Buy the Rumor Sell the Fact – Michael Maiello

The traditional rules of Wall Street–what’s right, what’s wrong, and how investors can distinguish between the two

Buy on Monday, sell on Friday”. . . “Don’t catch falling knives”. . . “The trend is your friend”. . .

These maxims are part of the gospel of Wall Street, repeated so often that, to many, they are beyond question. Unfortunately, they can be wrong–and traders who blindly follow them can get burned. Buy the Rumor, Sell the Fact examines 85 of these “insights” to reveal the meaning behind each, discover its factual support or lack thereof, and advise investors on which to follow and which to just plain ignore. Devoting two to four pages to each maxim, this valuable book examines:

• Maxims that seem to contradict each other–and why both versions may often be correct
• Perilous adages that may work–but then again, may not
• The thought, culture, and impact of today’s Wall Street

From the Back Cover

Today’s Most Refreshingly Straightforward Guidebook to the Real Rules of Wall Street

“Buy the Dips” … “Don’t catch falling knives” … “The trend is your friend” …

These trading maxims–and dozens like them–are repeated so often, by everyone from stockbrokers and advisors to stock market pundits, that for many investors they are fact. But when it’s your own money on the line, how can you know which slogans should be followed, which should be ignored, and how to tell the difference?

In Buy the Rumor, Sell the Fact, Forbes staff writer Michael Maiello takes an unbiased look at more than 75 of these “rules” to determine if they have value for investors in today’s fast-changing markets–and, if so, what that value is. Before you place your next trade, let this engaging and easy-to-understand book show you how to:

• Translate vague and contradictory investment maxims into commonsense investing rules
• Understand and apply the basic mechanisms of the market to your investing
• Distinguish between advice that is valuable and advice that is dangerous

As an independent investor, you need to understand the everyday language of the markets before you can consistently profit from your investments. Buy the Rumor, Sell the Fact takes you inside that language to help you craft investment guidelines that apply to you, and only you, in your quest to make safe and sound investment decisions.

About the Author

Michael Maiello (New York, NY) is a senior reporter and writer for Forbes. A frequent guest on CNNfn’s “Journalist’s Roundtable” and CNN’s “Money Weekend,” Maiello also contributes to the San Francisco Chronicle, the Santa Fe Reporter, and the New York Times Book Review.