Friday, June 25, 2010

How To Use The IBD #1

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I thought I would take some time to go over how I use the IBD and how to get the most out of it each and every day. The IBD is a must have resource in your stock market investing arsenal. But because it is so full of information, it's tough to get a handle on how to use it and use it quickly and efficiently. While in the past, I've talked about the IBD 200, today, I just want to spend some time going over the front page and set up a system to follow so you don't miss anything.

Personally, I use the eIBD of the Investor's Business Daily on Investors.com. But occasionally, I will pick up a print edition of the paper. When I want a print copy, I can usually get one over at my local borders. The electronic version is available on the same day and it makes the print edition seem like "old news". Regardless, both are exactly the same.

When you open the paper, the first thing I like to do is read the market summaries at the top. By the time I get the paper though, I've usually already looked at the market indexes online so I don't spend a lot of time there. Next, I look at the Big Picture and check the Market Pulse to see the market direction. Then I read "IBD's Top 10" to get a handle on the top headlines of the day and there are also two articles that I might read if I am interested.

I think the key to the front page is to also note any stocks mentioned and put their tickers in your stocks to review list. I'd recommend reading the list with a pad of paper to note the symbols. You definitely want to check them out further.

So as far as an action plan, here are the steps I'd take to the front page.


  • Read the market summaries at the top of the page

  • Read the IBD's Top 10 headlines

  • Read the Big Picture Column

  • Review the Market Pulse for the general market direction

  • Check out the two stories on the front page, read if interested

  • Make note of stocks mentioned on the front page

Today, here are the stocks I noticed on the front page:

  • Stocks in the Top 10 Headlines: Oracle ORCL, Apple AAPL, Google GOOG

  • Stocks in the Big Picture Column Up In Volume: Hasbro HAS, Valeant Pharmaceutical VRX, Tibco Software TIBX

  • Stock highlighted in an article: Oracle ORCL (Apple'sAAPL  iPhone 4 was also mentioned in a caption)

I stuck with stocks that have positive news. IBD editors highlighted these stocks for a reason and you should take note of all stocks mentioned on the front page. Here today, I have six stocks to add to my research list.

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