Given how stocks have outperformed most other asset types in last few years (the S&P 500 is up 27% and 95% since the beginning of 2025 and 2023 respectively), it's perhaps appropriate to remind ourselves of inevitable drawdowns that come sooner or later. In July 2020, I wrote … [Read more...] about Great Decades Come with Gut Punches
LongTermInvesting
Market Highs, Cash Reserves, and the Wisdom of Three Master Investors
A Tale of Two Quarters: Let’s begin with a look at the broader market. If the first quarter of this year gave you a sense of déjà vu, you weren't alone. We experienced a trajectory remarkably similar to Q1 2025—both years teased investors with a strong start before delivering a … [Read more...] about Market Highs, Cash Reserves, and the Wisdom of Three Master Investors
Down memory lane with The Motley Fool
I have been reading The Motley Fool’s investments letters since 2002, especially its flagship product, Motley Fool Stock Advisor. In those early years, brothers David and Tom Gardner would each personally pitch one stock recommendation every month. I appreciated David Gardner’s … [Read more...] about Down memory lane with The Motley Fool
It pays to stay invested
In recent months, I have seen a change in casual investors’ behaviors. They seem more interested in stocks. These days, people approach me to see if I have any hot stock tips for them. Or they ask if I think the market is too high and it’s time to bail out. My response tends to … [Read more...] about It pays to stay invested
Never Sell: From Pulak Prasad’s book
In my last month’s post, I might have given the wrong impression that I am getting out of the stock market entirely. Indeed, I did sell off some stocks to replenish my dry powder cash bucket, as I wrote then. But that was the extent of my selling. Dry powder cash is only a small … [Read more...] about Never Sell: From Pulak Prasad’s book
Regret – learn to live with it
“Market is on an upswing. I don’t want to be caught buying at the peak” “Stocks look cheap but what if they go further down from here” “Every time I buy a stock, it immediately goes down in price” “If I sell today and the stock moves up another 25%, I’d look … [Read more...] about Regret – learn to live with it
Bought stocks for my kids 13 years ago
My older son had a stock picking competition when he was in middle school. That was the year 2010. That competition gave each student a virtual cash account to invest in stocks, bonds, and ETFs. Whoever made a portfolio that performed the best over a 10-week period would … [Read more...] about Bought stocks for my kids 13 years ago
Recent downturns through history’s lens
As the market teeters at the edge of another correction (so what else is new!), as always, we stand ready to take advantage of low prices whenever they come. My dry powder coffers are now full. Over the last 12 months, I took all the cash out of my portfolio that I had invested … [Read more...] about Recent downturns through history’s lens
Make your investing an infinite game
I like to think of investing as a kind of an infinite game. Although it is not strictly an infinite game, I believe it has similar characteristics. So what is an infinite game? It’s a game that has no definitive conclusion. It has no finish line and no one person can be … [Read more...] about Make your investing an infinite game
Why we can do better than professional investors
Stanley Druckenmiller regrets selling his NVIDIA position too soon. He said recently that he wished he had held on to his NVIDIA shares, but admitted he’s no Warren Buffett: “I don’t own things for 10 or 20 years. I wish I was Warren Buffett.” I admire his candid confession but … [Read more...] about Why we can do better than professional investors