Many investors believe that success in investing is either luck or clairvoyance. In Rational Investing, finance professor Hugues Langlois and asset manager Jacques Lussier present the current state of asset management and clarify the conundrum of luck versus skill. The core of Rational Investing is a framework for smart investing built around three performance drivers: balancing exposure to risk factors, efficiently diversifying bad luck, and taking advantage of relative mispricings in financial markets. With clear examples from model multi-asset-class portfolios, Langlois and Lussier show how to implement performance drivers like institutional investors with access to extensive resources, as well as nonprofessional investors who are constrained to small-scale transactions. There are few investment products, whether traditional or alternative, discretionary or systematic, fundamental or quantitative, whose performance cannot be analyzed through this framework. Langlois and Lussier illuminate the structure of financial markets and the mechanics of sustainable investing so any investor can become a rational player, from the nonprofessional investor with a basic knowledge of statistics all the way to seasoned investment professionals wishing to challenge their understanding of the asset management industry.

You’ve been lied to about investing. They told you investing requires secret knowledge. But here’s the truth… Financial services companies want you to feel overwhelmed by investing, so you hire them to handle it for you. Then they turn around and sell you expensive, complicated investments you don’t need. Here’s a more comforting truth: You don’t need to pay an expert to pick stocks for you. You don’t even need to be an expert yourself. All you need to outperform most high-powered investment managers is a baseline level of knowledge and enough humility to step aside and let compound interest work its magic. Pick up your copy of The Rational Investor to learn: Why index funds are the investment of choice to build passive wealth (page 23) The two critical steps to properly diversify an investment portfolio (page 33) Which expensive and complex “alternative” investments that the financial services industry will try and sell you, and why you don’t need them (page 61) How to do the most difficult thing as an investor; sit still and do nothing when everyone else is panicking (page 164) You’ll love this book because it will make investing simple, inexpensive, and profitable. Get it now.

The Rational Investor provides a view of the investment world by an insider with a unique perspective. Written with the individual investor in mind, Timothy Maguire, MBA, RFC challenges many of today's accepted theories. Theories that sound plausible, yet do not work in the real world. After showing the folly of many of the "rules of investing" espoused by others, Mr. Maguire offers the enlightened reader with a host of alternatives. X How to maintain a "pragmatic," disciplined approach to investing. X The difference between "market-timing" and "technical analysis." X Why a "buy and hold" philosophy only works if you time it right. X The dirty little secret that discount brokerage firms don't tell you. X Why paying taxes on a short-term gain can be a GOOD thing. X Why typical asset allocation models do not work. X Wall Street's most misunderstood and mis-sold product. X How external and internal obstacles block your way to success. X Ten Steps to take to create, implement, and monitor a portfolio. X The best way to invest for current income. (Actually, there's two best ways!) "Rationalism: A view that reason and experience rather than the nonrational are the fundamental criteria in the solution of problems." (Webster's)

Explaining the underlying logic behind financial ratios, this book adds to the discussion on the importance and implementation of ratios and illustrates the essential role that they play in company evaluations and investment screening. The author explores how ratios establish a proportional relationship between accounting and market data, and when well-integrated into a global company vision, can become powerful indicators capable of outlining relevant information and identifying warning signs. Going beyond merely listing possible ratios and looking further into their implementation, each ratio family is demonstrated with numerous graphs and practical case studies involving companies such as Amazon, Walmart and Alibaba. With a focus on behavioral finance and enterprise value, this innovative Palgrave Pivot will be of interest to investors, bankers and entrepreneurs, as well as finance scholars and students.

The Nobel Prize-winning Father of Modern Portfolio Theory re-introduces his theories for the current world of investing Legendary economist Harry M. Markowitz provides the insight and methods you need to build a portfolio that generates strong returns for the long run In Risk-Return Analysis, Markowitz corrects common misunderstandings about Modern Portfolio Theory (MPT) to help advanced financial practitioners dramatically improve their decision making. In this first volume of a groundbreaking four-part series sure to draw the attention of anyone interested in MPT, Markowitz provides the criteria necessary for judging among risk-measures; surveys a half-century of literature (nearly all of which has been ignored by textbooks) on the applicability of MPT; and presents an empirical study of which functions of mean and some risk-measure is best for those who seek to maximize return in the long run. Harry M. Markowitz is a Nobel Laureate and the father of Modern Portfolio Theory.

The motivation for this book is the hope of laying the foundations of a more rational, scientific approach to investing. We as investors are subject to significant obstacles, many of which come from within. Far from the rational agent model of traditional economics, we tend to be quite irrational in our investment decisions. Further, the market itself is not as clear cut and simple as many would have us believe; it has a life of its own, one that is complex and dynamic. Without a proper understanding of the underlying, any derivative strategies are doomed to failure. Profitable investing, then, involves strategies built on the assumptions of the market as it really is, not the one presented in economic textbooks.

Clyatt backs up his advice on investing and spending during retirement with solid academic research. - San Diego Union-Tribune - "Terrific advice on how to safely reach semi-retirement while still in the prime of life." - Mark Goines, - early semi-retiree & Intuit veteran - "Sections on developing a retirement portfolio and a withdrawal strategy are certainly valuable for those who have already retired." - Lynn O'Shaughnessy,- author of The Retirement Bible and The Investment Bible

Offers particular coverage of working in a cautious climate, highlighting three dozen costly mistakes while outlining the steps for building a globally diversified portfolio.