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Stock Market For Beginners 2026 | Step by Step Guide

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0:00I want to welcome you to the stock

0:01market for beginners ultimate guide. If

0:05you're new to the stock market then this

0:06video will be perfect for you.

0:09So I want you to know that every

0:10experienced investor in stocks was once

0:13a beginner.

0:14So it is an honor to guide you in your

0:17stock market journey to help you achieve

0:19financial success and financial freedom.

0:22Now let's begin.

0:23So here is what we're going to cover in

0:25today's stock market for beginners

0:27video. You are not expected to absorb

0:30all this information in one sitting. So

0:32please subscribe and watch this

0:35piecemeal at your own comfortable pace.

0:38So let's begin with this. You should

0:40invest in the stock market because it is

0:42a proven way to grow your wealth.

0:45Just look at the historical data. These

0:47are the average annual returns that

0:50investors make in the stock markets.

0:53In the past 30 years the stock market

0:55has gone up by an average of 9.9%

0:58a year.

0:59If you look at the past 50 years it's

1:0110.8% a year. In the past 100 years an

1:05average annual return of 10.5% a year.

1:09But I'm going to tell you this because I

1:10want to be upfront with you.

1:12Yes, there are stock market crashes.

1:16But over time the stock market recovers

1:19and essentially the stock market keeps

1:21going up.

1:23It's it's like home prices. Generally

1:26real estate tends to increase in value

1:29so you know this.

1:30But I want to I want to make this clear.

1:32So here are the median home prices in

1:34the past.

1:35100 years ago a home cost this is the

1:38median price $3,200.

1:4250 years ago you could buy a home the

1:44median home for $33,000.

1:4730 years ago the median home price was

1:49$126,000.

1:51And today the median home costs

1:54approximately $400,000.

1:56So it just keeps going up. And it's the

1:58same thing with the stock markets. The

2:01reason why financial assets, such as

2:04properties or stocks, continue going up

2:07is partly because of inflation.

2:10However, the stock market does outpace

2:13inflation.

2:15But ultimately,

2:16you want to put your money to work by

2:17investing it, and the stock market has a

2:20proven track record of growing your

2:22money.

2:23Now, let's proceed.

2:25It is essential that you understand how

2:27the stock market works.

2:30I don't want you to throw your money in

2:31stocks into the stock market if you

2:33don't understand the basics. So, in this

2:36section, let me explain to you

2:38what are stocks, how to invest in

2:41stocks, how people get wealthy by

2:43investing in the stock market, and what

2:46stocks are best for beginners. So, let's

2:48get started. I want you to know that the

2:50stock market is very simple. So, let me

2:52explain to you what stocks really are.

2:55So, let's just say that you own a

2:56business, and so you're a business

2:58owner. And let's say that you want to

3:00raise a lot of money for your business

3:02to grow and expand.

3:04So, what do you need to do?

3:06You need to find investors, and a great

3:08place to find investors is in the stock

3:11market. Now, in order for you to raise a

3:14lot of money for your company, you need

3:15to sell a portion of your ownership in

3:18your company to investors.

3:20And that's what stocks are. Stocks are

3:22just units of ownership in a company.

3:25So, if you buy stock in Apple or

3:28Microsoft or Tesla, you are an owner of

3:31the company.

3:32So, you probably own a very small piece

3:34of the company, but you are still

3:35technically an owner.

3:37Therefore, one person does not own Apple

3:41or Microsoft or Tesla. So, there are

3:43thousands of people that own stock in

3:45those companies, so those companies have

3:47thousands of owners, which are the

3:49stockholders. Now, let me tell you how

3:51to invest in stocks. So, the stock

3:54market is a big marketplace where you go

3:56to buy and sell stocks.

3:58To participate in the stock market, you

4:00need an online brokerage account.

4:02So, there are a lot of online brokerage

4:04accounts to choose from. I'm going to

4:06leave a link down below to some online

4:09brokerage accounts that are offering

4:11sign up bonuses with zero fees, and

4:13there's no catch. It will cost you

4:16nothing.

4:17And some of these sign up bonuses, they

4:18can be substantial, so please be sure to

4:20check them out. So, you open up an

4:22account, and then you transfer money

4:25from your bank account to your brokerage

4:27account, and then you're going to have

4:28money in your brokerage account, and

4:30then you're going to be ready to buy

4:31stocks. So, you want to buy stocks in

4:34good companies. That's because if a

4:36company does well, then the value of the

4:38company increases. If the value of the

4:40company increases, then the price of

4:42your stock goes up.

4:45And in many cases, if a company is

4:47making a lot of profits, the company

4:49will take those profits and pay a

4:51dividend to whoever owns the stock.

4:54So, you don't have to do anything to

4:55collect a dividend. It just gets

4:57deposited into your account, which is

4:59pretty awesome. So, this is passive

5:01income in its truest form.

5:03Now, if you want to sell your stocks,

5:05it's very easy. So, you may want to sell

5:07your stocks for whatever reason, such as

5:10you just want to cash out. Maybe you

5:12don't like the company anymore. Maybe

5:15you want to sell your stock to have

5:16money to buy a different stock.

5:19So, you're free to do as you please, and

5:20again, this is all free, no fees, zero

5:23commissions.

5:25So, when you sell your stocks, you'll

5:26have money in your brokerage accounts

5:28because, again, you sold your stocks.

5:30And whenever you want, you can transfer

5:32that money back to your bank account. Or

5:35you can let that money just sit there.

5:37Some brokerage accounts, they'll pay you

5:39interest on the money sitting in your

5:41accounts.

5:42Or you can use that money to buy stocks,

5:45you know, whatever you want. Now, I want

5:47you to know that many people get wealthy

5:49in the stock markets, and there's not

5:50just one way to do it. I'm going to tell

5:52you what most people do.

5:54And you can try to see which style is

5:57most appealing to you.

5:59Buy and hold, dividend investor,

6:02speculator, trader.

6:04And let me explain these styles to you.

6:06Buy and hold. Some people just buy

6:08stocks and they just hold on to them for

6:10a very long time. We're talking about

6:12years, even decades. Some people they'll

6:15even hold on to their stocks until they

6:17die and they'll put it in their will.

6:19So, this is a set it and forget it

6:21approach. Traders. Some people in the

6:24stock market will try to buy and sell,

6:26buy and sell frequently and make some

6:28money. So, these people are known as

6:30traders.

6:32Traders are not interested in holding a

6:34stock for the long run and watching the

6:36company grow.

6:38So, I would recommend that beginners in

6:40the stock market, so if you're a

6:41beginner, please refrain from trading

6:44with a large amount of money.

6:45I would recommend that you get some

6:46practice in first. But, it's true, many

6:50professionals get rich by trading, but

6:52that comes with experience.

6:54Speculators. Some people buy smaller,

6:57riskier stocks that have a lot of

6:59potential and could skyrocket in price.

7:02So, these are speculators. I'm not

7:04saying that in a good way or a bad way.

7:06People speculated on Tesla early on and

7:09made a lot of money. So, you could say

7:11the same thing for Amazon or Walmart and

7:13so many other stocks.

7:15But, there's other people that

7:16speculated on stocks and lost a lot of

7:18money. So, if you're going to speculate,

7:20don't invest too heavily in one stock

7:24and do not fall in love with a stock.

7:26Your emotions can cloud your judgments.

7:28Dividend investors. Some people buy

7:31stocks primarily for the dividends.

7:34Many investors take their dividends and

7:36reinvest them to get more dividends and

7:38your wealth accumulates over time.

7:41So, this is a great way to build your

7:42passive income.

7:44So, you can actually set your accounts

7:46to reinvest your dividends

7:47automatically. It's called a drip,

7:49dividend reinvestment program.

7:51I am personally a big fan of dividend

7:53investing because you literally get paid

7:55for doing nothing.

7:57So, if you're dividend investing, your

7:59money is making you money. So, you

8:01should know from the get-go which style

8:03is most appealing to you. And it could

8:05be more than one. It could be a

8:06combination, but there's no one right

8:08answer. There's no one right method. So,

8:11whichever path you take, you should

8:13understand the pros and cons of that

8:15method or that style. Now, let me tell

8:18you what stocks I think are best for

8:20beginners. There will be so many stocks

8:23to choose from. Small companies, big

8:25companies, companies in different

8:26sectors, energy, technology, real

8:29estate, retail, banking,

8:30pharmaceuticals, etc.

8:32There will be companies that focus their

8:33sales in the US. There will be

8:35multinational companies. There are just

8:37so many options.

8:39I would suggest that as a stock market

8:41beginner, you invest in bigger and more

8:44stable companies. The reason why I'm

8:46saying this is because of risk and

8:48reward.

8:49If you invest in a smaller no-name

8:51company, there's a higher probability

8:53that you can lose a lot of money.

8:55As a beginner, you should get a feel for

8:57the stock market, take it easy, and just

8:59learn.

9:00Once you get more experience and

9:02knowledge, then you can slowly move out

9:04of your comfort zone into stocks that

9:07offer more risk and reward.

9:09If you don't want to take this advice

9:10and you want to If you want to jump

9:12straight into risky stocks, then I beg

9:14you. Please do so with a smaller amount

9:17of money.

9:18Please take my advice. The stock market

9:20is not a get-rich-quick scheme.

9:23In the stock market, you want to be an

9:24investor. You do not want to be a

9:26gambler. And I want to see you make

9:28money. As a beginner, it is better for

9:31you to make a little bit of money than

9:32to lose money. So, I I recommend

9:36sticking with safer stocks to start and

9:38learning little by little. Slow and

9:40steady wins the race and it's a

9:42marathon. And just so you know, if you

9:44want to be very safe and diversify, then

9:46you can always buy index funds.

9:49An index funds is a collection of

9:51stocks. It's like a big basket of stocks

9:54where you get diversification. So it's a

9:56way for you to buy a little of almost

9:58everything, which decreases your risk.

10:00Now, in the stock markets, you can

10:02choose how to invest your money.

10:05So let me give you two and you can

10:06decide which method that you prefer.

10:10So option number one is that you can

10:12search for good stocks to buy.

10:15This is known as stock picking. So

10:17you're trying to pick the winners.

10:19If you're going to stock pick, then it's

10:21important that you spend time monitoring

10:24your stocks to ensure that everything is

10:25going well.

10:27So later in this video, I will teach you

10:28more about stock picking. Your option

10:31number two is index funds or ETFs.

10:34So if you don't want to become a stock

10:36picker, you can invest in index funds or

10:39ETFs in the stock markets.

10:42If you invest in an index fund or ETF in

10:44the stock market, that's like buying a

10:47little bit of all the stocks in the

10:49stock markets. So there's pros and cons

10:51to this approach, which I will tell you

10:53about right now.

10:55So today, I'm teaching you about index

10:57fund investing, which includes what is

11:00an index funds, the pros and cons, index

11:03funds versus ETFs, and how to invest in

11:06them.

11:07So let's start with this. What is an

11:09index? An index is simply a grouping of

11:12stocks or bonds or other securities. So

11:15for example, the S&P 500 is an index of

11:18the 500 largest publicly traded

11:20companies in the US.

11:22So the thing is that you cannot invest

11:25directly in an index, but you can invest

11:28in an index fund.

11:30Now, let me explain to you how an index

11:32fund actually works.

11:34So, let's say that you have an index

11:35fund that tracks the S&P 500. So, that

11:39index fund will buy shares of stock in

11:42all of the companies in the S&P 500.

11:45Therefore, the index fund will mirror

11:47the performance of the S&P 500. If the

11:50S&P 500 goes up 1%, then that index

11:53fund, it will likewise go up 1%.

11:57If the S&P 500 goes down 1%, then that

12:00index fund will go down 1%. Now, I want

12:04you to think about that. Really think

12:05about what I just said, because there's

12:07going to be pros and cons to this. So,

12:09let me tell you what they are, and we'll

12:11start with the cons. Because the index

12:13funds will mirror the markets, that

12:16means that if you invest in an index

12:18fund, then you cannot outperform that

12:20benchmark.

12:21So, for example, if you invest in an S&P

12:23500 index fund, then you cannot beat the

12:26markets. So, if you want to become a

12:27superior investor, an index fund may not

12:31be right for you.

12:33Another downside with index funds is the

12:35lack of flexibility.

12:37So, for example, if there's some stocks

12:39that you don't like in the fund, then

12:42unfortunately, you're going to be stuck

12:44with them. It's take it or leave it.

12:46That means that if there are stocks that

12:48are underperforming in the index fund,

12:50you can't cut your losses and you can't

12:52have them sold off. And another drawback

12:55is the tracking error. An index fund

12:58will not perfectly track an index. So,

13:00if the S&P 500 goes up 7%, the S&P 500

13:04index fund, it might go up 6.95%.

13:08And you may be like, "Hey, where's the

13:10rest?" Well, that difference, it

13:12includes the cost to run the actual

13:15index fund.

13:17So, sometimes the tracking error may be

13:18tiny, like a difference of 0.01%,

13:21but with other index funds, it may be

13:23much more.

13:24But, there also may be tracking errors

13:26if an index fund uses derivatives. In

13:29those instances, an index fund will not

13:31track precisely.

13:33Okay, so we just got all the bad stuff

13:35out of the way, but now let's talk about

13:37the good stuff because there are a lot

13:38of benefits with index fund investing.

13:42So, the great thing about an index fund

13:43is that you can be hands-off. You can

13:46become a passive investor.

13:48And this is great for someone that's new

13:50in the stock market or inexperienced.

13:53If you do know what you're doing you're

13:55just too busy.

13:57Let's just say that you don't have time

13:58to research individual companies or you

14:00don't have the time to pay attention to

14:02macroeconomic conditions, then this will

14:04solve the problem. So, I understand that

14:07we're all busy, life gets in the way and

14:09this may be a good solution for a lot of

14:11people to become a passive investor with

14:13index fund investing. So, here's another

14:16benefit. So, the truth is that most

14:19people are not good at picking

14:21individual stocks.

14:23If you're not paying attention to the

14:25economy, if you're not staying current

14:26on the sector, and if you can't read

14:28financial statements, well, that

14:30probably explains why.

14:32So, it's hard for even the professionals

14:34to beat the markets. So, research shows

14:37that from 2001 to 2016

14:40active fund managers under performed

14:42their benchmark index.

14:44So, honestly, if you put your money in

14:46an index fund, then you're probably

14:47going to do better than most people. I

14:50do want you to know this though because

14:51most people when they talk about index

14:53funds, they overlook this part.

14:55So, recently passive investing through

14:57index funds, it has been outperforming.

15:00However, active management generally

15:03outperforms passive investing when the

15:06stock market or an index is going down.

15:09That's generally because active managers

15:11they capitalize better during the market

15:13recovery phase. So, in other words, when

15:15the markets are going up, an index fund

15:18tends to do better. When the markets are

15:20going down, active management tends to

15:23do better. Now, another big benefit is

15:26diversification. Diversification is so

15:28important for your investing portfolio

15:30because it lowers your risk.

15:33Index fund investing provides you with a

15:35simple solution. That's because when you

15:37buy an index fund, you're buying up a

15:39slice of up to hundreds or thousands of

15:42companies at once. With diversification,

15:45it's going to balance your risk and your

15:47portfolio will experience less

15:49volatility.

15:50Now, here's what I suggest to you. I

15:52would say compare the pros and cons and

15:54see if See if this makes sense to you.

15:56So, to review, the benefits of investing

15:59in an index fund include, but are not

16:01limited to, passive investing,

16:03dependable returns, and diversification.

16:07The drawbacks are you cannot outperform,

16:11the lack of flexibility, and tracking

16:13errors. So, I hope you enjoyed that

16:15educational information, but I want to

16:17give you my I want to share with you my

16:18opinion as well. So, I'm going to speak

16:19freely.

16:21This is like a heart-to-heart about

16:22index fund investing.

16:24So, if you're going to ask me for my

16:25opinion about index fund investing,

16:28I believe that it depends on the

16:29investor. It depends on the individual

16:31person. But, for most people, for most

16:34investors, I believe that index fund

16:36investing does make sense. There are

16:39more benefits than there would be cons

16:41or negatives because just think about

16:43how practical it is. Think about how

16:45convenient it is. You could just throw

16:46money into an index fund and you don't

16:49have to You don't even have to know

16:50what's going on. You don't have to

16:51manage it. You could just focus on

16:54your job, your career, your friends,

16:56your family. You could focus your focus

16:59your energy and your attention

17:00elsewhere. It's You'll be more

17:01stress-free. You don't have to make

17:04these big decisions. You don't have to

17:05keep up to date on the macroeconomic

17:08environment or company-specific news.

17:11So, there's a lot of benefits that you

17:12have to take into consideration.

17:14So, sure, the trade-off would be that

17:16you're not going to be the next Warren

17:18Buffett. So, you need to ask yourself

17:20those types of questions and be honest

17:22with yourself. Are you trying to be the

17:24next Warren Buffett? Because if you are,

17:26then index fund investing is probably

17:28not for you. It's not a good fit for

17:29you.

17:30Not with the goals that you're trying to

17:31achieve.

17:32But if you're trying to find a place

17:35where you can park your money, excess

17:37cash as an investment, and you can do it

17:39passively, just check up on it

17:41passively,

17:43inconveniently, then index fund

17:44investing might be a really good fit for

17:46you.

17:47But I do want to say this last part, and

17:49this is especially important to

17:50beginners because

17:52when people are talking about index

17:54funds, they usually think about a a very

17:56broad index. Let's just say the S&P 500,

17:59right?

18:01However, you can use index funds,

18:03targeted index funds to complement

18:06yourself as an investor, as an active

18:09investor. So, for example, if I'm going

18:11to be actively participating in the

18:12stock market, like I'm going to be

18:13looking at stocks every day, and not

18:16necessarily buying or selling every day,

18:17but you know, I'm staying up to date as

18:20an active investor in the stock market,

18:22and I'm buying stocks in all different

18:24types of sectors, but I feel like that

18:26I'm lacking exposure in, let's just say

18:29pharmaceutical stocks, okay?

18:32If that's the case,

18:33then I could I could use index funds, a

18:36targeted index fund like that that

18:38specializes just in pharmaceutical

18:39stocks to complement my overall

18:42investing style.

18:44And the other approach is that

18:47if you do want to park most of your

18:48money, the majority of your money with a

18:50broad index, let's just say an index

18:52fund, an S&P 500 index fund, right?

18:55You can park the majority of your money

18:57in that vehicle, the S&P 500 index fund.

19:00However, if you really have that itch

19:03to buy and sell individual stocks, well,

19:06you can have the majority of your money

19:08in a in a broad index fund like that, a

19:10well-diversified index fund like that,

19:12but then additionally, you could

19:14complement that by buying

19:17the stock picks that you like. Let's

19:19just say, well, you really think Tesla

19:20is going to do good or you really think

19:22Microsoft is going to do good. Then you

19:24could have the bulk of your money in an

19:25index fund, then you could use smaller

19:27amounts of money to make your stock

19:29picks, but it the bulk of your portfolio

19:32will revolve around index funds

19:34investing. Now, let me answer some

19:36really good, commonly asked questions

19:38about index funds.

19:40Are index funds popular? The answer is

19:43yes.

19:45Index funds were introduced in 1976.

19:47Investing in index funds is the most

19:49common form of passive investing.

19:52It is estimated that passive investing

19:55in the stock market makes up about 15%

19:57of the markets. That's the official

19:59stat. Some estimates are that it's over

20:0230%.

20:04So, yes, it's very common, very popular,

20:06so this is nothing new.

20:08Another good question is how do you

20:10invest in index funds?

20:12Okay, so it's very easy. You will need a

20:14brokerage account or a retirement

20:16accounts. You pick the index that you

20:18want to track, and then you buy shares

20:21of that index fund. So, it'll be very

20:23straightforward.

20:24Another very good question is how much

20:26money do you need to invest in index

20:29funds?

20:30Most index funds have no minimum

20:31requirements, so it could be a great way

20:34to get started with very little money.

20:36And I'll answer this last question. How

20:39many index funds should you own?

20:42So, that's going to depend on how

20:43diversified a particular index fund is.

20:47If you invest in a well-diversified

20:49fund, then you may only need to own one

20:51index fund or two index funds. However,

20:54if you invest in an index fund that's

20:56more targeted, then you may need to own

20:58more than one or two in order to create

21:01diversification. Now, it's very

21:03important that you understand this.

21:05There is no one right way to invest in

21:09the stock markets.

21:11You can successfully pick your own

21:12stocks, invest in index funds, invest in

21:16ETFs, or a combination of these.

21:19I recommend that you choose what is best

21:21for you.

21:22And to make that determination, it's

21:24important that you understand the

21:26differences between the three: stock

21:28picking, index funds, and ETFs.

21:32So, personally in the stock market, I do

21:34all three. I invest in index funds, I

21:37invest in ETFs, and I pick my own

21:39stocks.

21:40Now, in this section, you will get a

21:41better understanding on whether one or

21:44two or all three are a good fit for you.

21:48I'm going to answer for you how are

21:49index funds and ETFs similar, how are

21:52they different, and how do you know

21:53which one is right for you.

21:55Okay, so I'm going to tell you the

21:56truth. The truth is that they have more

21:58in common than not. They have more

21:59similarities than differences.

22:02But, I want you to be aware of the

22:03differences that could make an ETF or an

22:05index fund a deal breaker for you.

22:09I want to I want to demonstrate to you

22:11what is going on with an index fund. So,

22:13you could think of it like this.

22:15Let's say that you, me, my brother, your

22:18neighbor, and my Uncle Bob,

22:21we're all pooling money together. And

22:23with this pool of money, we're going to

22:25buy all the stocks in the S&P 500.

22:29And let's just say we do that, and let's

22:32just say that you want out.

22:34When you want to cash out your portion,

22:36the fund has to sell some of its

22:38holdings to pay you out. Now, let's

22:41compare this to an ETF. So, with an ETF,

22:44an exchange-traded fund, you could think

22:46of it like this.

22:48Let's just say that you bought all the

22:50stocks in the S&P 500.

22:53And you packaged them all up into one

22:55bundle. And you did that 10 times.

22:59And I say to you, "Hey,

23:01can you sell me one of those?" And

23:02you're like, yeah, sure. And I buy it

23:05from you. So, it's simply traded from

23:07you to me like a stock. So, I hope that

23:10helps to clarify what is going on. An

23:13index fund is a collection of securities

23:16that are financed by a pool of

23:17investors. An ETF is a collection of

23:20securities that are traded between

23:23investors.

23:24So, that's it. That's the difference.

23:26But, there are a lot of similarities and

23:28let me tell you what those are. Both an

23:31index fund and ETF offer you a low-cost

23:34solution, diversification, and a proven

23:37track record.

23:38So, index funds and ETFs, they're both

23:40passively managed. This means that

23:41there's no human that is actively

23:43choosing what to invest in.

23:46Therefore, index funds and ETFs are

23:48low-cost. They have a low expense ratio.

23:51Now, both index funds and ETFs, they

23:53will give you diversification because

23:55they hold a variety of assets.

23:57And index funds and ETFs generally

24:00outperform active fund managers over a

24:02longer period of time. Now, I want to

24:05tell you the differences and this will

24:06help you determine which one is better

24:08for you.

24:10So, the four biggest differences between

24:11an index fund and ETF are liquidity,

24:15minimum investment requirements,

24:17expenses and fees, and taxation.

24:20So, let's get started with liquidity.

24:23You can buy and sell ETFs throughout the

24:25trading day like a stock. With an index

24:28fund, you can only buy or sell at the

24:30end of the day. Therefore, an ETF is

24:33more liquid.

24:35So, this probably will not make a big

24:37difference for most long-term investors,

24:39but it does matter if you're going to do

24:41any day trading or shorter duration

24:43moves. Now, moving on to minimum

24:45investment requirements. So, generally

24:48an ETF will have a lower minimum

24:50investment requirement when you compare

24:52it to an index fund.

24:54So, for example, you can buy as little

24:55as a single share of an ETF. In some

24:58cases, you can even buy fractional

25:00shares of an ETF.

25:03But with some index funds, they're going

25:04to impose a minimum requirement. It

25:07could be $1,000, it could be $2,000, or

25:10even more.

25:11Now, when it comes to expenses and fees,

25:13both index funds and ETFs are low-cost

25:15investments.

25:17That's because both are passively

25:19managed.

25:20Previously, ETFs were known to carry

25:22lower expense ratios compared to index

25:25funds, but that gap has been closing.

25:28And the expenses for index funds and

25:30ETFs are now quite similar. So, you're

25:33going to see expense ratios in the 0.05%

25:35to 0.02% range, which is a fraction of

25:391%, which is a very low-cost solution.

25:43And of course, we have to consider

25:45taxation.

25:46ETFs are more tax-efficient compared to

25:49index funds. That's because of their

25:51structure.

25:52So, I previously demonstrated to you how

25:54they're structured, and that

25:56structuring, it has tax consequences.

25:59So, essentially with an ETF, you're

26:01selling to another buyer, and the cash

26:03comes directly from that buyer.

26:06To cash out of an index fund, you have

26:08to redeem it from the fund manager. And

26:11the fund manager will have to sell some

26:12of the holdings to get the cash to pay

26:15you out.

26:16So, if there is a gain on the sale, that

26:19gain is passed on to all investors of

26:22the fund. That means that you could end

26:24up with a tax bill even if you don't

26:26sell a single share.

26:28So, ultimately, assets are bought and

26:30sold every time an investor enters or

26:32leaves an index fund.

26:34And anytime there's a capital gain,

26:36every investor that's part of the fund

26:38will need to pay capital gains tax. Now,

26:41I want to be very clear with you on this

26:43topic of taxation because I don't want

26:44this to scare you.

26:46So, this is going to be in relation to

26:47how much money that you have in the

26:49index fund. So, if you have very little

26:51money in fund, then don't expect the tax

26:54consequences to be

26:56significant. But, if you do have a lot

26:58of money in the index fund, then yes, it

27:00could be a decent amount.

27:02Now, let me give you my opinion on which

27:03one is better, an index fund or an ETF.

27:06But, I want to tell you this story to

27:07help you understand the situation, the

27:10whole situation.

27:11So, the index fund was created in 1975

27:14by John Bogle, who went by the name of

27:16Jack. So, Jack Bogle was the founder of

27:19the Vanguard Group. Bogle created the

27:21index fund in 1975 so that everyday

27:24investors could compete with the pros.

27:27So, that was 1975. It took a few years

27:30for index fund investing to catch on,

27:32but eventually it gained traction.

27:35So, 18 years passed by, it's 1993. State

27:38Street Global launches their S&P 500 ETF

27:41called the SPDR, it's referred to as the

27:44spider.

27:46But, this wasn't the first ETF. This was

27:48preceded by the Toronto ETF in 1990,

27:50among others.

27:52But, ultimately, the ETF is an

27:54improvement of an index fund. It's like

27:57an index fund 2.0. And that's why ETFs

28:00have been gaining in popularity very

28:02quickly. 1993, the ETF market basically

28:06didn't exist. 2002, there are over 100

28:10ETFs. 2009, over 1,000 ETFs. Currently,

28:16we're close to 10,000. And right now,

28:19there's a competition for your money

28:20between index funds and ETFs. Now, let

28:23me tell you what I think.

28:25My opinion is that an ETF is an upgraded

28:28version of an index fund. And here's

28:31why.

28:32If you're on a tighter budget, an ETF

28:35may be better for you if you have less

28:37money to invest upfront. So, I'm

28:40referring to the higher minimum

28:42requirements.

28:43So, ETFs, yes, they do have a better tax

28:46structuring, and that's going to give

28:47you a

28:48greater control of claiming gains or

28:51losses.

28:52And because you can sell, so you can buy

28:54or sell an ETF throughout the day,

28:56so if that need ever arose, I'm guessing

28:58that in most situations that it would

29:00not, but if it ever did, that you could

29:02take it advantage of that situation of

29:05any major price movements throughout the

29:07day

29:08and that is a benefit that you cannot

29:10have or do with an index funds. However,

29:13some of these ETF advantages, they might

29:15not make a meaningful difference to you,

29:17especially if you're a long-term

29:18investor.

29:19So, I want to be clear that I do like

29:21index funds, but if I had to choose,

29:23then I would go with an ETF, but that is

29:25just my opinion.

29:27But if there's a

29:28if there's a particular index fund that

29:31does not have a competing ETF, then

29:34yeah, I would buy, you know, that index

29:36fund. So, that's just the way I see it.

29:38So, to be clear, both index funds and

29:41ETFs have my stamp of approval.

29:44However, personally, I like to pick my

29:46own stocks in addition to index funds

29:49and ETFs. Now, if you want to pick your

29:52own stocks, then it is essential that

29:54you understand the terminology and you

29:56know how to read stocks.

29:58Because if you don't understand the

30:00stock terms, then you're going to be

30:01lost and you're not going to be able to

30:03distinguish good stocks from bad stocks.

30:06So, let's begin with the essentials. So,

30:09in this next segment, you're going to

30:11learn the key data and stats when you're

30:13researching a stock.

30:15And it doesn't matter if you're looking

30:16at a stock screen on your app or

30:19brokerage accounts or a website.

30:22So, the information and terminology that

30:24I'm about to show you, it's going to be

30:25the same no matter where you look.

30:27So, please follow along and make sure

30:29that you fully grasp this info because

30:32it'll be critical. We're going to look

30:34at

30:35finance.yahoo.com.

30:39So, let's go over there.

30:45Once you arrive here

30:47at this top bar search bar right here,

30:50that's where you're going to put in your

30:52ticker symbol. That's your

30:54identifying letters of your stock. So,

30:58let's look at Ally Bank.

31:01So, Ally Bank is owned by Ally

31:03Financial. So, let's go there. A L L Y,

31:05that's the ticker symbol as you can see

31:07right here.

31:09We're going to select that.

31:12What we're going to do

31:15in this tutorial is give you the basic

31:18overview of what we are seeing on the

31:21screen.

31:22Let's begin.

31:24As of right now, when we are reviewing

31:27Ally Financial, ticker symbol

31:30A L L Y,

31:33the price is $18.43

31:36a share.

31:38The market is closed, so this right here

31:42this will not be this will not be

31:44fluctuating because the market is

31:45closed. If the market is open during

31:48that time, you will see this

31:49fluctuating, you know, every few

31:51seconds. If you refresh it, it'll

31:53fluctuate.

31:55During this day, during the

31:58during this trading day, it went up

32:00$0.99.

32:02Therefore, it was up 5.68%.

32:06That's a pretty big gain.

32:08However, my

32:10Markets are very volatile these days.

32:13That's what you are reading after hours.

32:16The stock market has closed.

32:19However,

32:21the stock will still be trading

32:24after the market closes, and also

32:26tomorrow

32:28premarket. That just means the stock

32:30will be trading before the market opens.

32:34The amount, the The

32:35of how much of these stocks or these

32:38shares will be trading, it's going to be

32:40very minimal compared to

32:43the shares of the stock that are traded

32:45on the market during the day. So,

32:47there's going to be In other words, in

32:48layman's terms, there's going to be a

32:50lot of buying and selling, a lot of

32:51buying and selling, buying and selling

32:52during the day, and there's still going

32:54to be a little bit of buying and selling

32:56after the market closes and before the

32:58market opens.

33:00Currently,

33:01it's after hours.

33:04The next day, tomorrow morning before

33:06the market opens, you'll see this say

33:08pre-market. So, before before the market

33:10opens.

33:12Let's go on to here.

33:14This is the meat of the data.

33:17What I've highlighted, that's what we're

33:18going to be looking at closely.

33:21Today, Ally Financial closed at $18.43.

33:25The day prior, the previous close

33:29of Ally Financial was $17.44.

33:36This morning, today, the stock price

33:39opened at $17.90.

33:42So, yesterday, it closed at $17.44

33:46right here.

33:47And then, at today's open, it just

33:50jumped open and started the day off

33:53at $17.90. So, it was a good start. It

33:56was a good morning for Ally Financial.

33:59This is your beginner's tutorial, so we

34:02are not going to cover what the bid and

34:03the ask are.

34:05The bid and the ask, just for your

34:06information, this is more intermediate

34:07level, is what people are willing to pay

34:10for it. An ask is the price at which

34:12they are willing to sell it at, a share.

34:14But again,

34:15for now, if you're a beginner, please

34:17ignore those.

34:19The day's range is the price

34:23fluctuation of the day.

34:26During the day, during today's trading

34:29day, it fluctuated from $17.41

34:33all the way up to $18.55.

34:37The 52-week range, that just shows you

34:40the price where the price of Ally

34:42Financial has been in the past year.

34:46It has been as low as $10.22

34:49and as high as $35.42.

34:53So, you can see the current price, the

34:55$18.43,

34:57you know, it's not near the lowest and

35:01it's not near the highest point

35:04during the 52-week range.

35:07The volume, volume is very important.

35:11This shows how many shares

35:14of Ally Financial

35:16has traded this day.

35:20This shows that 6,994,221

35:24shares have traded today.

35:29If you see a stock

35:31with a volume

35:33that's very low,

35:35that means that you can get trapped in

35:38that stock because you wouldn't be able

35:41to sell it. So, if you see a stock with

35:43a volume close to zero, that should be a

35:46red flag and that should be problematic

35:48because

35:50even if the stock went up and you wanted

35:52to sell it, you probably couldn't get

35:53rid of it. However,

35:56if I'm looking at Ally Financial and I

35:58see that the volume is nearly 7 million

36:01shares

36:03and one share is $18.43,

36:06that means it's very liquid. In other

36:09words, in layman's terms, that just

36:11means that it's very easy for you to buy

36:13a share of Ally and it's very easy for

36:16you to sell a share of Ally because

36:18nearly 7 million shares trade hands each

36:23day.

36:24Well, that was today. The average volume

36:26is how many shares of this stock trade

36:29on average

36:31per day.

36:32So, as you can see, today's volume was

36:34slightly less than the average. However,

36:37I mean, that's

36:38that's very easy for you to sell your

36:40position and get out very quickly

36:42because a lot of

36:44shares are trading each day.

36:47Moving up here, market cap,

36:50it's going to say 6.877B.

36:54That means the company, the market cap

36:57means market capitalization, which means

36:59the value of the company. The value of

37:02the company

37:03is how many shares

37:05there are of that company multiplied

37:10by the price per share.

37:12So, how many shares there are times the

37:14price per share will give you the market

37:15cap, which means the value of the

37:17company.

37:186.877B

37:20just means the market cap or the

37:22company's value is valued at 6.877

37:27billion dollars.

37:29If you saw this as an M instead of a B,

37:34then that would mean 6.877 million, but

37:37this is a B, so the market cap, the

37:39value of the company is 6. 6.877 billion

37:42dollars.

37:44Beta, this is an intermediate level

37:47terminology or item, so please ignore

37:49this for the time being.

37:52This is P/E ratio is a price to earnings

37:54ratio. This is more intermediate level

37:56as well. This just means the price of

37:59the stock divided by how much in

38:02earnings each share of this stock means.

38:06Again, this is more for intermediate

38:07level analysis.

38:09This we're just going

38:10over the very basics during this

38:12tutorial.

38:14However, that's P/E ratio, and we'll

38:17cover that, you know, we look on this

38:20very heavily in the intermediate level,

38:21so we'll be covering this very

38:23thoroughly. Earnings per share,

38:26this is this is intermediate level

38:28stuff, too.

38:29This just means how much in net income

38:32the company makes divided by how many

38:34shares there are, so it's the earnings

38:36the earnings

38:38per share.

38:41The earnings dates,

38:43this is the expected dates where the

38:46company will release their quarterly

38:49earnings.

38:50So, it is expected. Today's date is June

38:521st, and we are expecting

38:57the earnings to be released

39:00between July 16th through July 20th.

39:06There's

39:07forward dividend and yield.

39:10This just means

39:12the dividend that a company is paying.

39:14So, Ally Financial is paying a dividend

39:17yield of 4.14%.

39:21Not all stocks, not all companies pay

39:24dividends. Ally Financial is one example

39:28of a company or a stock that pays a

39:30dividend. This just means that if you

39:32bought $100 worth of Ally Financial

39:36stock,

39:37then you would receive in dividends

39:41a rate of 4.14%.

39:44So, if you bought $100 worth of Ally

39:46Financial stock,

39:47you'd receive in dividends $4.14

39:51approximately.

39:54Ex-dividend date, this just means the

39:56date that you need to be This is more of

39:59an intermediate level thing because this

40:02is representative of the date that you

40:03need to have been in the stock for the

40:06dividends for you to receive the

40:08dividends.

40:11This is

40:13one-year target estimate. This is

40:17Honestly, you should do your own

40:18research and your own homework. Don't

40:20rely on other people's targets or

40:22estimates, especially from a generic

40:24site like a Yahoo Finance. All this

40:26other stuff is this concrete data. This

40:28is But these things where they're

40:30opinions or estimates, I wouldn't rely

40:34on a site like Yahoo or Google or just

40:38any generic Again, this is just opinion.

40:42So, do your own research.

40:44And again, this is not beginner-level

40:45stuff.

40:47But we'll make videos on those topics.

40:50Here, you're going to see the news

40:52regarding the company.

40:54This is particularly important if

40:56there's large price fluctuations

40:59in the stock, then you can see why the

41:01stock moved up so much or why the stock

41:03moved down so much. So, you can check

41:05the news here.

41:07Watch out for the ads, though.

41:11And it just goes on and on.

41:14Click bait right here.

41:20That is the new section. And this This

41:22section's very important to you, of

41:23course. This is the chart.

41:251D, that just means the one-day chart.

41:27This is the price movements

41:30of L I Financial during the one day.

41:33The X axis

41:35axis

41:37Am I saying that right? Y axis, X axis,

41:39it just sounds funny.

41:41Okay, this is showing the time of the

41:42day, and this is the Y axis is showing

41:45the price.

41:47You can switch the time frame to 5 days

41:50to see how the price fluctuates.

41:551M is 1 month. 6M is 6 months.

42:00See, you see the price has dropped

42:01considerably from February 18th February

42:04February 14th

42:07down to the second or third week of

42:09March.

42:10I would see the news during that time

42:13frame to see what the heck happened,

42:14what triggered this, was it overblown,

42:17was it justified, or was it

42:19or do you think that it can go down

42:21more? So, I would check the news to see

42:22what happened during this time frame.

42:23That's why it's good to look at the

42:24charts as well.

42:27YTD just means year-to-date.

42:32So, this will start January 1st, January

42:342nd was the first trading day of the

42:36year up until today.

42:391Y is a 1-year chart.

42:41It was pretty stable and then it just

42:43took a real big dive

42:47early February.

42:495Y is 5-year chart.

42:51Click on the max, it'll take you back as

42:53far as it goes. You can do a full-screen

42:55approach.

43:01Wow, that's one heck of a dive. Look at

43:04that.

43:06That one down really fast.

43:09We'll go back, hit the back button over

43:10here.

43:15You're going to see some features here

43:17that are locked, like the company

43:18outlook. I think you got to pay for, you

43:20got to

43:22freemium, huh?

43:24It's not worth it, probably not worth

43:26it.

43:28You got the charts, we were just there.

43:31I would ignore the conversations. Let's

43:32see what this is all about.

43:36Don't trust anybody on the conversations

43:38on Yahoo's message board. That's Just

43:40don't. Just trust me.

43:43Statistics.

43:46This is your more intermediate analysis.

43:50So, we'll ignore that for now.

43:52You have the historical price closings,

43:54what the stock price was on a particular

43:57day, if you wanted to be in if you're

43:59interested in a particular day,

44:01or from a a set time frame.

44:04The profile will just give Give little

44:05bit more information about the company.

44:10Some nice paydays. Give you the

44:12executives, titles, pay. I really like

44:15to look at the

44:17who the executive team is because the

44:18leadership is key. And you can do your

44:20background or your research on these

44:22people.

44:24Give you the size of the company,

44:25sector, industry, the website, and all

44:27the basic information.

44:29More info here.

44:32Okay, this one's probably one of the

44:34more important segments.

44:37The financials. Here you can look at the

44:39income statement, the balance sheet, and

44:41the cash flow statement. So, you can see

44:43how they are financially.

44:47If you look at the income sheet,

44:49again, we'll do a separate video about

44:51reviewing the income sheet and the

44:52balance sheet and the cash flow

44:53statements.

44:55I'm sorry to be going all over the

44:56place. Let's go back to income statement

44:59and relax here for a bit.

45:02Generally, high-level overview, you can

45:04see the history. This is their one-year

45:07figure, one-year figures from 2016,

45:102017, 2018, 2019. So, this is

45:13comparative.

45:15Each line, each each row is a

45:17comparative analysis compared to the

45:19previous year.

45:21And what I would do for again, this is

45:23very high-level overview, just see if

45:25their total sales are growing, which is

45:28their total revenue. See if their total

45:30profits are growing or decreasing, which

45:32is their net income.

45:35So, that's how you would just look at

45:36their financial health from a fair from

45:38a very high-level overview.

45:44And then you can do the same thing from

45:46their balance sheets.

45:48You know, you can see their assets,

45:49their liabilities. Are their assets

45:51growing? Are their liabilities growing?

45:53Just see the the health of their

45:54company. And you can do the same thing

45:55with the cash flow statements.

45:58On the analysis tab,

46:01again, don't trust these people. I mean

46:05they're like these analysts are like

46:07weather

46:09weather men. It's just like weather

46:11reporters where they just get it wrong

46:12all the time. Just don't listen to this.

46:14Do your own research.

46:16Number of analysts. Just look at this.

46:18This is just nonsense.

46:20This is just nonsense.

46:23We won't get into options.

46:27Again, that's more advanced.

46:30Holders. Well, this is more intermediate

46:33stuff that a beginner probably would not

46:35need to know. This is just showing you

46:36the top ins- Who

46:39is holding

46:42these shares of this stock?

46:44People want to know this stuff to see if

46:46there's smart money, which is, you know,

46:48big institutions or big big-time

46:50investors that are shareholders. Because

46:53usually that's a signal of a vote of a

46:55con- vote of confidence in that

46:57particular company, depending on who the

46:59investor or the who the institutional

47:01holder is.

47:05And this is I mean, you don't need to

47:07This is This is not practical

47:09information.

47:10Sustainability. So, that is the typical

47:13information that you're going to see

47:14when you look up a stock.

47:16In addition, it's very important that

47:18you know the common stock market terms

47:21that you'll hear very often.

47:24So, in this segment, I want to explain

47:25to you 10 common terms that every

47:28beginner in the stock market should

47:30know.

47:31So, I'm going to teach you the lingo and

47:33some key concepts.

47:35Starting off with number one is a bull

47:38market. When the stock market is going

47:40up, people call it a bull market. That's

47:42because a bull thrust its horns in an

47:45upward motion.

47:46In a bull market, there's going to be

47:48ups and downs along the way, but the

47:50general direction of a bull market is

47:52up. A bull market can last for a few

47:55months or for many years. The average

47:58bull market lasts for 3 to 4 years.

48:01During a bull market, most investors are

48:03making money. That's because on average,

48:06stocks gain 110% during a bull market. A

48:10bull market is good times, and that's

48:12why people love it.

48:13Everyday investors enjoy watching their

48:16account values go up, and it's a great

48:18time all around.

48:20A bull market can be triggered by

48:21various factors, such as a booming

48:23economy or quantitative easing. Number

48:27two is quantitative easing, also

48:29abbreviated as QE. This is when the

48:32Federal Reserve is printing money, which

48:34causes inflation. When you have high

48:37inflation, most things will go up in

48:39price, including stocks in the stock

48:42market.

48:43So, stock prices tend to go up during

48:45quantitative easing.

48:47That's just because there's simply more

48:48money in the economy. All that newly

48:51printed money it needs to go somewhere,

48:53and a lot of that money finds its way

48:55into the stock market, driving up the

48:57price of stocks. Number three is a bear

49:00market. When the stock market is going

49:02down, people call it a bear market.

49:05That's because a bear swipes its claws

49:07in a downward motion.

49:09People use the term bear market when the

49:11stock market has fallen at least 20%

49:13from its peak.

49:15The average bear market lasts for 9

49:17months. On average, you can expect the

49:20stock market to fall by 36%.

49:23Therefore, you can understand why most

49:25investors do not enjoy a bear market.

49:29Number four, shorting. When the stock

49:31market is going down, not everyone is

49:33going to be sad though, because in the

49:35stock market, you can make money by

49:37betting that stocks will fall in price.

49:41In the stock market, most investors make

49:43money by buying a stock at a low price

49:45and then selling it at a higher price.

49:48You buy low and you sell high. However,

49:50you can switch the order around. You can

49:53sell high and then buy low. You're doing

49:56the same thing just in the reverse

49:59order. Therefore, when you're shorting a

50:01stock, you're hoping that the stock goes

50:03down in price.

50:05If you want to make money shorting a

50:06stock, then you should be searching for

50:08companies that have a very bad future

50:10ahead of them. This could be bad

50:12management, a dying industry, a product

50:14or service that was just a fad, too much

50:17debt, competitors that are outcompeting

50:20them, etc. When you're looking to short

50:22a stock, you want to make sure that

50:24they're as bad as they come. The more

50:26terrible, the better. Number five,

50:29quantitative tightening. We spoke about

50:31how quantitative easing is money

50:33printing. Quantitative tightening is the

50:36very opposite of that. When the Federal

50:39Reserve prints money, that's

50:40quantitative easing. When the Federal

50:42Reserve takes that money back, that's

50:45quantitative tightening. Quantitative

50:47tightening tends to be harmful to the

50:49stock markets. If the Federal Reserve is

50:52pulling money out of the economy,

50:54there's going to be less money to go

50:55around. If there's less money to go

50:58around, there's going to be less money

50:59in the stock markets. This means that

51:02the price of stocks will generally go

51:04down. So, it's pretty straightforward.

51:06Quantitative easing pushes the stock

51:08market up, quantitative tightening

51:10pushes the stock market down. At number

51:13six, we have dead cat bounce. When the

51:15stock market is going down, it's not

51:17going to go straight down. It's going to

51:20go up and down, up and down, but the

51:22general direction is downward. In this

51:25downward trend, you may see stocks

51:28bounce in price only to fall down even

51:30further.

51:31A lot of amateur investors lose money in

51:34a dead cat bounce because they think

51:36that a stock has reached a bottom at

51:38this point. They see the stock price

51:40going back up and they FOMO. They have

51:43the fear of missing out. However, that

51:46was not the bottom and this bounce will

51:48be short-lived.

51:50This bounce in price is something that

51:51always happens because nothing will ever

51:53go straight down. It's like a law of

51:55physics in the stock market. Even stocks

51:59that announce that they're going

52:00bankrupt will have a dead cat bounce.

52:03They call it a dead cat bounce because

52:05when a cat jumps out of a tall

52:06structure, let's just say a tree, the

52:08cat hits the pavement, it dies on

52:10impact, it still bounces up because of

52:13physics, Newton's third motion, but the

52:16dead cat that bounced up, it's coming

52:19right back down. When a stock is going

52:21down, it may bounce back up. Investors

52:24may think that the stock is coming back

52:26to life and it's going to shoot back up,

52:28but no, it's going right back down.

52:31That's a dead cat bounce. Number seven,

52:34don't fight the Fed. The Federal

52:36Reserve's monetary policy is a big

52:38factor on whether the stock market goes

52:40up or down.

52:42If the Fed prints money, it pushes the

52:44stock market up.

52:46If the Fed takes that money back, it

52:48pushes the stock market down.

52:51Of course, it depends on how much money

52:52they're printing or taking back. The

52:55bigger the quantity, the bigger the

52:56impact. The Federal Reserve's decisions

52:59have a big influence on the direction of

53:01the stock market. The Federal Reserve

53:04can have more of an impact on the stock

53:06market than the health of the economy.

53:08This was clearly evidenced in 2020.

53:11During 2020, the economy locked down,

53:14unemployment skyrocketed, and GDP fell.

53:17However, the Federal Reserve printed an

53:20excessive amount of money and it sent

53:22the stock market up 18%.

53:25So, that's how powerful the Federal

53:26Reserve's influence is on the stock

53:28market. Therefore, you don't fight the

53:31Fed.

53:32Number eight, dollar cost averaging.

53:35You'll see investors abbreviating this

53:36as DCA. When you buy a stock, you never

53:39want to go all in. So, let's just say

53:42that a stock is at $10 and you think

53:44it's a good price.

53:46Don't act like a crazy person and use

53:49all of your money to buy it at 10, even

53:51if you think it's a good price.

53:53So, sure you can buy some at 10, but

53:55save some money in case it drops to nine

53:58and save some money in case it drops to

54:00eight. By doing so, you'll be averaging

54:03down on your purchase price. In this

54:05example, let's just say that you thought

54:07it was a good price at $10. And let's

54:09say that nothing is fundamentally

54:11changed with the stock and on no news,

54:14the stock falls to $9. So, this will be

54:17a great opportunity to DCA, dollar cost

54:20average down, and buy more shares at a

54:22cheaper price. A benefit of dollar cost

54:25averaging is, if you buy some at 10 and

54:27then it goes up, then you'll make money.

54:30If the stock goes down, then you can buy

54:32more shares at a cheaper price and this

54:35will allow you to make even more money

54:37because you got in at a better price.

54:39Number nine, tax loss harvesting. This

54:43is when you're selling your losing

54:44stocks, taking the loss so that you paid

54:47less taxes.

54:48So, let's say that you bought and sold a

54:50bunch of stocks during the year and

54:52you're up $5,000.

54:54In that case, congratulations on your

54:56success. However, you're going to face

54:58taxes.

54:59However, if you're holding on to some

55:01stocks that went down in value, you can

55:04sell them at a loss, so your total gains

55:07are reduced.

55:08By tax loss harvesting, you end up

55:10paying less in taxes. Number 10, support

55:14and resistance. These are very important

55:16terms that you're going to hear often. A

55:18lot of people in the stock market like

55:19to look at the stock charts and identify

55:22patterns.

55:23If there's a certain price that a stock

55:26has a hard time falling below, that's

55:28called the support.

55:30If there's a certain price that a stock

55:32has a hard time going above, that's

55:34called the resistance. In a lot of

55:37cases, when the support is broken, it

55:39will turn into the new resistance. And a

55:42lot of times, when the resistance is

55:43broken, it will turn into the new

55:45support. Now, let me tell you how to

55:48find good stocks to buy.

55:51So, it's a simple two-step process. Step

55:54one is discovery. So, how do you even

55:57find companies that are listed on the

55:59stock markets? And step two is your

56:02evaluation. So, that's researching

56:05whether a stock is a good buy or not.

56:08So, let's talk about step number one,

56:09which is finding stocks.

56:12First, you have to find out which

56:14companies are listed on the stock

56:16market, right? So, how do you do that?

56:19And the answer is simple. There are

56:20multiple ways. So, here's one way. There

56:24are many free websites that list all the

56:26companies that are on the stock markets.

56:29And you can filter your search for which

56:31stocks that you want to look at based on

56:34the size of the company, the price of

56:36the stock, by industry, stocks that are

56:39trending up, stocks that are trending

56:41down, how popular a stock is, etc. So,

56:44that's one method. Another method is

56:47that you can find stocks by reading

56:49financial news outlets. So, we're

56:50talking about Wall Street Journal,

56:52Google Finance, Yahoo Finance, etc.

56:55Another method is that you can subscribe

56:57to free newsletters about stock picking.

57:01There are subscription services for

57:03stock picking. You can always ask your

57:05friends, your family members, or

57:07coworkers. Now, step number two, which

57:10is very important, is doing your

57:12research. Do your due diligence before

57:15investing your hard-earned money into a

57:18stock.

57:19Cuz your money's on the line.

57:21You want to make sure that you do your

57:22homework to maximize your odds that you

57:25pick a winner.

57:26If you get stock recommendations from a

57:28newsletter, a subscription service, a

57:31friend, a family member, or coworker, it

57:33doesn't matter where it comes from.

57:35Always do your own research. And I want

57:38to tell you this, there is no one right

57:40way to evaluate a stock.

57:43Some investors will pay more attention

57:46to sales growth,

57:47others to profits or dividends,

57:49price-to-earnings ratio, cash flow, the

57:52charts, etc. Your evaluation will most

57:56likely encompass a variety of these

57:58factors. So, everyone has their own

58:00style of stock picking. Now, let me give

58:03you my honest opinion about where you

58:05should buy and sell stocks.

58:08So, a brokerage account is where you buy

58:10and sell stocks. And the majority of

58:13brokerage accounts have zero

58:14commissions. So, that means that it

58:16costs you nothing to buy a stock or to

58:19sell a stock. So, they don't charge you

58:20anything. It's literally free. That's

58:23because these brokerages have other ways

58:25of making money. They make money from

58:27lending, from interest, from market

58:29making, so they make money in a lot of

58:31ways, not limited to just those, so they

58:34don't even bother charging you a

58:36commission to buy or sell stocks. So,

58:39the question is, which brokerage account

58:41is the best? Where should you open up a

58:44stock market account?

58:46My honest answer is, they're all the

58:49same. Now, of course there's going to be

58:51exceptions, like if you're a

58:52professional day trader,

58:54but for the vast majority of investors,

58:57it doesn't matter if you have a million

58:58dollars or a hundred dollars, any name

59:01brand brokerage account will be good.

59:03So, I'm going to leave a link for you

59:05down below of a good brokerage account

59:07that I use personally.

59:09If you use that link, then you'll

59:11receive a sign-up bonus of free stocks

59:14to kickstart your account.

59:16Now, moving on to stock market taxes,

59:18this is very important for two reasons.

59:21So, the first reason is,

59:23well, you don't want to get in trouble

59:24with the IRS. And the second reason is

59:26that you want to minimize your taxes on

59:29your stock market gains. So, I'm going

59:32to teach you what you have to do with

59:34the money that you make in the stock

59:35markets, money that you lose in the

59:37stock markets, your dividend income,

59:40your interest income, and how to reduce

59:42your taxes in the stock markets.

59:45If you have more advanced questions or

59:47if you just need clarification on what

59:49we covered today, then please write them

59:50in the comments down below and I will do

59:53my best to help you out. So, let's start

59:55with the basics. In the stock market,

59:57your taxes will be based off the

59:59calendar year. So, we're talking about

1:00:01January 1st to December 31st.

1:00:04Your brokerage account will keep track

1:00:06of all your activity for the year. And

1:00:08this is going to include gains, losses,

1:00:10interest, dividends, etc.

1:00:13Now, I want you to be prepared. So, I

1:00:16want to give you a timeline of the

1:00:17events so that you don't miss any

1:00:19important tax deadlines or documents.

1:00:22So, let's say that it's December 31st.

1:00:25This is the last day of the year and

1:00:26then the day ends and then the year just

1:00:29ended. So, happy New Year.

1:00:32It's now January 1st and your brokerage

1:00:34account has until February 15th to give

1:00:37you a tax documents that you need to

1:00:39report on your tax return. This tax

1:00:42document is called the consolidated

1:00:441099.

1:00:46The consolidated 1099 will include the

1:00:481099-B,

1:00:50which states how much money that you

1:00:52made or lost in the stock market that

1:00:54year.

1:00:55The 1099-INT

1:00:57and that states how much interest income

1:01:00that you earned that year in your

1:01:02brokerage accounts. And the 1099-DIV,

1:01:05which states how much dividend income

1:01:07that you earned that year in your

1:01:09brokerage accounts. Now, you would think

1:01:12that in this day and age everything is

1:01:14computerized, right? So, why can't your

1:01:16brokerage accounts immediately generate

1:01:19your tax documents on January 1st? Like,

1:01:22what's up with that? So, that's a good

1:01:23question, but there's actually a good

1:01:26reason why it cannot be done that

1:01:28quickly. It's because even though your

1:01:30tax period ends on December 31st, there

1:01:34are certain types of stock transactions

1:01:36that can retroactively affect your

1:01:38taxes.

1:01:39So, for example, let's say that the year

1:01:412023 ended, and it's January 22nd of

1:01:452024.

1:01:47So, with certain transactions,

1:01:50what you do in January can affect your

1:01:52taxes in the previous year.

1:01:55One example is the wash sale rule.

1:01:58That's why brokerage accounts cannot

1:02:00immediately generate your tax documents

1:02:02on January 1st.

1:02:05So, you're most likely going to get your

1:02:061099 tax document in early to

1:02:08mid-February,

1:02:10which should be enough time for you to

1:02:12finish your tax return by the April due

1:02:14date.

1:02:16So, that's an overview of how this all

1:02:17works. Now, let's go over the most

1:02:19common situations.

1:02:22In the stock market, you will only pay

1:02:24taxes if you make money. If you lose

1:02:26money in the stock market, then you will

1:02:28not pay taxes. So, as a matter of fact,

1:02:31if you lose money in the stock market,

1:02:32then you will receive a tax deduction.

1:02:35Now, let me give you an example to

1:02:37clarify. So, let's just say that you buy

1:02:39Tesla stock for $100 in January of 2023,

1:02:43and let's say that you sell it 1 month

1:02:45later in February of 2023 for $120.

1:02:49So, congratulations,

1:02:51you made a gain of $20.

1:02:54You sold the stock for 120,

1:02:57but you will not pay taxes on the full

1:02:59sales price of $120.

1:03:02You will only pay taxes on your $20 of

1:03:05gain.

1:03:07So, how much will you pay in taxes?

1:03:11That's going to depend on which tax

1:03:13brackets that you're in, and that

1:03:15depends on how much money that you make

1:03:16overall.

1:03:18If you're in the 10% tax bracket, then

1:03:20your $20 a gain will be taxed at a rate

1:03:24of 10%, which means that you will owe

1:03:27the IRS $2. You made a gain of $20. You

1:03:32need to pay $2 of taxes to the IRS, so

1:03:35you came out ahead by $18. Now, here's

1:03:39what you must know to save yourself a

1:03:40lot in taxes.

1:03:43If you hold the stock for 1 year or less

1:03:46and then you sell it for a gain, then

1:03:48you will pay regular tax rates. This is

1:03:50called short-term capital gains. So,

1:03:53it's just based on how long you hold the

1:03:56stock. 1 year or less is classified as

1:03:59short-term.

1:04:01So, if you're in the 10% tax bracket and

1:04:03you make money in the stock market, then

1:04:05you will pay a tax rate of 10% on your

1:04:08short-term capital gains.

1:04:11If you're in the 37% tax bracket and you

1:04:14make money in the stock market, then you

1:04:15will pay a tax rate of 37% on your

1:04:18short-term capital gains. But,

1:04:22if you hold the stock for more than 1

1:04:24year and then you sell it for a gain,

1:04:27then it will be classified as a

1:04:28long-term capital gain. So, it just

1:04:31depends on how long you hold the stock.

1:04:34Short-term is a year or less. Long-term

1:04:38is longer than a year.

1:04:40So, long-term capital gains receive much

1:04:43better tax rates and it doesn't matter

1:04:45which tax bracket that you're in, your

1:04:47tax treatment will be much better

1:04:49regardless. It is a game-changer. So,

1:04:52let me explain.

1:04:53If you make a lot of money at your job

1:04:55and you're in the 37% tax bracket, your

1:04:58long-term capital gains will be taxed

1:05:00around 20%.

1:05:03If you're in the 25% tax bracket, your

1:05:06long-term capital gains will be taxed at

1:05:0815%.

1:05:09If If in the 10% tax bracket, your

1:05:12long-term capital gains will be taxed at

1:05:14a rate of 0%.

1:05:16So, that's right. 0%.

1:05:19If you don't believe me, you can look up

1:05:210% long-term capital gains tax.

1:05:24Therefore, regardless of whichever tax

1:05:27rate that you're in, long-term capital

1:05:29gains will receive favorable tax

1:05:31treatment. So, keep that in mind.

1:05:33This is going to save you a lot of

1:05:34money, especially if you're sitting on a

1:05:36big winner.

1:05:37And this leads to another important

1:05:39point that you must know.

1:05:42You only trigger a tax consequence when

1:05:45you close your position. So, let me

1:05:46explain.

1:05:48So, let's just say that you bought

1:05:50Microsoft stock in the year 2020 for

1:05:54$100.

1:05:55By the end of the year, by the end of

1:05:572020, the stock goes up from $100 to

1:06:01130.

1:06:02But,

1:06:03you didn't sell it. You're just holding

1:06:05on to it.

1:06:06Because you did not sell the stock and

1:06:08you did not close your position, you did

1:06:10not trigger a tax liability. And let's

1:06:14say that it's next year. So, now we're

1:06:15in 2021.

1:06:17And 2021 ends, and Microsoft went up to

1:06:20$150. So, congratulations.

1:06:23But, you just held the stock. You still

1:06:25didn't sell it.

1:06:27Then it's going to be the same thing.

1:06:28You did not sell your stock, you did not

1:06:30realize the gain, which means that a tax

1:06:32consequence has not been triggered. So,

1:06:36still,

1:06:37there's nothing to report on your tax

1:06:38return, and you don't have to pay any

1:06:40taxes yet because you haven't sold a

1:06:42position, you have not closed your

1:06:44position. And then, let's say that we're

1:06:47now in the year 2022, and you finally

1:06:50decide to sell the stock for $180.

1:06:54Now, I'll tell you two things.

1:06:55One, your gain is $80. You sell the

1:07:00Microsoft stock for $180, you bought it

1:07:03for 100, so your gain is 80, and you'll

1:07:07be taxed on your $80 of gain.

1:07:10The second thing is that your tax rates

1:07:12will be much better.

1:07:14Because, remember, you held onto the

1:07:16stock for longer than 1 year, and this

1:07:19makes it a long-term capital gain. And

1:07:21long-term capital gains receive much

1:07:23better tax rates. Now, let's talk about

1:07:26losing money in the stock market because

1:07:29it happens. When you make money in the

1:07:31stock market, you have to pay taxes.

1:07:33When you lose money in the stock market,

1:07:35the IRS gives you a tax deduction.

1:07:38And a tax deduction allows you to pay

1:07:40less taxes, which is a good thing. So,

1:07:43let's be clear. Losing money in the

1:07:45stock market is bad. Try not to do that.

1:07:48But, if you lose money, at least you get

1:07:50a tax deduction. When life throws lemons

1:07:53at you, you make lemonade.

1:07:55So, use this to keep a positive attitude

1:07:58towards losing money in the stock

1:07:59market. At least you get a tax break.

1:08:01So, let's run through three examples of

1:08:04you losing money in the stock markets.

1:08:06So, example number one. You work a job,

1:08:09and at your job, you make $100,000 of

1:08:11taxable income. So, congrats, you make

1:08:14six figures.

1:08:15You have all this extra money, and

1:08:17you're like, "I'm going to invest some

1:08:18money in the stock markets."

1:08:20And you buy $2,000 of Peloton stock, and

1:08:24your investment declines from $2,000 to

1:08:261,000 in the same year.

1:08:29And you don't sell it by the end of the

1:08:31year. You just keep holding onto the

1:08:33stock hoping that it recovers. You know

1:08:36what the tax consequence is?

1:08:38There is none. Because, remember, you

1:08:40didn't sell the stock. You did not close

1:08:42your position, so you did not realize

1:08:45your loss. Therefore, there is no tax

1:08:47consequence. The tax implications will

1:08:50be triggered in the year that you sell

1:08:52the stock for a gain or for a loss.

1:08:56Example number two, it's going to be the

1:08:57same setup. You make $100,000 at your

1:09:00job.

1:09:01You buy $2,000 worth of Peloton stock.

1:09:04It declines to $1,000 and you can't take

1:09:07it anymore. The stock is just stressing

1:09:10you out and you end up selling it the

1:09:12same year for a $1,000 loss.

1:09:15In this scenario, you realize a loss of

1:09:17$1,000.

1:09:19But hey, you have to look at the bright

1:09:20side. You get a $1,000 tax deduction.

1:09:24So, on your tax return, you make

1:09:26$100,000 of taxable income at your job,

1:09:29but now you get a $1,000 stock market

1:09:32loss to reduce your total taxable

1:09:34income.

1:09:35So, on your tax return, your taxable

1:09:38income goes from $100,000 to 99,000.

1:09:42So, hey, you save some money on your

1:09:44taxes.

1:09:46And example number three, same setup.

1:09:48You make $100,000 of income at your job

1:09:51and let's say that you bought $20,000 of

1:09:54Peloton stock. Like, you went overboard.

1:09:56Like, you YOLO'd.

1:09:57And let's just say that the stock fell

1:09:59in value from $20,000 to 10,000.

1:10:03You know, that sucks, but it happens.

1:10:06And you sold the stock and you lost

1:10:08$10,000.

1:10:10Okay, so here's what happens.

1:10:13So, there's a rule that limits your

1:10:16losses per year.

1:10:18You can only use a maximum of $3,000 of

1:10:21losses per year as a tax deduction.

1:10:25So, if you lost $10,000 this year, you

1:10:29can take a $3,000 tax deduction this

1:10:31year,

1:10:32and then your tax return would look like

1:10:34this.

1:10:35Taxable wage income, $100,000.

1:10:38Capital losses, 3,000.

1:10:41Taxable income, 97,000.

1:10:44And then you would have unused losses of

1:10:46$7,000.

1:10:48So, the $7,000 of remaining losses would

1:10:51carry forward into the future. So, don't

1:10:53worry. Even though you can't use all of

1:10:56your losses as a tax deduction this

1:10:59year, you can use them in future years.

1:11:02So you don't lose your losses, they

1:11:04carry forward.

1:11:06And if you don't use all your losses

1:11:08next year, then the losses just keep

1:11:11carrying forward until you're able to

1:11:13claim them all in full. Now, I have to

1:11:15clarify this. This is so important. Do

1:11:18not be confused.

1:11:20If you lost $10,000 on Peloton stock,

1:11:23but you made $10,000 on Walmart stock,

1:11:27then you can use the entire $10,000 loss

1:11:29from Peloton to offset the $10,000

1:11:33Walmart gain. So they net together.

1:11:37The $3,000 limitation is when you lost

1:11:39money in the stock market overall. And

1:11:42$3,000 is the maximum tax deduction that

1:11:45you can claim to lower your other

1:11:48taxable income, such as taxable income

1:11:50that you made at your job. To clarify,

1:11:54if you made a gain of $10,000 on Walmart

1:11:56stock, but you lost $15,000 on Peloton

1:12:00stock,

1:12:02that means that you lost $5,000 in the

1:12:04stock market.

1:12:06And then you can use $3,000 of that as a

1:12:10tax deduction to reduce your wage

1:12:13income.

1:12:14So you lost $5,000 in the stock market

1:12:17overall. You can use $3,000 as a tax

1:12:20deduction that year.

1:12:22And then your $2,000 of remaining losses

1:12:24will carry forward to next year. Now,

1:12:27let's cover your tax obligation on your

1:12:29dividend income and your interest

1:12:30income. So this is very easy, but I

1:12:32don't want you to overlook this.

1:12:35So remember, around early February, you

1:12:37should receive your tax document from

1:12:39your brokerage accounts. This tax form

1:12:41is called the consolidated 1099.

1:12:44And this will tell you how much money

1:12:45that you made from interest and

1:12:47dividends for the tax year that just

1:12:50ended.

1:12:51And you have to report this information

1:12:53on your tax return, but it's very easy

1:12:55to do that. If you're filing your tax

1:12:58return yourself with a do-it-yourself

1:12:59software, then you just simply look at

1:13:02your 1099 tax form, and then type into

1:13:04the software the figures that your

1:13:06software needs. But in today's modern

1:13:09society, many tax software allow you to

1:13:12directly connect to your brokerage

1:13:13accounts. And the software will

1:13:15automatically retrieve the relevant tax

1:13:18information that your tax return needs.

1:13:21And just for your information, you may

1:13:23have interest income in your stock

1:13:25market accounts because you may be

1:13:27earning interest on money that you're

1:13:29not using within your accounts.

1:13:31If you get paid interest, it's listed on

1:13:33your 1099 tax documents,

1:13:36and you you have to report on your tax

1:13:38return, but that's very straightforward

1:13:39to do.

1:13:41Your interest income will be taxed at

1:13:43your regular tax rates. You will not

1:13:45receive any special treatments on your

1:13:47interest income. And here's a little

1:13:49extra information on dividends. So, some

1:13:52of your stocks may pay dividends. It's

1:13:55listed on your 1099 tax document, and

1:13:57you report it on your tax return.

1:14:00Some of your dividends may be taxed at

1:14:02your regular rates, and these are called

1:14:04ordinary dividends.

1:14:06Some of your dividends may be taxed at

1:14:08lower rates, and these are called

1:14:10qualified dividends.

1:14:12So, it just depends on the

1:14:13classification of the dividends, so

1:14:15we're not going to get into that today.

1:14:17On your 1099 tax document, it will

1:14:19separately list out your qualified

1:14:22dividends. But long story short, be on

1:14:25the lookout for your 1099 tax document

1:14:27by mid-February.

1:14:29Use that information for your tax

1:14:30software if you're self-preparing your

1:14:32return.

1:14:33If you're using an accountant, give them

1:14:35the consolidated 1099 tax documents.

1:14:39If you do not report your 1099 activity,

1:14:41it will most likely result in an IRS

1:14:43letter, unless your activity is

1:14:46extremely minimal. Again, this was a

1:14:49beginner's guide to taxes in the stock

1:14:51markets.

1:14:52If you have intermediate or advanced

1:14:54questions, please ask them in the

1:14:56comments down below.

1:14:58I intentionally did not go into the

1:15:00details of estimated tax payments,

1:15:02equity options, commodities, foreign tax

1:15:05credits, etc.

1:15:07So, I don't want to scare beginners

1:15:08because those issues will not be

1:15:10applicable to most people. And I want to

1:15:13clarify this. If you invest in stocks or

1:15:16index funds or ETFs or mutual funds

1:15:19in a retirement accounts, there are no

1:15:21tax consequences until you take that

1:15:24money out of your retirement accounts.

1:15:27So, if you buy or sell within a

1:15:28retirement account, those are

1:15:30non-taxable transactions, and they will

1:15:32not be reported on your tax return.

1:15:35I hope you learned something and enjoyed

1:15:37this video. Thank you so much for the

1:15:38support. Please subscribe, and I wish

1:15:40you a very nice day. Happy investing.

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