Most of the professional investors focus on what the stock is likely to do in the next year to avail all kinds of arcane methods of approaching that.
Economic medicine
Economic medicine that was previously meted out by the cupful has recently been dispensed by the barrel. These once unthinkable dosages will almost certainly bring on unwelcome after-effects. Their precise nature is anyone’s guess, though one likely consequence is an onslaught of inflation.
Blockheads
Let blockheads read what blockheads wrote.
Bad news
In short, bad news is an investor’s best friend. It lets you buy a slice of America’s future at a marked-down price.
Predict the short-term movements
Let me be clear on one point : I can’t predict the short-term movements of the stock market. I haven’t the faintest idea as to whether stocks will be higher or lower a month or a year from now. What is likely, however, is that the market will move higher, perhaps substantially so, well before either sentiment or the economy turns up. So if you wait for the robins, spring will be over.
20th century
Over the long term, the stock market news will be good. In the 20th century, the United States endured two world wars and other traumatic and expensive military conflicts ; the Depression ; a dozen or so recessions and financial panics ; oil shocks ; a fly epidemic ; and the resignation of a disgraced president. Yet the Dow rose from 66 to 11,497.
Your servant
Mr. Market is your servant, not your guide.
Major market declines
The years ahead will occasionally deliver major market declines – even panics – that will affect virtually all stocks. No one can tell you when these traumas will occur.
From green to red
No one can tell you when these will happen. The light can at any time go from green to red without pausing at yellow.
Uncertain time
You know, people talk about this being an uncertain time. You know, all time is uncertain. I mean, it was uncertain back in – in 2007, we just didn’t know it was uncertain. It was uncertain on September 10th, 2001. It was uncertain on October 18th, 1987, you just didn’t know it.