|  MAY 1988

The seven best brokers in America by Norm Zadeh, Ph.D.

The seven best brokers in America by Norm Zadeh, Ph.D. The vast majority of brokers do not make their own investment decisions. When they phone a client with a recommendation, it is that of the firm, not their own. Out of roughly 65,000 brokers, perhaps only 2,500 make their own decisions. Most of these ""superior"" brokers have entered the U.S. Trading Championship or the U.S. Investing Championship at one time or another. The results of five years worth of real money competitions are somewhat gloomy—only 505 of 2370 contestants, 21.3%, reported profits. On the bright side, there are a few brokers who consistently report profits. The most consistent brokers I've seen are listed below in alphabetical order. Several top prospects have been omitted because they have not yet participated in four competitions. There are four divisions in each competition: stocks, options, option-writing and futures. The highest returns are in options and futures, divisions which also have the most risk. In the performance records (profit percentage) noted below, the numbers in parentheses, i.e., (2), refer to the various four-month trading competitions (two per year) held since 1983; those numbers with asterisks, i.e., (1*), (2*) or (3*), refer to the three one-year investing competitions held since 1985.

by Norm Zadeh, Ph.D.