Daniel Brooks
Editor — Fundamentals, Risk & Psychology
Daniel covers the discipline side of trading for StockSetups — position sizing and risk, reading fundamentals alongside the chart, and the psychology that keeps a plan intact. He writes the getting-started guides.
Articles by Daniel Brooks (29)
The VIX Explained: How to Use the Fear Gauge to Time Swing Trades
The VIX (CBOE Volatility Index) measures market fear in real time. Learn how swing traders use VIX spikes, compression, and key level crossovers to time better trades.
How to Write a Trading Plan You'll Actually Follow
A written trading plan is the single most important tool for consistent, disciplined trading. Learn how to build one — and actually use it.
How to Read an Earnings Report (Without an MBA)
Earnings reports move stocks dramatically — but you don't need an MBA to decode them. Learn EPS beats, revenue misses, guidance, and how to trade around earnings season.
How to Build a Stock Watchlist That Actually Works
A well-built stock watchlist cuts through market noise and puts your best swing trading setups front and center. Here's exactly how to build and maintain one.
How to Trade Stock Setups: Entries, Stops, and Profit Targets
Learn how to plan a trade setup from entry to exit — including where to place your stop loss and how to use risk:reward to set realistic profit targets.
Support and Resistance: The Foundation of Technical Analysis
Learn how support and resistance levels work, how to find them, and how traders use price levels to time entries, exits, and breakout setups.
Stock Fundamentals 101: Reading the Numbers Behind a Ticker
Learn to read the key numbers behind any stock — market cap, EPS, P/E ratio, margins — and how fundamentals sharpen your trading decisions.
Trading Psychology: Mastering Fear, Greed, and Discipline
Your trading mindset often matters more than your strategy. Learn how to control fear, greed, and FOMO so emotions stop costing you money.
Risk Management for Traders: Position Sizing and Stop Losses
Master position sizing and stop losses to protect your trading capital. Learn the 1% rule, risk:reward ratios, and the math that separates surviving traders from those who blow up.
SEC Filings Explained: A Trader's Guide to Reading EDGAR
A plain-English map of the SEC filing system — the major form types, what each one is for, and the sentiment a trader can read from it.
Alternative Data: Congress, Insiders & Reddit as Trade Signals
Congressional disclosures, insider buys, institutional 13Fs, and Reddit buzz are now mainstream inputs. Here is what each one really tells you — and what it doesn't.
How to Track and Trade Congress Stock Trades
Congressional stock disclosures are public and free — but full of lag and caveats. Here is how to read a Periodic Transaction Report and use it without fooling yourself.
Reddit & WSB Sentiment: Trading the r/wallstreetbets Crowd
Reddit mention data measures attention, not edge. Here is how to read a WSB sentiment spike, when it fuels a move, when it marks a top, and how to use it safely.
SEC Form 4 Explained: Reading Insider Buying and Selling
Form 4 is where corporate insiders reveal their own trades within two days. Here is how to read the codes, separate real buys from option exercises, and weigh the signal.
13F Filings: How to Follow Hedge Funds and the Smart Money
13F filings reveal what big funds owned at quarter-end — but they land 45 days late and hide shorts. Here is how to read them as context, not a signal.
Schedule 13D vs 13G: Spotting Activist Investors Early
When an investor crosses 5% of a company, they must file — and whether it is a 13D or a 13G tells you if a fight is coming. Here is how to read both.
The 8-K Filing: Trading Around Material Corporate Events
The 8-K is the SEC's 'something just happened' report. Here is how to decode the item numbers and trade around the events that actually move price.
How to Use SEC EDGAR to Find Any Filing Fast
EDGAR is the free, official database of every SEC filing. Here is how to search it, read a filing index, and build a workflow for tracking the names you trade.
Forms 3, 4, and 5: The Insider Disclosure Trio Explained
Insider disclosure runs on three forms. Form 3 introduces an insider, Form 4 tracks their trades, and Form 5 cleans up the rest. Here is how to read all three.
How to Read a 10-K: The Annual Report Decoded
The 10-K is the deepest legal disclosure a company makes. Here is how to navigate its sections, what to read first, and the red flags that matter.
The 10-Q Filing: Reading Quarterly Reports for an Edge
The 10-Q is the quarterly check-in between annual reports. Here is what it covers, how it differs from the 10-K, and how to read the trend it reveals.
The S-1 Filing: How to Read an IPO Prospectus
The S-1 is the prospectus a company files to go public. Here is how to read it, what the lock-up means for traders, and how to approach a fresh IPO.
Form 144 and Insider Selling: Reading the Sell Signal
Form 144 is an insider's notice that they intend to sell. Here is how it differs from Form 4, why selling is noisy, and when it is actually worth your attention.
Insider Cluster Buys: When Several Insiders Buy at Once
One insider buying is interesting. Several buying at once is a story. Here is why cluster buys are the strongest insider signal — and how to use them.
10b5-1 Plans: Why Not All Insider Selling Is Bearish
Most insider selling is pre-scheduled under a 10b5-1 plan — automatic, and decided months in advance. Here is why that strips the signal, and how to spot it.
The DEF 14A Proxy Statement: Pay, Votes, and Red Flags
The proxy statement is where a company discloses how it is governed and how its executives are paid. Here is how to read a DEF 14A for alignment and red flags.
Shelf Offerings and Dilution: Reading S-3 Capital Raises
A shelf registration lets a company sell new stock later — and dilution can cap a rally. Here is how to spot an S-3, an ATM, and a secondary before they hit you.
Congressional Trading Trackers: Following the Most-Watched Members
Trackers turn STOCK Act disclosures into followable feeds of high-profile members. Here is what they actually show, the hype-vs-edge reality, and how to use them.
Short Interest and Short Squeezes: Reading the Setup
Short interest, days-to-cover, and float set the stage for a squeeze — but high short interest alone is not a trade. Here is how to read the setup properly.