I used to go to the nearest weekly market with my father where they sell everything and trade cows, buffaloes and other domestic animals. My father despite his profession as a school teacher and administrator, also buy and sell cows for interest and extra income. My father used to tell me when you buy a cow or buffalo you should be able to see the worth which is not obvious to others. He used to buy some cows which others don't even consider buying. But with in a few weeks he would sell the same cow for a good margin. The cow at the time of buying was either not fed properly or not groomed well. He would feed the cow well and groom it for few weeks (comb the body hair, trim or polish the horns and change the dirty halter and ropes). The cow would look more valuable within in few weeks.
When I started learning about investing I came across the term value investing which is obviously nothing but buying a worthy cow(worthy stock) at a lower price and its worth is not obvious to others or too low due to market conditions, industry risk etc. Stock prices go up when many analysts start covering and visibility increases. If you are a good investor you should be able to see the value in companies before other investor and analysts able to see that. Stocks which trade below book value due to overall market conditions or industry risk but inherently with good fundamentals are stocks considered as value stocks. These stocks tend to go up when the market condition improves. For experienced investors companies which await for potential approvals, such as FDA, environmental and regulatory also provide tremendous opportunities.
The best book for the beginners to learn about investing is motley fools The Motley Fool Money Guide: Answers to Your Questions on Saving, Spending, and Investing.
Beginners can learn to investing at Motley fools, Fool.com which is also the best site for value investor.
Buy Stocks
A Wealth of Choices for a Value Investor
The Graham Investor — Intelligent Value Investing
Value investing - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Club for Value Investing
Spotting Cash Cows
