While tracking your investments is usually left up to professionals who do it for a living, there are still plenty of online resources that help you stay abreast of news that might affect a company that you own shares of. In fact, many of these useful resources are available at little to no cost. Here are five steps in which the online space can optimize your knowledge as a shareholder.

Number 1: Set up a portfolio 

Many websites offer free trackers that help you customize stocks and fund holdings. Some of these examples include Kiplinger.com, Morningstar, and Yahoo Finance. The trackers on these sites utilize slightly delayed stock quotes to update the value of each holding and your entire portfolio.

Number 2: Educate yourself 

While stocks tend to behave like pinballs in the short run, long-time investors do not need to monitor stock prices daily. However, it’s worthwhile to study your stock’s price movements over different time frames, especially through bull and bear markets. Specifically, using a benchmark tool, such as Standard & Poor’s 500-stock index is useful in comparing your stock’s performance with that of the overall market.

Number 3: Go to the source 

The investor section of a company’s website will be your holy grail. It will include everything you need to know, including slide shows, fact sheets, historical data, recent news, upcoming events, and most importantly, quarterly earnings calls.

Number 4: Get help from professionals 

Full-service brokerage houses are home to professionals who will do a full analysis of pesky balance sheets and income statements at a commission rate.

Number 5: Actively participate 

Many companies have an investor-relations contact who can assist you with inquiries and requests. As a part owner of the company, you’re entitled to ask questions! You can also communicate with other investors through online bulletin forums.

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