How to Get Stock Recommendations

Finding the best stocks to buy right now is one of the most challenging parts of investing. It’s hard to know which companies will outperform the market, and your portfolio could suffer if you choose poorly.

The good news is that there are many services available to offer stock recommendations. Some of these services have better track records than others, and it’s important to make sure that the service you choose aligns with your investing goals.

In this guide, we’ll explain how to get stock recommendations and highlight three of the best services to use today.

Stock Recommendations: Advice vs. Research Tools

The first step to getting stock recommendations is to decide whether you want a stock advice service or a stock research platform. 

Stock advice services, also known as stock picking services, recommend a few specific stocks to buy. You don’t need to do any research of your own—you can simply follow along with a model portfolio and buy the companies that are recommended.

Stock research services, on the other hand, offer lists of recommended stocks that are worth investigating further, then leave it up to you to decide which ones to buy. These platforms include analysis tools to help you decide which stocks have the most potential or the best risk-return profile.

These two types of services are very different and they appeal to different types of investors. 

Stock advice services are very easy to use and don’t require much effort, but you also may not know all that much about what you’re buying. When using a stock picking service, it’s extremely important to choose a service that matches your investing goals and has a proven track record of beating the market.

Stock research platforms require more time and a deeper understanding of stock analysis. However, they also provide more freedom to build a portfolio that’s fully tailored to your investing goals and risk tolerance. These platforms are likely to be more appealing if you enjoy the process of picking stocks and want to be able to clearly articulate why you own each stock in your portfolio.

Best Stock Recommendation Services

Keeping the distinction between stock advice services and stock research platforms in mind, let’s take a look at the three best stock recommendation services to use today.

Best for Long-Term Stock Picks – Motley Fool Stock Advisor

The Motley Fool’s Stock Advisor service is a stock picking service that delivers two ready-to-buy stock recommendations every month. It has a truly incredible performance record, beating the S&P 500 651% to 151% from when the service launched in 2002 to March 2024.

Stock Advisor focuses on explosive growth stocks. Examples of past picks include stocks like Amazon, Tesla, and Netflix. While the service doesn’t limit itself to tech stocks, the vast majority of picks are in the tech sector.

Importantly, this service is built for long-term investors. You’re expected to hold onto stock picks for a minimum of five years and potentially much longer. There are several picks in the Stock Advisor portfolio that have been there for more than 20 years.

Another great thing about Stock Advisor is that the service maintains a “Best Buy Now” list of stocks that are already in the portfolio, but that would be good to double-down on if you have some extra cash to invest. This list makes it easy to jump into building a diversified portfolio without waiting for a few months’ worth of new stock picks to be announced.

Key Features:

• Two new stock picks every month
• Focuses on long-term growth stocks
• Each pick includes an explanation of why it’s worth investing in
• Best Buy Now list offers ideas for what to buy between new picks

Pricing: $199 per year

Best for Medium-Term Stock Picks – Alpha Picks

Alpha Picks is a stock advice service from Seeking Alpha that works similarly to Stock Advisor, offering two new stock picks each month.

A major difference is that whereas Stock Advisor focuses on long-term growth stocks, Alpha Picks focuses on momentum stocks that are outperforming peers in their respective sectors. Alpha Picks tends to recommend stocks from a wider range of market sectors, which can be beneficial for building a more diverse portfolio. 

In addition, Alpha Picks aims for an investment timeframe of around one year. So, it can be a better option for active investors than Stock Advisor.

Alpha Picks also rates all of the picks in the portfolio as Strong Buy, Buy, or Hold. So, if you have extra cash to invest in between new recommendations, you can simply choose one of the Strong Buy-rated picks.

Alpha Picks launched in July 2022 and has beaten the S&P 500 130% to 34.5% as of March 2024. While the service’s track record is somewhat short, these early results are promising. 

Key Features:

• Two new stock picks every month
• Focuses on momentum stocks with a one-year investment horizon
• Invests in a wide range of market sectors
• Rates Strong Buy stocks already in the portfolio

Pricing: $199 per year

Best for Self-Directed Research – Seeking Alpha Premium

Seeking Alpha is our top pick for stock research platforms. This service offers a range of tools to help you decide what stocks to buy, including in-depth financial analysis, a stock screener, and more.

One of the best ways to get started with Seeking Alpha Premium is to check out the platform’s Top Stocks list, which contains around 30 stock recommendations for you to research further.

Seeking Alpha assigns several scores to each stock based on an algorithm, Wall Street analyst price forecasts, and Seeking Alpha contributor ratings. It also scores companies based on their valuation, growth potential, and profitability. You can screen stocks based on any of these ratings, which makes it easy to find potentially market-beating stocks quickly.

If you want to dive deeper into researching individual stocks, Seeking Alpha helps you compare companies against their peers and provides a detailed look at their inner financial workings. Plus, you can read articles from professional stock analysts to learn more about why they recommend buying a stock or not.

Key Features:

• Top stocks list based on multiple ratings
• Huge range of financial metrics
• Stock screener to help you quickly find promising stocks
• Analysis articles from professional investors

Pricing: $239 per year

FAQ

Can I get free stock recommendations?

There are several services that offer free stock recommendations. For example, Zacks offers access to a small subset of its top-rated stocks each day. However, always approach free stock recommendations carefully. Most top stock picking services and stock research platforms require a paid subscription.

Are stock picking services worth it?

Stock picking services can be worth the subscription cost if they perform well. Look for services that have a long track record of outperforming the market. In addition, keep in mind that these services provide more value the larger your portfolio is. That is, a $200 annual subscription fee represents a 10% fee for a $2,000 portfolio, but only a 1% fee for a $20,000 portfolio. 

How can I use top stock lists?

Lists of top stocks, like the one offered by Seeking Alpha Premium, aren’t designed to be recommendations for stocks you should buy immediately. Instead, they highlight stocks that could be good picks and that you should research in more detail. Use these lists to find companies you’re interested in, then do additional research to decide if a stock is worth buying.