some of the most important form codes to remember:
- 13F : Funds reports of their investments
- 10-k : Annual report
- 10-q : Quarterly statement
- 4 : Changes in insiders’ ownership
20. Money and Freedom
You’re here, aren’t you? It’s worthwhile following this blog for the weekly posts and lists.
You’ll automatically be signed up for the weekly investment tips if you download the e-book. Which brings me to…
Don’t forget to read my free e-book that explains my whole investing process – including my favorite way to calculate what a company is worth. You can get it here.
