- The Pros and Cons of Bond Index Funds
Bond index funds invest in a selection of bonds intended to reflect the performance of a particular index. They can provide investors with a window to diversified, low-fee investing. However, bond index funds also hold several disadvantages, such as volatility… read more…
- What Are Corporate Bonds & Where Can You Buy Them?
Both public and private corporations issue corporate bonds, which are a type of fixed-income security. Corporations place these investments on the open market to help fund projects and other major financial undertakings. Investors can purchase a corporate bond on either… read more…
- How to Build and Manage a Bond Ladder
Investing doesn’t have to involve high risk or complex strategies. A bond ladder is a simple approach that can help you earn steady income over time. It works by spreading investments across bonds with different maturity dates, so some come due regularly. This creates a predictable cash flow and reduces exposure to interest rate changes.… read more…
- How to Buy Walmart Stock
Known for its size, success and seeming ubiquity, Walmart (ticker symbol: WMT) is a discount retailer that has had a tremendous run on Wall Street. Founded by Sam Walton in 1962, the corporation went public in 1970, debuting at $16.50… read more…
- How to Buy Samsung Stock
Although widely recognized as solely a technology brand, Samsung is actually more of a conglomerate. The South Korea-based company extends into the financial services, tourism, science and machinery businesses as well. But tech is what Samsung does best, as Forbes… read more…
- Vanguard Brokerage Review
Vanguard is one of the leading brokerage firms in the United States, with about $7.2 trillion in global assets under management from over 30+ million investors in 200+ markets. The brokerage firm has a unique ownership structure and its funds… read more…
- How to Buy Berkshire Hathaway Stock
It’s often said that investing in Berkshire Hathaway is like buying into an exchange-traded fund (ETF). Both offer diversification across industry sectors. ETFs are typically passively managed to track a benchmark index, whereas Berkshire Hathaway actively acquires both stocks and businesses. As you explore whether or not investing in Berkshire Hathaway is a good idea… read more…
- Beginner’s Guide for How to Buy Mutual Funds
Mutual funds are companies that combine investors’ money in an effort to diversify their assets throughout specific areas of the market. So investing in a mutual fund is more than just buying into the investments a fund makes. You’re actually buying shares of the mutual fund to become a part owner. This typically attracts lots of… read more…
- How to Buy Savings Bonds
The most common way to buy savings bonds is to go straight to the US Government, and as of a few years ago, it can only be done online. Though savings bonds may not be as flashy as some other… read more…
- How to Buy Nike Stock
Nike stock shares represent a portion of ownership in Nike, one of the most prominent sportswear companies in the world. This means that when you purchase Nike stock, you own a part of the company that makes many Americans’ sneakers. The… read more…
- How to Buy Municipal Bonds
Municipal bonds are debt security investments in the daily operations or long-term projects of a state, county, city or other government organization. Government entities themselves issue municipal bonds and they offer interest payments typically on a semi-annual basis. The maturity dates… read more…
- What Are Non-Qualified Stock Options?
Stock options are an increasingly popular form of employee compensation. They come in two flavors, which are treated differently for tax purposes: non-qualified stock options and incentive stock options. Non-qualified stock options are the more common of the two. Here’s what… read more…
- How to Buy Disney Stock (DIS)
If you had to name one company that exemplifies American ingenuity, taste for fun and market domination, many would say it’s the Walt Disney Company. An iconic part of the collective American childhood, the company is more than just Mickey… read more…
- Donating Stock to Charity
Charitable donations often take the form of food drives, clothing donations and giving cash to a nonprofit. But did you know you could also donate stocks directly to charity? While you could always sell your stocks and donate the proceeds,… read more…
- Stock Options vs. RSUs: What’s the Difference?
When you take a new job, your salary may not be your only form of compensation. You’ll likely also get benefits, vacation days, and possibly some form of stock in the company. This will likely come in one of two… read more…
- What Are Equity-Indexed Annuities?
Annuities are one way to fund your retirement. With an annuity, you exchange a certain amount of principal up front for payouts in retirement. An equity-indexed annuity is a popular type of annuity. The payout for these annuities is based… read more…
- What Is Diversification?
Diversification is an investment strategy that aims to reduce risk while maximizing return. It does this by spreading exposure to several different asset classes and within each asset class. This way, if one sector or one holding goes down, the whole portfolio won’t sink, and may even experience gains elsewhere. Experts often recommend diversification for… read more…
- E*TRADE Review
A big name in the investment and day-trading worlds, E*TRADE offers a wide variety of investments and platforms to trade them. Originally founded in 1982 as TradePlus, the company made its first online trade the following year and relaunched as… read more…
- What Is a Short Position and Should You Take One?
You may have heard about short-selling, shorting or short position when listening to investment discussions, but maybe you weren’t quite sure of the meaning. Taking a short position is essentially the opposite of investing in a company. When you invest in a… read more…
- What Is Price-Earnings Ratio?
Anyone who spends time thinking about investments has likely heard the phrase price-earnings ratio. Put simply, price-earnings ratio, or P/E ratio, is a figure that compares the price of a share of a company’s stock to the earnings per share… read more…
- Fidelity Review
Fidelity is a global financial services company headquartered in Boston. Founded in 1946, the firm has more than $3.8 trillion in total customer assets. It offers a full suite of products and services, including annuities, mutual funds, retirement plans, 529… read more…
- How to Become an Accredited Investor
An “accredited investor” is a person or entity with exclusive access to complex, loosely regulated and often opaque investments like hedge funds, leveraged buyouts and startups. To become an accredited investor the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) requires certain wealth, income or… read more…
- 10 Best 529 Plans for 2025 and Beyond
With student loan debt at record levels, American families are seeking more ways to help their children save for higher education sooner rather than later. One solid option is investing in a 529 college savings plan. Let’s break down the… read more…
- 529 Plan vs. Roth IRA
Higher education is pricier than ever, and tuition hikes don’t show any sign of slowing down. But 529 college savings plans and Roth IRAs both include benefits to help you save for your children’s education. Investors use 529 plans specifically… read more…
- How to Calculate Dividend Yield
If you invest in stocks, you may receive some dividends, which are payments made to shareholders in correlation with the stock’s performance on the market. To see if you’re getting a good dividend compared to other stocks, you’ll need to… read more…