What is the best book to purchase for a beginner to learn how to purchase stocks?

I would like to buy stocks over the internet, but I have no clue on what stocks to buy or how to do it.

I am assuming that you are using "limited funds" to start "investing over the internet".....but I am VERY CONCERNED with the "I have no clue on what stocks to buy..or how to do it". Honestly, you are "exactly" the type of person who should NOT be trading/investing on your own...as another answer before me said "find a reputable professional"...it doesn't matter what company he/she is with...their skill/knowledge and ethics are what matter most!!!

However...to answer your question...there are a HUGE number of books to "purchase".....but if you're posting on here...and you want to trade over the internet...USE THE INTERNET for what it was invented for...sharing knowledge!

BOOKS don't "interact" with you...can't let you "test drive" sample portfolios...backtest potential portfolios...learn about many different strategies/products, etc .....and cost you nothing more than you are already using for internet access.

Sooooo......Here is a "sample" of what I recently shared with a similar Yahoo Answers member......

This will be a fairly extensive listing of where to go to learn about stocks, bonds, personal finance, economic issues(stock related), etc etc etc......only because you sound like you earnestly want to know.

For STOCK/Mutual Fund/Options/Finance-related information:

**www.kiplingers.com (more "personal finance" than stocks...but that's critical in life too...kiplinger newsletter and/or Kiplinger Personal Finance magazine!)
**www.fool.com (classes to sign up for, free, etc)
**www.seekingalpha.com (better for the "technical analysis" crowd)
**www.whispernumbers.com (professional and non-pro opinions...group think?...play it to your advantage?)
**www.yahoo.com (finance section...good site (that's free) for tracking (delayed) your stock portfolio)
**www.msnbc.com (current "in-the-news" stuff)
**www.morningstar.com (mostly for funds...stocks too)
**www.dismalscientist.com (more MACRO-economic...for those who want to know "why, how..." things happen)
**www.888options.com (Great Options site, free options DVD and classes!)
**www.optionsmonster.com (Options site)
**www.CBOE.com (THE Options exchange, "Learning Center"/"Options Institute"=free classes!)
**www.lightbulbpress.com (easy to understand, quick read, booklets etc.)
**www.street.com (Cramer's name to fame! "trader, not investor" related advice mostly!)
**www.horsesmouth.com (a stock/stock market barometer!)
**www.bankrate.com (good resource on rates, and much more!)

And...sooooo many more... I'll save "financial Calculator" websites (for everything you can imagine, and many that you can't) for another time!!! Oh, these are "off the top of my head".....there are many others that I've gone "blank" on...and may add later, after I check my work computer (since I've saved the shortcuts on several, I don't remember the actual addresses!...silly me!!!)

Study hard...don't lose your money "guessing"...study/read first...then take a "gamble?" (pun intended)...and/or find an above average/ethical professional to do the work for you.

***Oh, yeah....all of the above information should be FREE for all/overwhelming majority of the information...AND "Most traders/investors" don't know about them. Also, NEVER buy those newsletters, etc you'll get "pitched"...use these sites...and think for yourself...or hire a "personal" advisor who knows you and what your goals, needs, etc are.

Before you buy a book, start here ...

http://www.investopedia.com/university/stocks/

First, check these sites:
http://www.fool.com/school/basics/basics.htm
http://www.fool.com/school/13steps/13steps.htm
http://www.fool.com/school/howtovaluestocks.htm
http://caps.fool.com
http://quote.fool.com
http://www.investopedia.com
http://www.sharebuilder.com

Then for further reading, look up "The Intelligent Investor" by Benjamin Graham (one of the all time best investing books)
http://astore.amazon.co.uk/jdcouk-books-21/026-4949720-3315662?_encoding=UTF8&node=31

The articles on Fool.com should give you a few other books to look up, somewhere.

any book out of the "Dummies" series is a good resource for different subject. Try The Stock Market for Dummies

Good luck

I would say the short answer is all of them, now that isn't possible, so i would suggest going to the library and looking at what they have. (plus it saves you money) take out as many as you can and start each of them and you will know in the first chapter of each if it is something you understand. the key to stocks is knowing what you are doing and each books speaks to different people so find an author that speaks your language. don't jump in though. do some practice trades for a few months and the best advice i could give you is to try and take the emotions out of stock buying. if you can do that you will be alot further ahead than most people

Buy whatever book you want to buy but CAREFULLLLLL and don't jump to buy stocks.

I'd suggest "Learn to Earn" by Peter Lynch. But be very careful before diving in.

One way is to keep it simple. Just buy and sell the S&P500 ETF like the SPY or IVV. Don't buy all at once. Buy in smaller pieces. Only buy after a sizeable market decline. If the market is panicking and selling off a lot, then that is a good time for you to buy. If it then declines another 10 or 15%, then buy a little more.

If the market has gone up great deal, then consider selling a little. If you want to be in the market long term, then never sell it all, but you can sell small pieces.

If the market has just started to decline a little & you think it might go down a huge amount, then you can try to sell half or more before the big decline. But this type of timing is very difficult to do correctly.

The S&P 500 isn't always a great choice, but I think it is pretty good for the next couple of years at least. After a huge sell-off like in 2001 to 2002, then small cap or mid cap stocks will tend to do better than the S&P 500.

If you're looking to be a long-term investor, you might want to look at A Random Walk Down Wall Street by Burton Malkiel.

You can also find good stock "fundamental" information (financial reports and ratios) at Yahoo! Finance and Fool.com.

Bad idea, just go to a REPUTABLE broker, such as Edward Jones inc. and talk to them.
I bought some stock in health insurance before the Iraq conflict and some of my friends went on their own to an unknown, following the advice in a book and diversifying.
Needless to say, when the market dipped, they lost all they had.
Mine dipped, but is back on track again!

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