Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
What are some of the best stock market books out there ?
There seem to be so many, on the shelves at the library & the bookstores. Everyone claims to be an expert.
What would you consider to be the best....of the best ?
I already have many books, including a few written by Jack D. Schwager:
Market Wizards, New Market Wizards...and Stock Market Wizards. I like the interview format a lot.
- Thanks -
Want a secret? There is NO secret. Every smart guy on the planet is trying to figure out the stock market. My sisters boyfriend is convinced there is a mathematical equation.........there isnt, and never will be. Until you can come up with an equation that correctly predicts the random events that cause mass sell offs and buy ups, there is no figuring out the market.
Truth is, even the "smartest" huge fund directors who are paid millions of dollars, over enough time, will all perform within a single deviation of the market.
My best advice is to find a strong company with a whole lot of trades, and who is sitting at a mark around their year low, and isnt there because of impending bankruptcy, liquidation or government take over, scoop that up, and wait until it rebounds. Sell it between a 10-20% gain, and do it again.
Want a secret? There is NO secret. Every smart guy on the planet is trying to figure out the stock market. My sisters boyfriend is convinced there is a mathematical equation.........there isnt, and never will be. Until you can come up with an equation that correctly predicts the random events that cause mass sell offs and buy ups, there is no figuring out the market.
Truth is, even the "smartest" huge fund directors who are paid millions of dollars, over enough time, will all perform within a single deviation of the market.
My best advice is to find a strong company with a whole lot of trades, and who is sitting at a mark around their year low, and isnt there because of impending bankruptcy, liquidation or government take over, scoop that up, and wait until it rebounds. Sell it between a 10-20% gain, and do it again.
Agree. I was working with an aspiring PhD last week, who was convinced there was a mathematical equation to describe the run up of the stock market over the last decade. If someone would find it they would make lots of money. I countered that places like Goldman Sachs hire folks to do complicated models, somewhat like technical analysis, but its impossible to put the human factor into the markets. He disagreed.
I wonder if a dartboard might be more useful. Some of the greatest financial minds (Soros, Buffet, Rogers, Cramer (ooops) have lost tons of money so what good are all the models and spreadsheets? In hindsight it all seems so obvious. How could they not have foreseen the domino effect in the emerging markets from a collapse in the phony money US economy? Basically it's all a crapshoot.
I think you have to find a philosophy and stick with it. I prefer the Megatrends approach. Certain megatrends seem obvious: increasing populations consuming increasing amounts of depleting raw materials like oil, water, certain metals so I'm going long on them. I mean really long like 1-5 years. Also I think China and India will reemerge in the coming decade but it's too early to gamble yet. Could I be totally wrong and wind up with a tin cup in the street? You betcha. But I've got my lucky rabbit's foot, magic crystal ball and holy talisman so I think I'm all set.
The problem with 100% of the books and "Experts" (buffett, cramer, rogers, etc) is this idea that you can predict everything, or that you should be invested all the time.
The authors and experts have made more money in total, from the sales of their books, reports, newsletters, etc, than from actual trading or investing profits.
Still, there are some books I've gotten value from...
-Jim Rogers. Mostly, his big concepts and trends. Investment Biker, Adventure Capitalist are good for his methodology and ideas (he was also interviewed in Market Wizards). His big concepts have been mostly right....long china, long commodities, short dollar. Of course he isnt going to be 100% right, but I'd rather have his general ideas in my mind than nothing. He takes very long term views.
-Money Game about the market of the 60's will give you perspective if you've only known the market from CNBC's point of view.
-Maybe some others for general concepts like Graham's "Intelligent Investor".
But most books dont make any sense...they all treat stocks the same way, and look at the same ratios, p/e, or volume. Technical analysis wouldnt have predicted the declines of aig or lehman. Just looking at moving averages or past trends wouldnt have told you the junk on their balance sheet, or the leverage they were using.
Whats the point of looking at indicators, if the company made bad bets, bad decisions...or is simply run by someone incompetent? A lot of traditional books on technical analysis or fund analysis all assume the ceo's, boards of directors, the accountants, are all 100% honest and forthright. Is that really accurate?
Sometimes, I think all the books ever printed about investing were created by the investing community, designed to confuse you. Thus, you run back to the advisor/firm and decide investing is "too tough". There are no real people in many books.
-Another problem is that many books are created after a win streak, or good times, and their model misses the one bad year (08).
-The problem with mathmatical equations...again they look at the past. Or they assume something about past volatility. But what would the past history of Citigroup have to do with what the company did recently?
Agree. I was working with an aspiring PhD last week, who was convinced there was a mathematical equation to describe the run up of the stock market over the last decade. If someone would find it they would make lots of money. I countered that places like Goldman Sachs hire folks to do complicated models, somewhat like technical analysis, but its impossible to put the human factor into the markets. He disagreed.
Ha, sounds like my sisters boyfriend, who is also going for a PhD in mathematics. Ive found that you cannot explain things to them once theyve got their mind set on it. Best thing is, let them waste countless hours of their life, and finally, they will come on the same knowledge that every financial house has known for decades. Its kind of comical.
Ha, sounds like my sisters boyfriend, who is also going for a PhD in mathematics. Ive found that you cannot explain things to them once theyve got their mind set on it. Best thing is, let them waste countless hours of their life, and finally, they will come on the same knowledge that every financial house has known for decades. Its kind of comical.
Charlie Munger explains this phenomenon well in his book, Poor Charlie's Almanack.
He talks about, man with a hammer syndrome. To the man with a hammer, every problem looks like a nail. To the man with a phd in math...you attack stock problems with math. And some other consistency tendancies, and incentive bias. It is comical.
It's not a book about just stocks, it's about investing in general. It's called "The Bogleheads Guide to Investing"
You want the secret? Don't buy individual stocks. If you want to buy single stocks and play the stock market in such a way, you're gambling. Buy mutual funds with low expense ratios. You need to build a diversified portfolio consisting of stock funds, bond funds, and many other assorted investments that I won't go into detail with here. You read that book and you'll get a link to a fantastic forum full of very intelligent people who are more than willing to answer all of your investments questions. This book took me from clueless as to how to invest, to a knowledgeable investor. There are more useful books, but I say this is the best starting point. And another tip? From myself, and the writers of the book itself who even state in the book, don't buy the book. Go to a library and read it. Save yourself the money. Building wealth isn't just about picking great stocks. It's about saving rather than spending needlessly, and spreading your money around so it's safe.
What are some of the best stock market books out there ?
There seem to be so many, on the shelves at the library & the bookstores. Everyone claims to be an expert.
What would you consider to be the best....of the best ?
I already have many books, including a few written by Jack D. Schwager:
Market Wizards, New Market Wizards...and Stock Market Wizards. I like the interview format a lot.
- Thanks -
If you read Market Wizards, you are ahead of 99% of the masses, as far as getting the right kind of information.
I can't think of a single best book. I have read maybe about 10 books on the subject (out of hundreds) and I combine the ideas I like best to form my own strategy.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
