Scott, Great glad to see you will keep hope alive!:) re: fundamentals - actually, I have learned that some knowledge of the fundamentals, in particular an ability to decode the news stream on many issues, can make them a lot easier to daytrade. Getting a grip on the situation with a company and how it is viewed by the street, in particular being able to understand how institutions are likely to react to an individual piece of news, can constitute a significant "edge". Not a big one, maybe a 5-15% edge... but that's a LOT in this business! And it gives you more confidence when you actually know what's going on with a stock. I don't subscribe to the frequently-circulated nonsense that you can engage in a month or two of TA/trading training and proceed to "fish for life". Show me a long-term, successful stock trader (through different market condition) and I'll show you someone who (80% likely) knows a lot about what he/she is trading. There are exceptions of course, but once you get above the 2-minute timeframe this becomes more and more important. Don't get me wrong, 95% of my decisions are still technically-based after 11 years of short-term trading... but fundamentals can definitely give you an EDGE. But I do know what you are saying about the chit-chat on SI threads... I find most of them worthless and don't waste time on them... there are much better sources available, like Barron's, The Wall Street Journal, Investors Daily, CBS Marketwatch, the news wires, etc.
-Steve |
