The Motley Fool Investment Guide

- Illustrations : Non - Publisher's note :It's easy to be overwhelmed by the vast array of resources available to today's investor. The Motley Fool Investment Guide will help you filter the hype and focus on the meaningful information you need to make good decisions. Revised and expanded, novices and seasoned market veterans alike will benefit from the clear thinking and good humor these pages contain. Begin with such topics as mutual and index funds, then move on to building a portfolio, finding small-cap growth stocks, picking and valuing stocks, shorting stocks, and understanding financial statements. In this revised and expanded edition, you'll also learn to: Focus on quality over valuation, identifying market leaders with sustainable advantages. Find rule-breaking, high-risk companies missed using traditional valuation techniques. Use improved stock-screen criteria to comb the market for potential growth-stock winners. You'll become an expert in your investing future without wading through indecipherable financial jargon, without trying to predict the direction of the market with endless analysis, and without gambling on questionable, "hot" stock picks. Best of all, you'll take control of your investments and gain the time to enjoy it. In a world where 3 out of 4 mutual funds underperform the stock market's average annual growth, it might be worth it to strap on a belled-cap and golden slippers and try them on for size.