Why Stocks Move: A Framework for Understanding Market Behavior

Why do stock prices fall after a strong earnings report, or rise on seemingly negative news? For many investors, the gap between a company’s fundamentals and its market price can be confusing and frustrating.

In this course, you will examine how institutional investors interpret market behavior and make decisions.

Moving beyond basic financial ratios, you will focus on the idea of the “investment narrative,” the story that shapes expectations and drives capital flows, along with the catalysts that shift those narratives.

Through historical case studies, you will analyze how stocks evolve across a range of common patterns, including high-growth companies with elevated expectations, steady compounders, defensive plays, cyclical businesses, turnarounds, and distressed situations.

You will leave with a practical framework for understanding why stocks move the way they do, along with a more disciplined lens for evaluating portfolios and future opportunities.