Intelligent Investing

Would you please suggest some important books for beginners in share market?

I am 23 year old and very much interested in investing in stocks.I already have invested in the market. But I need to know the basic rules of the game. So please let me know some of the very good books that will be handy to know the basics of investing and share market.( I already red " Intelligent investor" by Graham. )

Stock market is the best form of investment and the sooner you start the better. So congrats that you have started of at 23 

There are 2 methods to analyze stock market..

Fundamental analysis: here you study the company performance, strengths and future growth potential and current valuation.

Technical analysis: here you observe just 2 things basically.. the movement of share price of the company and the volume/number of shares being bought and sold of the company..

The idea is that big investors like FII and mutual funds to detailed fundamental analysis of 100’s of companies and identify the top shares.. they then start being the shares of these top companies.. this action can be caught by doing technical analysis.. then one can just follow these trends and make money while all the hard work has been done by big investors..

I started of doing fundamental analysis but then shifted to technical analysis because I found that the news we get is manipulated, they big guys know all the big news 1 month in advance.. if I followed technical analysis I could have seen it 1 week after them.. but as a fundamental analyst I saw it a full month late in most cases.. just when those big guys want to book their profit by selling their stocks to small guys like me..

So definitely study technical analysis books..

2 that I have read are
1. “technical analysis of stock trends” by Robert d Edwards and john magee
2. How to make money trading derivatives by ashwani gujral

they are both decent books..

but what I found extremely good was a 2 day course on technical analysis.. as it was practical.. easy to apply and straightaway profit making.. U can make 40 percent profits per year by following their method.. you can find the details here in this site http://www.invest-in-shares-in-9minute.com/

I am creating this website http://www.easy-profitable-shares-investing.com. It should take one month to be fully uploaded and I aim to make it the best site in internet for all information about shares (like basics, fundamental analysis, technical analysis).

Can someone check my practice SAT Essay?

Even though the world’s economy is gradually decreasing, private college costs are off the roof and the college dropout rate is increasing at a disappointing rate, a students needs should be considered before his/her merits. Not every student chooses to go into the medicine field, or the engineering field, but he/she chooses to go towards his/her dream. Even the smallest of change can have a huge impact.
The current world’s economy is at a staggering development. The rich are getting richer, and the poorer are getting no where. Bright and intelligent students may take birth into a rich, poor or a middle class family. No one controls the circle of birth and death. Some children, who are born in the slums of a detoriating enviornment, seem to be the brightest minds present in our world. An average student should not be turned down for scholarships just because of his/her academic standing, they should be given a chance to show their change.
Because of the global economy problems, attending college is only getting much more expensive. Students who choose to pursue their dreams are getting held back by not being able to afford college. Not only because of the high student interest loans, but also because of the government not investing enough money in the education department causes the students to pursue a "$7/hour" job, and wind themselves working in that "part-time job" for over two decades. Students who come from middle or poor class homes finish high school hoping to make a difference in the world, but their dreams are crushed when they find out they won’t be able to afford the tuition.
When students are rewarded on something they worked hard for, the reward, no matter how big or small, encourages them to pursue on further. They want to gain their status, earn more rewards, and work hard. A great man also once said, "If its not worth fighting for, its not worth gaining". Students push themselves to a whole new level. College dropout rates are high, not because of the work, but because of the weak effort inputed by the student itself. Students who want to succeed can and will succeed, but students who find themselves in situations where they aren’t happy, dropout.
Having support is what students all over the world need, they understand the bad economy, and this is exactly why they should be given an oppurtunity, to make a difference. Federal Loans can allow the students to pursue their dreams, and to improve the world.

Feel free to criticize.
Excerpt:
With the rising cost of education in the form of college tuition,
training courses and vocational programs, the competition for
scholarships and financial aid is rapidly increasing. Many college
financial aid offices are assisting students from historically high
income brackets. Furthermore, scholarship programs are seeing
unprecedented levels of interested applicants. The challenge
facing these institutions is whether to award aid based on how
accomplished the applicant is or how difficult it will be for the
student to afford the education.

Assignment:
Is it better to financially reward individuals like students and
employees based on how much merit the individual demonstrates
instead of how much need the individual has? Plan and write an
essay in which you develop your point of view on this issue. Support
your position with reasoning and examples taken from your reading,
studies, experience, or observations.

What was the original question? It seems a bit too precise to be an SAT essay. Anyways. I would give it a 4 or possibly a 5 on the SAT scale because you focused on a minute topic and didn’t relate it back to a broad theme. Also, maybe it’s just me but I found your continuous use of his/her to be a bit distracting, almost informal as well. I was a bit confused by this statement as well.

An average student should not be turned down for scholarships just because of his/her academic standing, they should be given a chance to show their change.

Also if you use a quote it’s good to know it’s source instead of a "great man."

Anyways it’s a pretty good essay, but the only other thing is that it’s very persuasive and calls for action. SAT essay generally just want you to support a theme, and if that involves calling for action then that is fine.

Nice job and good luck!

"A dollar rally agianst euros and pounds", is this a good or bad thing?

I’m doing a project for school and i was wondering if anybody could help explain this article

http://www.forbes.com/2010/01/04/yen-pound-euro-intelligent-investing-dollar.html

If you belive in Adam Smith free market system, it’s a good thing. The central banks in those countries have no power to influence the exchange rate directly.

Have those hearing Ron Paul dismissed as ‘wanting to return 2 the gold standard’ wondered what he REALLY wants?

http://www.forbes.com/2010/01/07/gold-standard-fed-audit-intelligent-investing-ron-paul.html

" What should replace the Federal Reserve, if anything?

Well, ideally nothing. I’ve talked about this for a long time. It came out of the gold commission report in the 1980s. Out of the gold commission, my conclusion was we should have competing currencies, just legalize competition. That’s still my position. In the book, End the Fed, I don’t argue the case for locking the doors and closing it down. As a matter of fact, I say there should be a transition, repeal legal tenant laws and you take taxes off money, which is gold and silver. And then if the people want to use it, let them use it. If people want to get paid in paper, let them get paid in paper.

In Mexico right now you can literally have an account in silver. They’re making more progress in Mexico. And I have visited with their members of Congress. Before it all got passed, they consulted with me. Because the Mexican people know how bad it is when the currency goes to zero. The middle class really, really hurts, and they’ve experienced it. I’m just hoping we never get that bad. But there’s no reason why we should be afraid of a little competition, allowing people to put their money in an account. You have these ETFs already; it would just be that a bank could offer that to you. And you could deal in another currency. The transactions that go on around the world today with the currencies trading, instantaneously they adjust values. And we could do that with gold and silver and dollar accounts. It would be pretty easy.

What effect would that have on the dollar?

I think that would strengthen it because it would shore up the dollar. That’s one reason why the Fed doesn’t like to see dollar prices go up. I mean, gold prices go up because that’s an embarrassment to them. It should send a message to them. And sometimes they pretend that they do look at the gold price, thinking that if it goes up too much maybe there’s something wrong. They work real hard to suppress the price of gold. And I think if you had competition, I think it would be sort of like home schooling. Home schooling doesn’t hurt public schools. Sometimes it gives them a greater incentive because home schoolers do so much better. Of course, sometimes public school people resent the fact that people can learn as well at home as they can in public schools. So, we should never be afraid of competition. If gold is not good money, then nobody will deal with it. But I’m on the side of history with this one because paper money has never worked. It eventually goes to zero and people quit using it. But gold has survived for many, many centuries.

Would you rather see a gold standard instead of the dollar?

I’d rather you let the markets decide. That would be my first preference. The Constitution has never been repealed to say that only gold and silver can be legal tender. But today, if we didn’t get rid of the legal tender laws and do these other things, if you try to use old silver dollars and say, "This is legal tender, I’m going to pay in silver dollars," you’d go to jail because those silver dollars, they’d say, "That’s not a dollar." That’s $25. They’d argue that a silver dollar is worth $25, so they don’t let you use it as legal tender.

Hayek always argued the case for competing currencies and they hated it when he suggested that maybe the market would pick a basket. People worry, "well, there’s not enough gold." Well, maybe if we put gold, silver and copper together or something like that.

The most important thing is restraining the central banks from creating money out of thin air to accommodate special interests and Congress’ deficits that they run up. That’s the purpose. "
There is a lot more in the link, but it is frustrating having people just say, as if it were an ad hominum attack: "Oh, that Ron Paul, he wants to return to the GOLD STANDARD’ as if most who said that had any inkling about economics.

Does his position make sense to you?

Ron Paul is the man! All the debt we’re strapped with is in dollar denominations… overseas loans, overpriced home-purchases, all the problems caused by the Fed’s irresponsible and unchecked tom-foolery.

When it crashes against other currencies, the dollar will make for cheap repayment of all those debts tied to it.

We get a choice of more solid currencies and the banks finally get what they’ve been giving us.

Sweeeet.

"

Good Parts of the book "Intelligent Investor"?

I give up books pretty easily because I hate reading stuff that bore me to tears. Can someone point out the must read chapters so I can get the just of "value investing".

I am with you on the tearing part. This book is really dry, but they give a few good points. Commentary on chapter 15 is a pretty good chapter to read. I actually highlighted some of the information. (revised edition, soft cover)

Do you think Jews are very intelligent?

I’m Jewish and everyone in my family is very well educated, very smart with money and smart about investing, my family owns a very successful business. Plus every other Jew I know from the community I live in in Brooklyn is smart too.
Not to mention we Jews have contributed so much in areas of science, medicine, business, entertainment, etc…despite being such a tiny minority. Don’t you think Jews are very intelligent? Doesn’t our intelligence just make others jealous of us?
I’m not saying someone of any other group can’t be very smart too, I’m just saying that we Jews as a group are clearly distinguishable if you examine the facts
actually I am a true descendant of the ancient Hebrews, no one in my family has ever married a gentile

The general pecking order of average intelligence goes something like this: Ashkenazim Jews 115; East Asians 105; Whites 100; Amerindians and most Hispanics 90; African Americans 85; and sub-Saharan Africans 70. By the same order, accumulation of wealth, the level of income, achieved academic success, etc., also follows closely with the average IQs of these six racial groupings. So far, the left has claimed that White racism has made Hispanics and Blacks look less intelligent than Whites and the outstanding family discipline and educational encouragement has boosted the intelligence of East Asians and Jews. The problem is, no one has been able to show exactly how these environmental differences alter the expressed intelligence of individuals or races. Genetics is merely denied as the primary difference, and anyone who says differently is a racist.

The Intelligent Investor?

I’m 14 and I’m almost finished with Value Investing for dummies. Would The Intelligent Investor baffle me or can I handle it? I have the termonolgy almost down.

hi Anthony.

Ben Graham isn’t an easy read. Plenty of college students don’t find him easy either.

yes, you might could plow through some of it.

but I really think you’ll do better to approach the problem from the other end … which is William O’Neil.

you might think of Graham as the theory of what ought to work (which you’ve already started) and then O’Neil as the evidence of what did/does work.

while theory is great, evidence is critical [ask any engineer].

***
Van Tharp requires some math. Which is why I put his book after O’Neil.

Can I learn how to invest well with these three books?

I bought these three books:

The Intelligent Investor by Ben Graham
Security Analysis (1940 2nd Edition) by Ben Graham
Common Stocks and Uncommon Profits by Philip Fisher

By studying these three books intensely, can I learn to invest well?

Those and about a hundred others. There are as many opinions as there are stocks, so you have to find what works for you. Nobody else can tell you what you should do, it’s for you to discover.

Here are some other books:
"Which Is Better, Buy-and-Hold or Market Timing?"

"Do You Have What It Takes to Be a Market Timer

The Beginner’s Bible in Technical Analysis is:
Edwards & McGee"Tech. Anal. Of Stock Trends"

Droke, ClifTechnical Analysis Simplified

Kahn, Michael N.Tech. Anal. Plain & Simple

Kamich, Bruce M.How Technical Analysis Works

Lefevre, EdwinReminiscences of a Stock Operator

Lofton, ToddGetting Started in Futures

Lowenstein, RogerBuffet (Warren)-The Making of a Capitalist

O’Neil, William J.How to Make Money in Stocks

Oz, TonyHow to Make Money From Wall Street

Rotella, Robert P.Elements of Successful Trading, The

Schwager, JackStock Market Wizards

Schwager, Jack D.New Market Wizards

Sperandeo, VictorTrader Vic-Methods of a Wall Street Master

Wasendorf, RussellAll About Futures

Slutsky, Scot and Darrell JobmanComplete Guide to Electronic Futures Trading, The

Extraordinary Popular Delusions and the Madness of Crowds" by Charles Mackay

The Intelligent Investor, by Benjamin Graham

One Up on Wall Street, by Peter Lynch

Common Stocks, Uncommon Profits, by Philip A. Fisher

Stocks for the Long Run, by Jeremy Siegel

Bulls Make Money, Bears Make Money, Pigs Get Slaughtered, by Gallea

Trading for a Living, by Alexander Elder

From Riches to Rags, by I.C. Freeley

Unified Theory of Everything Financial
Revealed in Dilbert and the Way of the Weasels
By Scott Adams
1.Make a will
2.Pay off your credit cards
3.Get term life insurance if you have a family to support
4.Fund your 401k to the maximum
5.Fund your IRA to the maximum
6.Buy a house if you want to live in a house and can afford it
7.Put six months worth of expenses in a money-market account
8.Take whatever money is left over and invest 70% in a stock index fund and 30% in a bond fund through any discount broker and never touch it until retirement
9.If any of this confuses you, or you have something special going on (retirement, college planning, tax issues), hire a fee-based financial planner, not one who charges a percentage of your portfolio

Check the bottom line: A portfolio with an asset allocation of 70% in Vanguard’s Total Stock Market Index (VTSMX) is doing just fine, performing remarkably close to the S&P 500 index. Moreover, that simple two-fund portfolio is perfect for the vast majority of America’s 95 million investors who are passive much as Adam’s Dilbert character.
The truth is, most investors have little or no interest in Wall Street’s casino action; all the time-consuming research, the sophisticated stock-picking tricks, the costly trading necessary to play in a market drowning in 10,000 stocks, 18,000 funds and more than 100,000 bonds. Most investors have jobs and kids as their top priority. Moreover, Dilbert’s simple two-fund portfolio compares favorably with our other lazy portfolios.

20 Investments you should know

http://www.investopedia.com/university/20_investments/

Property buying decision?

I wanted to know what the people out there consider before making a decision to buy a residential property for investment purposes…I know things like location, comps etc etc that needs to be looked into before buying. I have looked at the comps of the properties that have been sold near the property i intend to buy. So that gives me an ball park idea of what i should be looking to pay and location wise, we should look into school district, access to transportation etc t etc…..I am curious to know what else things to consider before making the decision to bid so that I make an intelligent investing decision. This is purely for investment and i intend to rent out the property and hope to generate some +Ve cash flow.
I am looking for a list of things other than the obvious ones of price, location that I need to keep in mind before buying the property.

I would really appreciate that insight

Thanks

Really get to know the rental market. Make sure you have a realistic idea of the vacancy rate, and going rents. The best way to do this is to look at comparable rentals in the area. You should also look at the age of the home, since older homes will need more maintenance.

What are some good questions to ask on an interview?

I have a job interview today. They always seem to ask, Do you have any questions for me?, toward the end of the interview. I always say no, then later think of some really good ones. Right now, I’m drawing a blank. What are some intelligent quesitons that will show I’m paying attention and have something invested in this interview? Not something like, how much do I get paid? or what days off/holidays do I get? Nothing like that, but something that will make a good impression.
I’m not really impressed with the answers so far. I asked this question in another category and will wait until Monday to pick a best answer for it. I will probably wait until then to pick here too.

Will there be any promotional opportunities in/for my dept./position?
Are there any other positions that I may be elegible in the latter future?

This is all i’ve go so far, but you really should have questions? Good one to ask!!!