Skip to headerSkip to main contentSkip to footer
Get our Free E-newslettersGet our Free E-newsletters
Kiplinger logoLink to homepage
Get our Free E-newslettersGet our Free E-newsletters
Subscribe to Kiplinger
Subscribe to Kiplinger
Save up to 76%
Subscribe
Subscribe to Kiplinger
  • Store
  • Home
  • Investing
  • Retirement
  • Taxes
  • Personal Finance
  • Your Business
  • Wealth Creation
  • More
    • Podcasts
    • Economic Outlooks
    • Tools
  • My Kiplinger
    • Kiplinger's Personal Finance Magazine
    • The Kiplinger Letter
    • The Kiplinger Tax Letter
    • Kiplinger's Investing for Income
    • Kiplinger's Retirement Report
    • Store
    • Manage My E-Newsletters
    • My Subscriptions
  • Home
  • investing
Financial Planning

The Best Investing Advice From Top Pros

Want to make the most of your investments?

by: the editors of Kiplinger's Personal Finance
April 24, 2014

Thinkstock

Want to make the most of your investments? We asked six experts from top investing firms for their favorite pieces of advice when it comes to fine tuning an investment strategy. Whether it's the need to diversify, define a risk tolerance or simply invest regularly, check out these words of wisdom and see how you can apply them to your portfolio.

1 of 7

Make Sure You're Diversified

Dave Lauridsen

Rule number one: Make sure you're diversified. Make sure a fund's current managers are behind the fund's track record. Finally, don't panic in the wake of a selloff and join in the selling. Do the opposite: Buy.

— Sarah Ketterer, CEO, Causeway Capital Management

  • Learn More From Kiplinger: Smart Investors Keep It Simple

2 of 7

Avoid the Trap of Linear Thinking

Ian White

  • Avoid the trap of linear thinking. This year, U.S. stocks have outperformed emerging-markets stocks. Some people are convinced this might go on for a decade. We all know it won't. Now is a good time to diversify. If you have nothing in international stocks, go up to 10% to 20%.
  • Learn More From Kiplinger: Why to Buy Emerging Markets Now

— Jeffrey Gundlach, CEO, DoubleLine Capital

3 of 7

Buy What Others Don't Want

Spencer Heyfron/Redux

I think about the advice I got from my grandfathers: Work hard and save. From Warren Buffett: Buy what others don't want. From value master Ben Graham: Don't overpay. These three things have guided me as an investor — and they're hard to do.

— Brian Rogers, Chief Investment Officer, T. Rowe Price

  • Learn More From Kiplinger: 5 Comeback Stocks with Promise

4 of 7

Buy Low and Sell High

Ben Baker/Redux

Have a detailed asset-allocation plan — it forces a discipline to buy low and sell high. Ask yourself: Will a 15% to 20% drop in the stock market cause me to panic and pull out? That — and not just your investing time horizon — should define your risk tolerance.

— Liz Ann Sonders, Chief Investment Strategist, Charles Schwab

  • Learn More From Kiplinger: The Seven Deadly Sins of Investing

5 of 7

Take Higher Risks

Courtesy Ken Fisher

You'll need to take higher risks to get the higher returns you will need in retirement, because you will live longer than you expect. For most people, that means holding more in stocks than they think they should.

— Kenneth Fisher, CEO, Fisher Investments

  • Learn More From Kiplinger: How to Learn to Love Stocks Again

6 of 7

Save and Invest Regularly

Tanja Demarmels/Pixsil

First, save and invest regularly. Regular investments mean you get the advantages of dollar-cost averaging. Second, control the one thing you can control in the stock market: costs. Buy low-fee index finds and exchange-traded funds.

— Burton Malkiel, author, A Random Walk Down Wall Street

  • Learn More From Kiplinger: How to Pick the Best Index Funds

7 of 7

More from Kiplinger

Thinkstock

KNIGHT KIPLINGER: An Investor's Manifesto

TOOL: Mutual Fund Finder

TOOL: Top-Performing Mutual Funds by Category

THE KIP 25: Our Favorite No-Load Mutual Funds

SLIDE SHOW: 8 Ways to Profit from Dividend Stocks

  • Financial Planning
  • investing
Share via EmailShare on FacebookShare on TwitterShare on LinkedIn

Recommended

What to Do with a Windfall with Markets at All-Time Highs
investing

What to Do with a Windfall with Markets at All-Time Highs

All at once or a little at a time? Follow this road map to decide how – and when – to invest a large sum.
March 3, 2021
Are You Gambling or Investing? Here’s How to Tell
investing

Are You Gambling or Investing? Here’s How to Tell

Gambling and investing are two very different things, but people sometimes get them mixed up. One’s good for a cheap thrill (if you’re lucky), but the…
March 2, 2021
Do I Have to Pay Taxes on Gains From Stocks?
Becoming an Investor

Do I Have to Pay Taxes on Gains From Stocks?

If you enjoyed stock market success in 2020, you might owe the IRS. Here's our quick, easy guide to paying taxes on your stock gains.
March 1, 2021
ESG Investing: You Can Align Your Investments with Your Values, But Should You?
investing

ESG Investing: You Can Align Your Investments with Your Values, But Should You?

Investing with environmental, social and governance values in mind has gained in popularity, but is it a solid way to grow your wealth?
March 1, 2021

Most Popular

Where's My Refund? How to Track Your Tax Refund Status
tax refunds

Where's My Refund? How to Track Your Tax Refund Status

If you're waiting for your tax refund, the IRS has an online tool that lets you track the status of your payment.
March 2, 2021
Where's My Stimulus Check? Use the IRS's "Get My Payment" Portal to Get an Answer
Coronavirus and Your Money

Where's My Stimulus Check? Use the IRS's "Get My Payment" Portal to Get an Answer

The IRS has an online tool that lets you track the status of your stimulus checks.
February 19, 2021
Your Guide to Roth Conversions
Special Report
Tax Breaks

Your Guide to Roth Conversions

A Kiplinger Special Report
February 25, 2021
  • Customer Service
  • About Us
  • Advertise With Us (PDF)
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Kiplinger Careers
  • Accessibility
  • Privacy Preferences

Subscribe to Kiplinger's Personal Finance

Be a smarter, better informed investor.
Save up to 76%Subscribe to Kiplinger's Personal Finance
Dennis Publishing Ltd logoLink to Dennis Publishing Ltd website
Do Not Sell My Information

The Kiplinger Washington Editors, Inc., is part of the Dennis Publishing Ltd. Group.
All Contents © 2021, The Kiplinger Washington Editors

Follow us on InstagramFollow us on FacebookFollow us on TwitterConnect on LinkedInConnect on YouTube