BOSTON (AP) — The recipe for successful investing sounds pretty simple: have reasonably good timing over the long haul and avoid big mistakes. That's what helps professionals build a worthy track record. For average investors, it's advisable to set the bar lower. Construct a balanced portfolio of low-cost mutual funds, make regular contributions to invested savings, and stick with it until it's time to retire.

The problem is that many investors seem to think they're better than that and can beat the stock market. Yet research consistently shows that it's a fool's game.

The latest findings are from Morningstar Inc., which compared the performance numbers that mutual funds posted with the returns that the investors in those funds actually obtained over multiple years. It's typical to see gaps between the figures. That's because investors move cash in and out as markets rise and fall, and consequently don't experience the same results as the funds they invest in.

Continue Reading for Free

Register and gain access to:

  • Breaking benefits news and analysis, on-site and via our newsletters and custom alerts
  • Educational webcasts, white papers, and ebooks from industry thought leaders
  • Critical converage of the property casualty insurance and financial advisory markets on our other ALM sites, PropertyCasualty360 and ThinkAdvisor
NOT FOR REPRINT

© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.