Financial economists generally believe that securities (stocks and bonds, etc.) are normally in equilibrium and are "fairly priced", i.e., current prices reflect all available information, so investors cannot "beat the market" by looking at past trends of securities prices. Investors will be better off by investing in an index fund or choosing the buy and hold strategy (please see below link for one view). Please discuss this market efficiency issue: do you accept this efficient market hypothesis? Why or why not? You may refer to this discussion, with Gene Fama, on active investing -

When's the Right Time for Active Investing? Never:

https://www.thinkadvisor.com/2014/09/19/gene-fama-whens-the-right-time-for-active-investing-never/