Despite Gains, Many Flee Stock Market-WSJ

While 2012 has been quite a good year for investors long the market, it has really been the market climbing a “wall or worry,” as opposed to real enthusiasm of the economy or the business environment.  The worst thing one can do is now pile in because they feel they need to catch up, having missed a strong rally.  The key to investing is using the right process, staying disciplined, and having patience.  Over 50% of trades are high frequency traders and media coverage caters to that type of frenetic environments.  Stocks are fractional shares of businesses and if you look at them like that, and concentrate far less on the macroeconomic picture, you’ll likely be far more successful.  Market timing is generally a losing cause.  Below are a few quotes from the article that are typical in this environment.


“Every other day on the news there’s some crisis,” she said. “The whole euro-zone collapse talk keeps going and going. If it’s not Greece, it’s Spain. Then there’s the whole Facebook blowup.”

Many people bought Facebook thinking it just had to go up after the IPO, as opposed to actually analyzing it as an investment.  These news headlines are serious but rarely are their not serious geopolitical, or economic concerns throughout the world.  The key is the value you receive, for the price that you pay.

Still, Mr. Kotok said, clients call him asking to get out of stocks. “The conversation will go something like this: ‘The market is up enough, I don’t like the way things are, take me out and put me in bonds.’ I get that every few months. I rarely get a call telling me to go the other way,” Mr. Kotok said.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10000872396390443890304578010500821461868.html?mod=WSJ_hps_LEFTTopStories