Can anybody point me in the right direction where I'd be able to learn something about investing in stocks...

Can anybody point me in the right direction where I'd be able to learn something about investing in stocks. I wish I could write a better written, more specific question but at the moment I know less than nothing on the topic and would like to at least understand what I see when I look at those line graphs. Thank you in advance.

Is that a picture of a drone race or something?

no It's a IRL optical illusion. something about point of views and sea level.

I heard "How to go broke using robin hood" is good.

Thanks bro.

all you need to know about trading

*dont trade with emotions
* buy low sell high
*buy dips
*be patient
*dont panic
*dont be greedy
*make an exit while the going is good
*learn to cut losses when the going is bad, and longterm doesnt look good

you will be a master trader in no time, now go beat the market, Buffet JR

Ok, what do you want to know?
You don't understand line graphs?
What about them?

>*dont trade with emotions
How will I be able to have a reason to buy or sell a stock other than emotions? Isn't all logical reasoning and financials pretty much perfectly priced into any stock?

Is there a certain amount of money I should have before I invest?

Where do i get to see the companies and how they are doing?

Are there any requirements at all?

How would i go about investing in anything? Where is this "Invest" button.

OP again, In order to invest in anything would I need to pay for a certain service? or is all of this open to the public? How would I go about gaining the proper information to wrap my head around this subject where there is so much fog around.
Is also me btw.

First, know the difference between investing and trading.
Anyone can invest, and the only minimum would be what's dictated by a broker (basically what they feel is worth their time to maintain an account for you). You can check their rates by googling "brokers" and "minimum funding requirements". You should know that investing takes advantage of long time horizons, so not only will you need to keep adding money from time to time, you also won't see much in the way of gains for awhile, especially if you start with very little. A broker will allow you to invest in most stocks or funds.
Trading, on the other hand, is a much shorter term activity, and is wholly different in terms of almost everything.

You can see how companies are doing in a number of places (many for free), but as a rule of thumb, the more accurate information you require, the more you will pay (not in necessarily fees, but more likely money on deposit). This really won't matter if you're investing, as shot term price movements and the accuracy of the quotes you get won't really be that important (you might only check it once a month or so).

>would I need to pay for a certain service? or is all of this open to the public?
You wouldn't need to pay for a service unless you expect advice, or someone to place your orders for you. Since most brokers have websites where you can do this on your own, it really isn't an issue for investing.
Yes, with the exception of the more esoteric financial instruments, it is all open to the public.

>gaining the proper information
Not sure what you mean by this, but if you're looking for someone to tell you what to buy, you're probably wasting your time. Everyone has their own opinion about what the best things to invest in are. Unfortunately, there is no responsibility assigned for the advice you would receive, whether you pay for it or not. That means if you lose money, you'll have no one to blame. Most people who invest get around this by diversifying, in other words, buying a fund made up of hundreds of companies. That way, one going bankrupt doesn't affect the fund much at all. Of course, it works the other way as well, so funds tend to cap both your losses as well as your gains, all in the name of protecting your capital from large swings in prices.

Some funds have their own minimum requirements as well, though, so you may not have all of them available to you with just any amount of money. Again, google will tell you.

In stocks as in life cooler heads prevail. People who panic at the slightest sign of trouble or go balls deep at the first promise of financial gain are usually the first ones separated from their money. That's what that user means by emotions, I think. You have to stay calm, especially when considering when to sell.

It seems that what I'm more interested in is trading. Thank you for pointing out that they're different (that's how little I know on the subject lol)
Also can you show me one of these places where it shows you how companies are doing?Everybody has that stock app on their iphone but is that something anybody actually uses?

It says the definition of broker is someone who buys and sells goods. If I am buying and selling stock (im not sure what buying and selling stock means but humor me) will I be my own broker? Are brokers just people who are watching the market and try to best predict where my money should go?

I'm not looking for anybody to tell me what to buy just how, like where is this long list of companies I can look at and where can I see the fluctuation of its "stock" whatever that means.

I was looking at the "interactivebrokers" website would opening an account with them as a Individual investor or trader mean that they'll invest and trade for me or that I will have the platform to do this myself?

Thank you everybody I appreciate your patience and help.

In all honesty, the book that seemed the most honest and made the most sense to me is "How to Make Money in Stocks" by Bill o'Neil. That, along with trend following principles are my favourite receipt.

Good luck.

>one of these places where it shows you how companies are doing
It really depends on how much information you need. Investors don't need much, just the rudimentary sorts of things that Yahoo finance or Google finance would have (both free). Traders would probably need more, depending on how much skin they have in the game. Any brokerage will have their own (more advanced) charts, but as mentioned, these aren't free per se. Many people use apps to track their stocks, but they tend to be somewhat limited regarding interface, so they're used for actual trading less frequently.

>will I be my own broker
Technically, you don't place orders or trades. You would give instructions to your broker (who actually does it for you), but there's really no visible difference, unless, as mentioned, you actually want someone to do everything for you. Most brokers have a division that handles (mostly older) clients who want this. They give those clients advice as part of a package.

>where is this long list of companies I can look at and where can I see the fluctuation of its "stock" whatever that means
I don't know if there's a master list of all stocks out there, but you can get a good idea by googling the S&P 500 or NASDAQ. That will give you a list of the stocks that make up those indices. As mentioned, the fluctuations can be observed through free sites, or through a brokerages website/platform. Re IB, like most brokers, they will give you a website or platform to do things yourself.

Thank you so much man. You're a saint.

Oops I thought Was you, I really appreciate the help brother.

But none the less thank you too

You're welcome.
I hope my probation officer sees it the same way.
I'm counting on this going towards my community service requirement.

hahahahaha I'd totally vouch for you bro, was the crime finance related?

Nah, I'm just joking.
I don't have a PO.