Tracy Byrnes has been a financial journalist for over ten years, covering tax, accounting, and personal finance issues. She is currently an on-air reporter for the FOX Business Network. Prior to that, she wrote weekly finance columns for the New York Post and TheStreet.com, where she also did daily videos for the Web site, and was a regular guest on numerous financial television shows. Before diving into journalism, Byrnes spent five years as a senior accountant with Ernst & Young LLP. Byrnes has an MBA in accounting from Rutgers University and a bachelor of arts in economics and English from Lehigh University.

• Foreword xiIntroduction xiiiAcknowledgments xvPart I Be An Owner, Not an Employee 1Chapter 1 To Market to Market, to Buy a What? 3So What Exactly Is the Stock Market? 3Buy a Stock and Become a Restaurateur 7Look to the Indexes for the Market Scoop 10Wrap-Up 16Chapter 2 The Lamborghini Murciélago LP 640Roadster: A Lifetime of Dividends 19The Derivation of Dividend 21Dissecting a Dividend’s Date 23Rev the Engine with Some Ratios 25Drive through the Financials 25It’s All About the Little Things 26Get To Know a DRIP (Dividend Reinvestment Program) 28What’s a DRIP? 28Of Course, the Company Benefits, Too 30So How Do You Find a DRIP? 31DRIP Downers 32Wrap-Up 33Chapter 3 Bond, James Bond 35Bond with the Family 36The Mature Bond 37A Bond’s Yield 38Wrap-Up 39Chapter 4 Mutual Funds and ETFs: For Folks on the Go 41Mutual Funds: Funds for Kegs 41Mixing in Exchange-Traded Funds 53Wrap-Up 59Part II Look under the Hood 61Chapter 5 Navigating the Financial Statement: Your “Just Get to the Good Stuff” Guide 63Find the Financials (Hint: They’re in the Annual Report) 64Where to Begin 66Wrap-Up 68Chapter 6 Auditing Your Potential Investment 69Open the Company Checkbook: The Balance Sheet 69Check the Company Report Card: The Income Statement 77Wrap-Up 85Chapter 7 Cash Is the Real Deal. Earnings Reports Are Not. 87Find Your Two Dollars on the Cash Flow Statement 87Earnings Release: The Ultimate Optimist 93Wrap-Up 99Chapter 8 Breakfast with the Federal Reserve: Getting the Economic Porridge “Just Right” 101Where Did the Fed Come from and Why Do We Need It? 102Inflation: Bad for the Porridge and the Economy 103Recession: Bad for Your Hairline and the Economy 104How the Fed Keeps the Porridge “Just Right” 106Adjusting Interest Rates: The Long, Slow Simmer 108Testing the Porridge 113Wrap-Up 115Part III Decisions, Decisions 117Chapter 9 Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow?: Growth, Value, and Momentum Stocks 119Growth Stocks: Hidden Gems 120Value Stocks: Till Death Do Us Part 122Momentum Stocks: One Night Stands 123Wrap-Up 125Chapter 10 Evaluating Cars and Stocks 127Price-to-Earnings Ratio 127Price-to-Book Ratio 130Growth Rate 132Knowing What’s Important: A Case-by-Case Decision 135Hard to Get Good Help 136Wrap-Up 136Chapter 11 The Ins and Outs of IPOs 139Pop Goes the IPO 140A Beneficial Blow 143Knowing When to Make the Move from Public to Private 146Take That IPO on the Road 147Sorting through the S- 1 149Getting a Ticket to the Hottest Party in Town 152Leave the Stock, Take the Fund 156Wrap-Up 157Chapter 12 Options and Futures 159An Introduction to Options 159Check the Expiration Date: Options Expiration Week 165Use the Futures Market to Foresee Market 167Wrap-Up 172Chapter 13 Bringing It All Together 1751. Be Specific about Your Goals 1762. Spread the Risk Around 1763. Don’t Marry Your Holdings 1794. Do Your Homework 1815. Don’t Forget to Pay Uncle Sam 184Wrap-Up 186Appendix 189About the Author 193Index 195

Tracy Byrnes has been a financial journalist for over ten years, covering tax, accounting, and personal finance issues. She is currently an on-air reporter for the FOX Business Network. Prior to that, she wrote weekly finance columns for the New York Post and TheStreet.com, where she also did daily videos for the Web site, and was a regular guest on numerous financial television shows. Before diving into journalism, Byrnes spent five years as a senior accountant with Ernst & Young LLP. Byrnes has an MBA in accounting from Rutgers University and a bachelor of arts in economics and English from Lehigh University.

• Foreword xiIntroduction xiiiAcknowledgments xvPart I Be An Owner, Not an Employee 1Chapter 1 To Market to Market, to Buy a What? 3So What Exactly Is the Stock Market? 3Buy a Stock and Become a Restaurateur 7Look to the Indexes for the Market Scoop 10Wrap-Up 16Chapter 2 The Lamborghini Murciélago LP 640Roadster: A Lifetime of Dividends 19The Derivation of Dividend 21Dissecting a Dividend’s Date 23Rev the Engine with Some Ratios 25Drive through the Financials 25It’s All About the Little Things 26Get To Know a DRIP (Dividend Reinvestment Program) 28What’s a DRIP? 28Of Course, the Company Benefits, Too 30So How Do You Find a DRIP? 31DRIP Downers 32Wrap-Up 33Chapter 3 Bond, James Bond 35Bond with the Family 36The Mature Bond 37A Bond’s Yield 38Wrap-Up 39Chapter 4 Mutual Funds and ETFs: For Folks on the Go 41Mutual Funds: Funds for Kegs 41Mixing in Exchange-Traded Funds 53Wrap-Up 59Part II Look under the Hood 61Chapter 5 Navigating the Financial Statement: Your “Just Get to the Good Stuff” Guide 63Find the Financials (Hint: They’re in the Annual Report) 64Where to Begin 66Wrap-Up 68Chapter 6 Auditing Your Potential Investment 69Open the Company Checkbook: The Balance Sheet 69Check the Company Report Card: The Income Statement 77Wrap-Up 85Chapter 7 Cash Is the Real Deal. Earnings Reports Are Not. 87Find Your Two Dollars on the Cash Flow Statement 87Earnings Release: The Ultimate Optimist 93Wrap-Up 99Chapter 8 Breakfast with the Federal Reserve: Getting the Economic Porridge “Just Right” 101Where Did the Fed Come from and Why Do We Need It? 102Inflation: Bad for the Porridge and the Economy 103Recession: Bad for Your Hairline and the Economy 104How the Fed Keeps the Porridge “Just Right” 106Adjusting Interest Rates: The Long, Slow Simmer 108Testing the Porridge 113Wrap-Up 115Part III Decisions, Decisions 117Chapter 9 Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow?: Growth, Value, and Momentum Stocks 119Growth Stocks: Hidden Gems 120Value Stocks: Till Death Do Us Part 122Momentum Stocks: One Night Stands 123Wrap-Up 125Chapter 10 Evaluating Cars and Stocks 127Price-to-Earnings Ratio 127Price-to-Book Ratio 130Growth Rate 132Knowing What’s Important: A Case-by-Case Decision 135Hard to Get Good Help 136Wrap-Up 136Chapter 11 The Ins and Outs of IPOs 139Pop Goes the IPO 140A Beneficial Blow 143Knowing When to Make the Move from Public to Private 146Take That IPO on the Road 147Sorting through the S- 1 149Getting a Ticket to the Hottest Party in Town 152Leave the Stock, Take the Fund 156Wrap-Up 157Chapter 12 Options and Futures 159An Introduction to Options 159Check the Expiration Date: Options Expiration Week 165Use the Futures Market to Foresee Market 167Wrap-Up 172Chapter 13 Bringing It All Together 1751. Be Specific about Your Goals 1762. Spread the Risk Around 1763. Don’t Marry Your Holdings 1794. Do Your Homework 1815. Don’t Forget to Pay Uncle Sam 184Wrap-Up 186Appendix 189About the Author 193Index 195

Tracy Byrnes has been a financial journalist for over ten years, covering tax, accounting, and personal finance issues. She is currently an on-air reporter for the FOX Business Network. Prior to that, she wrote weekly finance columns for the New York Post and TheStreet.com, where she also did daily videos for the Web site, and was a regular guest on numerous financial television shows. Before diving into journalism, Byrnes spent five years as a senior accountant with Ernst & Young LLP. Byrnes has an MBA in accounting from Rutgers University and a bachelor of arts in economics and English from Lehigh University.

• Foreword xiIntroduction xiiiAcknowledgments xvPart I Be An Owner, Not an Employee 1Chapter 1 To Market to Market, to Buy a What? 3So What Exactly Is the Stock Market? 3Buy a Stock and Become a Restaurateur 7Look to the Indexes for the Market Scoop 10Wrap-Up 16Chapter 2 The Lamborghini Murciélago LP 640Roadster: A Lifetime of Dividends 19The Derivation of Dividend 21Dissecting a Dividend’s Date 23Rev the Engine with Some Ratios 25Drive through the Financials 25It’s All About the Little Things 26Get To Know a DRIP (Dividend Reinvestment Program) 28What’s a DRIP? 28Of Course, the Company Benefits, Too 30So How Do You Find a DRIP? 31DRIP Downers 32Wrap-Up 33Chapter 3 Bond, James Bond 35Bond with the Family 36The Mature Bond 37A Bond’s Yield 38Wrap-Up 39Chapter 4 Mutual Funds and ETFs: For Folks on the Go 41Mutual Funds: Funds for Kegs 41Mixing in Exchange-Traded Funds 53Wrap-Up 59Part II Look under the Hood 61Chapter 5 Navigating the Financial Statement: Your “Just Get to the Good Stuff” Guide 63Find the Financials (Hint: They’re in the Annual Report) 64Where to Begin 66Wrap-Up 68Chapter 6 Auditing Your Potential Investment 69Open the Company Checkbook: The Balance Sheet 69Check the Company Report Card: The Income Statement 77Wrap-Up 85Chapter 7 Cash Is the Real Deal. Earnings Reports Are Not. 87Find Your Two Dollars on the Cash Flow Statement 87Earnings Release: The Ultimate Optimist 93Wrap-Up 99Chapter 8 Breakfast with the Federal Reserve: Getting the Economic Porridge “Just Right” 101Where Did the Fed Come from and Why Do We Need It? 102Inflation: Bad for the Porridge and the Economy 103Recession: Bad for Your Hairline and the Economy 104How the Fed Keeps the Porridge “Just Right” 106Adjusting Interest Rates: The Long, Slow Simmer 108Testing the Porridge 113Wrap-Up 115Part III Decisions, Decisions 117Chapter 9 Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow?: Growth, Value, and Momentum Stocks 119Growth Stocks: Hidden Gems 120Value Stocks: Till Death Do Us Part 122Momentum Stocks: One Night Stands 123Wrap-Up 125Chapter 10 Evaluating Cars and Stocks 127Price-to-Earnings Ratio 127Price-to-Book Ratio 130Growth Rate 132Knowing What’s Important: A Case-by-Case Decision 135Hard to Get Good Help 136Wrap-Up 136Chapter 11 The Ins and Outs of IPOs 139Pop Goes the IPO 140A Beneficial Blow 143Knowing When to Make the Move from Public to Private 146Take That IPO on the Road 147Sorting through the S- 1 149Getting a Ticket to the Hottest Party in Town 152Leave the Stock, Take the Fund 156Wrap-Up 157Chapter 12 Options and Futures 159An Introduction to Options 159Check the Expiration Date: Options Expiration Week 165Use the Futures Market to Foresee Market 167Wrap-Up 172Chapter 13 Bringing It All Together 1751. Be Specific about Your Goals 1762. Spread the Risk Around 1763. Don’t Marry Your Holdings 1794. Do Your Homework 1815. Don’t Forget to Pay Uncle Sam 184Wrap-Up 186Appendix 189About the Author 193Index 195