How2Day: Good Online Investing Tools

The advancements of Internet technology has expanded the way investors make transactions and plan their futures. While investors often choose to eliminate brokers and consultants to assist with their investing needs, Internet publishers provide a wide variety of tools and resources designed to help investors make wise financial decisions. Financial websites provide interest calculators, financial-planning calculators, stock market reports, fund analyzers and scam prevention tools to help investors analyze risks and capitalize on investment opportunities.

Primarily an enforcement agency, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) also provides tools and resources designed to help investors protect themselves from unscrupulous investment schemes and offer guidance for investing newcomers and experienced investors. The SEC offers a fund analyzer, in association with the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), which analyzes nearly 20,000 mutual funds, exchange traded notes and exchange traded funds. In addition to estimating fund values, the fund analyzer also calculates the effects of expenses and fees related to funds. The SEC's scam and risk meters analyze investment information and warn investors of opportunities that might indicate investment fraud perpetrated by unscrupulous brokers. Investors can utilize the SEC's tax-free versus taxable yield tool to analyze earnings on taxable securities in comparison with with tax-free municipal bonds.

Dow Jones & Co. publishes the MarketWatch website, offering a number of tools to help guide investors. MarketWatch operates 10 bureaus in the United States, Asia and Europe, providing free-for-use and subscription-only products. MarketWatch's stock screener analyzes stocks throughout the day, informing investors of stock price increases and decreases, along with historical performance information. MarketWatch provides bond performance data at the end of each day, representing all publicly traded securities. The MarketWatch site also provides tools for assessing a variety of interest rates, for mortgages, personal loans, savings accounts and automobile loans. Investors can find IPO data for future public offerings, with information about new SEC filings and public offering dates. MarketWatch also features subscriptions for numerous investing newsletters.

Bankrate began in 1976 as a print publication, "Bank Rate Monitor," which offered rate research for subscribers. Today, Bankrate publishes a website, offering articles and tools for a variety of investment options. Bankrate's mortgage-calculator offers a number of tools for real estate investors, including calculators for determining interest rates associated with mortgages and home equity loans. Other investment calculators guide investors in making decisions about 401(k) plans, certificates of deposit, compound interest and traditional and Roth IRAs. Investors can sign up for rate alerts when searching for loans and research checking accounts, college financial planning, credit unions and personal loans. Bankrate also offers income tax tools, to help determine capital gains, payroll deductions, self-employment tax rates, money market account yields and estate tax planning.

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