Dispelling Illusions of the Stock Market
How can you dispel an illusion unless you look directly at it? The magician distracts the eye with one hand while he does his manipulation with the other. You are looking in the wrong place and not seeing what is actually happening.
Wall Street has mastered this move even beyond the wildest dreams of Houdini. Investors have become so mesmerized by the smoke and mirrors that they believe the large brokerage houses are telling them the truth.
One of their master distractions has you believing that research is necessary to be able to pick a winning stock or mutual fund. All research is facts and figures which is nothing more than disinformation. Think. That long report by some analyst came from sources available to anyone and everyone, therefore, it is worthless. If everyone knows it then all that information is already reflected in the current price of the stock.
Just because you have information and it seems so good that doesn't mean the equity price is going to go up. Those beautiful pink, green and yellow tout sheets sent to you by some broker have you looking in the wrong place just as the magician does while he is picking your pocket. Sound familiar?
The annual report is a beautiful document. Slick paper and in full color, but those footnotes are hard to read. You know the old saying: "they give it to you in the big type and take it away in the small type". More of the magician's tricks. Did it occur to you that much of the content of the annual report is a year old? Is that going to tell you if the stock is going to go up tomorrow or next week?
Another distraction by the master magician is the prospectus. I have written these so I know how they can be manipulated. The most important thing to remember is they were not written for the investor. They are written so some Dilbert lawyer in his cubicle at the SEC in Washington will see that it meets all the regulations. There is practically no difference in the content of a winner and a loser.
So much of what comes out of Wall Street is sleight of hand and smoke and mirrors. You must stop and ask yourself, "Is knowing this going to make me any money?" In all likelihood it won't. Almost every analyst recommendation put out by brokerage companies is already ancient history and of no value. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in Washington is now investigating allegations that analysts have become salesmen for their brokerage companies and are told not to issue negative reports on any company no matter how poorly they perform.
Become aware of the magician's tricks and watch out for that other hand he has in your pocket.
Al Thomas' book, "If It Doesn't Go Up, Don't Buy It!" has helped thousands of people make money and keep their profits with his simple 2-step method. Read the first chapter at http://www.mutualfundmagic.com and discover why he's the man that Wall Street does not want you to know.
Copyright 2005
al@mutualfundstrategy.com; 1-888-345-7870
More Resources
Unable to open RSS Feed $XMLfilename with error HTTP ERROR: 404, exitingMore Stocks & Mutual Funds Information:
Related Articles
My Neighbor Got A New Car
I don't know what kind it is, but I saw it
on TV running full speed along the shore (I don't
live near the shore) throwing up spray or maybe
it was that one climbing up the steep mountain
trail thru the mud, rocks and snow. Very
exciting.
The Three Little Pigs Went to the Stock Market
Three little pigs went to the market to stock up for the future.The first little pig liked chips so he went to the DOW market.
Dont Fight The Fed
One of the great truisms of Wall Street is "Don't fight the Fed". For the long term investors this has resulted in greater profits.
Buy Low - Sell High
Now where have I heard that before? I know. It was my broker.
The Cub; II
We keep hearing about this bear market and that the bottom is "in" or "very close" so we should be invested in these bargain basement prices to take advantage of the next bull so we won't lose out on the expected huge profits.This is not a big bear market - yet.
Duck
Duck! No I don't mean a quack, quack. I meant get down, look out for a huge blob of brown stuff is heading your way.
Advisory News Letters
Several times each month I am solicited by various market touts who have a newsletter service, faxes or emails they are willing to send me to make me rich. That sure is nice of them.
Buying New Issues
Has your broker been calling you recently with the "great opportunity" to get in on a new Initial Public Offering? With friends like that you don't need any enemies.I don't care how good this new stock offering sounds.
Small-Cap Stocks: The Beginning of the Journey
When an individual investor wants to roll up his sleeves and do some research in the pursuit of the next big winner in the stock market, the place many start is in the small cap sector.As with the other capitulation sizes (capitalization is a stock's market value), no one can completely agree on a precise definition, but corporations under $2 billion are often considered small caps.
A Personal Stock Market Investment Philosophy
∙ Make every investment in the stock market a long-term investment.My Mother worked as a teller in a small bank in Dover, New Jersey.
Market Success
Who are the successful investors?There are those who follow the advice of their brokers and financial planners or those who choose to use their own good judgment? If you care to compare the results of the past 4 years from 2000 to now I believe you will see who as done the best job.In the old days at the Chicago stock yards they used to have an old sheep who led the lambs to the slaughter when they arrived on the train.
Duct Tape
Did you run out to buy that duct tape yet? Don't forget the plastic sheeting, bottles of water, canned food and a couple of books to read. What are you waiting for? I know - things to get better so you can resume your normal life style.
Bottoms Ups
If you have talked to a stock broker or financial planner in the last few days I will bet they all agree that there are some great bargains out there and now is the time to start buying in anticipation that the market will go back up. You will also find agreement from the talking heads on CNBC and those talk radio station stock mavens.
My Stock - Right or Wrong
We all know the expression, "My country, right or wrong", but have you ever thought about the stocks or mutual fund you own and said to yourself, "My stock - right or wrong" and held on to your position even as you saw your hard-earned money disappearing?This is the Buy N Hold strategy and, in case you haven't noticed, lost from 40% to 60% and more of investors' money from 2000 to 2003. Fortunately, for the past year stock markets around the world have gone up and folks have recovered about 25% to 30% from those low numbers.
What is the Most Important Indicator of All?
Most stock market traders have a favorite technical indicator.The one that they have the most confidence in.
Stock Market Diversification
In one of my previous articles (Investing in the stock market -9 powerful tips), tip number one was:1. Do not spread your money too thin.
Stuff
I continually hear from economists, talking heads, other market letter writers, analysts and assorted "experts" that I need to know all kinds of "stuff" about the stocks and mutual funds I am going to buy and I should keep up with them on a regular basis.What is this important "stuff"?Let's see.
Dollar Cost Averaging
Dollar cost averaging is one of the most popular ideas in the investment community. Everyone seems to like it and it has become a watchword among stock and mutual fund brokers.
Trade Stocks for Real
I read a comment by a forum member on another site earlier today that suggested that every investor should back test their system for at least twenty years. I disagree and will now tell you why.
Shorting Stocks - The Basics, Part I of II
What does it mean to short a stock?This means that you borrow the stock from your broker to sell to a third party. The idea is to buy back the stock at a lower price, returning the shares to your broker while leaving the remaining cash in your account as a profit.