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We urge the beginner in security buying not to waste his efforts and his money in trying to beat the market. Let him study security values and initially test out his judgment on price versus value with the smallest possible sums.

Benjamin Graham

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Benjamin Graham
Age: 82 †
Born: 1894
Born: May 8
Died: 1976
Died: September 21
Economist
Financier
Investor
University Teacher
Writer
London
England
Value
Test
Initially
Security
Beat
Urge
Study
Price
Versus
Effort
Tests
Urges
Possible
Beats
Smallest
Values
Market
Efforts
Beginner
Money
Waste
Buying
Sums
Trying
Judgment
Investing
Beginners

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The qualitative factors upon which most stress is laid are the nature of the business and the character of the management. These elements are exceedingly important, but they are also exceedingly difficult to deal with intelligently.
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The investor should be aware that even though safety of its principal and interest may be unquestioned, a long term bond could vary widely in market price in response to changes in interest rates.
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Never buy a stock immediately after a substantial rise or sell one immediately after a substantial drop.
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Mr. Market's job is to provide you with prices your job is to decide whether it is to your advantage to act on them. You no not have to trade with hime just because he constantly begs you to.
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The distinction between investment and speculation in common stocks has always been a useful one and its disappearance is cause for concern.
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There is a close logical connection between the concept of a safety margin and the principle of diversification.
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The individual investor should act consistently as an investor and not as a speculator. This means ... that he should be able to justify every purchase he makes and each price he pays by impersonal, objective reasoning that satisfies him that he is getting more than his money's worth for his purchase.
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It's nonsensical to derive a price/earnings ratio by dividing the known current price by unknown future earnings.
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An intelligent investor gets satisfaction from the thought that his operations are exactly opposite to those of the crowd.
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Successful investing is about managing risk, not avoiding it.
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At heart, uncertainty and investing are synonyms.
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The investor has a right to expect good results to flow from a consistent and courageous application of the principle of buying after the market has declined substantially and selling after it has had a spectacular rise. But he cannot expect to reduce this principle to a simple and foolproof formula, with profits guaranteed and no anxious periods.
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It should be remembered that a decline of 50% fully offsets a preceding advance of 100%.
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