Tools are designed to help their users do their tasks more efficiently and crunching numbers is no exception. I've been humming along with Excel and my trusty scientific calculator just fine, but as I'm getting more involved with calculations such as discounting I've decided it may be worth the...

I was doing some reading, and came across some great articles on Net Operating Income. NOI is an important gauge of a company's ability to generate profit from its core business. While it's only one piece of the puzzle when analyzing companies, understanding it can help you compare two firms who...

Today I got an offer for a new Visa credit card. Now, most credit cards offer you incentives for signing up, a low introductory APR, low interest rate balance transfers, gift cards, and the like. But this offer was different, by signing up for this card. I could get a free Dell laptop. Needless to...

We're very excited because once again we'll be hosting this Monday's Carnival of Investing. If you'd like to submit your article for the carnival please use one of the following methods: > *Submit detailed information to carnivals {at} investorgeeks \ com > Submit with Blog Carnival.** (we will...

FatPitchFinancials is hosting the 21st Carnival of Investing this week, and Blueprint for Financial Prosperity is hosting the 47th Carnival of Personal Finance. We're sorry that we didn't submit anything this week (especially because we missed a chance to get onto Jim's awesome personal finance...

Jason and Frank both purchased 100 share positions in Microsoft Corporation (MSFT) after its share price dropped 11% because of lower-than-expected earnings guidance. I wanted to chime in on my assessment of the company, and share why I think now is not the time to buy. Let’s look at the company as...

Investing can be tough some times. Wouldn't it be great if you just won the lottery? Man, that would set you for life. Seriously. Now, we're not suggesting you run to the closest mini-mart with your life savings. The odds of winning the Big Game (a multi-state lottery open to adults in...

Let’s briefly talk about two indicators, ROC and Equity Growth, that are useful when looking at the strength of a company. Both these tools, used by Warren Buffett, demonstrate how fast a company can grow the money it has to invest in itself. Return on Capital (ROC) There’s been a lot written...

Recently one of our readers sent us an email asking us how to invest in a foreign company. Below you'll find their oringinal question, and a tidier version of my response to it. Which contains a bit more information than when I first responded. Simple questions: If I found a company (Australia's...

The Washington Post announced the Post 200 today. You can find it here: http://www.washingtonpost.com/post200