Seeking Alpha Review 2024: Is this Platform Worth the Money?

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If you want an in-depth and detailed Seeking Alpha review, you’ve come to the right place.

First, you’ll find out what Seeking Alpha is, how Seeking Alpha can benefit you and your investments, and then we’ll jump into more detail, such as:

  • The pros and cons of Seeking Alpha
  • How to use some of Seeking Alpha’s tools
  • How Seeking Alpha can help you grow your wealth

You can either become a basic Seeking Alpha member for free, subscribe to Seeking Alpha’s Premium Plan (which is what I use), or you can use the Pro Plan.

Ready to see if Seeking Alpha is the best investment research platform for you?

Let’s dive right in.

Overall Rating:
4.8/5
Usability
Investment tools
Investment insights
Pros Cons

Customized tools

High quality content

In-depth stock analysis

Can be addictive

Complex interface

Could be overwhelming

What is Seeking Alpha?


Seeking Alpha is an investment research platform designed for intermediate to advanced investors who want cost-efficient, impartial, and quantitative information.

Some tools you can start utilizing if you sign-up to Seeking Alpha, include:

  • Custom virtual portfolio tracker
  • Link and analyze your actual portfolio 
  • Exclusive access to trending stock analysis
  • Personalized individual stock performance tracker

Since Seeking Alpha’s inception in 2004, the platform has attracted over 20 million monthly users.

What Does ‘Seeking Alpha’ Mean?


Here’s something nifty that you might not have known about the Seeking Alpha name: 

The term, “alpha,” is not only the first letter of the Greek alphabet but it was also used by the Greeks to represent the number 1. 

The term “alpha” is actually also a finance term and is expressed as the following symbol:

Seeking Alpha Logo Explanation

Here’s what the term “alpha” means in financial terms:

The alpha of a portfolio is typically expressed as either a positive number, a negative number, or a 0. 

Here’s what these numbers would mean:

Alpha Meaning

2%

Portfolio outperformed the market by 2%

0%

Portfolio performed in line with the market

-2%

Portfolio underperformed the market by 2%

So in all reality, the Seeking Alpha platform has a very clever play on words with its title.

Seeking Alpha represents our desire to build a portfolio that can outperform the market.

How Does Seeking Alpha Work?


The ultimate goal of Seeking Alpha is to help fundamental investors share information and ideas with like-minded investors on the platform.

Once you sign-up and become a Seeking Alpha member, you are given exclusive access to articles and newsletters authored by experienced and credentialed fundamental investors.

CFA Example

The highest investment-related credential that someone can earn (aside from maybe a Ph.d.) is the CFA certification.

While not every author may have a CFA designation – which is completely fine – those that do carry the CFA letters are also great candidates to learn from.   

Even if you are on Seeking Alpha’s free plan, you can still have access to:

  • Thorough commentary on your favorite stocks
  • Access to Seeking Alpha’s proprietary stock ranking tools
  • Published and in-depth stock analysis (up to 5 free articles per month)

Take a look at just a snippet of the many articles that are published daily:

Seeking Alpha Articles

In fact, Seeking Alpha boasts more than 7,000 active, experienced authors who publish more than 10,000 in-depth reviews each month.

These authors dive deep into stocks, reviewing the financials of each company and providing their own opinion, whether that stock should be a:

  • Buy
  • Sell
  • Hold
  • Strong sell
  • Strong buy

Now in addition to learning from your professional investment peers about each stock, Seeking Alpha also gives you the chance to do your own research.

Seeking Alpha Research Tools

Some neat research tools that are accessible to any Premium and Pro members include: 

  • Custom ETF screener
  • Custom portfolio analysis
  • Custom stock performance tracker

We’ll go into more detail about these tools later in the article (so keep reading!).

The main idea here is that Seeking Alpha gives you the best of both worlds: You can learn from and interact with your peers as well as receive hands-on experience when it comes to investment research.

Seeking Alpha Pros and Cons


Let’s take a big-picture look at the Seeking Alpha pros and cons (for the paid options):

Pros Cons

Minimal to no advertisements

Expensive if you’re a casual investor

Access to exclusive daily newsletters, interviews, and articles

Less coverage on crypto compared to other sectors

Insightful quantitative analysis of stocks

Is focused on investment research and does not automate your own investments

Customize stock alerts (you’ll receive push notifications)

Usability / interface can be confusing

Crowdsourced articles give you the chance to interact directly with the authors

Most articles and stocks are mainly focused on the US (and sometimes Canada)

You can customize many of the Seeking Alpha tools

Could be complex if you’re a passive investor (no day trading)

Seeking Alpha Overall Rating


Before reading further, check out my ratings for each of the following 6 categories:

Overall Rating

Investment Insights

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Investment Tools

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Customer Service

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Usability

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Cost

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

To give a little more detail on the reason for my ratings, take a look at my breakdown below:

  • Investment Insights – Readers receive so much information from daily newsletters to quantitative, Wall Street Analyst, and Seeking Alpha author stock ratings
  • Investment Tools – As a Premium or Pro member, you receive access to so many different Seeking Alpha tools. They may be a little difficult to understand, however, if you’re a casual investor
  • Customer Service – I’ve personally spoken to 3 different customer service representatives at Seeking Alpha, all of which were extremely friendly, responsive, and correct with their information. From my experience, Seeking Alpha’s customer service team is very professional
  • Usability – For someone who is a beginner investor, Seeking Alpha’s different tools might seem a little overwhelming. If you’re an intermediate to experienced investor, however, and you know what you’re doing, Seeking Alpha is very easy to use
  • Cost – You don’t get much with the Limited Access (aka free) version, but you get a lot for your money if you sign up for the Premium Version ($19.99 per month). The Pro version, in my opinion, only makes sense if you’re a professional or very serious about active investing ($199.99 per month)

So far, I’m pretty impressed with Seeking Alpha.

About Seeking Alpha


Seeking Alpha was founded in 2004 by David Jackson.

David worked as an equity and technology research analyst at Morgan Stanley during the tech bubble, researching stocks and writing up his findings. 

It was during this time that David realized there was an inherent conflict of interest if major investment banks published their research on certain investment products, especially if the major banks sold these investment products. 

Why would a major investment bank publish a research paper about a subpar product that the bank itself sells? 

That’s how Seeking Alpha was born.

Here are few more details you should know about Seeking Alpha:

About Seeking Alpha

Year Founded

2004

Headquarter Location

Ra’anana, Israel

Monthly Users

20 million+

Monthly Viewers

40 million+

Monthly Active Authors

7,000+

Monthly Published Articles

10,000+

Monthly Cost

– Limited Access = $0

– Premium = $19.99

– Pro = $199.99

Who Should Use Seeking Alpha

– Intermediate investors

– Advanced investors

– Day traders

Content Type

– Email

– Podcasts

– Video content

– Written content

Standout Features

– Financial statements

– Earnings call transcripts

– Customized stock notifications

– In-depth analysis from experts

– Transparent stock rating system

– Stock performance comparison charts

Availability

– iPad

– Desktop

– Android

– iPod touch

– iPhone (iOS 12.2 or later)

Customer Service

– Email

– Phone

– Forum

Customer Service Hours

Monday to Friday 8am to 4pm EST

Country Availability

International

Although Seeking Alpha is available to an international audience, I should note that the platform’s main investment research focus is on the United States and Canada.

Seeking Alpha Usability & Interface


I’m a huge fan of the Seeking Alpha website interface. 

Personally, I think Seeking Alpha is very user-friendly, inuitive, and it also does a good job displaying the information in an organized way.

Seeking Alpha Interface

Now, the only piece of constructive feedback that I would have is that for beginner investors – and even for intermediate users – the information on Seeking Alpha may not always be intuitively found.

For example, if you’re looking for the top emerging markets ETFs, you probably wouldn’t know where to look.

Seeking Alpha ETFs

The only logical place that I would look for emerging markets ETFs would be under the ETF tab – but there still isn’t further information about emerging markets ETFs.

In reality, to find the top emerging markets ETFs, you would have to click on “ETF Screener” and “ETF Performance – Sector.”

Seeking Alpha Key Market ETFs

From there, you’ll have to click on the left-hand toolbar to actually sort for the ETF category (in this case, emerging markets) that you’re looking for. 

Overall, Seeking Alpha has built a fantastic fundamental research platform for every investor. 

You’ll probably just have a small learning curve before you become fully familiar with the platform and how it functions.

Seeking Alpha Plans & Pricing


Seeking Alpha has 3 plans, 2 of which are paid versions:

Seeking Alpha Plans

I use the Premium Plan, and I’m very happy with its functionality and its features. 

Here’s what you can expect when you open an account with Seeking Alpha:

Pricing Overview

Minimum Cost

$0 [Limited Access Plan]

Maximum Cost

$199.99/month [Pro Plan]

Payment Methods

– PayPal

– Credit card

Keep in mind that your Premium (or Pro Plans) will be billed annually to capture the $19.99 (Premium) or $199.99 (Pro) monthly costs.

Otherwise, you would pay $29.99/month (Premium) and $299.99/month (Pro).

Here’s a brief overview of what you get with each Seeking Alpha Subscription:

Seeking Alpha Subscription Overview

The good news is that you can start a free 14 day trial with the Premium Plan and even Pro Plans.

Typically speaking, you should receive a reminder email a few days before the trial ends, but I’ve read several complaints that the credit cards were charged just as the trial period ended.

Keep reading the following passage, because I’ll explain in more detail about each service and what you get for your money.

Who Should Subscribe to the Seeking Alpha Paid Plans?


Whether a Seeking Alpha plan is worth the cost, really depends on you and your goals.

Below, I’ve broken down a simple graph to show you which plan would likely be best if you:

Premium Pro Plan

Read Articles Daily

✔️

✔️

Interact with Authors

✔️

✔️

Email Alerts

✔️

✔️

No Ads

✔️

Enjoy Analytics

✔️

✔️

Want VIP Service

✔️

Want Exclusive Content

✔️

Are a Day Trader

✔️

✔️

Money Isn’t a Worry

✔️

Personally, I think the Premium plan is perfect for anyone who is a normal person and wants to:

  • Interact with like-minded people
  • Learn more about the technical side of investing
  • Make informed decisions about the stock market

Unless you’re truly a day trader or run your own small business and need the additional exclusive touch, I’d say the Premium Plan is probably the best value, given what you’re spending.

Seeking Alpha’s Stock Pick Performance


While beating the market consistently is nearly impossible, Seeking Alpha sure does give you the advantage to outperform the market.

In fact, since 2010, Seeking Alpha’s quantitative algorithm has substantially outperformed the S&P 500, beating it 9 out of 10 times.

90% of the time Seeking Alpha’s quant performance beat the market.

The “Very Bullish” stocks returned 1,754% while the S&P 500 returned only 385%.

So how do you get access to a tool that dramatically boosts your odds to outperform the market? 

By signing up for the Seeking Alpha Premium Package.

Think about it this way:

  • You start investing $10,000 in 2010 and make no additional investment contributions
  • You would have $139,344 more if you had used Seeking Alpha’s “Very Bullish” stock recommendations versus investing in the S&P 500

Just keep in mind that past performance does not necessarily indicate future performance.

Seeking Alpha Limited Access Plan


If you’re not ready to spend money on Seeking Alpha and just want to sign up to the free plan, then check out this section, dedicated to the Limited Access Plan:

Seeking Alpha Limited Access

With the Limited Access plan, some things you can do include:

  • Receive up to 15 email newsletters 
  • Access transcripts and earnings reports
  • Follow and interact with Seeking Alpha authors
  • Access up to 5 Seeking Alpha articles per month 
  • Connect your personal portfolio with Seeking Alpha (for analysis of your stocks)

Some downsides with the Limited Access plan include:

  • You’ll be exposed to multiple ads
  • You don’t get access to expert analyses
  • You can’t access all underlying stock metrics
  • You only get access to the Wall Street Ratings
  • You can’t access all quantitative ratings for stocks
  • You can only review financial statements for up to 5 years (not 10)

If you find yourself interested and want more, then consider subscribing to one of Seeking Alpha’s paid plans (the Premium or the Pro).

Seeking Alpha Premium Plan


The neat thing about the Seeking Alpha Premium (and Pro) plan is that you can start a Free 14-day Trial period to test out the plan before you financially commit.

You can cancel your trial period at any time to ensure you don’t get charged the full amount (which Seeking Alpha can do if you don’t cancel before the trial ends).

If you enjoyed the Premium Plan trial period, then you can pay for the Premium Plan in 3 ways:

Premium Plan

Monthly Plan

$29.99/month

Annual Plan

$239 (or $19.99/month, as advertised)

3-Year Plan

$540 (or $14.99/month)

It appears that the default case for Seeking Alpha is charging the full year’s worth of premiums upfront (so $239 for the Premium Plan).

One of the biggest benefits to signing up for the Premium Plan over the Limited Access plan is that you gain exclusive access to the investor community, so you can:

  • Interact with authors
  • Compare your portfolio to the authors’ portfolios
  • Access in-depth quantitative and fundamental stock analysis
  • Access conference calls, earnings calls, presentations, etc.

I’m a Premium Plan user and what I like most is that you can literally brainstorm ideas with your peers about your next investment.

Seeking Alpha Premium Features


In this section, I’ll explain in detail some of my favorite Premium Plan features and how you can benefit from each. 

Here’s an overview of the Seeking Alpha Premium features:

  1. Ad-Lite
  2. Price Targets
  3. Notable Calls
  4. Earnings Calls
  5. Author Ratings
  6. Dividend Grades
  7. News Dashboard
  8. Factor Scorecard
  9. Peer Comparisons
  10. Alert Customization
  11. Quantitative Ratings
  12. Stock Screening Tools
  13. Wall Street Consensus
  14. Data Visualization Charts
  15. Unlimited Access to Articles
  16. Create Your own Mock Portfolio
  17. Manage Your Custom Price Alerts
  18. Downloadable Financial Statements
  19. Stock Performance Comparison Tool
  20. Link Your Outside Investment Account

If you want to know more about these features, then keep reading.

Premium Plan Feature #1: Ad-Lite


Unlike the Limited Access plan, which can have many ads, the Premium Plan offers an “ad-lite” user experience. 

As an example, you may receive some banner ads throughout your browsing such as the following:

Seeking Alpha ADs

As you can see with my Premium subscription, Seeking Alpha does promote some of its products (in this case, the Pro package). 

To be honest, I’m not really bothered by these ads and don’t think they take away from my experience.

Premium Plan Feature #2: Price Targets


Are you wondering whether a stock is overvalued or undervalued? 

Check out the Wall Street Ratings for that stock and scroll to the “Price Target” section.

In this case, I used Google as an example, so let’s take a look at the Google price target (and as of April 2022, Google traded at $2,595.93).

Seeking Alpha Price Target

In other words, based on the price target ($3,452.50) versus the actual cost of the stock ($2,595.93), the Google stock is actually undervalued. 

That’s probably why 98% of analysts in the Wall Street Ratings section value Google either as a “Buy” or a “Strong Buy.”

Seeking Alpha Analysts Breakdown

The graph below is another neat example of price target functions.

Seeking Alpha Price Target vs Actual Price

In the Price Target vs. Actual Price graph, you’ll see that the price target (in red) has almost always been a little higher than Google’s actual price (in blue). 

So, if you’re a value investor looking to buy stocks that are currently undervalued, you may want to consider Google as an investment.

Now, you might also remember the GameStop ($GME) fiasco back in early 2021, when traders on Reddit piled money into the failing $GME stock, causing some major financial hurdles for hedge funds and investment platforms like Robinhood. 

Yes, some people may have made money in this short-lived saga, but most probably lost money. 

Take a look at the Price Target graph below, which would have shown any rational investor that it was a risky move plowing money in $GME:

Seeking Alpha Price Target vs Actual Price 2

As you can see, the price target (in red) has been consistently hovering around a few dollars while the actual $GME price shot up to over $300 at one point.

Remember that focusing on just 1 data point alone, like the price target, should not be the deciding factor on whether you buy or sell a stock. A price target is simply a guide that should be considered in conjunction with other information.

Premium Plan Feature #3: Notable Calls


If you’re an intermediate investor looking to brainstorm new investment ideas, you might want to subscribe to Seeking Alpha’s Notable Calls.

You can subscribe to Notable Calls and receive synthesized and summarized ideas from companies across the world. 

You can read the Notable Calls section by clicking on “Latest News” and then clicking on “Notable Calls.”

Seeking Alpha Notable Calls

Once you’re in the Notable Calls section, you can explore different topics (anything ranging from fiber optics to clothing brands like Levi Strauss).

Seeking Alpha Notable Calls Topics

The Notable Calls are not published daily – sometimes it might even take a month for new information to populate the Notable Calls section. 

Because the Notable Calls articles are not consistently published, make sure to continue reading the contributor articles from the Seeking Alpha expert authors to gather more investing ideas.

Premium Plan Feature #4: Author Ratings


Since Seeking Alpha is a crowdsourcing platform, it comes as no surprise that each stock also comes with a Seeking Alpha author rating. 

For example, if you take a look at the summary page of AT&T Inc., you’ll see the Ratings for the $T stock broken down, by category:

Seeking Alpha Ratings Summary

To learn more about the Seeking Alpha author ratings, click on the blue “SA Authors” hyperlink.

Here, you’ll see the Seeking Alpha Author Ratings for a stock as:

  • Very Bullish
  • Bullish
  • Neutral
  • Bearish
  • Very Bearish
Seeking Alpha Authors Rating

Among other factors, you’ll see the Seeking Alpha Author Rating rating and the Authors Breakdown for each rating.

In AT&T’s case, 10 out of 24 authors recommended to Buy or Strongly Buy the stock (about 42%).

Furthermore, you can also review the Author Ratings’ track record for the past few years:

Seeking Alpha Authors Rating History

Based on this graph, the Seeking Alpha authors have generally recommended to “Buy” or “Strongly Buy” AT&T over the past 3 years.

It’s just been recently that the authors have suggested to “Hold” instead of buy. 

Lastly, you can also select to view the ratings history by author:

Seeking Alpha Rating History by Author

So, if you’re curious to see which authors rated AT&T as a “Buy” versus a “Sell” suggestion, for example, this is the place to do so.

Seeking Alpha Author Rating Example

Above is a screenshot of an author who recommended to Buy AT&T stock. 

If you’re wondering why the author recommended doing so, you can click on the blue hyperlink to read about the author’s AT&T articles.

Seeking Alpha Author Rating Example 2

Similarly, if you find an author who has suggested to sell the $T stock, you can find out when the author suggested doing so (see the red dots on the graph relative to the $T stock performance). 

Again, you can read articles by that author on AT&T by clicking on the blue hyperlink below the author’s sell chart.

Premium Plan Feature #5:  Dividend Grades


If you’re a dividend investor, this is one of the coolest features you’ll find: The Dividend Grade Tool.

In short, the Dividend Grade tool is designed to help investors determine whether a dividend is safe and whether the dividend income will be stable, increase, or possibly decrease.

There are 4 different Dividend Grades, which are explained below:

Dividend Grades

Dividend Safety

Measures a dividend’s profitability and stability

Dividend Growth

Measures a dividend’s growth potential by using historical and estimated growth rates (includes revenue, cash flow, profits, etc.)

Dividend Yield

Measures a dividend’s historical yield and compares the yield to other stocks in the same industry to determine the dividend’s future yield

Dividend Consistency

Measures the consistency of a company’s dividend payments and dividend raises

One reason why investors, especially passive investors, like dividends so much is because dividends are a form of passive income

And, the more dividend paying stocks you purchase, over time, you can really start making some money just through dividend paying stocks. 

Take a look at the AT&T current Dividend Grades (as of April 2022):

Seeking Alpha Dividend Grades

What I like about the Dividend Grades is that you can see the current grades compared to the ones from 3 months ago and even 6 months ago. 

Clearly, the dividend safety for AT&T is at risk. This means that AT&T could decrease or even eliminate its dividend. 

And it’s true – take a look at the red warning banner when I type $T into the search bar:

Seeking Alpha Warning Banner

Without even looking at the Dividend Grades, I’m immediately notified that AT&T may cut its dividends.

If you want to learn more about it, just click on the banner:

Seeking Alpha Warning Article

You’ll be redirected to an article with a further analysis of why AT&T might be cutting its dividends in the near future. 

Now, if you want to drill into more depth regarding the individual Dividend Grades, just click on the blue hyperlink of each Dividend Grade:

Seeking Alpha Dividend Growth Grade

For example, in the screenshot above, you’ll see a snippet of how in-depth you get just by reading about the Dividend Growth Grade. 

I prefer to check out the Dividend History tab, which looks like this:

Seeking Alpha Dividend History

As you can see, over the past 5 years, AT&T has had a very consistent dividend history – but as of April 12, 2022, the dividends dropped from $0.52 to $0.28.

That’s a very drastic cut, and typically signals a concern for investors.

Finally, if you want to learn more about future Dividend Estimates (which is not part of the original 4 Dividend Grades), you can click on the corresponding tab:

Seeking Alpha Dividend Estimates

As you can see, the dividend growth estimates do not predict the dividend yield to bounce back to AT&T’s original levels, at least not for the next few years.

Premium Plan Feature #6: News Dashboard


If you’re someone who just wants to read about the most important and pressing stock news without getting into the nitty-gritty, then use the News Dashboard.

You can arrive at the News Dashboard by clicking on the “Latest News” tab.

Seeking Alpha Latest News

Once you’ve clicked the “Latest News” tabs, you’ll be redirected to a page titled “Market News.”

Seeking Alpha Market News

From this dashboard, you can use the filter (on the left) to explore topics that are relevant to you.

You can even set a date range to focus your readings on a certain timeframe.

Premium Plan Feature #7: Factor Scorecard


Similar to the Dividend Grades, you may also see what Seeking Alpha calls a Factor Scorecard.

In other words, the scorecard is a tool to help you make fast decisions on whether to consider a stock or rule it out, based on your investment criteria. 

The Factor Scorecard uses 5 factors, including:

  • Value
  • Growth
  • Profitability 
  • Momentum
  • EPS (Earnings Per Share) Revisions

Let’s take a look at the Factor Scorecard for $GME, better known as Gamestop.

Seeking Alpha Factor Grades

The Factor Grades box is broken down into the 5 categories that I mentioned earlier. 

Each category’s grade is also compared to its previous grade 3 and 6 months ago:

Seeking Alpha Factor Grades 2

Clearly, the Factor Grades for Gamestop are quite subpar. This means that Gamestop is probably not the best investment – unless you are comfortable taking a risk with a rather volatile stock. 

If you want to drill into more depth regarding the individual Factor Grades, just click on the blue hyperlink of each Grade.

Seeking Alpha In-depth Factor Grades

For example, in the screenshot above, you’ll see a snippet of how in-depth you get just by reading about the Profitability of Gamestop. 

I also like looking at the Momentum tab to check out the past performance and the performance of $GME compared to other benchmarks – like the S&P 500, for example.

Here’s a snapshot of Gamestop’s past performance relative to other companies in the sector:

Seeking Alpha Momentum

You can also check out the price performance of Gamestop relative to certain benchmarks.

In the screenshot below, the S&P 500 is used as the benchmark:

Seeking Alpha Price Return Example

This Price Return chart tells the full story:

You can see how Gamestop consistently underperformed, compared to the S&P 500 until the Gamestop saga began in early 2021. 

Since early 2021, the Gamestop prices have relatively outperformed the S&P 500 – but is it really a solid investment?

That’s where Seeking Alpha’s tools like the Factor Scorecard can really come into play and help guide you to an answer.

Premium Plan Feature #8: Peer Comparisons


Let’s say you’re thinking about buying Tesla, but you’re not 100% convinced that it’s the right addition to your portfolio. 

That’s where the Peer Comparisons come in.

The Peer Comparison tool is customizable, so you can change the stock types that you’re comparing. 

Here’s an example: First, search your desired stock (in this case, Tesla):

Seeking Alpha Peers

Make sure you click on the “Peers” tab.

Once you’re on the “Peers” tab, you can see that Seeking Alpha already defaults to several peer stocks with which you can compare Tesla.

Seeking Alpha Peer Stocks Example

However, if you want to customize the peer comparisons or even reduce the number of peers you’re comparing to, then just click on the “Edit Symbols” button.

Seeking Alpha Edit Peer Comparisons

This is where you can customize all peer comparisons.

Premium Plan Feature #9: Alert Customization


If you really like a stock and want to receive alerts whenever news about that stock is released, you can customize your own email alerts.

Seeking Alpha Real Time Alerts

You do this by hovering over the “My Portfolio” tab and then clicking on “Manage Real Time Email Alerts.”

Seeking Alpha Stock Alerts 2

You’ll see a snapshot of your favorite stocks, which you can then select to follow.

The next thing you need to do, is:

  • Select the type of alert (article vs. news)
  • Select your alert method (email vs. mobile push notification)

I’m a big fan of this alert customization option.

Premium Plan Feature #10: Quantitative Ratings


One of the key features when evaluating a stock on Seeking Alpha should be the Quant Ratings section.

Quant Ratings are based on a computer algorithm with the goal to find the best stocks.

As with the previous Ratings (Wall Street and SA Authors), the Quant Ratings compare the stock to other stocks in the same industry.

Seeking Alpha Quant Ratings

The Quant Rankings use historical information to determine the numbers, as shown in the above screenshot (this case, for Lockheed Martin). 

If the Quant Rankings deem a stock to be a top pick, then that stock would be marked as “Strong Buy.”

In Lockheed Martin’s case, the Quant Rankings determined the stock to be a “Hold” for now.

Seeking Alpha Quant Ratings 2

The Quant Ratings and the Factor Grades are both designed and managed by Steve Cress, who has had extensive experience in investment research, hedge funds, and the likes.

The Quant Ratings is what you are looking for – that’s because they can help boost your portfolio performance.

In fact, Seeking Alpha claims that stocks rated as a 4.5 or higher have beat the S&P 500 4x. 

On the other hand, stocks rated as 1.5 or lower underperformed the S&P 500, returning roughly 33% of the S&P 500. 

Clearly, the Quant Ratings are very helpful.

Premium Plan Feature #11: Stock Screening Tools


As you can see, Quant Ratings are a very powerful tool when evaluating the strength of a stock. 

But what if you want to view the top-rated stock, using the Quant tools? 

Enter the Stock Screener. 

You’ll find the Stock Screener by clicking on the “Top Stocks” tab and then clicking on “Top Rated Stocks.”

Seeking Alpha Top Rated Stocks

From there, you’ll see a summary of the top rated stocks, and typically the highest Quant Rating is 4.99:

Seeking Alpha Top Rated Stocks 2

Remember what was said in the previous Quant Ratings section: 

Stocks given a Quant Rating of 4.5 or higher have typically outperformed the S&P 500 by up to 4x! 

And it’s true that across the board PBR, also known as Petrobas, (in this case the top Quant rated stock) is considered a “Buy” to “Strong Buy” across the board:

Seeking Alpha Stock Screener

This stock screener is a feature that is currently available to Premium users. 

Another neat trick with the Stock Screener? 

You can customize your own stocks by using up to 100 different filters!

Seeking Alpha Stock Screener 2

Above is just an example of the many different filter applications you can use to customize your stock screener.

Based on historical performance, stocks ranked as 1.5 or lower drastically underperformed the S&P 500.

Premium Plan Feature #12: Wall Street Consensus


If you want to follow what sell-side analysts have to say in terms of buying, holding, or selling a stock, then check out the Wall Street Ratings.

Instead, Seeking Alpha collects data from the Wall Street analysts to determine whether a stock is rated as:

  • Very Bullish
  • Bullish
  • Neutral
  • Bearish
  • Very Bearish

The reason why Wall Street Ratings can be helpful for people like you and me is that these rankings should (in theory) be objective and neutral. 

To review the Wall Street Ratings of a certain company, just type in the company name or ticker symbol in the “Search” bar on the top, and then look at the information on the right of the screen.

Seeking Alpha Ratings Summary Outline

When you look at the right-hand side, you’ll see the “Ratings Summary” outline, with 3 titles:

  • SA Authors
  • Wall Street
  • Quant

To learn more about the Wall Street rating, click on the “Wall Street” blue hyperlink.

Seeking Alpha Wall Street Rating

Among other factors, you’ll see the Wall Street average analyst rating and the Analyst Breakdown for each rating.

In Google’s case, 49 out of 50 Wall Street analysts recommended to Buy or Strongly Buy the stock (that’s 98% of analysts!).

Furthermore, you can also review the Wall Street Ratings’ track record for the past few years:

Seeking Alpha Wall Street Analysis

Based on this graph, Wall Street analysts have recommended to Buy or Strongly Buy Google over the past 3 years. 

Lastly, you can also see how the Wall Street analysts’ opinions have changed over time with the Recommendations Chart (found at the bottom of the page):

Seeking Alpha Wall Street Recommendations

It appears that in 2019 and early 2020 more analysts recommended to hold Google, while starting in 2021, virtually all analysts recommended to buy Google.

Premium Plan Feature #13: Data Visualization Charts


Since I’m a very visual person, one of my favorite features on Seeking Alpha is the data visualization of the charts. 

In fact, Seeking Alpha has a specific tab named “Charting” that you can access to view the data in an aesthetically pleasing manner:

Seeking Alpha Charting

Once you click on the “Charting” tab, you can even customize the data you want to view.

For example, you can compare one stock’s performance (in the case, Gamestop) to another stock or benchmark like the S&P 500:

Seeking Alpha Charting 2

In this custom comparison, you can see that the S&P 500 has typically outperformed Gamestop until early 2021. 

If you want to add additional stocks or funds to compare, you can do so, as well:

Seeking Alpha Charting 3

Another neat way to customize your data is changing the format of the data presentation – you can select:

  • Area
  • Columns
  • Line graph
Seeking Alpha Data Presentation

If you’re happy with the data visualization chart you created, you can also copy to clipboard, download, or copy the link to your chart for future reference.

Premium Plan Feature #14: Earnings Calls


If you’re a Seeking Alpha member, you have exclusive access to earnings calls transcripts.

In most cases, you can expect to have an earnings call at the end of the first 3 quarters. 

At the end of the 4th quarter, you’ll receive both an annual report as well as a quarterly report.

If you’re busy at the time of the actual earnings call, you can always count on Seeking Alpha to have a transcript available – both audio and written versions. 

You can access the earnings reports of any publicly-traded company by hovering over “Latest News” and then clicking on the “Earnings News” button.

Seeking Alpha Earnings News

You can also access a schedule of the upcoming earnings calls by clicking on the “Earnings Calendar.”

Seeking Alpha Earnings Calendar

Once in the Upcoming Earnings tab, you can select which company you want to listen to and you can even sign-up for custom email alerts by clicking on the “+” sign.

If you’re looking up one of your favorite companies, let’s call it Amazon, then you just have to click on the “Earnings” tab for that stock:

Seeking Alpha Earnings

From there, you can click on the “Transcripts” tab and look at all previous transcripts:

Seeking Alpha Transcripts Example

Depending on the company you review, you can also access a PDF file with slides that highlight the company’s key points.

Premium Plan Feature #15: Unlimited Access to Articles


With the Premium (and of course Pro) memberships, you also have unlimited access to exclusive articles written by industry professionals.

Since there is so much information, you can filter out the articles in several different ways. 

First, you can simply access your home page and review the “Trending Analysis” of the day or the “Trending News” of the day.

Seeking Alpha Trending

If you want to review articles written by various authors about just 1 particular stock or fund, then just type in the stock name or ticker symbol into the Search Bar.  

From there, click on “Summary” and then on “Analysis” so you can see the various articles offered by authors on that stock.

Here’s an example of articles written about the Tesla stock:

Seeking Alpha Tesla Stock

If you want to read articles from authors who advocate buying, selling, or holding, you can customize your ratings by clicking on the “Select Ratings” drop down box.

Seeking Alpha Select Ratings

While most articles do focus on US-based public companies, there are some articles that also focus on alternative investments as well as international companies.

Premium Plan Feature #16: Create Your Own Mock Portfolio


As a Premium Seeking Alpha user, I’m a very big fan of creating your own portfolio in Seeking Alpha.

If you’re dedicated to kickstarting your kids’ financial future, then you may also want to check out the Greenlight Debit Card, which can do wonders.

You can set up your own mock portfolio in Seeking Alpha by hovering over “My Portfolio” and then clicking on “All Portfolios.”

Seeking Alpha All Portfolios

From there, you can click the button titled “+ New Portfolio.”

Seeking Alpha New Portfolio

This will allow you to add a new, mock portfolio while using the Seeking Alpha platform.

You can give that portfolio a title and then you can either link your outside brokerage account to this portfolio or add your own stocks to the portfolio. 

For the purpose of this section, we’re going to click on “Create Portfolio.”

Seeking Alpha Create Portfolio

Once you’ve created your portfolio, you can start adding ticker symbols to complete your portfolio.

Seeking Alpha Add Symbols

Once you’re happy with your portfolio construction, you can click “Done.”

Seeking Alpha Mock Portfolio

Seeking Alpha does a fantastic job breaking down each stock in your mock portfolio by using multiple different factors. 

You can even compare the Quant, SA Authors, and Wall Street ratings to each other:

Seeking Alpha Compare Symbols

If you click on the “View Headlines” button in your portfolio, you’ll see an assortment of articles written just for your specific stocks in your portfolio:

Seeking Alpha View Headlines

Finally, one of the other notable features of your Mock Portfolio is the custom alert and notification button. 

When you click on “Manage Alerts” you can customize your alerts based on:

  • Content
  • Delivery
  • Price alerts
Seeking Alpha Manage Alerts

So, if there is an update on a stock like Twitter for example, you’ll receive real-life notifications to your email or phone – depending on the delivery method that you select. 

You can also manage your price alerts, which I will review in a separate section here.

Premium Plan Feature #17: Manage Your Custom Price Alerts


If you’ve already created your mock portfolio through Seeking Alpha (or even if you’ve already connected your outside brokerage account with Seeking Alpha), you can set custom price alerts.

For example, if you own shares of Twitter and the current price Quant Rating is 2.99, which is nearing a sell territory, then you may want to filter for other stocks that might be deemed a “Strong Buy.”

Here’s how (this is assuming you’ve already set up your own portfolio in Seeking Alpha. If not, then please reference the previous feature):

First, access your portfolio and click on “Manage Alerts.”

Seeking Alpha Price Alerts

Then, click on “Price Alerts” and then on “Settings.”

From there, you’ll want to click on “All Price Alerts,” which you’ll find at the bottom of the dialogue box.

Seeking Alpha All Price Alerts

From there, click on the “Browse Top Stocks” button.

Seeking Alpha Browse Top Stocks

You can either continue using the Seeking Alpha Screens (and there are many) or you can create your own, custom screen.

If you create your own custom screen, you’ll be brought to a window like the one below:

Seeking Alpha Custom Screen

You can customize your stock screener by adding up to 80 different filters. 

For example, if you want to screen for all stocks that are assigned a 4.00 out of 5.00 rating for the Quant, SA Authors, and Wall St. Analysts, this is the place to do so.

Seeking Alpha Custom Screen 2

Take some time to experiment with the screening tool, because there is just so much information.

However, if you’re ever wondering why or how to filter for the best stocks for your portfolio (or your child’s portfolio), this is probably the tool you’ll want to use.

Premium Plan Feature #18: Downloadable Financial Statements


If you’re an investor who really enjoys digging deep into the financials for each company before trading its stock, you’ll be happy to know that the Premium tier also comes with downloadable financial statements

In fact, you can access up to 10 years worth of financial statements to download, review, and analyze.

Just search your favorite company and click on the “Financials” tab.

Seeking Alpha Financials

From there, you can either review the numbers or for a more visual approach, just hover over the line graph for each data set:

Seeking Alpha Financials 2

If you want to review the numbers in even more depth, you can click on the print icon or the “X” icon at the top, right of your screen to either print to PDF or download via Excel.

Seeking Alpha Financials 3

So depending on how in-depth you want to go, Seeking Alpha really gives you a lot of options to analyze your stocks.

Premium Plan Feature #19: Stock Performance Comparison Tool


Ever wonder how your current stocks compare to other stocks in the marketplace? 

Take a look at the Stock Performance Comparison Tool – which is one of my favorite tools.

Just search your favorite stock and then click on the “Charting” tab.

Seeking Alpha Charting Apple vs SP500

The default comparison is your stock (in this case, Apple) and the S&P 500. 

However, if you want to know how apple is doing compared to another individual stock in the tech or a similar sector (like Tesla), then just click on the “+ Add Comparison” button and add your favorite stock:

Seeking Alpha Add Comparison

Now take a look at the comparison of Apple stock versus Tesla stock over the past 3 years:

Seeking Alpha Charting Apple vs Tesla

While this stock performance comparison chart shouldn’t be the only tool you should use to determine whether a stock is worth a purchase, it can certainly be a helpful guide.

Premium Plan Feature #20: Link Your Outside Investment Account


Lastly – but certainly not least – another cool feature with the Premium Tier is that you can link your outside investment accounts to your Seeking Alpha account.

Remember that you’ll receive access to Seeking Alpha’s quant comparison tool, the Wall St. Analyst ratings, and the SA Author rankings – along with customizing real-life alerts for each of the stocks you hold. 

To start linking your outside accounts, just navigate to your main menu, hover over “My Portfolio” and then click on “Link Brokerage Account.”

Seeking Alpha Link Brokerage Account

Any outside brokerage accounts that you link will be connected using the secured encryption software, known as Plaid.

Seeking Alpha Plaid

You can select a number of different brokers, such as:

  • Acorns
  • Fidelity
  • Vanguard
  • Robinhood
  • Charles Schwab

Even if you don’t see your brokerage firm immediately, you can either search for your brokerage firm or sometimes even input the information manually.

Plaid Select Broker

Once you’ve established a link to your brokerage account, you can do the following:

  • Track your account value
  • Sign-up for real-life stock alerts
  • Assess the holdings in your accounts
  • Aggregate your total liquid net worth in one place

Keep in mind that Seeking Alpha is an informational platform only – you cannot place investment trades on Seeking Alpha.

So to buy or sell stocks in your linked brokerage account, you’ll actually have to sign in to your own investment account.

Recommended Reading: Best Investment Apps

Is Seeking Alpha Premium Right for You?


Seeking Alpha Premium could be right for you if you:

  • Enjoy fundamental research
  • Want the latest stock market news
  • Have some knowledge about investing
  • Like to review in-depth stock analyses 
  • Want to be more involved in the portfolio allocation 

Being a Premium Plan member myself, my favorite part is that you can use the Premium tier for as much or as little research as you want. 

For example, if you’re thinking about adding Build-A-Bear Workshop, Inc. (BBW) to your portfolio, and you want some additional advice from industry experts.

In this case, just check out the BBW stock rankings in the Ratings Summary section.

Seeking Alpha BBW Ratings Summary

You’ll see that on 3 different instances, the BBW stock is considered a Buy to a Strong Buy opportunity:

Seeking Alpha BBW Ratings Summary 2

Now, if that’s all the reassurance you were looking for, you can move on and not look back. 

However, if you want to drill into more depth with the Build-A-Bear Workshop, Inc. stock, Seeking Alpha lets you do as much fundamental analysis as you want.

fiona smith the millennial money woman

The Bottom Line:

The Premium Plan gives intermediate investors the best of both worlds: Reassurance on which stocks to buy, hold, or sell while also going into as much analytical depth as possible.

Seeking Alpha Pro Plan


Just like the Premium Plan, you can also start a 14-day free trial period with the Seeking Alpha Pro Plan.

If you enjoyed the Pro Plan trial period, then you can pay for the Pro Plan in 2 ways:

Pro Plan

Monthly Plan

$299.99/month

Annual Plan

$2,400 (or $199.99/month, as advertised)

It appears that the default case for Seeking Alpha is charging the full year’s worth of premiums upfront (so $2,400 in this case).

One of the best benefits to the Pro Plan is that you receive VIP access and Editorial Concierge, customized to your needs.

Keep reading to find out more about the key features of the Pro Plan.

Seeking Alpha Pro Features


In this section, I’ll explain in detail some of the top Pro Plan features and how you can benefit from each (keep in mind that the Pro Plan already comes with the Premium Plan features). 

Below is an overview of the additional Seeking Alpha Pro Plan features: 

  1. Ad Free
  2. Idea Screener
  3. VIP Editorial Concierge
  4. Pro content and newsletters
  5. Top Ideas Recommendation List

Pro Plan Feature #1: Ad-Free


With the Seeking Alpha Pro Plan, your entire user experience will be ad-free.

Remember that the Limited Access version does come with ads and the Premium version offers an ad-lite user experience.

Pro Plan Feature #2: Investment Screener


The Seeking Alpha Pro platform gives you the chance to be as specific as possible when filtering your investments.

You can filter your investments by:

  • Investment style
  • Geographic location
  • Market capitalization

If you know what you’re doing and if you know what you’re looking for, then this investment screener can be used to your advantage.

Pro Plan Feature #3: VIP Editorial Concierge


If you want the bells, the whistles, and the exclusive VIP treatment, then you should consider the Pro Plan.

The editorial team works directly with Pro level subscribers to filter out and pinpoint ideas that fit to your investing needs, style, and preferences.

Pro Plan Feature #4: Pro Content and Newsletters


If you want daily short summaries of the top 1% of the Seeking Alpha content, then your Seeking Alpha Pro level subscription will give you that VIP treatment.

Pro Plan Feature #5: Top Ideas Recommendation List


As a Pro member, you’ll have Seeking Alpha’s industry experts send you a weekly list of their hand-picked top investment ideas from Seeking Alpha contributors.

Is Seeking Alpha Pro Right for You?


Seeking Alpha Pro could be right for you if you: 

  • Want VIP treatment
  • Are an institutional investor
  • Are an industry professional
  • Make complicated trades (longs, shorts, puts, calls, etc.) and needs the in-depth analyses

Another neat feature is that you could also contribute to the Seeking Alpha community by writing an article with your research and opinion.

fiona smith the millennial money woman

The Bottom Line:

The Pro Plan gives advanced investors and industry professionals an in-depth and resourceful experience when researching and analyzing stocks, funds, and ETFs.

Seeking Alpha Customer Service Review


I’ve personally reached out to Seeking Alpha’s customer service on 3 different occasions to evaluate their:

  • Knowledge
  • Friendliness
  • Customer Experience

…And I must say that Seeking Alpha passed my test with flying colors.

Below is my evaluation:

Category Rating

Knowledge

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Friendliness

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Experience

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I’m drawing from my own personal experience from speaking with 3 different Seeking Alpha personal representatives.

The good news is that you can contact Seeking Alpha in 4 main ways:

How to Contact Seeking Alpha

Email

contactus@seekingalpha.com

Social Media

– Twitter

– Facebook

– Instagram

– YouTube

Navigation Bar

Support Button

Phone Call

347-509-6837

Phone Support Center Hours

Monday to Friday 8am to 4pm EST (holiday hours may apply)

It’s reassuring for me to see the different ways you can contact Seeking Alpha.

While Seeking Alpha is not accredited with the BBB, I was still shocked to see the “F” rating on the BBB website:

Seeking Alpha BBB Report

I even double-checked to see if I had the right Seeking Alpha company pulled up on my screen – and I did.

The common complaints appear to only apply to subscribers looking for the “free trial” period:

Seeking Alpha BBB Reviews

Based on these complaints (which are somewhat recent), it looks like many customers who signed up with the free trial period were charged after the period ended.

Based on this information, if I were signing up to the free trial period, I would probably triple check to read all of the fine print and possibly even cancel before the trial period is over (assuming you’re not happy with the platform).

Now that you have an idea of what people are unhappy about, let’s take a closer look at the ratings on TrustPilot, which is another customer review website.

Seeking Alpha Trustpilot Report

Now, this Trust Pilot customer review is more in line with what I was expecting to see.

On TrustPilot, a solid 93% of respondents rated Seeking Alpha average to excellent.

Some reviews are below:

Seeking Alpha Trustpilot Review

This review virtually contradicts the reviews from the BBB, which said Seeking Alpha did not offer a refund.

Seeking Alpha Trustpilot Review 2

Above is another positive review about the accuracy and impartiality (no bias) of the authors that provide information on Seeking Alpha.

Of the 2 negative reviews that were posted from the 82 total reviews, the complaints were the following:

Seeking Alpha Trustpilot Review 4

Take a look at the response time of when the negative review was posted (1 day ago) versus the reply from Seeking Alpha (also 1 day ago). 

I thought that was impressive.

Seeking Alpha Trustpilot Review 3

As you can see, there will always be good and bad reviews, and you’ll have to take the reviews with a grain of salt (seriously).

Personally, I like checking back into the customer service review platforms every few months, just to read updates.

fiona smith the millennial money woman

The Bottom Line:

Most of the “Bad” Seeking Alpha reviews involve the free subscription service. According to the complaints, immediately after the free trial period ends, the consumer credit card will be charged the annual amount for a paid subscription (likely the Premium subscription).

The Author Vetting Process: Seeking Alpha’s Editors


Now it might sound daunting that Seeking Alpha offers works from 7,000 active monthly authors.

You might even be concerned about the quality of the information if there are so many contributors.

Their team has a pretty quick article turnaround time as well, which typically ranges between 1 hour to a few business days. 

Do you have industry expertise and want to contribute?

Below are 9 of the most important requirements to pass the rigorous Seeking Alpha editorial review process:

Guideline Explanation

Market-Oriented

Write about stocks, sectors, ETFs, or other actionable themes for US-based investors

High-Quality

Articles must be convincing, well-presented, and actionable

Fundamental Analysis

Articles must address factors such as a company’s competitors, products, management, corporate strategy, etc.

Originality

Always bring a new perspective to a topic

Compelling Title

Your title shouldn’t overpromise and underdeliver

Market Cap

Articles mentioning stocks trading at less than $1 or companies with market caps less than $100 million will receive extra scrutiny

Clean

You must proofread your article before submission

No Promotional Content

No promotional content in articles

Human Factor

Editors work closely with contributors and maintain a constructive dialogue

As you can see, there are a lot of requirements that go into the making and the publication of a Seeking Alpha article, so chances are that you’ll get the high quality you want. 

And with each month, over 10,000 articles are published on Seeking Alpha!

Another neat thing is that you can view a contributor’s past track record of stock predictions.

Another trick to finding information from top ranked authors is just simply clicking on the “Top Authors” button.

Seeking Alpha Top Authors

Once in the Top Authors section, you’ll receive a long list of author suggestions, based on their specialty (such as value investing, growth investing, oil & gas investing, etc.).

Seeking Alpha Educational Resources


Another reason why I’m a big fan of Seeking Alpha is because of the abundance of educational resources this platform offers its users:

Resource Description

Investment Videos

Access top investment news videos by clicking on the tab “Watch & Listen” and then clicking on “Videos”

Investment Podcasts

Learn more about the latest investment news by accessing 8 Seeking Alpha podcasts. Click on “Watch & Listen” and then on “Podcasts”

Financial Planning Education

Seeking Alpha knows that investing is just a part of the financial planning process. When you click on the “Education” tab, you’ll gain access to a variety of different financial planning topics, ranging from cryptocurrency to 401(k) management

Seeking Alpha Knowledge Base

Type any question into the search box and you’ll probably find an answer. The Knowledge Base can be accessed by clicking on the “Support” icon and then “Knowledge Base”

Feedback Forum

If you ever have trouble with the Seeking Alpha desktop website or the mobile app, this is the place to share your concerns, feedback, and interact with other users. Access the forum by clicking on the “Support” icon and then “Feedback Forum”

As you can see, Seeking Alpha does not keep you in the dark – when it comes to investing or financial planning-related matters.

One of my favorite learning sections on Seeking Alpha is the “Education” section, where Seeking Alpha users can learn about more than just investing.

Seeking Alpha Education

Under the education tab, you access articles about other topics that may not be covered in-depth by the Seeking Alpha Authors.

Some of these topics include:

I’m also a fan of the “Watch & Listen” section, which offers Seeking Alpha readers access to investment podcasts and videos.

If I’m ever stuck in traffic, I listen to one of the podcasts (I like the Wall Street Breakfast podcast).

Seeking Alpha Podcasts

The good news is that Seeking Alpha offers so much variety from which to choose – you’ll never be left without ideas.

How to Open a Seeking Alpha Account


Ready to open an account with Seeking Alpha?

Believe it or not, it’s actually a very fast and simple process. 

First, head to the Seeking Alpha website and click “Subscribe.”

Seeking Alpha Subscribe

After you click the subscribe button, you can choose to either start a free trial or register immediately with one of the 3 plans (Limited Access, Premium, or Pro).

Seeking Alpha Plans 3

Now, if you’re ready to register and pay for your subscription, then select your plan preference.

Seeking Alpha Payment Methods

Payment methods are either via credit card or PayPal.

In my opinion, if you’re an investor who really wants to understand more about your investment holdings, then Seeking Alpha is probably a great platform for you.

Is Seeking Alpha Worth it?


Yes, Seeking Alpha is worth the cost if you do your own investment research and want to interact with experienced investors. For $19.99 per month, you get access to exclusive content from over 7,000 experienced investment authors, custom stock performance charts, and portfolio monitoring tools.

If you sign up to the Premium Platform, you can access the Seeking Alpha Quant Ratings, which have outperformed the market since 2010. 

The Quant Ratings marked as “Very Bullish” for stocks were up 1,754% versus the market’s 385% gain.

On the other hand, the stocks that were rated as “Very Bearish” by Seeking Alpha really did underperform, being up by only 156% versus the market’s overall 385%.

Seeking Alpha Quant Performance

While I’m not a fan of day trading and stock picking, if I am looking to buy or sell a stock or fund in my portfolio, Seeing Alpha would be my first stop before hitting that “trade” button.

Seeking Alpha Alternatives


Seeking Alpha might not be for everyone. 

If you’re an active investor and just don’t like the investment research platform, then you may want to check out platforms like the Motley Fool’s Stock Advisor.

While the cost is certainly lower for new members ($99 per year), you also don’t get access to the customization, the tools, and the crowdsourcing that Seeking Alpha uses. 

You can always sign up to the free version of each platform first before committing financially.

FAQs

Based on Seeking Alpha’s track record, yes, Seeking Alpha is reliable. As an example, Seeking Alpha’s “Very Bullish” stock evaluation ratings have outperformed the market since 2010, up 1,754% versus the market’s 385% gain.

Seeking Alpha’s Premium membership is absolutely worth the cost if you want to conduct your own investment research and interact with experienced investors.

You pay $19.99 per month in exchange for exclusive access to content from over 7,000 experienced investment authors, custom stock performance charts, and portfolio monitoring tools.

Yes, Seeking Alpha’s Premium membership is worth the cost if you do your own investment research and want to interact with experienced investors. For $19.99 per month, you get access to exclusive from over 7,000 experienced investment authors, custom stock performance charts, and portfolio monitoring tools.

You can still use Seeking Alpha as a free user under the Limited Access plan. However, you can unlock only 5 articles per month before being prompted to sign-up as a paying Premium member. The Premium membership costs $19.99 per month as of early 2022.

Seeking Alpha is probably one of the best tools for day traders, active investors, and even swing traders. If you want to do your own investment research and learn from industry experts, then Seeking Alpha really is a good fit.

If you aren’t a day trader or someone who enjoys researching and picking stocks for their portfolio, then Seeking Alpha is probably not for you. For example, passive investors who use mutual funds, index funds, or even ETFs probably won’t find too much value from the Seeking Alpha platform.

Seeking Alpha was founded by David Jackson in 2004. Jackson is a graduate of Oxford University (undergraduate) and The London School of Economics (graduate).

He worked as a technology research analyst at Morgan Stanley, where Jackson saw a problem (the conflict of interest stemming from investment banks publishing information about the products they sell) and developed a solution with the unbiased Seeking Alpha platform.

Seeking Alpha Review: The Bottom Line


Seeking Alpha is likely one of the best platforms if you want to:

  • Research your own stocks
  • Get the latest stock market news
  • Customize your stock performance
  • Receive live stock push notifications
  • Learn from and interact with industry experts

In my opinion, the biggest benefit you get from Seeking Alpha is the unbiased research. 

For example, you won’t find research articles about funds written by the very company that sells the same fund.

There is no conflict of interest with Seeking Alpha, just pure authenticity and knowledge shared by industry experts. 

You can access Seeking Alpha through 3 plans:

  • Limited Access Plan
  • Premium Plan
  • Pro Plan

If you’re really planning to use Seeking Alpha as a way to evaluate your portfolio, research stocks, and learn (and interact) with investment industry experts, then you’ll probably want to sign up with the Premium Plan

The Premium Plan offers the following features:

  • Gain exclusive & unlimited access to expert articles
  • Brainstorm your next stock picks with investment professionals 
  • Accurate and reliable stock recommendations (from both authors and Seeking Alpha’s quantitative analysis)
  • Customize and compare your stock performance against a peer’s performance 
  • Track and learn more about your personal portfolio’s allocation and performance

The list really does keep going, but you get my point. 

The Premium Seeking Alpha plan offers a lot of benefits, and that’s the plan that I’m using myself right now.

fiona smith the millennial money woman

The Bottom Line:

What I really like about Seeking Alpha is that this investment research platform truly is a democratized platform that shares quality ideas and insights from industry experts.

Now I’d like to hear from you:

What are your thoughts on Seeking Alpha?

Would you consider opening an account with this platform?

Let me know in the comments section below.

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