How many mutual fund managers can consistently pick stocks that outperform the broad stock market averages — as opposed to just being lucky now and then? This question has been asked hundreds of times by researchers, but this time the evidence is more conclusive than ever. For the period, 1975-2006, less than 1% of funds beat their benchmark. Click here for the full article.

Remember the former securities analyst Henry Blodget? He is singing a new tune. The following is a small sample of a Fast Company magazine interview:

Why have you fashioned yourself as a defender of the common man and of commonsense investment strategies such as diversifying and buying index funds?

After I left Wall Street, I studied a lot of academic research, and I was startled to discover that stock picking, market timing, and other popular investment activities usually hurt investors rather than help them. This is an indisputable fact, but it’s actually not common sense. On the contrary, most people think it’s ridiculous. Most people assume that index funds only do well because most investors are stupid — which is delusional. Until you understand why indexing works, you’ll always be wasting money and time searching in vain for the next great stock-market guru.

Click here for the full article.