title: Expectations Investing: Reading Stock Prices for Better Returns
author:  Alfred Rappaport 
description: Instead of focusing on the short term--earnings per share, price-earnings multiples--Rappaport (Creating Shareholder Value), formerly a professor at Northwestern's Kellogg School of Management, and Mauboussin, chief investment strategist at Credit Suisse First Boston, recommend "expectations investing," which "starts with the current stock price and uses the discounted cash-flow model to `read' what the market implies about a company's future performance." They discuss sample companies (Gateway), historical patterns, competitive strategies and share value. Though they expertly simplify a complex topic, beginners may find the book overly technical. However, the authors' credentials, a national interview campaign and author appearances should attract deserved attention. Tables.
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  ![image](../images/9781118167601.jpg)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Contents
  
  
  [Preface](Preface.html)
  
  
  [Acknowledgments](Acknowledgments.html)
  
  
  [Chapter 1: The Plain-Old Normal](Chapter01.html)
  
  
  [Yes Sir, Sir John](Chapter01.html#sec1)
  
  
  [The Normal Normal](Chapter01.html#sec2)
  
  
  [The Jobless Recovery](Chapter01.html#sec3)
  
  
  [The Always Feared, Rarely Seen Double Dip](Chapter01.html#sec4)
  
  
  [Chapter 2: Fooled by Averages](Chapter02.html)
  
  
  [Bull Markets Are Inherently Above Average](Chapter02.html#sec5)
  
  
  [Viva the V](Chapter02.html#sec6)
  
  
  [Normal Returns Are Extreme, Not Average](Chapter02.html#sec7)
  
  
  [The Pause That Refreshes (and Confuses)](Chapter02.html#sec8)
  
  
  [Getting Average Returns Is Hard—Really Hard](Chapter02.html#sec9)
  
  
  [Chapter 3: Volatility Is Normal—and Volatile](Chapter03.html)
  
  
  [What the Heck Is Volatility?](Chapter03.html#sec10)
  
  
  [Volatility Is Volatile](Chapter03.html#sec11)
  
  
  [The Daily Grind](Chapter03.html#sec12)
  
  
  [Stocks Are Less Volatile Than Bonds?](Chapter