YCharts, an online fundamental stock research engine, today announced it has received Series A financing from a collection of venture capital funds.
The investment will be used to accelerate development and expand the YCharts service which provides individuals, business partners, and investment professionals with research on corporate performance that goes far beyond the snapshot data typically available.
YCharts' first-round funding comes from highly regarded VC sources including Hyde Park Angels, the Illinois Innovation Accelerator Fund (I2A), Amicus Capital and Social Leverage LLC. Sam Guren, managing director of Hyde Park Angels, and Kapil Chaudhary, partner of I2A Fund, join the YCharts board of directors effective immediately, as does Brian Hand, former Vice Chairman of institutional investment research firm First Analysis. Hand is an individual investor in YCharts.
"Receiving our first venture capital investments is an exciting moment for our company. It provides real impetus to our business activities and the market need we've identified," said Shawn Carpenter, CEO of YCharts. "We intend to use these funds to further develop our services and to get the word out regarding our uniquely valuable solutions."
Launched as an alpha site last June and in beta since January, YCharts fills a gap felt by many private investors: sophisticated, real-time analytical tools and market trend data that enable them to make informed, timely trading choices and minimize the risk of loss. The basic service is free for individual investors.
YCharts aggregates and analyzes current stock information, historical company performance trends and overall market trends from over ten years of actual business results. It then visualizes this massive amount of company and market information in easy-to-read table form using intuitive, color-coded charts and graphs. "Financial markets provide unique challenges given the amount of data and complex relationships. We are developing solutions at scale that hide this complexity and drive consumer insights," said Ara Anjargolian, CTO of YCharts.
"With more individuals managing personal investment portfolios than ever before, the need is great for information that goes beneath the surface. YCharts is packaging that information in a form that non-professionals can understand," said Hyde Park Angels' Guren. "We're pleased to be supporting this young company which shows significant potential for growth."
"I2A is constantly looking to support the next wave of innovative technology companies in the region with a strong value proposition," said I2A's Chaudhary. "YCharts satisfies all these criteria. It has already attracted a large and growing user base, which shows it is meeting a significant market need."
Tracking over 5,000 individual companies and 40 million investor trends, YCharts has already logged a user base of 50,000 unique visitors each month. In addition to offering its tools directly to users, it is also syndicating its tools to partners like StockTwits.com. YCharts is partnered with Zacks.com, BATS Exchange and SeekingAlpha.com.
"Shawn Carpenter and his executive team are well versed in the intricacies of Wall Street as well as running a high-tech company. Their experience and strong track record is a good indication of the potential for YCharts," said Hand. "YCharts' offerings are smart, concise, diverse and easy to consume. It has real potential for professionals as well as someone with basic investing knowledge."
YCharts tools are offered at no charge to individuals; later in 2010 the company will be debuting subscription-based PRO and institutional versions.