CHERRY PICKING

1. The act of investors choosing investments that have performed well within another portfolio in anticipation that the trend will continue.

2. Relating to bankruptcy proceedings whereby the courts uphold contracts favorable to bankrupt companies, but annul those that are unfavorable.

1. Used by both fund managers and individual investors, cherry picking is a method that reduces the amount of time required for researching stocks as the pool of securities in which investors pick from is significantly narrowed. For example, rather than having to research all the stocks that deal with semi-conductors within the exchanges, an investor may instead look at a few mutual funds investing exclusively in these products and research only those investments picked out to be the best performers.

2. Legislation has been changing in order to stop this practice from continuing.