How to Get Started in Stocks [Paperback]

Paul Larson (Author), Inc. Morningstar (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0471719579 | ISBN-13: 978-0471719571 | Publication Date: September 14, 2005 | Edition: 1

3 Easy Steps to Better Stock Investing

Lessons explain key stock investing concepts clearly and simply to help you learn quickly.

Quizzes reinforce and build on what you learn.

Worksheets let you put what you learn into practice immediately to improve your own investing.

Morningstar Investing Workbook Series helps you build skills progressively at your own pace. Look for these other titles in the Workbook Series:

Stocks 2: How to Select Winning Stocks

Stocks 3: How to Refine Your Stock Strategy

Mutual Funds 1: Find the Right Mutual Funds

Mutual Funds 2: Diversify Your Fund Portfolio

Mutual Funds 3: Maximize Your Fund Returns

Morningstar has been helping investors make better investing decisions for more than 20 years with independent information and analysis. Morningstar people are passionate about helping you invest successfully.

Paul Larson is the editor of the Morningstar Investing Workbook Series: Stocks. He is also one of Morningstar's Equities Strategists and editor of Morningstar StockInvestor. As editor, Larson manages the publication's two market-beating portfolios: Tortoise for conservative and Hare for aggressive investors.

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

3 Easy Steps to Better Stock Investing

Lessons explain key stock investing concepts clearly and simply to help you learn quickly.

Quizzes reinforce and build on what you learn.

Worksheets let you put what you learn into practice immediately to improve your own investing.

Morningstar Investing Workbook Series helps you build skills progressively at your own pace. Look for these other titles in the Workbook Series:

Stocks 2: How to Select Winning Stocks

Stocks 3: How to Refine Your Stock Strategy

Mutual Funds 1: Find the Right Mutual Funds

Mutual Funds 2: Diversify Your Fund Portfolio

Mutual Funds 3: Maximize Your Fund Returns

Morningstar has been helping investors make better investing decisions for more than 20 years with independent information and analysis. Morningstar people are passionate about helping you invest successfully.

Paul Larson is the editor of the Morningstar Investing Workbook Series: Stocks. He is also one of Morningstar's Equities Strategists and editor of Morningstar StockInvestor. As editor, Larson manages the publication's two market-beating portfolios: Tortoise for conservative and Hare for aggressive investors.

About the Author

Paul Larson is the editor of the Morningstar Investing Workbook Series: Stocks. He is also one of Morningstar's Equities Strategists and editor of Morningstar StockInvestor. As editor, Larson manages the publication's two market-beating portfolios: Tortoise for conservative and Hare for aggressive investors.

Product Details

• Paperback: 232 pages
• Publisher: Wiley; 1 edition (September 14, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0471719579
• ISBN-13: 978-0471719571
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 7.5 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #100,418 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

35 of 35 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Way to Get Started, July 15, 2006

By 

Colin (Maryland, USA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: How to Get Started in Stocks (Paperback)

Whether you know a little about stocks and need to know more, or you're totally clueless and want to learn it all, the beginning of this 3-part series is absolutely indispensible for you.

It starts out very basic (mentioning what stocks are, for instance) and demonstrates the miracle of compound growth and interest over time, and why it is important to invest in stocks in the first place, rather than just savings bonds, CDs or a so-called "safe" investment, which isn't really safe since you won't make near enough money to beat inflation (you'll be losing money unless you invest in stocks).

But then it goes on to demonstrate some very useful things to someone who wants to investigate a stock in order to decide to buy it or not, like, how to read the company's "big three" (balance sheet, cash flow statement, earnings statement) in its annual report and what it all means and, how to calculate some very basic ratios and "dig into the company."

Believe it or not, simple stuff, and presented in a simple, and practical manner that anyone can understand. You don't need to be a math wiz in order to read this book, or have any financial education or experience at all. But it's a great place to get started, and this book is totally necessary if you want to understand stocks and the companies behind them. I highly recommend How to Get Started in Stocks, and the 3-part series in general.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Good introduction to stocks by a great company, August 14, 2009

By 

Mariusz Skonieczny "Author" (Schaumburg, IL) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: How to Get Started in Stocks (Paperback)

Anything written by Morningstar provides high quality investment advice. This book provides a basic introduction to stocks. It provides an overview on how stocks compare to other investment products, how compounding works, and why it is important to invest long term. Since stocks are ways to become owners in the underlying businesses, the author explains how to analyze individual companies first by gathering relevant information, reading financial statements, and performing basic ratio analysis.

At the end of each chapter, there is a quiz and worksheet. Since the book is written by Morningstar, it provides information on how to use the company's website. Morningstar offers subscription services to individual investors who can get access to analyst reports and opinions of value on individual companies. Besides reading this book, I recommend their subscription.

- Mariusz Skonieczny, author of Why Are We So Clueless about the Stock Market? Learn how to invest your money, how to pick stocks, and how to make money in the stock market

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent book for starters, August 15, 2010

By 

Flavio Eslava Garcia - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: How to Get Started in Stocks (Paperback)

A great worbook series for starters on the stock market; the author explains really well all there is to know about the market in order to prepare for investing in the long run. It is pretty easy to read and understand, I'm a Computer's engineer with no previous knowledge on finnance and Investments, also you don't need a degree to understand this book or to be a succesful Stock market trader.

Also every chapter has a bottom line section which provides a synthesis of the most important topics of the chapter, a multiple selection quiz and worsheet section, which it's great to review what you just learned.

This book it's great for people like me who had no idea about the Stock market, apart for what I have seen in movies. Can't wait to finish it to get the next one, because it is a 3 workbook series.

Also Morningstar provides great references to investment analysis pages, and include a free certificate worth of 100 $ in Stocks analysis on the back of the book.