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Top 25 Traders On Twitter

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April 13, 2012 59 comments

Twitter is a fantastic place to find trade ideas and check what’s happening in the markets.  The problem is, there is a lot of noise and a lot of spammers.  So how do you separate the wheat from the chaff?  It was no easy task, but I’ve separated the top 25 traders who provide the best advice, insights and articles.  The order is put together through a combination of frequency of posting, total followers and the usefulness of their tweets. If you think I’ve missed any exceptional traders off the list, please let me know in the comments at the bottom.  You can follow this list of traders by following the list I set up on Twitter.

1 – Howard Lindzon – 222,468 Followers – @howardlindzon

The Grand Daddy of them all.  A rock star entrepreneur, Howard Lindzon has crushed everything in his wake, and seemingly anything he touches turns to gold. He is perhaps best know as the CEO and Co-founder of Stocktwits, which was ranked as one of the top 50 websites of 2010 by TIME magazine.  If that isn’t enough, he has also managed a hedge fund since June 1998 and is a GP of Social Leverage. In October 2006, he created Wallstrip, a daily business satire news video podcast that was bought out by CBS in May 2007.  He has also authored two books, The Wallstrip Edge and The StockTwits Edge and made seed investments in numerous successful online ventures.

Howard Lindzon Twitter

2 – Brian Shannon – 43,718 Followers – @alphatrends

Unlucky not to get the number 1 spot.  Brian is someone I have admired and followed for a long time, even before I started using twitter.  AlphaTrends.net just celebrated it’s 6th year and in that time Brian has helped countless traders.  Brian is by far and away THE BEST technical analyst on the web and is the author of Technical Analysis in Multiple Timeframes.  He provides a free market update video once or twice per week which is one I try and watch every time. His YouTube channel has over 3 million views and 9,600 Subscribers. Despite his rather hideous twitter background (sorry Brian), he is a must follow for every trader.

Brian Shannon Twitter

3 – Paul Kedrosky – 208,692 Followers – @pkedrosky

Rounding out the top 3 is Dr. Paul Kedrosky.  With a Ph.D. from the University of Western Ontario,  an M.B.A. from Queen’s University, and a B. Engineering from Carleton University, you know this is one smart guy.  His is the author of Infectious Greed, one of the most popular business blogs and he has also been featured in the Wall Street Journal, the Economist, Harvard Business Review, CNN, PBS Newshour, ABC Nightline, and the New York Times, CNBC, and Bloomberg.  Dr, Kedrosky is a Senior Fellow at the Kauffman Foundation and is has been very successful as a seed investor in numerous ventures.  Paul is the most active on the list with nearly 55,000 tweets.

Paul Kedrosky Twitter

4 – Steve Grasso  – 12,101 Followers – @grassosteve

Steve Grasso started his career in 1993 with Bear Sterns working on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange.  In 1999 he then move to Stuart Frankel & Co. where he is currently the Director of International Sales.  Steve is very active on twitter and posts market commentary numerous times throughout the day.  A well known and popular personality on the NYSE floor, this CNBC Fast Money regular also stars in the hit AMC show Mad Men in his spare time (see picture). Out of this list probably the person I would most like to meet as he just seems like a bit of a dude.

Steve Grasso Twitter

5 – ChessNwine – 7,100 Followers – @chessNwine

ChessNwine is a full time trader and market commentator who is very active on twitter and on his ibankcoin blog.  With his insightful market commentary and daily video analysis, it’s not hard to see why he has a very loyal following.  Out of his 29 reviews on Investimonials, 24 of those are 5 star which says a lot.

Chess n Wine Twitter

6 – J.C. Parets – 2,858 Followers – @allstarcharts

J.C. Parets is a Miami native now based in New York who manages money for high net-worth investors, corporations, retirement plans and charitable foundations. He is a Chartered Market Technician and is one of the best technical analysts going around. J.C. Started his All Star Charts blog in March 2011.  He’s a big baseball fan and was apparently a pretty mean pitcher in his day.

JC Parets Twitter

7 – Focus on Risk – 7,077 Followers – @FOCUS_ON_RISK

Ryan Baird is professional derivative trader who is hugely popular on twitter and provides loads of market commentary and advice. What I like best about Ryan are the tips he gives under the hash tag #complacencykills.  He’s big into his music and is a super smart guy with interests ranging from economics to psychology, philosophy, astronomy, minimalism, and nutrition.  What I like best about Ryan are the tips he gives under the hash tag #complacencykills.  Here are some pearls of wisdom from Ryan:

         Only those who have the patience to do simple things perfectly will acquire the skill to do difficult things easily.

         What is defeat? Nothing but education; nothing but the first step to something better.

Ryan Baird Twitter

8 – Downtown Josh Brown – 21,058 Followers – @reformedbroker

Josh Brown is a New York based investment advisor with Fusion Analytics.  He runs The Reformed Broker blog, an entertaining read with regular market commentary and political and economic satire.  Josh authored the book, Backstage Wall Street, and is also a regular contributor to Forbes, CNNMoney, Fortune and CNBC. He also created Things Apple is Worth More Than, which started as a joke but then went viral.  You should definitely check out his Best of The Reformed Broker page, I particularly enjoyed this post, just shows what you can accomplish with a little motivation.

Reformed Broker Twitter

9 – Greg Harmon – 6,474 Followers – @harmongreg

Greg Harmon is the founder of Dragonfly Capital and with 30 years’ experience in the markets, you can be sure he knows what he’s talking about.  If that wasn’t enough to convince you, he also has an MBA in Finance from NYU Stern School of Business and BS in Mechanical Engineering from Cornell University as well as being a CMT and a CFA.  Wow!  He has held senior positions including Head of Global Trading, Head of Product Development, Head of Strategy and Director of Equity and Portfolio Swaps Trading at Chase Manhattan, State Street Corporation and BNP Paribas. Greg is hugely active on Twitter with almost 40,000 tweets and often posts dozens of chart reviews on for weekend readers.

Greg Harmon Twitter

10 – Barry Ritholtz – 19,610 Followers – @ritholtz

Barry Ritholtz started The Picture Blog in 2003 and has developed a huge following since and earned rave reviews from the financial media.  His tweets contain a variety of witty, sarcastic and extremely educational information and he has a knack for simplifying complex ideas so that the average Joe can understand them.  A great person to follow if you want to see through all the noise and get a big picture view.  Leads the pack in terms of his analysis, instead of just following the latest trend like most others.  Barry is the author of Bailout Nation: How Greed and Easy Money Corrupted Wall Street and Shook the World Economy. With nearly 20,000 followers and 18,000 tweets he a great trader to round out the top 10.

Barry Ritholtz

11 – Darren Miller – 4,613 Followers – @attitrade

A former psychologist who is now helping traders succeed in the markets through the use of psychometrics and applying the Market Awareness Profile he developed.  This process asks traders, questions like, “Where are you now?”, “Where do you want to be?” and “How are you going to get there?”.  Darren is also a trader himself who focusses on options selling strategies, particularly in SPX.

Darren Miller Twitter
12 – Anne Marie – 9,031 Followers – @AnneMarieTrades

Another fantastic trader with years of experience and also the author of The Trading Book. Anne Marie provides excellent analysis of key support and resistance lines for the main indices and major stocks. The thing I lave about Anne Marie is that she keeps it real.  Here is an extract from her book.

                “Just tell me where to buy and sell.”  As both an educator and market moderator, I have discovered this is the most common mindset of the novice retail trader entering the market, lured by the promise of 1,000% returns. The truth is trading is a tough business…

Anne Marie Trading Book Twitter

13 – Kirk Du Plessis – 10,357 Followers – @optionalpha

Kirk from Option Alpha is one of the top bloggers in the options trading space and is someone I really admire.  He posts regularly articles on his blog, and while he tends to be more active on Facebook than on Twitter, he is definitely someone worth checking out.  He has come a long way since he founded The Option Writer back in 2008.  His insights have really helped me become a better trader.  Option Alpha is a one stop shop for all your option trading education with loads of great resources.  Don’t forget to check out his You Tube Channel which has over 180 videos that have had over 100,000 views.

Kirk Du Plessis Twitter

14 – Jim Cramer – 494,636 Followers – @jimcramer

Love him or hate him, he has to make it based on sheer weight of numbers with an incredible 494,636 followers.  Jim Cramer is the super famous host of CNBC’s Mad Money and the author of numerous books.  Jim initially made his mark as a hedge fund manager and boasted an impressive compounded rate of return of 24% after all fees for 15 years.  What you may not know about him however is that he is also a member of the New York Bar and attended Harvard Law School. Way to go Jim, boo yah!

Jim Cramer Twitter

15 – Peter Brandt – 7,168 Followers – @PeterLBrandt

Peter Brandt is a commodity trader with over 30 years experience.  Just think about that for a minute, and imagine how much you could learn from this guy.  He is a leader in the field of technical analysis and although his views are sometimes a little controversial, it’s hard to argue with his track record.  Peter focusing mostly on commodities, but also provides regular analysis of major indices and stocks.  He is the author of Diary of a Professional Commodity Trader and Trading Commodity Futures with Classical Chart Patterns. With a proprietary annual rate of return of 41.6%, this is one guy you should be learning as much as you can from.

Peter Brandt Twitter

16 – Pete Najarian – 24,574 Followers – @petenajarian

Pete Najarian is a regular on CNBC’s Fast Money, but in a prior life he was a linebacker for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Minnesota Vikings.  Along with his brother Jon, he founded OptionMONSTER and also the online brokerage firm TradeMONSTER. Sported a superb mullet back in the day. Out of all the traders on this list, probably the guy I would most want to have a beer with, I reckon he would have some entertaining stories.

Pete Najarian Twitter

17 – Derald Muniz – 3,299 Followers – @1nvestor

Derald Muniz is hugely active on twitter with over 33,000 tweets and an average of 34 tweets per day.  On his blog deraldmuniz.com he provides a lot of discussion on chart patterns of various stocks and trading methodologies.  Maintains a portfolio of his “Fab 5” which seems to perform very well.

Derald Muniz Twitter

18 – Vadar – 3,921 Followers – @vader7x

Full time futures, options and currency trader who provides regular posts with market insights and the occasional bit if humor.  Often trades the index futures after hours.  Avid sports fan who enjoys golf and college basketball. Like a lot of traders, he also loves to make fun of Doug Kass.

Vader Twitter

19 – Joey Fundora – 7,091 Followers – @downtowntrader

Joey Fundora has been a private trader for the last 8 years and is based in South Florida and is primarily an equities trader although he does trade some options, and his usual holding period is 1-5 days.  He like to use  9, 20 and 50 day simple moving averages to analyze stocks and doesn’t try to pick tops or bottoms.  He has a strong focus on risk management and likes to keep his open positions below 10 in order to keep a good handle on his portfolio. Joey is a bit of a card shark so watch out, he founded and hosts an annual poker tournament for charity in conjunction with Stocktwits.

Downtown Trader Twitter

20 – SMB Capital – 13,327 Followers – @smbcapital

Seth Freudberg and the gang at SMB are a great bunch. Most of them were trained under the ultimate guru, Dan Sheridan. SMB put out quality tweets and blog posts every day and have a number of unique options strategy courses that you can sign up for on their site.

SMB Capital Twitter

21 – Madison Montana – 2,926 Followers – @tlmontana

Madison Montana is hugely active on twitter and provides a lot of actionable market commentary.  She also regularly tweets out economic or market analysis articles that may be of interest to her followers. Madison runs a popular subscriber chat room MadiEyeOnSpy’s focusing on SPY levels as well as earnings stock setups and when viable longer swings  in stocks like GOOG, AMZN, LULU, GRPN and of course AAPL! She’s a BIG NY Rangers fan.

Madison Montana Twitter

22 – Andrew Keene – 10,601 Followers – @KeeneOnMarket

Andrew Keene is a well known personality on the street and a regular on CNBC and Bloomberg TV. He regularly posts options trading ideas and follows up on the trade management of those positions. He is an independent trader who at one point was the largest independent on the floor trader of AAPL options. Andrew operates a live trading room and also releases a very popular “Unusual Options Activity” report. He also posts a Daily Market Update on YouTube, check out an example here.

Keene on the Market Twitter

23 – Phil Pearlman – 10,409 Followers – @ppearlman

Phil Pearlman is the executive editor of StockTwits and an investor in the company.  In fact, he is good friends with Howard Lindzon and was one of the first investors in StockTwits.  Previously, he managed a long/short equity hedge fund which focused on behavioral strategies.   Phil earned a doctorate in clinical psychology from Argosy University and is another super smart guy, but also incredibly humble.  You will not see a bad word written about Phil anywhere.  He’s very active on twitter and seems to respond to every single person who asks him a question. Great guy.

Phil Perlman Twitter

24 – Bespoke – 12,609 Followers – @bespokeinvest

Bespoke Investment Group LLC was formed in May 2007 by Paul Hickey and Justin Walters. Bespoke provides some of the best economic and market commentary. Here’s what Paul Kedrosky, the number 3 trader on this list has to say:

“Bespoke’s insights have consistently surprised me and made me money, and there is no higher praise than that in the world of commericalized financial research.”

Bespoke Twitter

25 – Juan Doe – 2,958 Followers – @fibline

Who is Juan Doe? Nobody truly knows, and that just adds to the mystery of this pro trader.  He posts on average 756 times per day, but that’s ok, because he provides great analysis and gets you thinking.  Trades currencies as well as stocks.

Juan Doe Twitter

If you feel like I’ve missed anyone off this list, please leave a comment below and if you enjoyed this list, please share it on Facebook, Twitter and Google Plus.

 

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59 Comments
  1. Thanks for the nice list I would certainly add SMB guys:
    http://www.smbtraining.com/blog/
    @smbcapital 

    1. SUSAO says:

      no dont they just want to sell you stuff. as Fibline, u get emails selling you books classes and what not

  2. reformedbroker says:

    I am honored, thank you for the inclusion!

    Josh

  3. radu says:

    A must follow – IMHO – Fari Hamzei(Hamzei Analytics) , Raymond Anselmo (Riskcap.net)  & 50pips

    1. Thanks Radu, Fari was close to making the list but just missed out. 🙂

  4. Thanks for including me, much appreciated.

    1. No worries Joey, keep pumping out the quality info.

  5. Ryan Detrick says:

    Great list, I’m following all of them now.  Appreciate it.

    1. Cheers Ryan, glad you enjoyed it!

  6. Melanie Iglesias says:

    this is the goofiest list yet, except for 2. gmafb

  7. JuanTonSoup says:

    F*ck that. Brandt, FibLine & Ryan are the only 3 that belong in this list. Cheese & Wine made a horrible call on CAT last week, Howard posts retarded sh*t for attention, Josh Brow is depressed, TLTMontana is a fake account, Steve Grasso made a HORRRRRIBLE top call just a month ago, Phil Pearlman is on drugs, Greg Harmon isn’t half bad, Annie Marie, ok, she knows her sh*t. Brandt, however, is in a different class than all of you clowns. 

    1. Chess says:

      Thanks for reading 😉 I have no position in CAT, but was just pointing out that a pause at prior highs was to be expected. So far, the $100 level has held brilliantly and the weekly chart remains constructive. Here is the link to a post I wrote a few weeks back: http://ibankcoin.com/chessnwine/2012/03/28/update-on-the-kitty-cat/

      1. Pink says:

         Your a douche bag go back with the fly and post like young Soho hipster bloggers. You are guys are the biggest pussies in the world with your blog, you should head to Hollywood and join Perez Hilton.

        1. Chess says:

          @Pink: Thanks for reading 😉

  8. Travis says:

    You know how you can tell this list is garbage? There are 3 real options traders on Twitter that absolutely kill it and there not on here. Howard doesn’t even trade, Josh Brown belongs in Hollywood and Najarian? Come on. 

    1. Prakash5455 says:

      Can you please name best three option traders?

  9. Anytime, keep up the good work.

  10. Kobe says:

    Madison Montana ? Rofl ! Tracy is a joke, as is this list. How have you vetted phony traders ? Some others here dont trade at all.

  11. BWallace says:

    I have to admit that I’m new to twitter and when it first came out wasn’t really sure how useful it would be.  I couldn’t imagine how letting everyone know where you had dinner or what you thought of the latest Kardashian drama could really provide.  Yet, the more and more I see, the more I’m able to understand its utility.  The opportunity for anyone to be able to share their idea with as many like-minded people is such an amazing advancement.  Thus, when I saw the subject of your article, I was intrigued.  I’ve been trading the US equity markets for a little over 6 years which to some makes me a newbie but to those of us that know the perils of trading makes me much more.  It’s a tough path and over the years I’ve continually changed my strategies to not only look for new, different opportunities but to remain profitable and improve.  In the past six months, I’ve become to realize how amazing of a resource Twitter can be for my trading.  And, in the past month have begun to start tweeting myself.  It’s not easy because when you have a great trade you want to put your full concentration into that trade which makes letting your followers know a much more difficult task (I promise I’m getting much better!).  Thus, kudos to those who have overcome this monkey. I’ve followed some of these people and have really grown from what they wrote.  Yes, an idea can come in many forms but as someone who actively follows the stock market, getting a trade idea that you can immediately act on and profit from is INCREDIBLY valuable.  I thought I would be getting that out of this article.  One of the people I follow, and respect, had re-posted it hence I thought we’d be on the same page.  Yet, that’s not what I got.  To the writer, there are a variety of traders.  I wouldn’t follow anyone that you have listed here.  And, I promise you that that isn’t me taking a cheap shot at you.  I just wouldn’t gain anything.  And, I trade.  Love learning new things.  And, enjoy looking for new opportunities.  Yet, the people you picked with tons of followers, backgrounds in chess, experience galore, sarcastic and entertaining quibs, etc. just come out as noise to me.  I encourage you to look over those you picked and the tweets they’ve made.  Consider yourself paying attention to tweets and making trades throughout the day.  Are you getting valuable information or just lots of noise?  Noise is the enemy.  It’s what we see all day and do our best to whittle away at.

    I’d love to see a well thought article on day trading the US equity markets.  I can see from your Bio that it’s not what you do.  But, I’d still love to see it.

    All the best,

    @starfishexplore

    1. Will have to do that for my next list. Feel free to suggest some great people to follow, that’s what people are here looking for.

      1. Chinghguan says:

         ye, BWallace, have you seen anyone who  is good at  ?

  12. @ByrneKen says:

    Musn’t have ever heard of Doug Kass? 

    1. Have defintitely heard of him. Did you read the article?

  13. I traded on Wall St. for 7 years and now am a full time home gamer.  Scott Redler from T3 live is by far the best trader on Twitter.  I have no affiliation with T3 whatsoever, just a market observer who keeps score of the trading views out there…

    1. Thanks Justin, yes I follow him on StockTwits actually and he is very good.  Thanks for adding his name into the mix.

      http://www.t3live.com/

      https://twitter.com/#!/RedDogT3Live

  14. SUSAO says:

    Peter is an old codger who gets upset when u contradict him. goes way in depth, people take his word as gospel and then get disappointed when hes wrong, which he ususally is wrong

    Josh Brown is a media whore who is insecure and worries about his weight and offers nada special, he doesnt contribute and u should see the Reuters news piece where he says he wont offer up much on social media because he cant give away nada bcause of his clients.

    Howard tells us dumb stuff about how he wears yoga pants, eats pizza and other useless crap.

    Grasso is another media whore, makes horrible calls

    Chess and Wine is good, he offers a clear logical neutral view of markets and posts steady.

    you have a crappy list, u must be shilling for these people u included ima sure

    1. @SUSAO Thanks for stopping by, I appreciate the feedback.

  15. Rm686 says:

    The top 25 market timers would be a great list

  16. Docspine1 says:

    @ Traderflorida may not have the followers that some on this list have but his info is valued by many. 

    1. Gavin says:

      Traderflorida is an intersting one. He does put out some good info, but I have heard dozens of stories about him deleting old tweets when he makes a bad call and then blocking people who call him out on it.  He does provide some good info though and I know a lot of people who have benefitting from following him.  Personally though, I’m automatically suspicious of anyone who literally never has a losing trade.

  17. ayman says:

    what about the FXCM great Trader Ayman Khlifat @Aymankkhlifat:twitter 

  18. ozzy says:

    stockguy22 has 50k followers…with 25 years being a trader….where is he on your list?

  19. G says:

    i think this website just lost its credibility when it listed @stocksage1 at #20…Obviously, that dude is probably in jail or pretty close to going there.

    1. Wow, I had no idea, just reading about it now. What an A-hole. Obviously this list was made before that incident and he will now be removed.

  20. The most important criterion should be trading performance. I don’t understand why this
    is not considered. People can tell nice entertaining stories about stocks, but
    only performance decides if they are relevant IMO.

    1. Thanks for the comment Michael, totally agree. Would be hard to get verified results from everyone, but yes performance with live capital should be the main criteria. Who would be your top 5 traders on Twitter?

  21. forex says:

    Nice list you got here. Will follow them hoping for a trading tips

    forex broker reviews

  22. bill says:

    So, when I saw your article topic, I’m curious. Stock market trading in the United States, I have been a little more than six years, which to some makes me a novice, but we know that the risk of the transaction, let me more. This is a difficult path, over the years, I have been constantly changing my strategy, not only looking for new and different opportunities, but still profitable, and improve. In the past six months, I have become a realization of how amazing resources Twitter for my trading. Moreover, in the past month has begun to start chirp own. This is not easy, because when you have a great deal of your concentration you want to enter the industry, let your followers know a more difficult task, (I promise I will get better!) http://www.obdiag4u.com/

  23. Robert Jones says:

    Great stock tip to follow most these people, but is there a more recent version i’m missing considering this is a year old post and definitely worth an update?

  24. Commodities News says:

    This article is very useful to us. Thanks Commodities News

  25. John Mylant says:

    Just wondering what are your criteria of rating the top 25. Performance/track record?

  26. Mikey McD says:

    @hedgeye would make my list

  27. johnhancock says:

    madison montana is a paper trader who sells chat subscriptions. she never posts a losing trade, never even talks about losing trades. anyone that wins 99 percent of their trades is a paper trader. she seeks out ppl to join her chat room for 100 per month, do some digging online and you will see she is a hoax.

    1. trader says:

      I actually subscribed to her chatroom to try her methods myself. She goes long $SSO and shorts $SPY at the same time. Never loses.

      1. Trader Gang says:

        U subscriber = u dumb sheep

  28. johnhancock says:

    when was last time you have EVER SEEN madison montana post a profit and loss on twitter.. NEVER scan thru her stream and she has never mentioned in detail a real losing trade. SCAM

  29. Jason says:

    SMB? No way in hell. Out there to get your money and get somebody else in your seat while it’s still warm.

    1. Appreciate the input Jason. Have you had a bad experience with them? I’ve never done one of their courses, but their free info seems good.

  30. Trader Gang says:

    How about @MyTraderGang who is up over $356,999 ytd and is a colored first generation immigrant without a trust fund

  31. Trader Gang says:

    Move over uncle toms and priveledged jethros… There’s a new profitable consistent trader this year – dark pool capital LLC

  32. jay says:

    Most of these guys aren’t traders. A few are good businessmen, a few got lucky and went into VC before it became cool. And fewer still are actually successful traders. The guys you call great analysts are mostly mediocre — nothing of what they do is empirically tested. And I don’t think a single one of them produces original research. Your stuff — on this blog — is so much better than most of the people you are sucking up to in this post. WTF? I don’t get it.

  33. Jimmy says:

    @rickackerman — pretty technical takes on things with some wit mixed in

  34. Savvytrader says:

    @RickAckerman is a hidden gem in the options game on Twitter

  35. Scott says:

    Just a heads up that Maddy (Madison Montana) passed away last Christmas.

  36. Mike argon says:

    Gotta have @optionshawk and @openoutcrier for this list to be complete!

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