Stock Rover vs. Seeking Alpha

Active investors need a way to find growth and value opportunities in the market. Two of the best platforms for identifying strong stocks to buy are Stock Rover and Seeking Alpha.

Both platforms provide in-depth stock screeners, stock research, and portfolio management tools. However, there are important differences in how stock analysis is approached that can make one better for certain types of investors than the other.

In our Stock Rover vs Seeking Alpha comparison, we'll help you decide which of these stock research platforms is best for you.

About Stock Rover and Search for Alpha

Stock Rover launched in 2012 and has steadily offered more stock research and analysis features over the past decade. It is known to offer a wide range of pre-built financial metrics and scanners along with detailed stock research reports. The platform does not say how many investors use it.

Seeking Alpha was launched in 2004 and is now one of the largest online investing platforms, with over 20 million monthly users. The platform offers a range of screening tools, analytical articles written by professional contributors, and market data.

Similarity

Stock Rover and Seeking Alpha have a lot in common. Both are aimed at active investors whose investment horizons range from a few months to a few years. Both offer in-depth stock research, including detailed financial metrics and fundamental analysis. The two platforms also help investors find opportunities through comprehensive screening tools focused on financial performance, value, and growth.

However, the two platforms present their data in different ways and give investors access to different decision-making tools. Let's take a closer look.

Stock Rover vs. Seeking Alpha: Stock Research

Both systems give you access to highly detailed financial data for thousands of stocks. Not only can you view common ratios like price-to-earnings, but you can also get useful data for building custom valuation models like price-to-sales ratios and price-to-cash flow ratios. You can also access over 10 years of historical data from both platforms.

One thing to note is that Stock Rover calculates a fair value for each stock, while Seeking Alpha does not. Additionally, Stock Rover puts all of its data into PDF research reports, which can be great for investors who prefer reading about a stock rather than digging through spreadsheets. Seeking Alpha does not provide similar research reports.

Both platforms also evaluate stocks based on factors such as their growth, valuation, and profitability. Stock Rover assigns a rating of 0-100, while Seeking Alpha assigns an AF rating. You can easily compare stocks with peer companies from the same industry.

Contributor analysis

One of the most unique aspects of Seeking Alpha is that it allows shareholders to rate individual stocks. The platform has more than 7,000 contributors, many of whom are stock analysts, financial bloggers and hedge fund managers.

Contributor articles can take many different approaches to stock analysis. They may use different evaluation models, for example, or focus on aspects such as the company's moat. Typically, some articles will be bullish and some will be bearish, giving you competing opinions on the same stock.

Shareholder articles are great for investors who want to know everything about a company and analyze it from every angle. But it can also be overwhelming for investors who suffer from information overload. They also often require strong knowledge of evaluation modeling.

Stock Rover vs. Seeking Alpha: Stock Screening

Stock Rover and Seeking Alpha both provide premium stock screeners that include hundreds of financial, fundamental, and performance metrics. Investors will not find any of these screening tools lacking in filters and both are relatively easy to use.

One major difference to note is that Stock Rover has over 150 built-in screens, while Seeking Alpha has about 25. Of course, you can create and save your own custom screens using either platform.

List of top stocks

Seeking Alpha includes a top stocks list of about 50-75 stocks, which can be a useful tool for investors who want to pick stocks along with all the research tools. The list of top stocks is based on a quantitative model and ratings from Seeking Alpha contributors and Wall Street analysts.

Stock Rover doesn't have a similar list of stocks ready to research. However, it is relatively easy to create a custom screen based on analyst ratings and use it as a list of top-rated stocks.

Stock Rover vs. Seeking Alpha: ETFs and Mutual Funds

Both Stock Rover and Seeking Alpha cover ETFs as well as stocks. Seeking Alpha has a dedicated screener for ETFs, while Stock Rover uses the same screener for stocks and ETFs.

Stock Rover also has data for more than 40,000 mutual funds, including Morningstar ratings. Seeking Alpha does not have any data for mutual funds.

Stock Rover vs. Seeking Alpha: Portfolio Management

Stock Rover offers comprehensive portfolio management tools for investors. You can monitor the risk-adjusted return of your portfolio, perform correlation analysis, and calculate trades to rebalance your portfolio. Stock Rover also has a nifty simulator that lets you predict your future return under different scenarios and analyze the impact of any individual trade on your overall performance.

Seeking Alpha allows you to create portfolios, but they are much more limited in scope. Essentially, you get a dashboard to view ratings and key financials for the stocks in your portfolio at a glance. You cannot monitor performance or analyze correlations.

Stock Rover vs. Seeking Alpha: Price Comparison

Both Stock Rover and Seeking Alpha offer a limited free plan that provides access to basic stock data, but little to nothing else.

Stock Rover's paid plans start at $79.99 per year, but note that you'll need the Premium Plus plan for $279.99 per year to get ETF and mutual fund data as well as stock ratings.

Search Alpha Premium costs $239 per year and includes full access to the platform.

What is the best service?

Stock Rover and Seeking Alpha are both excellent stock research platforms. It's hard to go wrong with either.

However, they have slightly different strengths.

Stock Rover is the best choice if you want stock research reports, fair value analysis, or portfolio management tools. It is also better for investors who invest in mutual funds along with stocks and ETFs. Stock Rover can also be a good option for investors who just want a comprehensive checkup of stocks and don't want to pay for the more expensive Seeking Alpha subscription.

Searching for Alpha is the best option if you want to know everything there is to know about a stock. Contributor articles are a truly unique selling point for this platform, but they take time and focus. Seeking Alpha can also be useful for investors who want a combination of stock picks and research, thanks to our list of top stocks.

Alternatives to Stock Rover and Seeking Alpha

Some investors may prefer a platform that leans more toward providing stock recommendations than research. In this case, the Zacks Premium could be a good choice. While Zacks has plenty of stock research available, investors have the option to follow the stock picks in its #1 ranked list. Zacks Premium costs $249 per year.

Another option is the Motley Fool's Stock Advisor newsletter. This is a stock recommendation newsletter offering two long-term growth stock picks each month. The newsletter has outperformed the S&P 500 by 466% to 125% since its inception in 2002 (as of October 2023). A stock advisor is very easy to follow and requires almost no research time, which can be a huge advantage for time-strapped investors. The service costs $199 per year.

Conclusion: Stock Rover vs. Seeking Alpha

Stock Rover and Seeking Alpha both offer in-depth inventory research and comprehensive inventory scanners. Stock Rover features mutual fund data, portfolio management tools, and research reports. Seeking Alpha is distinguished by its contributed articles and top stocks list.

Want to learn more about these two services before you decide which one to use? Check out our full Stock Rover review and our full Seeking Alpha review for more details.