Why most investors miss great opportunities:Numbers matter, but great investments go deeper. Fisher believed that understanding a company’s people, products, and potential paints a much clearer picture than just analyzing financials. To invest wisely, study how the company thinks, not just how it performs.

Beyond The Numbers

Why short-term market moves are a trap:Markets overreact. They’re driven by emotion more than logic. Fisher reminds us: great businesses remain great even when their stocks dip. Patience isn’t passive—it’s strategic.

Ignore the Noise

What makes or breaks a business long-term:Visionary leadership isn’t just a plus—it’s essential. Fisher valued honesty, adaptability, and courage in executives. A company’s future is shaped by the decisions of its leaders. Watch them closely.

Management is Everything

The truth hides in what others are saying:Fisher’s famous “scuttlebutt” method is about asking around—talk to employees, suppliers, competitors. This groundwork reveals insights hidden from spreadsheets. If the market’s blind, the informed investor becomes king.

The Scuttlebutt Secret

Why owning too many stocks can hurt your returns:More isn’t always safer. Fisher believed in focused investing—only own what you deeply understand and believe in. Ten great stocks beat fifty average ones every time.

Don’t Diversify Blindly

What sets apart truly exceptional businesses:Look for companies that are still expanding—new markets, better products, smarter operations. Growth means the company’s future is worth more than its past. That’s where the real value lies.

Growth is the Ultimate Moat

“Conservative investors sleep well.”

8.	Does the company have outstanding executive relations?9.	Does the company have depth to its management?10.	How good are the company’s cost analysis and accounting controls?11.	Are there other aspects of the business, somewhat peculiar to the industry involved, which will give the investor important clues as to how outstanding the company may be in relation to its competition?12.	Does the company have a short-range or long-range outlook in regard to profits?

Cont;

The timeless mindset that beats the market:Fisher’s core message? Think for yourself. Stay curious. Invest in businesses, not tickers. And above all—be patient. Master these, and you don’t just invest better—you think better.

Think Long, Stay Curious

2.	Does the management have a determination to continue to develop products or processes that will still further increase total sales potential when the growth potentials of currently attractive product lines have largely been exploited?3.	How effective are the company’s research and development efforts in relation to its size?4.	Does the company have an above-average sales organization?5.	Does the company have a worthwhile profit margin?6.	What is the company doing to maintain or improve profit margins?7.	Does the company have outstanding labor and personnel relations?

“The wise investor can profit if he can think independently of the crowd and reach the rich answer when the majority of financial opinion is leaning the other way.”

“The stock market is filled with individuals who know the price of everything, but the value of nothing.”

Why selling too soon costs more than holding too long:Most people sell winners too early. But Fisher argued: if you find a truly great company, keep it. Let compounding do its quiet, miraculous work over years—not months.

Hold… and Then Hold Some More

13.	In the foreseeable future, will the growth of the company require sufficient equity financing so that the per-share earnings will be reduced?14.	Does the management talk freely to investors when things are going well—and also when troubles and disappointments occur?15.	Does the company have a management of unquestionable integrity?

The gold standard for stock selection:Fisher laid out 15 questions every investor should ask—from R&D strength to management integrity. A truly great stock checks nearly all these boxes. If it doesn’t, move on. Excellence isn’t negotiable.Here are Philip Fisher’s 15 Points for evaluating a common stock: 1.	Does the company have products or services with sufficient market potential to make possible a sizable increase in sales?

15 Points or Nothing

Hailed by Forbes magazine as "one of the seminal figures of modern investment thinking," and a "giant" by investment wizard Warren Buffett, Philip Fisher is one of the most influential investors of all time. Admired for his investment success, he is even more widely respected for his sound investment philosophies—philosophies that have withstood the test of almost forty years and that are regarded as gospel by the investors of today. These principles and theories were introduced by Fisher in Common Stocks and Uncommon Profits. Initially published in 1958, it is today considered an invaluable reference for investment success. Now, for the first time, a new, single edition brings this timeless classic together with the investment wisdom and insight offered in Fisher's other acclaimed writings—Conservative Investors Sleep Well and Developing an Investment Philosophy. As the first to consider a stock's worth in terms of potential growth rather than price trends and absolute value, Fisher laid the foundation for many of today's popular investment beliefs. His principles of selecting long-term growth stocks for their emerging value over short-term trades for initial profit continue to be studied and applied by today's top finance professionals. In Common Stocks and Uncommon Profits, Fisher shares his philosophy, offering valuable insights into the most fundamental and important aspects of buying and selling stock. Here are solid guidelines on when and what to buy, sound reasons for selling common stock, as well as critical information on profit margins and dividends. There is also Fisher's famous list of Top-Ten "Don'ts" for investors, complete with warnings against buying into promotional companies, over-stressing diversification, following the crowd, and buying stock just for the "tone" of its annual report. As an ideal complement to Common Stocks and Uncommon Profits, Conservative Investors Sleep Well and Developing an Investment Philosophy explore, respectively, the myriad intricacies of conservative investments and the genesis of Fisher's unique philosophy. Both selections offer further insight into the wisdom of this great investor. As indispensable today as when they were first published, these classic writings provide keys to investment success which every investor will relish. "You will find lots of jewels in these pages that may do as much for you as they have for me."—from the Introduction by Kenneth L. Fisher Forbes columnist Widely respected and admired, Philip Fisher is among the most influential investors of all time. His investment philosophies, introduced almost forty years ago, are not only studied and applied by today's finance professionals, but are also regarded by many as gospel. He recorded these philosophies in Common Stocks and Uncommon Profits, a book considered invaluable reading when it was first published in 1958, and a must-read today. Acclaim for Common Stocks and Uncommon Profits "I sought out Phil Fisher after reading his Common Stocks and Uncommon Profits...When I met him, I was impressed by the man as by his ideas. A thorough understanding of the business, obtained by using Phil's techniques...enable one to make intelligent investment commitments."—Warren Buffett "Little known to the public, rarely interviewed and accepting few clients, Philip Fisher is nevertheless read and studied by most thoughtful investment professionals . . . everyone will profit from pondering—as Warren Buffett has done—the investment principles Fisher espouses."—James W. Michaels Editor, Forbes "My own copy [of Common Stocks and Uncommon Profits] has underlinings and marginal thoughts throughout."—John Train Author of Dance of the Money Bees

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