Regarded as the 'Father of value Investing, Benjamin Graham was a British-born American economist and investor by profession. Graham redefined the notions of finance and investment through his popular book Security Analysis. Graham’s other notable works include The Interpretation of Financial Statements, The Intelligent Investor and Storage and Stability: A Modern Ever-normal Granary. His sound intellectual investment theories revolutionized investment finance which made massive impact in the economy of the country. He also inspired a new system which compared the U.S. and Global currency. Many business tycoons such as Warren Buffett, William J. Ruane, Irving Kahn and Walter J. Schloss have credited Graham’s thoughts on finance for their understanding of complex concepts of investment. Two of the greatest disciples of Graham, Buffet and Kahn, went on to name their sons after him to signify his influence on them. As a professor, he preached his ideas at various elite institutes namely Columbia Business School and UCLA Anderson School of Management. We have curated Benjamin's thoughts and quotes from his famous books, lectures, speeches and interviews. Let us enrich our minds through some of the most enlightening quotes from this pioneer in finance and marketing.
The intelligent investor is a realist who sells to optimists and buys from pessimists.
Benjamin Graham
An investment operation is one which, upon thorough analysis, promises safety of principal and an adequate return. Operations not meeting these requirements are speculative.
Benjamin Graham
In the short run, the market is a voting machine but in the long run, it is a weighing machine.
Benjamin Graham
Those who do not remember the past are condemned to repeat it.
People who invest make money for themselves; people who speculate make money for their brokers.
Benjamin Graham
On the other hand, investing is a unique kind of casino—one where you cannot lose in the end, so long as you play only by the rules that put the odds squarely in your favor.
Benjamin Graham
As the Danish philosopher Søren Kierkegaard noted, life can only be understood backwards—but it must be lived forwards.
Obvious prospects for physical growth in a business do not translate into obvious profits for investors.
Benjamin Graham
Americans are getting stronger. Twenty years ago, it took two people to carry ten dollars’ worth of groceries. Today, a five-year-old can do it. —Henny Youngman
Benjamin Graham
If the reason people invest is to make money, then in seeking advice they are asking others to tell them how to make money. That idea has some element of naïveté.
Benjamin Graham
The investment world nevertheless has enough liars, cheaters, and thieves to keep Satan's check-in clerks frantically busy for decades to come.
Benjamin Graham
The punches you miss are the ones that wear you out. —Boxing trainer Angelo Dundee
Benjamin Graham
While enthusiasm may be necessary for great accomplishments elsewhere, on Wall Street it almost invariably leads to disaster.
Benjamin Graham
A stock is not just a ticker symbol or an electronic blip; it is an ownership interest in an actual business, with an underlying value that does not depend on its share price.
Benjamin Graham
Invest only if you would be comfortable owning a stock even if you had no way of knowing its daily share price.3
Benjamin Graham
You’ve got to be careful if you don’t know where you’re going, ’cause you might not get there. —Yogi Berra
Benjamin Graham
With every new wave of optimism or pessimism, we are ready to abandon history and time-tested principles, but we cling tenaciously and unquestioningly to our prejudices.
