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The Case For Value Stock Investing... What If?
By: Steve Selengut
Wall Street Institutions pay billions of dollars annually to convince the
investing public that their Economists, Investment Managers, and Analysts can
predict future price movements in specific company shares and trends in the
overall Stock Market. Such predictions (often presented as “Wethinkisms” or
Model Asset Allocation adjustments) make self-deprecating investors everywhere
scurry about transacting with each new revelation. “Thou must heed the oracle of
Wall Street”… not to be confused with the one from Omaha, who really does know
something about investing. “These guys know this stuff so much better than we
do” is the rationale of the fools in the street, and on the hill (sic).
What if its true, and these pinstriped super humans can actually predict the
future, why do you transact the way you do in response? Why would financial
professionals of every shape and size holler “sell” when prices move lower, and
vice versa? Would this pitch work at the mall? Of course not. Now lets bring
this phenomenon into focus. Hmmm, not one of these Institutional Gurus ever
doubts the basic truth that both the Market Indices and individual issue prices
will continue to move up and down, forever. So, if we were to slowly construct a
diversified portfolio of value stocks (My short definition: profitable, dividend
paying, NYSE companies.) as they fall in price, we would be able to take profits
during the following upward cycle… also forever. Hmmm.
Let's pretend for a (foolish) moment that broad market movements are somewhat
predictable. Regardless of the direction, professional advice will always fuel
the perceived operative emotion: greed or fear! Wall Street's retail
representatives (stock brokers), and the new, internet expert, self-directors,
rarely go against the grain of the consensus opinion…particularly the one
projected to them by their immediate superior/spouse. You cannot obtain
independent thinking from a Wall Street salesperson; it just doesn't fill up the
Beemer. Sorry, but you have to be able to think for yourself to stay in balance
while pedaling on the Market Cycle. Here's some global advice that you will not
hear on the street of dreams (and don't get all huffy until you understand what
to buy or to sell as well as when to do so): Sell into rallies. Buy on bad news.
Buy slowly; sell quickly. Always sell too soon. Always buy too soon,
incrementally. Always have a plan. A plan without buying guidelines and selling
targets is not a plan.
Predicting the performance of individual issues is a totally different ball game
that requires an even more powerful crystal ball and a whole array of semi-legal
and completely illegal relationships that are mostly self serving and useless to
average investors. But, again, let's pretend that a mega million-dollar salary
and industry recognition as a superstar creates Master of the Universe quality
prediction capabilities…I'm sorry. I just can't even pretend that it’s true! The
evidence against it is just too great, and the dangers of relying on analytical
opinions too real. No one can predict individual issue price movements legally,
consistently, or in a timely manner. Face up to this: the risk of loss is real;
it can be minimized but not eliminated.
Investing in individual issues has to be done differently, with rules,
guidelines, and judgment. It has to be done unemotionally and rationally,
monitored regularly, and analyzed with performance evaluation tools that are
portfolio specific and without calendar time restrictions. This is not nearly as
difficult as it sounds, and if you are a “shopper” looking for bargains
elsewhere in your life, you should have no trouble understanding how it works.
Not a rocket scientist? Good, and if you are at all familiar with the retailing
business, even better. You don’t need any special education evidentiary acronyms
or software programs for stock market success… just common sense and emotion
control.
Wall Street sells products, and spins reality in whatever manner they feel will
produce the best results for those products. The direction of the market doesn’t
matter to them and it wouldn't to you either if you had a properly constructed
portfolio. If you learn how to deal unemotionally with Wall Street events, and
shun the herd mentality, you will find yourself in the proper cyclical mode much
more often: buying at lower prices and, as a result, taking profits instead of
losses. Just what if…
Coming next: Developing a Value Stock Watch List and Profit Taking Targets.
About the Author:
Steve Selengut sanserve@aol.com http://www.sancoservices.com http://www.valuestockbuylistprogram.com Professional Portfolio Management since 1979. Author of: "The Brainwashing of the American Investor: The Book that Wall Street Does Not Want YOU to Read" and "A Millionaire's Secret Investment Strategy"
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