This Forty-Ninth Edition is respectfully dedicated to:
Since the last edition, we have lost these two legends of Wall Street. We were privileged to know both gentlemen and continue to benefit immeasurably from their work. Renowned fundamental and technical analysis, award winning market timing, prolific market research, and distinguished investment newsletters; Sy and Mike will be deeply missed.
Mike was Editor of Chartcraft publications and Investors Intelligence from 1982 to 1999 and co-editor with John Gray 2000–2014. He taught fundamental and technical analysis at the New School, New York from 1978–1990 and was a columnist and contributing editor of the Moneypaper from 1983–2012. He authored The Three Box Reversal Method of Point and Figure: Construction and Formations (Chartcraft) in 1999. Mike developed Point and Figure Relative Strength analysis for stocks. He created the Broad Industry Group Bullish %'s technique for finding depressed stock market sectors about to rally and the industry group Insider Analysis as a leading indicator of what senior corporate executives think about the next moves in their companies' share price. He inaugurated a number of different model portfolios, including the Fidelity Switch Fund concentrating on equities, Fidelity bond and international funds, and three portfolios of individual stocks: Low-Priced, Long-Term, and Income & Appreciation. To this day, we continue to incorporate Investors Intelligence research and indicators into our market analysis.
Sy was a true man of all seasons. He was one of the foremost proponents of market seasonality, cycles, and recurring historical patterns, so naturally we were keen on each other's research, analysis, strategies, and systems. Sy enhanced our Best Six Months Switching Strategy (pages 52, 54, 60 and 62) with MACD triggers, dubbing it the “best mechanical system ever.” He founded Asset Management Research Corp in 1988 and published the Street Smart Report, providing research, analysis, and timing on the stock, gold, and bond markets. With a background in engineering as founder and owner of two high-tech manufacturing firms, it was natural that his research involved technical analysis and charting as well as fundamentals. Sy was frequently ranked in the “Top Ten Market Timers in the U.S.” He authored the 1999 book Riding the Bear: How to Prosper in the Coming Bear Market (Adams Media), which accurately predicted the 2000–2002 bear market, and How to Beat the Market the Easy Way! (Wheatmark) in 2007, just prior to the 2007–2009 bear market, which introduced market-timing strategies for down markets.