1 The Story
From 8th-grade dropout to two-time champion
Mark Minervini left school in the 8th grade and began trading in 1983 with a couple thousand dollars. He lost it early — he later blamed relying on other people's tips — and rebuilt everything through self-education and his own research.1
It worked spectacularly. He won the U.S. Investing Championship in 1997 with a 155% return, and in 2021 broke the all-time record with a 334.8% gain in the $1 million category. Over one five-plus-year stretch he reports averaging about 220% per year with a single losing quarter. He was profiled in Jack Schwager's Stock Market Wizards.1
2 The Big Idea
Super-performance comes from leading stocks, bought precisely
Buy elite growth stocks in confirmed uptrends — at a specific, low-risk entry.
Minervini's edge blends fundamentals (accelerating earnings), technicals (a leading stock in a Stage-2 uptrend), and strict risk management — never bargain-hunting, always buying strength at the right moment.1
3 The Method & Setups
Trend Template → SEPA → VCP
The Trend Template (8 criteria)
A pass/fail screen for leaders: price above the 50/150/200-day MAs, the MAs stacked in order, the 200-day rising for a month, price within ~25% of the 52-week high, and an RS rating of 70+ (ideally 80–90+).2
SEPA
Specific Entry Point Analysis: price action, earnings, relative strength, and a catalyst must all line up before a trade qualifies.2
The VCP entry
He buys the Volatility Contraction Pattern — a base where each pullback gets shallower on lighter volume — at the precise breakout pivot.2
Risk first
Tight, predefined stops and small losses are the core of the method — the championship-winning edge is as much defense as offense.1
4 Try It Today
Test the idea for yourself
A no-risk exercise
Run the 8-point Trend Template over a watchlist or a free screener. Notice how few names pass all eight at once — and how the ones that do are already the market's leaders, not its bargains. Then watch (on paper) how a passing stock behaves around a tight base.
5 In Their Words
Mark Minervini, in essence
In the stock market you win by losing small: define your risk before you enter, cut losses quickly, and press only when a leading stock proves itself.— a paraphrase of his published methodology2
A note on sourcing: the line above is a paraphrase summarizing the risk-first philosophy in Trade Like a Stock Market Wizard, not a verbatim quotation.
6 The Books & Their Big Ideas
What he wrote
Trade Like a Stock Market Wizard
Mark Minervini · 20137 Watch & Read
Go deeper
- CONCEPTStock Selection & Scanning — his Trend Template in context.
- CONCEPTRelative Strength — the backbone of the screen.
- PLAYBOOKStage-2 Breakout — what the Trend Template confirms.
§ Sources
- Mark Minervini biography & championship record (TradersUnion / Earn2Trade summaries) — tradersunion.com
- Mark Minervini's Trend Template & SEPA (8 criteria) — ChartMill guide