Final answer:
One friend's diligent monitoring of investments is likely to yield better performance, while the other's neglect and random choices could lead to unsatisfactory results.
Step-by-step explanation:
Investing in the stock market requires careful analysis and monitoring of one's investment choices, as demonstrated by the scenario comparing two friends using E-Trade. One friend is diligent in tracking their investment portfolio, actively monitoring stock prices, current events, and company actions. This disciplined approach is likely to yield a better performance due to informed decision-making and the ability to react to market trends. On the other hand, the friend who makes random selections and ignores financial news is taking a passive, uninformed approach, which might result in a poor portfolio performance due to a lack of understanding of market forces and external factors affecting stock prices.