As well as forums there are also a number of other bloggers and professional investors that are worth checking out and learn from. Obviously I wouldn’t rush out and follow any of these investors into shares they own but I find it useful to learn some other techniques.
Naked Trader/Robbie Burns
I first discovered the Naked Trader through one of his books but he also has a website where he blogs about various things and includes a list of his current holdings and new purchases. He also runs seminars about investing. I can’t vouch for his seminars as I have never been to one and although the list of his holdings is quite interesting, I don’t really find his blog that interesting. His book is a really good read, however as it is geared towards less experienced investors and I actually it very inspiring. His book is available from his website and also on Amazon here:
The Naked Trader: How Anyone Can Make Money Trading Shares by Robbie Burns, 4th edition, 2014
A like to his website is here
Paul Scott
Paul Scott is a blogger who focuses on the small cap arena. I religiously follow his daily Small Cap Value Report which he releases nearly every day that the markets are open. He is very good at balance sheet analysis and seems rather skilled at spotting companies that are in financial distress. I also enjoy his style of writing as he doesn’t hold back in his analysis and there is a comment section under each of his reports.
Paul writes for a website called Stockopedia which is a very useful website in its own right which compiles data for all UK stocks (I think the data is collected from Reuters and then cleaned up a bit). I will write a bit more about Stockopedia shortly but you don’t have to be a member of Stockopedia to read Paul’s blog which I heartily recommend you do (it is much better than my blog!). The one word of caution I would add, however, is that he does seem to be a bit quick out of the blocks to buy a share that has just issued a profit warning, or to “catch a falling knife” as it is sometimes known when I feel it would probably be better to wait a bit.
Another aspect of Paul’s blog is that he sometimes has posts interviews with CEOs or other high profile investors which are often very interesting indeed. His website can be found here.
Share Prophets/Tom Winnifrith
Share Prophets is basically a tipping website and there are a number of different contributors and tippers involved with the website. The reason I visit the site, however, is to listen to Tom Winnifrith’s Bearcast where he records a ten to twenty minute audio report where he details companies which he feels are likely to go down in price. Often the companies that he covers end up going bust and some are actually fraudulent. Much like Paul Scott, Tom seems very skilled at picking holes in dodgy companies and I find some of his findings invaluable in avoiding losing money on some shares.
Tom does have a rather unique style. He really doesn’t mince his words and his audio recordings can include some rather interesting language but I actually find his style quite entertaining and he seems fearless in the face of numerous bullying tactics and threats used by some of the companies and individuals he targets. Although you can pay to get access to the website’s tips sheet, Tom’s audio blogs are available to listen to if you register for free. Ignore the rather unprofessional looking website, this man knows what he is talking about and a link can be found here. Note that on registering you will be sent quite a few emails so only do this if you don’t mind getting a couple of emails a day.
Richard Beddard
Richard is companies editor of Interactive Investor and a columnist at Money Observer magazine. I am interested in his Share Sleuth portfolio where he focuses on small cap value shares (much like Paul Scott actually). I like some of the spreadsheets that Richard has been kind enough to include in his blogs and it is through reading his thoughts that I decided to include the hidden debt of operating leases in my calculations when assessing potential investments.
I really would recommend at least reading his post on his “Decision Engine” as it is one of the most interesting posts I think I have read. As you can see, as well as the Money Observer, Richard’s blogs also appear on the Interactive Investor website.
Simon Thompson
Simon writes for the Investor’s Chronicle, both online and in the printed division. His analysis often seems very insightful and again he focuses on bargain shares. He has quite a big following and is actually able to move markets in some of the smaller caps he writes about where his followers will often follow his lead. Although I would definitely recommend reading some of his posts, I would not blindly follow his advice (nor would I recommend blindly following anyone) as he seems to be a bit naive on occasions, not even giving consideration to the fact that some of the shares he covers could be frauds – Naibu, Camkids and Globo all spring to mine. I suppose some sort of lovechild between Simon Thompson and Tom Winnifrith with the analytical skills of former and the fraud spotting abilities of the latter, would be a potent investor indeed. A link to the Chronicle can be found here but I suspect you will have to pay to subscribe to access much of the content.
Wheelie Dealer
I do not know who the Wheelie Dealer is but I quite enjoy his blog and can recommend you take a look here.
Others?
If you know of any others I should check out or perhaps if you have a blog yourself that you would like me to take a look at, please do leave me a message on my website.