Why We're Better Buyers Than Sellers

You no doubt think long and hard—and do plenty of research—before you buy a stock. But a new study shows that investors tend to put far less effort into sell decisions, and that can hurt you.

- Anne Kates Smith

The finding comes from a preliminary study published in January by researchers at the University of Chicago, Carnegie Mellon University, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and data analysis firm Inalytics. They looked at 4.4 million trades for 783 portfolios run by professional money managers between 2000 and 2016. These were cream-of-the-crop managers, with portfolios averaging $573 million, but make no mistake: The findings apply to you, too.