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If you are a trader, then you need to keep up with the news.
I don’t know how you will manage to trade stocks without keeping an eye out for news events which could cause those peaks and troughs which people love so much.
Now, the vast majority of people (hint: not so smart people) are going to be heading to your bog-standard news site to keep up to date on the latest goings on in the world of business.
Don’t do this.
These stories are updated slowly, which means that by the time you get wind of something which is going to be an amazing trade, you will have missed out on it.
If you want to make money, then you need to use something like Benzinga Pro. Let me tell you what it is all about.
What is Benzinga Pro?
If you have been around the block a little bit when it comes to trading, then you will likely have heard of Benzinga.
This is a financial news website, which always seems to be ‘at the top’ when it comes to churning out news reports.
Considering the speed at which Benzinga manages to get their articles up, they always seem to be tremendously well-written too.
Benzinga Pro takes this concept to a whole new level. Benzinga Pro is a faster news service, with a few other features thrown in for good measure.
News is added to the Benzinga Pro service before you will see it live on the main Benzinga website.
This means that if you need to keep up-to-date with the latest news in the world of finance, then Benzinga Pro is the route to go down.
A lot of the news that you can find on Benzinga Pro will be the type of news that you will not be able to find on any other free website online.
This is because most news sites are not going to make money posting documents and the like, because nobody really wants to read that.
Well, people do, but probably not enough for the site to justify spending time on it.
Benzinga Pro is making money which means they can justify spending time getting those documents up that you will be jumping through hoops to find elsewhere.
There are a few other features thrown in for good measure, but I am going to talk about those in good time!
Who is Benzinga Pro for?
Benzinga Pro is for absolutely every trader out there.
It doesn’t matter whether you are new to the world of trading, or a whole lot more experienced. You need a news service, and Benzinga Pro is one that has proven to be reliable.
There are even a few top traders out there who are using Benzinga on a daily basis. This is just how reliable their service is.
Why Benzinga Pro over other news sources?
I have seen a lot of people out there wonder why they should go for Benzinga Pro rather than using one of the more ‘well-known’ news sources out there.
Well, as I said; there is a lot of information that you will be able to find here that you won’t be able to find anywhere else because it doesn’t make money.
However, this is not the only reason why you should be using Benzinga Pro.
What you need to remember is that the vast majority of websites out there will be catering to a ton of different people.
It isn’t just traders who are going to be reading the news, it will also be the general public.
This means that the news is going to be a lot less focused, and this means that a site may not be able to dedicate all of their time to writing news which is going to be interesting to traders.
Benzinga Pro can. It has been made from the ground-up specifically for traders. Everything about the site has been constructed for traders.
The only news that you are going to get here will be trade related.
Downloadable software
One of the reasons why I love Benzinga Pro is the fact that it is a downloadable piece of software.
This provides you with a lot more customisation than you will be able to enjoy if you use a website.
Obviously, it does have the downside that you will need to download software onto your computer. This means that it is not going to be as portable as the vast majority of news sites out there.
However, let’s be honest, the vast majority of traders are always going to be using the same computer for their trades, so they do not need anything portable.
They are not going to be going away for more than a few hours, and in that case, basic pieces of software will tide you over for a short while.
Benzinga Pro is a relatively new piece of software compared to most other tickers out there.
So, while it is a bit ‘basic’ in the way it looks (this ensures that it is easy to read), there are plenty of features thrown into the software which you will struggle to find in older programs.
Full customization
You have full customisation options over the program once you have downloaded it.
This means being able to view data modules in split-screen view, or perhaps open them up in separate tabs in the same way that you would be using a web browser.
The software also has some themes built in for good measure. This will change up the look of the program if you are not a fan of it.
Newsfeed access
Let’s start talking about the features of Benzinga Pro. There are plenty of them to cover, although not all of them are going to be available…depending on the subscription you are using.
The news feed access will include news ticker information covering:
- Stock rumours
- Price movements, particularly large ones
- Commentary
- Trading tips
- Historical information
- Analysis
All of this information will be dished out nice and quickly. I am surprised at the accuracy of these news tips, and how quickly the news team gets on top of them.
A lot of what appears here is there before any of the major websites have managed to jump on top of the news…which is fantastic!
You will be able to narrow down the news feed to find the news that you want. The information will come from a variety of different sources, so you can be sure that you are getting an even spread of unbiased news.
These are the same sources that the major sites out there are getting…you are just getting access to it a lot faster.
Calendar suite
This is something which most websites out there don’t have. You get a full view of economic data, and historical data.
You will also be able to get information about when certain companies release their financial reports or have major meetings.
This is information that you can find online for free, but which will be difficult to track down if you are holding a multitude of stocks.
Commentary
One of the things which sets Benzinga Pro apart from the rest of the news tickers is the commentary.
There is a team of able experts working at Benzinga Pro, and when a top news story pops up, they will be able to offer commentary on it.
The pieces that they write are long and lengthy. They are highly educational too, which means that it is going to be a true joy searching through them.
Whether you are a new or an experienced trader, you are going to learn something.
Stock screener
While Benzinga Pro is not the greatest stock screener in the world, it is functional.
I would still recommend that you stump up the cash for an additional stock screener, but if you do not have the funds available for a stock screener at the moment, then Benzinga Pro is going to be perfectly fine for you.
You can use a variety of terms to narrow down the stocks which may be of interest for you.
One of the things which probably helps Benzinga Pro’s stock screener stand out from the crowd is that once you have found a stock that you want, you will be able to see a ton of information about that stock in one place.
No need to search online for news and the like.
Watch list
If you want news on certain financial markets or products, then there is a watch list built into Benzinga Pro that you will be able to benefit from.
Just tap in a few of the things you want to keep an eye on, and you will be given a notification the second there is news or change in the price of a stock.
Audio squawk
I know that there are a lot of people out there who are not able to keep their news up at all times. This is probably because they have a limited number of monitors at their disposal.
Thankfully, if you opt for the higher priced service from Benzinga Pro, you will be able to benefit from Audio Squawk.
So, the news will be read out to you if anything major happens. Just keep your speakers on (or headphones in), and your computer will talk to you.
This makes it much easier to focus on the rest of the work that you are doing when it comes to your trading.
Contact the News Desk
This is a fantastic feature. If you notice that the value of a stock is changing a lot and there doesn’t seem to be any news or indication as to why it is happening, you will be pleased to know that you can get in touch with the news desk.
The team there will then carry out research on your behalf and report back to you. This is something which (as far as I know) no other system out there offers.
Pricing
Remember what I said earlier about how this program is going to be great for newer people out there?
Well, it is only going to be good for the newer traders who are willing to invest in themselves. I am not going to lie and say that Benzinga Pro is affordable, because it is not.
It is one of the more expensive news subscription programs out there, but if you use it properly, it is easily one of the best. There are two tiers of pricing available:
- $99 per month
- $147 per month
There is also an enterprise package available, but I doubt that many of my readers are going to be going for that.
I seriously suggest that you go for the $147 per month package. This will give you all of the features that the site provides.
If you go for the cheaper package, you are only going to be getting the news feed and limited watch list access.
This is still worth the price, but let’s be honest, you probably want to get a bit more bang for your buck, right?
It is worth noting that there is a 14-day free trial available on the website, although you probably will just want to dive into using the full priced package right away.
It is going to be that great.
Is it worth signing up?
Absolutely! It is one of the best news services out there.
I know that the price of it is going to be putting the vast majority of people off.
However, I promise you, if you use this service the way it is intended, you will be able to make a ton of cash. More than you will be spending on it each month.
You do need a news tool in your trading arsenal, why shouldn’t it be Benzinga Pro? It is the tool that I use for my trading.
