If you work in finance or want to work in finance, you’ve probably heard of a Bloomberg terminal. This Bloomberg Beginner’s Guide tutorial will expose you to one of the industry’s most extensively utilized sources of real-time financial data. This article will provide an overview of using a Bloomberg terminal for new Bloomberg customers. If you’re a more experienced user or want to learn more about Bloomberg’s features after reading this tutorial, keep an eye out for the Advanced Guide to Bloomberg.

TAKEAWAYS

• For decades, financial professionals have relied on the Bloomberg Terminal for data and information.
• Subscribers can now download and install the Bloomberg software on their PC or Mac, which was previously only available on standalone terminals.
• Today’s terminal provides a plethora of information, including news and headlines, real-time quotes in various markets, fundamental and technical analysis tools, economic research, and more.

Access and Installation

There are two methods for getting started with Bloomberg. The first step is to sign up for Bloomberg’s service. The representative you interact with can then take down the details of what you’re searching for and put you in touch with a sales team member. Each user’s pricing and contract terms are unique and will be discussed when the sales staff contacts you.

However, keep in mind that Bloomberg is a costly system, and owning your terminal may not be feasible for all users. If you prefer to subscribe to your service, Bloomberg can assist you with installing the software over the phone or by coming out to your location. While the software may be installed on most PCs or Macs, you will be provided with a unique keyboard to help you navigate the system.

Finding a public venue with a Bloomberg terminal is the second way to access Bloomberg. One may be found at many more extensive libraries and institutions, so that’s a good place to start looking. You won’t be able to modify the system and will have to share it with other users as a result of this method. However, the cost savings over purchasing a single subscription to the system for many customers may outweigh the disadvantages.

After you’ve gained access to the system, the following step is to learn how to use it. Scheduling a visit from a Bloomberg customer service specialist or calling customer service for assistance is a smart place to start. Bloomberg is known for its excellent technical support, and a representative should be able to get you up and running with the terminal quickly.

Analysis

Bloomberg can be used to evaluate a security’s price history and trading patterns and look at descriptive information or financial fundamentals. Users can obtain a price history for whatever security they’re looking at by typing into the system, and typing will show a simple graph of that price history.

Bloomberg provides an advanced range of charting features for users interested in more advanced technical analysis. Relative strength indicators (RSI), Bollinger Bands®, intraday price and volume charts, candlestick charts, and comparative charts displaying numerous stocks are just a few available tools. Below is an example of a simple price and volume chart for Microsoft shares.

Bloomberg also makes it simple to keep up with company news. Bloomberg, for example, provides company-specific news in addition to the main news stories mentioned. For instance, once you’ve found security (say, Microsoft stock), you may type it into Bloomberg to see a scrolling list of the most recent news headlines about that security. You may then read the whole story by clicking on any headlines. Earnings estimates (Bloomberg ticker EE), analyst recommendations (Bloomberg ticker ANR), and credit ratings are among the other security-specific information available on Bloomberg (Bloomberg ticker CRPR).

Equities

Bloomberg allows users to search for publicly traded equities shares by name, exchange, country, and other criteria. In addition, the equity menu enables users to check historical stock pricing (as seen below), read a business description, see any outstanding corporate debt the company may have, and view analyst reports and estimates for the stock, among other things

Clients can also compare and contrast equities side by side, providing a comparative examination of any two equities. Fundamental analysis, historical ratios, and technical charting are comparison disciplines. In addition to comparison functionality, Bloomberg offers screeners, which allow users to search for stocks based on various criteria. Users can filter results and build unique stock sets after running a screen, allowing for easy access to real-time results for a portfolio of equities (very handy for traders, brokers, and other financial professionals).

Exchange Rates

Bloomberg is the appropriate instrument for FX participants because the FX market is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Users can see real-time rates for dozens of currencies and basis curves for most pairs, and rate information for a specific currency. Additionally, Bloomberg’s FX capabilities are a handy tool for people trading in the foreign currency market due to its capacity to catch real-time news and economic updates.

Helpful Hints

Because Bloomberg offers such a comprehensive set of analytics and market capabilities, getting the system to perform what you want it to do can be tricky until you get to know it. Fortunately, some techniques can help you learn faster.

Use the feature: Bloomberg offers excellent customer service; take advantage of it by pressing the key whenever you require assistance. Remember that pressing the button once describes the feature you’re using; pressing it twice sends an instant message to customer service.

Arrange for a Bloomberg representative to come to your office: You should take advantage of a visit from a Bloomberg person who can walk you through the system and teach you how to use some of the services that can be useful for what you intend to accomplish, especially if you have your system.

Integrate Excel with Bloomberg: Because Bloomberg and Excel work well together, you may utilize spreadsheets to examine data downloaded from Bloomberg. You may create a spreadsheet that automatically updates your data each time you access it, saving you the time and effort of doing it manually. Best of all, Bloomberg provides sample spreadsheets for widespread forms of analysis (for example, tracking stock price fluctuations or evaluating corporate balance sheets), saving you the time and effort of creating your own.