What Are the Duties of a Stock Broker?
The primary duty of a stock broker is buying and selling securities and shares on behalf of his clients. However, these professionals can buy or sell shares or securities only if their clients i.e. the investors order them to do so. Read on to know more about the duties of stock brokers.
Like any other broker or agent, the brokerage is the only source of income for stockbrokers. Usually, a stockbroker gets the brokerage only after the transaction is made. They receive this money for following their client's orders. However, their duties include more than just executing those orders. To achieve maximum success, stockbrokers need to guide their clients about different investment strategies that can bring them hefty returns. In addition, they must be aware of all minor and major financial news, market situations and market trends. A stock broker should perform thorough stock research at regular intervals and revise his strategies in accordance with the existing conditions.
If you want to reach the zenith as a stockbroker, your will not only need to keep a close eye on the events in your country's stock market, but will also need to know what's happening in the international stock markets. This is because your country's market trends can be influenced significantly by the events taking place in the stock market of another country.
The next duty of these agents in informing their clients about market fluctuations, sudden changes occurring in the market and various other risks. As a stockbroker, you may need to serve a range of client, for instance local or retail clients, institutional clients, corporate clients etc. To make sure that you offer the best services to all kinds of investors, you must gather thorough knowledge about their respective needs.
Another major duty of stock brokers is portfolio management. In other words, these professionals need to manage the portfolio of their clients to bring in more profits. As a stockbroker, you have the right to suggest your client to add some particular shares in his portfolio. However, before offering such suggestions, you must consider your client's ability of taking risk. If you are dealing with someone who is rich and has several years of experience of dealing with shares, you can recommend inclusion of volatile and aggressive stocks for maximizing profits. For small or retail investors, on the other hand, you should not look beyond defensive stocks; these stocks possess the ability of outperforming the market and are thus considered zero-risk stocks.