Basic Stock Market Investing

This five week course is designed to introduce the basics of investing in the stock market. Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) are discussed and contrasted to mutual funds as alternative vehicles for stock market investing. A significant portion of this course is devoted to risk management. Stock market investing should not keep you up at night – what happened to many investors in 2008 does not have to happen to you if you apply proper risk management. Fundamental analysis of stocks is reviewed as a tool for selecting stock candidates and contrasted with technical analysis, the art and science of technical indicators and chart reading. Several common technical indicators and candlestick patterns are explained and demonstrated. Each class includes a homework assignment that will be reviewed at the beginning of the next class; this ensures a practical understanding of the previous class topics. A systematic approach to stock selection, buying, and selling is presented. Students will be coached as to the investing styles and methods best suited to their objectives and risk tolerance. At the completion of this course, the student will:

• Understand the use of ETFs and the pros and cons versus using mutual funds
• Analyze a stock candidate and determine the optimal price entry point
• Understand technical indicators and their complementary use with fundamental analysis
• Understand the basics of candlestick pattern analysis
• Understand risk management and various stop loss techniques
• Be familiar with techniques for portfolio management and rules for selling
• Have developed a personal trading system, consistent with his or her objectives and risk tolerance

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