Yahoo Finance Stock Market App Review

Written by Corrina Murdoch
Fact-checked by Caitlin Wood

Yahoo Finance Stock Market App Review

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Investing Investment Yahoo Finance

Platforms like Yahoo Stock Market are designed to assist in making self-directed investing a more feasible option. Understanding how this platform works is important in determining whether this is the right solution for your investment needs. 

Yahoo Stock Market Finance App Features

The Yahoo Finance application includes multiple features aimed at making investment easier for participants. Each component is meant to address a different aspect of financial strategy, ranging from the conceptual to the specific. These features include:

Portfolio Analytics

A must-have feature of any trading application, portfolio analysis enables you to generate multiple portfolios within the same account. You can track the activity of your investments across all the relevant markets. Those with a premium membership have access to the valuation reports of stocks on their list. It offers an opportunity to assess the volatility of stocks prior to making a large investment. Since it compares the stocks to the S&P 500, there is a relativism point. 

Research Reports

As a part of the premium features, Yahoo Finance uses reports through Argus Research. Named after the hundred-eyed giant from Greek lore, Argus was known as the all-seer. The company aims to take this sentiment into the modern realm by tracking data over all possible platforms. Unlike several other research platforms which relate to different media outlets, Argus touts itself as an independent platform. The idea is that, since it is privately held, the research it offers is unbiased. Yahoo uses this data to curate different investment reports. There are over ten thousand options available, though it’s simplest to search by ticker name. Reports can be filtered using industry sectors as well, to lend a broader picture of the landscape. 

Investment Ideas

If you are looking to break into new industries and sectors, getting another perspective is interesting. It gives you the opportunity to choose your risk level based on outside insight. When pairing this feature with the research reports available, you can get a complete picture of the company both now, and in the future according to its current trajectory. While it will not necessarily make any stock safer, it does offer innovative approaches to tackling the stock market. 

Specialized Charting

Even though people are pattern-seeking creatures, digital algorithms often have insight that is unavailable to humans. This artificial intelligence detects patterns automatically. If there is an uptick, downturn, or noteworthy volatility on a stock you are tracking, this lets you know right away. 

Company Performance

One of the features includes company outlooks. Curated specifically for those who are looking to craft an advanced investment portfolio. Providing a deeper look into specific stocks, you can get a breakdown for every available stock. These company outlooks include insider sentiments (how those investing or working at the company feel), supply chain updates (interruptions at borders, trade embargos, etc.), sustainability (long-term feasibility relative to the law and the market). When combined, you can assess the business not just as a financial report, but as it actually applies to the market.  

Yahoo Stock Market Finance App Pricing

Depending on how far along you are on your financial planning, different tiers of this platform may be more suitable. It’s split into three categories, with the paid versions offering the most benefits. Unlike many other platforms, this model offers the option for paid services. The Yahoo Finance app is designed to integrate the stock market trading feature, while still leaving it as a component of a larger-picture financial portfolio. 

Essential 

This is the most expensive membership, costing $35 if you opt for monthly billing. There is a ten percent discount for annual payment, saving almost six dollars monthly. You get charged once a year, though it equates to $29.17 monthly. This plan includes:

• Argus and Morningstar research reports
• Unique company data
• Daily investment insights
• Yahoo community insights
• Access to webinars
• Enhanced alerts
• Historical reports
• Automatic pattern tracking

It is easily the most comprehensive plan, best suited for those who have at least some experience trading. In order to take advantage of all of the individual features, you need both the benefit of the analytics and of experience. If you are just starting out, consider a lower tier at the beginning. 

Lite

The next step down is the Lite membership which is charged at a rate of $25 per month. There is a discounted rate if you pay annually, working out to $20.83 monthly. While it does not have all of the features that the platform can offer, including pattern tracing, the service still has multiple benefits. Included amongst them are:

• Investment ideas
• Fair value analysis
• Live chat support (desktop only)
• Around the clock technical support
• Community insights
• Fewer advertisements on Yahoo

Though the lower price is enticing, the number of features on the Lite versus the Essential is disappointing. If you are planning to get a paid service, the ten-dollar price difference between the two makes the Essential plan much more valuable. Yes, it is a bit more cash, but the technical benefits and insights into the market make it worthwhile. 

Free

Using the Yahoo Financial app doesn’t have to come with a charge. The free content remains useful, though all the data collation must be done by the user. Yahoo has grown into a reputable name in the media, making it a trusted source of financial information. With the free version, all the information is still there, but the access is restricted to specific content and features. 

As technology develops, new approaches to stock market management have emerged. To reap the most benefits out of the paid content, you need to use it. That means taking the time to use the information properly. It also means that the investment funding must be present. 

If you are unsure about which tier is best for you, there are free trials available. You get temporary access for the trial period, after which your account will continue to be charged until you cancel. 

The paid membership gives access to more modern features such as automatic pattern tracking. The free information remains valuable, but the extra benefits of the Yahoo Finance Plus plan make it a better solution for serious investors. 

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Yahoo Stock Market Finance App Pros And Cons

Everything in the financial sphere comes with its benefits and drawbacks. There is no way to approach it that is entirely free of risk, and paid services can be even trickier to assess. You want something that will show a return on your investment into the platform. Understanding the potential downsides is essential in determining whether it’s the right pick for you. 

Pros

• Offers access to company insights, focusing on those most relevant to your portfolio.
• The platform offers exclusive data regarding companies you are tracking or those that you have invested in.
• Paid services come with advanced analytic tools and specialized charts to let you generate a strategy informed by multiple perspectives. 
• Intuitive design enables beginners to gather a solid understanding of the marketplace. 
• Ideal for visual learners due to the extensive amount of visual detail. 
• Webinars offer insight from financial experts who have succeeded in the market. 
• Essential plan members get access to company-specific reports. 
• Tracking technology and analysis are completed by Argus, an independent firm. 

Cons

• Free access is very limited, and the plans themselves are fairly costly. 
• A limited free trial period doesn’t give a full picture of a quarterly investment strategy.
• Compared to other platforms on the market, this market app uses limited resources when it comes to information sourcing and data analytics. 
• The tracking algorithm, used to detect patterned changes in stocks you follow, is fairly basic. It looks for volatility, which is something most platforms already take into account.
• Finally, this is not the only stock market app. It has a lot to offer serious, long-term investors who are using the info on a big scale, but there are better picks for individuals.

Should You Use The Yahoo Stock Market App?

If you have a solid foundation in the stock market or a background in finance, the Yahoo Finance Premium plan is a worthy pick. It is ideal for retail traders who plan to use both traditional and technical trading approaches. The platform itself combines fundamental and modern trading to diversify its audience. 

Though some of the reports it offers have value and offer insight, none of this app’s approaches are refined enough for someone doing advanced analytics. If you are looking for a stepping stone to get you further into the market, the convenience Yahoo offers is ideal. However, if you are comfortable taking a cross-platform approach to your portfolio, you can get the same service for less money. 

Yahoo is great for retail trading on a small scale where convenience is key but won’t hold up under the scrutiny of advanced analysts.