One Up on Wall Street

Writing with Rothchild ( A Fool and His Money ), Lynch, director of the Fidelity Magellan Fund, the nation's largest equity fund ($9 billion in assets), argues that average investors can beat Wall Street professionals by using the information that they encounter in their everyday lives. For example, Lynch invested in Hanes after his wife told him about the popularity of L'eggs pantyhose. Other winning stocks that average investors could have picked well before Wall Street became aware of them include LaQuinta motels, the Limited clothing store chain and Agency Rent-A-Car, note the authors. They advise readers to look for spectacular growth among companies that sound dull; do something disagreeable; are spinoffs; are buying back theor own stock. They caution readers to avoid companies touted as the next IBM or Xerox; that are diversifying (``diworseifying''); that depend on a single customer. The book is also a primer on how the stock market works and is written in a light, entertaining style. Investors will be able to put the shrewd insights presented to good use. Author tour. (Feb.)