Risk disclaimer
Please read this before acting on anything published here.
Education, not advice
Everything on this site is general education about how markets, accounts, trading tools, company reports and the economy work. None of it is investment, tax or legal advice, and none of it takes account of your circumstances, goals or finances. No page is a recommendation to buy, sell or hold any security, to borrow money to invest, or to open an account with any broker or prop firm. Before you make a decision that matters, consider speaking to a licensed professional who can look at your situation.
Margin and leverage
Borrowing to invest magnifies losses as well as gains. You can lose more than the money you deposited, and your broker can sell your securities without contacting you if your equity falls below its requirement, at whatever price the market offers at the time. Brokers can raise their requirements at any time, including while a position is open, and interest on a margin loan accrues whether the position gains or loses.
Trading and investing carry risk
Prices can fall quickly and by large amounts. Short selling has no upper limit on its loss. Options can expire worthless, and a sold option can lose far more than the premium received. Stop orders do not guarantee an exit price, and prices can gap past them. A strategy that worked on past charts can stop working.
Prop firm accounts
Prop firm evaluations cost money, and their rules differ from firm to firm and change over time. Many evaluation and funded accounts trade in a simulated environment. The rule sets described on this site are hypothetical; the rules that apply to you are the ones on your firm's own pages.
Tax
Tax rules and thresholds change. The pages explain how the rules work and use round hypothetical figures. Check current figures with the IRS and consider professional advice before relying on a deduction, a loss or an election.
Examples are hypothetical
Worked examples, columns and quiz questions use invented accounts, companies, margin rates and rule sets with round numbers to show how a calculation works. None of it describes a real result or forecasts one.
Calculators give estimates
The calculators do arithmetic on the numbers you enter. Their output is only as good as those inputs, and a broker's own method, such as the day count it uses for interest or the way it values a position, can give a different figure. Check any result against your statement before relying on it.
Data and third parties
The ticker tape shows quotes from a separate service that may be delayed or unavailable. See also the terms of use and the editorial policy.