The Best Ways To Use the Apple Stocks App To Build Your Best Portfolio
Written by
G. Brian Davis
Edited by
Jenna Klaverweiden
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The Apple Stocks app comes preinstalled on iPhones and Macs, making it a perfect starting point for beginner investors.
Try these strategies recommended by experts to build and monitor your best portfolio with Apple Stocks.
Also see six must-have personal finance apps that you can only get on the Apple Store.
Simple Research and Reporting
The app’s simple, uncluttered interface makes it easy to find and follow the latest on stocks, funds and market news.
“Apple’s Stocks app is quite advanced as a research and tracking tool,” noted Ilir Salihi, founder and senior editor at IncomeInsider.org. “It particularly stands out by packaging it all in an accessible interface that cleanly aggregates market information.”
Start by looking up a few diverse, low-cost index funds, like the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY) and the Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (VTI). From there, you can start digging into research on individual stocks to add more precision to your portfolio.
Seamless Integration Across Devices
The greatest advantage of Apple Stocks is its integration across your Apple devices. When you create watchlists, for example, the updates appear on all your devices. Likewise, you can ask Siri questions from any device about your favorite funds or stocks.
Technology expert Nikolay Petrov of ZontSound loves the convenience of Apple Stocks. “It’s built into the operating system, so you get real-time price tracking, watchlist synchronization across devices, Siri integration for quick questions and a news feed pulled directly from Apple News,” Petrov said.
Watchlist and Monitoring
Apple Stocks excels at news and stock monitoring. You can set price movement alerts to go off or updates to appear on your lock screen as news hits the wire.
“The app combines market data with contextual news without advertising or hype, which helps for faster decisions,” Petrov said. “For example, I can set alerts for stocks in my watchlist moving 3% or more. In that case, I’ll get an alert on my iPhone, Mac and Apple Watch letting me check other related news without opening another app or being bombarded with brokerage messaging.”
Companion Tracking Tool
Apple Stocks makes for an outstanding research and tracking tool. But it’s not a brokerage platform, and you can’t buy or sell stocks on it. Nor is it a robo-advisor; it can’t propose a customized portfolio for you.
It falls to you to design your own best portfolio, which you can then monitor with Apple Stocks. “Its real value is as a starting point for investment education and market awareness,” Salihi explained. “You can access quality financial journalism and create watchlists to see how market news impacts stock prices. With time, this can help you build investing knowledge that will serve you well as a self-directed investor.”
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