Many people learning about U.S. stocks make the first mistake, it's not that they can't analyze, but that they haven't figured out where the information comes from, and they start placing orders based solely on candlestick charts.

If you're a beginner, you need to first connect the four steps:
Market, News, Screening, Analysis
🍀 First thing: check the market using Yahoo Finance.
How much is a stock worth now, how much did it go up or down today, when is the earnings report coming out, how are revenue and profits, what are analyst expectations, all basic fundamental information is here.
Beginners often overlook the earnings report date; many buy a stock only to find out the earnings are coming out the next day, and they don't know whether to hold or not. Adding the earnings date to your calendar in advance is the most basic responsibility you have for your holdings.
🍀 Second thing: look at market logic using WSJ and CNBC.
Many times, U.S. stocks don't move on their own; instead, the entire market is driven by the Federal Reserve, inflation, employment data, geopolitical issues, and so on. When CPI rises, expectations for rate hikes change, non-farm payroll data is poor, the whole market might shake.
WSJ tends to be in-depth, suitable for understanding what institutions are thinking. CNBC is faster, suitable for monitoring real-time sentiment. Both are useful—one provides logic, the other provides temperature.
It's very important to develop the habit of asking why the market is "up/down" today, rather than just looking at how much your stock has gained. If the overall market direction is wrong, even the best stock can be dragged down.
🍀 Third thing: screen stocks using Finviz.
With thousands of U.S. stocks, it's impossible to research each one; start by screening then look deeper. You can filter by market cap, P/E ratio, trading volume, price change, industry sector, technical patterns.
Finviz's role isn't to tell you which stock will definitely rise, but to narrow down from thousands to a few dozen worth researching. The time saved here can be used to thoroughly analyze the few stocks that pass the screening.
A common mistake for beginners is to screen a large list of stocks, glance at each for two minutes, and think "this one looks good," ending up with no clear understanding. It's recommended to pick up to three stocks for in-depth research after each screening.
🍀 Fourth thing: analyze individual stocks using Seeking Alpha and Substack.
Seeking Alpha offers both bullish and bearish viewpoints; after reading a bullish article, look for a bearish one to see both sides before forming your own judgment.
Substack has many independent investors writing industry research and company analysis; quality varies, but there are valuable insights.
However, there's a strict rule: viewpoints are only for reference, not to be followed blindly—DYOR.
If you come across an article praising a stock excessively, ask yourself three questions: Is the logic sound? Can the data be independently verified? Are the risks clearly explained? If an article only discusses upside potential and ignores downside risks, it’s a warning signal—be cautious.
🍀 Systematically learn finance basics on Coursera.
Valuation methods, how to read financial reports, fundamental principles of financial markets—these are not innate talents but learnable knowledge. The earlier you learn, the sooner you benefit.
To gauge market sentiment, you can check Reddit, r/wallstreetbets, r/investing. But Reddit is a sentiment thermometer, not an investment advice platform. It shows whether retail investors are excited or panicked, but everyone talking about a stock isn’t a reason to buy.
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Finally, an even more important point: after building this information framework, what you truly need to develop is the ability to make independent judgments, rather than relying on someone reliable to make decisions for you.
The market is not short of information; what’s lacking is your complete logic for each trade—why you buy, your target price, when to admit you're wrong and cut losses. If you can't answer these three questions clearly, even the best tools are useless.
Sources of information are the starting point, not the end.
DYOR is not investment advice.