Bonds 101 Starter Guide - Wall Street Survivor

Bonds are a relatively safe and conservative investment that provide a predictable stream of stable income.

Build your wealth faster with best stock picks: See our new June 29, 2025 ranking of the Best Stock Newsletters.

The Best Stock Newsletters as of June 29, 2025

Ranking of Top Stock Newsletters Based on Last 3 Years of Stock Picks

We are paid subscribers to dozens of stock newsletters. We actively track every recommendation from all of these services, calculate performance, and share the results of the top performing stock newsletters whose subscriptions fees are under $500. The main metric to look for is "Excess Return" which is their return above that of the S&P500. So, based on last 3 years ending June 29, 2025:

Rank	Stock Newsletter	Stock Picks	Average Return	Excess Return	Percent Profitable	Max % Return
1.	Alpha Picks	76	63%	40%	73%	969%
	Summary: 2 picks/month based on Seeking Alpha's Quant Rating; Retail Price is $499/yr. See details in our Alpha Picks Review.			July, 2025 Promotion: Save $50
2.	Moby.co	308	43.3%	12.3%	74%	1764%
	Summary: 60-150 stock picks per year, segmented by industry; Retail Price is $199/yr. Read our Moby Review.			July, 2025 Promotion:Next pick free!
3.	Stock Advisor	72	41.2%	6.9%	78%	258%
	Summary: 2 picks/month and 2 Best Buy Stocks lists focusing on high growth potential stocks over 5 years; Retail Price is $199/yr. Read our Motley Fool Review.			July, 2025 Promotion: Get $100 Off
4.	Value Investor	39	17.5%	6.1%	38%	410%
	Summary: 10-25 stock picks per year based on Zacks' Quant Rating; Retail Price is $495/yr. Read our Zacks Review.			July, 2025 PROMOTION:$1, then $495/yr
5.	Rule Breakers	66	40.0%	4.7%	61%	311%
	Summary: 2 picks/month focusing on disruptive technology and business models; Lifetime average return of 355% vs S&P500's 149% since 2005; Now part of Motley Fool Epic. Read our Motley Fool Epic Review.			Current Promotion: Save $200
6.	TipRanks SmartInvestor	121	10.6%	3.7%	55%	340%
	Summary: About 1 pick/week focusing on short term trades; Lifetime average return of 355% vs S&P500's 149% since 2015. Retail Price is $379/yr. Read our TipRanks Review.			Current Promotion: Save $180
7.	Action Alerts Plus	394	20.0%	3.4%	57%	220%
	Summary: 100-150 trades per year, lots of buying and selling and short term trades. Read our Jim Cramer Review.			Current Promotion: None
8.	Stock Advisor Canada	36	32.3%	0.5%	69%	378%
	Summary: 1 pick/month from the Toronto stock exchange; Retail Price is CD$199/yr. Read our Motley Fool Canada Stock Advisor Review.			July, 2025 Promotion: Save $100
Top Ranking Stock Newsletters based on their last 3 years of stock picks' performance through May 31, 2025 as compared to S&P500. S&P500's return is based on average return of S&P500 from date each stock pick is released. NOTE: To get these results you must buy equal dollar amounts of each pick on the date the stock pick is released. Investor Business Daily Top 50 based on performance of FFTY ETF.

BONDS STARTER GUIDE ARTICLES
	What Is A Bond? How Do Bonds Work?
Bonds are seldom as sexy as those wild-ride shares, but they’re reliable money-makers. Learn about bonds and how to match them to your personal investing style.
	How To Buy Bonds?
Bonds may be lower risk, but they are not risk-free. You should research bonds just as you would stocks before purchasing them. Learn how and where to buy bonds.
	The Bond Market
The bond market is where participants can issue new debt or buy and sell debt securities to provide long-term funding for public and private expenditures
	Bond Index
A bond index is a method of measuring the value of a section of the bond market. Investors use it to describe the market and compare the return on investments
	Bond Quotes
A bond quote is the price at which a bond is trading. It’s expressed as a percentage of par value. A bond quote above 100 means the bond is trading above par.
	Bond Rates, Yields And Pricing
Many new investors are surprised to learn that a bond’s price fluctuates and changes on a daily basis, just like that of any other publicly-traded security.
	Bond Calculators
A bond calculator measures the present value of a bond’s cash flow (its future interest payments), and par value (the bond’s value upon maturity).
	Bond Premiums
A bond selling at premium is trading above its par value. It’s considered premium when it offers a coupon rate higher than its prevailing interest rates
	Bond Ratings
Think of a bond rating as a school report card. Companies have ranking for bonds based on the likelihood of the bond defaulting on its invested amount
	Bond Valuation
Bond valuation is a technique for determining the fair price of a bond. The theoretical fair value is the present value of the stream of cash flows it’s expected to generate.
	Bond Insurance
Bond insurance is when an insurance company guarantees scheduled payments of interest and principal on a bond in the event of a payment default by the issuer
	Savings Bonds
Savings bonds, one of the safest investments, are debt securities issued by the U.S. Department of the Treasury to pay for the government’s borrowing needs.
	Municipal Bonds
Municipal bonds are issued by states, cities, or other local governments to raise money to fund services or infrastructure projects (road repair, sewers, purchasing land, etc.).
	Corporate Bonds
Corporate bonds are a major source of capital for many businesses along with equity and bank loans/lines of credit. They can be quite secure or sometimes risky
	Treasury Bonds
There’s no such thing as a risk-free investment, but if there was it’d be treasury bonds. Interest is paid semi-annually and taxed only at the federal level.
	Bond Funds
A bond fund invests in bonds or debt securities. It pays dividends including interest on the fund’s underlying securities plus realized capital appreciation.