Twenty years in this business convinces me that any normal person using the customary three percent of the brain can pick stocks just as well, if not better, than the average Wall Street expert. Peter Lynch More Quotes by Peter Lynch More Quotes From Peter Lynch Far more money has been lost by investors preparing for corrections, or trying to anticipate corrections, than has been lost in corrections themselves. Peter Lynch more-money lost trying When stocks are attractive, you buy them. Sure, they can go lower. I've bought stocks at $12 that went to $2, but then they later went to $30. You just don't know when you can find the bottom. Peter Lynch attractive bottom buying The list of qualities (an investor should have) include patience, self-reliance, common sense, a tolerance for pain, open-mindedness, detachment, persistence, humility, flexibility, a willingness to do independent research, an equal willingness to admit mistakes, and the ability to ignore general panic. Peter Lynch pain humility mistake The stock market really isn't a gamble, as long as you pick good companies that you think will do well, and not just because of the stock price. Peter Lynch good-company long thinking In this business if you're good, you're right six times out of ten. You're never going to be right nine times out of ten. Peter Lynch investing luck nine You only need a few good stocks in your lifetime. I mean how many times do you need a stock to go up ten-fold to make a lot of money? Not a lot. Peter Lynch lifetime mean needs Never invest in a company without understanding its finances. The biggest losses in stocks come from companies with poor balance sheets. Peter Lynch balance understanding loss There is always something to worry about. Avoid weekend thinking and ignoring the latest dire predictions of the newscasters. Sell a stock because the company's fundamentals deteriorate, not because the sky is falling. Peter Lynch weekend fall thinking A price drop in a good stock is only a tragedy if you sell at that price and never buy more. To me, a price drop is an opportunity to load up on bargains from among your worst performers and your laggards that show promise. If you can't convince yourself "When I'm down 25 percent, I'm a buyer" and banish forever the fatal thought "When I'm down 25 percent, I'm a seller," then you'll never make a decent profit in stocks. Peter Lynch forever opportunity promise It's human nature to keep doing something as long as it's pleasurable and you can succeed at it, which is why the world population continues to double every 40 years. Peter Lynch population long years Everyone has the brainpower to make money in stocks. Not everyone has the stomach. If you are susceptible to selling everything in a panic, you ought to avoid stocks and mutual funds altogether. Peter Lynch investing making-money panic What makes stocks valuable in the long run isn't the market. It's the profitability of the shares in the companies you own. As corporate profits increase, corporations become more valuable and sooner or later, their shares will sell for a higher price. Peter Lynch investing running long Know what you own, and know why you own it. Peter Lynch investing money intelligent Everyone has the brain power to make money in stocks. Not everyone has the stomach. Peter Lynch investing-money making-money brain Charts are great for predicting the past. Peter Lynch predicting past The person that turns over the most rocks wins the game. And that's always been my philosophy. Peter Lynch winning success philosophy During the Gold Rush, most would-be miners lost money, but people who sold them picks, shovels, tents and blue-jeans (Levi Strauss) made a nice profit. Peter Lynch jeans nice blue Just because you buy a stock and it goes up does not mean you are right. Just because you buy a stock and it goes down does not mean you are wrong. Peter Lynch investing doe mean The Rule of 72 is useful in determining how fast money will grow. Take the annual return from any investment, expressed as a percentage, and divide it into 72. The result is the number of years it will take to double your money. Peter Lynch return numbers years When management owns stock, then rewarding the shareholders becomes a first priority, whereas when management simply collects a paycheck, then increasing salaries becomes a first priority. Peter Lynch salary priorities firsts
