This is my list of meaningless expressions that are used by investment analysts when they are talking about the equities. But first, an acknowledgement — I find that I have either used, or accepted as meaningful almost all of them. Cunning investment rogues crowd much of the Stock Market, and they speak a strange and mystery-shrouded language.

There’s a X% Probability of Markets Rising

Generally speaking, X is equal to 50%. This is an extremely useful phrase for analysts who have no clue about what the markets are going to do (which is generally all of them, all the time) because it is guaranteed to be correct under all possible circumstances. If it does rise, then your 50% prediction is right. But if it falls or stays flat, then the other 50% comes into play and you are still right. You can actually set the percentage at 99 and still be always right.

The Easy Bucks have been Made

This can be used to sound intelligent and knowledgeable whenever the markets have gone up. However, it doesn’t mean much because it’s just a different way of saying that the markets have gone up. Your audience may think it implies that making money will be more difficult from now on. However, since you haven’t actually said anything about what is likely to happen in the future, you are in the clear no matter what happen.

Bottom-up Investor – I’m a Stock Picker

Since investing is finally being about buying stocks, it’s hard to figure out why any investor would be anything but a stock picker. The truth is that finally, everyone is a stock picker. However, this sounds like a fine principle when you have to explain why your predictions didn’t work out.

Markets are Down on Profit Taking 

This is the opposite of ‘easy money’ and can be used to explain any fall in the markets after a period when it has been rising. Again, it sounds intelligent and knowledgeable while holding no actual information and having no sense of what is going to happen. I always wonder about those on the other side of these transactions, the ones who are buying. Why aren’t they listening to the expert who is talking about profit-taking on TV? Don’t they care? Perhaps not. Perhaps they are too busy buying stocks that are now good value.

 More Sellers than Buyers or the opposite when Stocks are going up

This one is so obviously ridiculous that when an expert says it on TV, it’s always a surprise that no one starts laughing out loudly. Saying this is a pure confidence trick — it works as the audience is in awe of the experts’ expertise that they have suspended their own power of thinking.