The most important thing Uncommon sense for the thoughtful investor

The chairman and co-founder of Oaktree Capital Management explains investing.The world of market investing is often complex and uncertain, but Marks presents his knowledge and experience in an understandable style. The author's debutoriginated from a series of "investment philosophy" memos he wrote for clients over the past 20 years.Marks' advice is meaty and useful, and covers a number of dense economic concepts, such as market efficiency versus inefficiency, understanding and controlling market risk and defensive investing. His thorough reckoning of the material leads to savvy, in-depth economic advice. Investors are encouraged to employ second-level thinking, Marks writes, because the "buy low, sell high" philosophy is just a simple, first-level thoughtdetermining a stock's intrinsic value delves deeper and often results in better return. Interestingly, Marks wrote a memo 10 years ago that described the 2008 financial crisis. While the author is aware investing has very few certainties, his two core principles hold firmthe market is cyclical, and the greatest opportunities arise when others forget the cyclical nature of the market. Readers should not miss "The Poor Man's Guide To Market Assessment,"an exercise Marks recommends as a gauge. Also includes charts and graphs to help investors avoid the many potential hazards along the way.A clear and expert resource for all investors.]] Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Read Chapter 2: The Most Important Thing Is... Understanding Market Efficiency (and Its Limitations) (pdf) Excerpted from The Most Important Thing: Uncommon Sense for the Thoughtful Investor by Howard Marks All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.