intelligent-investor-graham

# The Intelligent Investor — Skill (Benjamin Graham)

**Knowledge source:** *The Intelligent Investor* by Benjamin Graham, revised edition with commentary by Jason Zweig.
**Architecture:** Orchestrator + 7 subskills. This file routes the user query; subskills execute the actual Graham workflows.

```text
intelligent-investor-graham/
├── SKILL.md
├── quotes/
│   ├── market-philosophy-quotes.md
│   └── value-investing-quotes.md
└── subskills/
    ├── m1_investment_vs_speculation/
    │   ├── module.md
    │   └── references/case_library.md
    ├── m2_defensive_stock_screen/
    │   ├── module.md
    │   └── references/case_library.md
    ├── m3_margin_of_safety_pricing/
    │   ├── module.md
    │   └── references/case_library.md
    ├── m4_market_fluctuation_response/
    │   ├── module.md
    │   └── references/case_library.md
    ├── m5_portfolio_policy/
    │   ├── module.md
    │   └── references/case_library.md
    ├── m6_fund_adviser_ipo_review/
    │   ├── module.md
    │   └── references/case_library.md
    └── m7_enterprising_bargain_hunt/
        ├── module.md
        └── references/case_library.md
```

## Skill Purpose

Use this skill to apply Graham's value-investing discipline to practical investor decisions: distinguishing investment from speculation, screening defensive stocks, estimating margin of safety, responding to market swings, setting portfolio policy, evaluating funds or advisers, and searching for enterprising-investor bargains.

This is not a market-forecasting, momentum-trading, tax-planning, or personalized financial-advice skill. Its job is to force businesslike analysis, conservative arithmetic, and temperament discipline before any action is labeled an investment.

## When to Use This Skill

Invoke this skill when the user asks questions such as:

- "Is this stock worth buying under Graham's rules?"
- "Is this an investment or speculation?"
- "Does this company pass the defensive investor checklist?"
- "What price gives enough margin of safety?"
- "The stock or market dropped. Should I sell?"
- "How should I split my portfolio between stocks and bonds?"
- "Should I buy this fund, adviser product, IPO, SPAC, or hot growth story?"
- "How would Graham look for bargain stocks?"

## CITATION RULES

Every substantive Graham-method claim must cite the original-text quote files when a module produces a final answer.

**Quote files:**

- `quotes/value-investing-quotes.md` — investment definition, margin of safety, Mr. Market, defensive allocation, price discipline, Graham's core principles.
- `quotes/market-philosophy-quotes.md` — market pendulum, earnings skepticism, IPO warnings, index funds, adviser conflicts, net-current-asset bargains, simplicity, historical humility.

**Citation format:**

> "Author's exact words here."
>
> — [*The Intelligent Investor*, cited excerpt](https://github.com/simbajigege/book2skills/blob/main/skills/intelligent-investor-graham/quotes/FILENAME.md#ANCHOR)

**Anchor mapping:**

- `value-investing-quotes.md`: `#buffett-endorses-graham`, `#investment-vs-speculation`, `#margin-of-safety`, `#mr-market`, `#mr-market-servant`, `#defensive-portfolio-split`, `#price-matters-more`, `#graham-core-principles`, `#the-future-value-depends-on-price`, `#no-need-for-extraordinary`
- `market-philosophy-quotes.md`: `#market-is-a-pendulum`, `#earnings-can-be-manipulated`, `#avoid-ipos`, `#index-funds-best`, `#advisers-misaligned`, `#net-current-asset-bargains`, `#simplicity-beats-cleverness`, `#santayana-warning`

**Rules:**

- Read the routed module's `references/case_library.md` for the relevant quote IDs.
- Include at least one citation per major section in substantive answers.
- Use only exact quotes from the quote files. Do not invent quotation text.
- If no exact quote fits, cite the closest anchor and state that the reasoning is a paraphrased Graham application.

## Workflow Inventory

| Workflow | User question pattern | Inputs | Steps | Output | Independent trigger? | Distinct references? | Triage score | Should be subskill? | Reason |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---:|---:|---|---|
| Investment/speculation classification | "Is this trade investing?" | Security, thesis, holding period, analysis, leverage, position sizing | Test analysis, principal safety, adequate return, promotional dependence | Investment/speculation verdict and boundary conditions | Yes | Yes | 4 | Yes | Foundation for every proposed purchase or trade. |
| Defensive stock screen | "Does X pass Graham's defensive checklist?" | 10-year earnings, dividends, balance sheet, price, EPS, book value | Apply seven defensive criteria without soft averaging | Pass/fail table and disqualifiers | Yes | Yes | 4 | Yes | Distinct inputs, rules, and pass/fail artifact. |
| Margin of safety pricing | "What price is attractive?" | Normalized earnings, assets, book value, debt, bond yield, current price | Estimate conservative value, discount, and no-buy zone | Buy zone, watch zone, avoid zone | Yes | Yes | 4 | Yes | Distinct valuation artifact. |
| Market fluctuation response | "The stock dropped. Should I sell?" | Price change, business change, valuation, liquidity needs, leverage | Separate quotation from value; test impairment and forced-selling risk | Hold/add/reduce/sell framework | Yes | Yes | 4 | Yes | Distinct behavioral and sell-discipline workflow. |
| Portfolio policy | "How should I allocate?" | Investor type, income need, effort, risk capacity, yields | Start at 50/50, apply 25/75 guardrails, rebalance | Allocation range and rebalancing rule | Yes | Yes | 4 | Yes | Different input type and output artifact. |
| Fund/adviser/IPO review | "Should I buy this fund or IPO?" | Fees, incentives, operating history, marketing claims, alternatives | Check conflicts, costs, promotion, analyzable facts | Use/avoid verdict and safer default | Yes | Yes | 4 | Yes | Product review workflow with distinct warnings. |
| Enterprising bargain hunt | "How would Graham find cheap stocks?" | Screens, financ