Learn a lot from a Fool
Written: May 20 '00 (Updated May 20 '00)
|
Product Rating:
|
|
| Content Timeliness: |
 |
|
| Information Depth: |
 |
|
| Web Site Experience: |
|
|
| Web Site Load Time: |
|
|
|
Pros: Wealth of information, message boards
Cons: None
|
|
|
| dmcostello's Full Review: Motley Fool |
I first encountered the Motley Fool many years ago when it was an AOL-only service. I poked around it, but much of it seemed over my head I wasn’t motivated enough to really learn what they were offering. There seemed to be a general excitement about the site, people who posted there seemed to really believe in this site and what they were preaching. But I was slightly skeptical, I wondered if this was really just a front for some advertisement. Would the only people who made money from the Motley Fool be the people who were running Motley Fool? I had my doubts to be sure.
I left AOL years ago, and forgot about the Fool. I moved to an ISP since I was finding myself disenfranchised by AOL connection problems and I found myself on the Internet more and more and using AOL’s content less and less.
Rediscovering “the Fool”
As my personal interest in investing increased and moved from Savings Bonds, to Mutual Funds, to a growing desire to invest in individual stocks, I turned to the Internet to educate myself. I came upon the site www.fool.com. It was an Internet version of the AOL content that I had seen several years earlier. I poked around and found that I was much more ready for the lessons they were teaching.
They had a common sense approach to investing. They espoused buying stocks and holding them for a long period of time. The more I read, the more I felt that their beliefs were in line with my own. Since there was no fee to register, I signed up.
The Portfolios
They demonstrate different investing styles with real-money portfolios. At the end of every day that the market is open, they update their portfolio’s performance and include a write up. This write up is a discussion of some aspect of each portfolio. They have the following portfolios set up:
The Rule-Breaker - A fairly aggressive portfolio that seeks out emerging companies that break the rules. This was their first portfolio.
The Rule-Maker - A portfolio that invests in Rule Makers, companies that lead the pack.
The Foolish Four - Invests in four companies that are held for a year. It is based upon the Dogs of the Dow Strategy.
The Drip Portfolio - Invests in direct investments plans with companies.
The Retiree Portfolio - Teaches various ways of investing for retirement.
The Boring Portfolio - A portfolio that invests in value stocks.
You can find more in-depth descriptions of the portfolios at fool.com.
The best part of “the Fool”
Fool.com also has your typical wealth of information that many financial sites have. Stock quotes, research, charts, news, portfolio tracking and information about companies.
Where the site stands out is its message boards. They are moderated message boards so spam is kept to a minimum. There are some incredibly knowledgeable contributors. This is one the first places I go when researching a company. I read as many posts about a company as I can. I get both a positive and a negative view of a potential investment. It is a great resource.
Conclusion
The Motley Fool gives not only a wealth of information, but it gives you an attitude about the market. Don’t worry about the day-to-day gyrations; invest in a company, not a stock. If you still believe in that company and nothing has changed, don’t sell it. Think long term. Keep on top of your investments; it is better to know a few investments very well than invest in things you don’t really know about. But don’t micro-manage your investments, don’t worry about a short-term drop in price.
Their portfolio’s performance is a good illustration of their beliefs. They have done very well. They practice what they preach. They have held AOL since 1994 and at times it has dropped 50%, but they held because they believed in the company. It has paid off. I think many people could become better investors by visiting this site and learning from it. I am not saying you should be a sheep and follow the flock, make the decisions that are right for you. I recommend the Motley Fool as a great place to learn and to share information about investing.
Recommended:
Yes
|
|
|
|
Epinions.com ID:
dmcostello
|
|
Reviews written: 65
Trusted by: 26 members
|
|
|
- Add to My Yahoo!: 
- Add to Google Homepage: 
© 1999-2009 Shopping.com, Inc.