To have a true investment, there must be a true margin of safety. And a true margin of safety is one that can be demonstrated by figures, by persuasive reasoning, and by reference to a body of actual experience.

The intelligent investor is a realist who sells to optimists and buys from pessimists.

The function of the margin of safety is, in essence, that of rendering unnecessary an accurate estimate of the future.

Even defensive portfolios should be changed from time to time, especially if the securities purchased have an apparently excessive advance and can be replaced by issues much more reasonable priced.

Before you invest, you must ensure that you have realistically assessed your probability of being right and how you will react to the consequences of being wrong.

Price fluctuations have only one significant meaning for the true investor. They provide him with an opportunity to buy wisely when prices fall sharply and to sell wisely when they advance a great deal.

If you are shopping for common stocks, choose them the way you would buy groceries, not the way you would buy perfume.