Here I have compiled a list of very important tools that will help any beginner or veteran investor. This list consists of search engines, screeners/apps, trading platforms, investors/books and podcasts. There are also plenty more out there but this should be enough to help any beginner investor get started.
Search Engines
- Investopedia– This is probably the absolute best for beginners. You can search out any term or words you need to learn to help you with investing. You will probably use it a lot when you first start out.
- Sedar- This is going to help you with learning the financial statements and filings of companies. Anything a company reports will be on Sedar.com
- Zach’s Investment research- This is a great tool to look up what you need to know about any publicly listed company. A lot of great information is on this site.
- BNN Bloomberg– BNN Bloomberg is a great site for breaking and up to date news on companies and politics. It also have real time TSX/TSX-V/CSE quotes which is very helpful since almost no other screener or site does.
- Yahoo Finance- Yahoo finance is also a great site for world news on companies and politics. It is also great for researching companies as it has lots of information and good screeners.
Screeners/Apps
- Webull-(Glen and Colbys personal favorite)It does give live updates of US listed stocks but it does NOT do live updates of Canadian listed stocks, there is a 15 minute delay. I also use it for the wealth of information that they have and the details they give with their charts, news and updates. There is an app as well as a desktop feature. Their ability to trade is not available in Canada as of yet.
- BNN Bloomberg-(Glens second favorite, Colby finds their articles annoyingly biased)It does give live updates of Canadian stocks but it does NOT do live updates of US listed stocks, there is a 15 minute delay. BNN bloomberg is also great for Canadian news and information. There is an app as well as a desktop feature and is also a TV channel(I watch it every trading day).
- Investing.com-It does give live updates of US stocks but it does NOT do live updates of Canadian stocks. There is an app as well as a desktop feature.
- Marketwatch-Marketwatch has a screener but I personally use it more for news updates and articles.
- Seeking Alpha-I use seeking alpha for information and news only and I also take everything that is written with a grain of salt. As you become a more knowledgeable investor you will learn who to listen to and who to avoid.
Trading platforms
Here is a list of trading platforms available to Canadians. Wealthsimple is currently the only free trading platform in Canada(which is why I switched to them).
- Wealthsimple(This is who Glen uses)
- Qtrade(Glen used to use but switched because of their comission fees)
- BMO investorline
- CIBC investors edge
- RBC direct investing
- Scotia Itrade
- TD direct investing
- Interactive brokers
- Virtual brokers (Colby uses this Broker since 2016)
- Questrade
- Desjardins online brokerage
- HSBC investdirect
- EToro (No longer available in Canada)(Who Colby used to use)
Investors/Books
I have read alot of books from some very successful investors. My personal favorites(and the go to of all long term investors) are:
- Peter Lynch-Beating the street, One up on wallstreet and Learn to earn.
- Benjamin Graham-The intelligent investor(The long term investing bible)(Also super dry to read so be prepared mentally…)
- Warren Buffett-The Warren Buffett way, The essays of Warren Buffett
- Robert Kiyosaki-Rich dad poor dad, Rich dads guide to investing
- Stephen J. Dubner and Steven Levitt-Freakonomics
- Tony Robbins-Awaken the giant within, Giant Steps
Podcasts
- The Korelin Economics Report
- The Maple Money Show
- Planet Microcap
- Planet Money
- The Rich Dad Radio Show
- Mad Money w/ Jim Cramer
- Mo’ Money Podcast
- Freakonomics Radio
Disclaimer: Colby does not listen to podcasts.
I know that this is only really just scratching the surface but this is what I have started out with and it is what has helped me on the path to becoming a successful investor.
Outsider Trading 