How to Get Stock Quotes in Excel

Open Microsoft Excel. First, select 'Start' from the main operating system menu. Next, choose 'Programs.' Then, click on 'Microsoft Office' in the programs menu. Finally, select 'Microsoft Excel' from the Microsoft Office menu.
Click on the 'Data' menu from the Microsoft Excel main menu screen. Then, choose 'Get External Data' from the data menu. A dialog box will appear with a list of established data sources. Finally, choose the data source labeled 'Investor Stock Quotes.'
Select the cell in the spreadsheet for the stock quote information input or choose the 'Create New Worksheet' option to place the stock quote in a new worksheet. After selecting either option, select 'OK' from the dialog box.
Type the stock ticker symbol into the next Microsoft Excel dialog box. If the user wants to update the stock quote in the future, choose 'Use this value/reference for future refreshes.' Also check the second check box if you would like the information to refresh on its own.
Save the Microsoft Excel file for future use. Select 'Save' from the main file menu, name the file and choose the appropriate place on the computer hard drive to save it.

How to Lift Restrictions on a Stock Certificate

Contact your brokerage firm and request the paperwork required to remove the restrictive legend on your stock certificate.
Confirm with your brokerage firm that it will send you, at a minimum, the Rule 144 Seller's Representation Letter, the SEC Form 144 and a Stock Power form. Your firm may also require additional forms.
Determine whether your status is 'affiliate' or 'non-affiliate' of the company and complete the Seller's Representation letter accordingly.
Contact your company or your company's transfer agent to obtain the appropriate IRS Identification Number and SEC File Number. You will need this information in order to complete the SEC Form 144.
Complete and sign your brokerage firm's Irrevocable Stock Power form. This form allows your broker to negotiate the certificate on your behalf, but it does not give your broker ownership of the shares.
Make and keep a copy of your completed forms and your stock certificate.
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Contact your brokerage firm upon its receipt of your package and ensure you completed all forms correctly. If it sees a problem, you can likely correct it without its having to mail back the entire package.
Follow up with the issuer's transfer agent if the restriction on your certificate has not been removed within six weeks of your sending in your paperwork. Your broker must depend on the transfer agent to complete this step.

How to Hypothecate Common Stock

Apply with a brokerage firm to open a margin account. Because you will have borrowing privileges, this is like opening other credit accounts. You'll need a good credit score and a statement of your net worth and income. Under federal regulations, if you work for a firm that handles securities, you must also have your employer's written permission.
Read the hypothecation agreement carefully before you sign it. Under federal law and New York Stock Exchange rules, your broker must require that you put up a minimum amount (called the margin requirement) anytime you borrow money for a transaction and keep a minimum equity (called the maintenance requirement) while holding any margined security. However, brokers are free to impose stricter standards, so don't assume the hypothecation agreement requires only the legal minimums. Sign the hypothecation agreement once you understand the terms.
Deposit the required cash minimum to complete opening your margin account. Typically initial deposits must be two to three times as large as those required for regular cash brokerage accounts, and as much as 10 times more than that for day trading accounts. For example, if the minimum for a cash account is $1000, expect a margin account minimum to be around $2500, and $25,000 for day trading.
Understand your obligations when you hypothecate common stock. You are agreeing that any common stock or other cash and securities in the account are collateral for the money you borrow. If the market goes against you, you will get a margin call from your broker. At that point you must add enough cash to the account to bring it up to margin requirements or your broker is required to sell any securities in the account needed to recover the money you have borrowed.

How to Find Dow Jones Stock Market Historical Prices and Charts

Access Yahoo! Finance (see Resources). Enter the date you want to check. For example, if you enter 03/04/1965, you will see that on March 4, 1967, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was 846.60. Notice that Yahoo! Finance offers a range of dates so if you pick a wide range of dates for Dow Jones historical pricing, click on 'last' to get to the first day of your range. If you are familiar with using a financial calculator, you can use the Time Value of Money feature to determine the annualized rate of return between a date in the past and today's Dow Jones Stock Market price.
Access the StockCharts website if you prefer to see the Dow Jones historical pricing in chart form (see Resources). You will see a more visual representation of stock market price changes over the past century, particularly the enormous dip that occured during the Great Depression. Also, notice the major downward volatility in 1973-1974 and the crash in 1987. Again, in no way should you use chart to predict the future but it can certainly provide you a quick history lesson. When you see volatile periods, both good and bad, you may find it interesting to research the news headlines of those years.
Use these same websites for other historical information, such as historical individual stock prices. For example, on the Yahoo website, if you change the symbol to KO and enter the date 6/7/2000, you will see that Coca-Cola stock was priced at $53 per share at close of business on June 7, 2000. It will also show you a price adjusted for dividends and splits. While still on the same Yahoo page, click on 'Basic Chart' on the left-hand side to see a chart of Coca-Cola stock. You can adjust the chart from one day to beyond five years.
Use the historical information to make yourself a well-informed stock investor. This will, in turn, make you a more confident investor.