The Journal
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Market insights and trading education from the Alpha Sentinel team.
How Margin Accounts Work and the Risks Behind Borrowing to Invest
How margin accounts work, what a margin call really is, and the risks of borrowing to invest. Learn the rules before leverage makes decisions for you.
Payment for Order Flow: How Free Brokers Make Money
Payment for order flow explained: how brokers that charge no commission make money, what best execution means, and what to check in your routing reports.
What Market Makers Do and Why They Matter for Liquidity
What market makers do, how they quote bids and asks, and why they matter for liquidity every time you place an order. See the spread you pay.
How Plastic Surgeons Can Balance Elective Case Loads With Active Trading
Active trading rewards attention during market hours, but a surgical schedule does not allow it. Six questions on how a plastic surgeon can balance both.
How to Build a Watchlist for Merger Arbitrage Opportunities
Merger arbitrage studies the spread on announced deals. Build a watchlist of terms, risks and milestones, and learn why many investors only observe.
How Family Medicine Physicians Can Automate Portfolio Checks During Home Visits
A family medicine physician can keep a portfolio on track between home visits with a short written checklist and a fixed weekly slot. Here is the routine.
How to Vet Analyst Price Targets Before Adding a Stock to Your List
An analyst price target is an opinion with a date on it. Learn to check the author, the assumptions and the track record before it shapes your list.
How to Set Up a Trading Dashboard You Can Check in Under 60 Seconds
Build a one-screen portfolio dashboard you can read in under a minute: five stages, from the questions it answers to the number of items it shows.
How to Read a Stock's Implied Volatility Before Earnings in Five Minutes
Implied volatility shows the move options traders expect around earnings. Read it in five minutes with a step-by-step method and know its limits.
Should Emergency Medicine Physicians Automate Trailing Stops Given Unpredictable Shifts
How trailing stop orders work, where they can misfire on gaps and brief dips, and the simpler options for physicians on unpredictable shifts.
What Federal Prosecutors Should Know Before Self-Directing a Stock Portfolio
Federal ethics, disclosure and nonpublic-information rules can shape what a prosecutor may hold. A plain guide to the questions to ask first.
How to Handle Earnings Calls on Stocks You Own While Scrubbed In for Surgery
Six ways to handle a company earnings report when you cannot follow it live: know the date, set your questions and read the documents later.