Warren Buffett has often talked about investing in companies that are protected by "wide moats." Such businesses dominate their markets for years because of advantages that competitors cannot duplicate.

Investors incur risks when they own precious metals, but the returns can outpace the S&P 500.

To get solid results, pick one with a strong long-term record and then hold on to it for years.

Financial advisors divide fund managers into two broad categories, growth specialists—those who favor companies with growing earnings—and value seekers—people who aim to buy shares on the cheap.

Investors looking for steady payouts should not forget to consider less well-known small stocks.

In the arithmetic of the markets, as prices of stocks and bonds fall, yields rise. And with markets in decline, some funds now offer double-digit yields—remarkable payouts at a time when Treasury bonds and many bank certificates of deposit yield well below 5%.

INVESTORS HAVE been dumping mutual funds at a record pace lately, withdrawing $195 billion in the last quarter of 2008, according to the Investment Company Institute, a mutual fund trade group.

Health stocks have long served as defensive holdings—investments that will not collapse in downturns. After all, consumers still buy drugs and visit physicians during recessions. This year some pharmaceutical stocks provided protection, avoiding big losses while almost every other industry sank deeply into the red.

WITH THE markets in turmoil, plenty of investors are frustrated. Stockholders wish they could sell shares before downturns and buy just as bull markets begin.

Most funds stick to a narrow specialty, such as foreign small stocks or California municipal bonds. But a handful of funds take a different approach, holding broad collections of stocks and bonds. During the 1990s bull market, the broadly diversified funds lagged hot technology funds. But in market downturns, diversification can help to limit losses.