Kenneth Fisher, widely known as Ken Fisher, is an American investor, author and business leader best known as the founder, Executive Chairman and Co-Chief Investment Officer of Fisher Investments. He founded the investment management firm in 1979 and has played a major role in its growth for more than four decades. As of June 30, 2026, Fisher Investments and its affiliates reported more than $441 billion in assets under management.
Fisher’s career combines investment research, portfolio management, financial writing and entrepreneurship. His professional journey also includes a long association with Forbes, where his Portfolio Strategy column ran for more than 32 years.
Who Is Kenneth Fisher?
Kenneth Fisher is an American investment professional who founded Fisher Investments in 1979. He currently serves as the company’s Executive Chairman and Co-Chief Investment Officer. He previously served as CEO for 37 years before moving into his current leadership role.
Fisher is also known for his work in investment research and financial education. His research in the 1970s helped pioneer the use of the price-to-sales ratio as an investment analysis tool. Fisher later became a bestselling author and financial columnist.
Early Career and Investment Background
Fisher grew up in California and developed an interest in investing at an early age. He is the son of the well-known investor Philip Fisher, author of Common Stocks and Uncommon Profits. Ken Fisher later studied economics at Humboldt State University, where he earned a bachelor’s degree.
After college, Fisher worked in the investment business before establishing his own firm. His early career helped him develop an interest in market research, company analysis and the factors that influence stock prices.
His work in the 1970s contributed to the development and wider use of the price-to-sales ratio. This became an important part of his investment research and helped establish his reputation as a researcher willing to examine markets from different perspectives.
Founding Fisher Investments
In 1979, Ken Fisher founded Fisher Investments. The firm began with a relatively small amount of capital and focused on investment management.
Over the following decades, Fisher expanded the business from its early operations into an international investment management organization serving individual and institutional clients.
According to Fisher Investments, the firm now serves more than 210,000 individuals, families, businesses and institutions worldwide and has more than $441 billion in assets under management as of June 30, 2026.
This growth made Fisher’s career closely connected with the development of the modern investment-management industry.
Ken Fisher’s Forbes Career
Another major part of Fisher’s professional career was his long-running relationship with Forbes.
His Portfolio Strategy column began in 1984 and continued until December 31, 2016. Fisher Investments and Forbes describe this as a 32-and-a-half-year run, making him the longest continuously running columnist in Forbes history.
Through the column, Fisher discussed stock markets, economic trends, investor behavior and portfolio strategy. His writing helped introduce investment concepts to a wider audience beyond professional money managers.
Author and Investment Educator
Ken Fisher has also built a significant career as an author. Fisher Investments currently lists 11 books by Fisher, including four that became New York Times bestsellers.
Some of his well-known books include:
- Super Stocks
- The Only Three Questions That Count
- The Ten Roads to Riches
- How to Smell a Rat
- Debunkery
- Markets Never Forget (But People Do)
- Beat the Crowd
His books generally focus on investing, financial markets, investor behavior and ways of thinking about market information.
Becoming Executive Chairman
Ken Fisher’s role at Fisher Investments has changed as the company has grown.
He served as CEO for 37 years before becoming Executive Chairman and Co-Chief Investment Officer. He continues to participate in the firm’s investment leadership through its Investment Policy Committee.
Fisher Investments’ current executive leadership also includes CEO Damian Ornani. This means Fisher’s present role is focused on chairman-level leadership and investment responsibilities rather than serving as the company’s CEO.
In January 2025, Fisher Investments completed a transaction in which Advent International and a wholly owned subsidiary of the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority became minority investors. Fisher Investments says Ken Fisher remained active as Executive Chairman and Co-Chief Investment Officer and retained majority ownership and voting shares.
Kenneth Fisher’s Investment Research
One of the defining features of Fisher’s career has been his focus on research and questioning common assumptions about financial markets.
His work has covered subjects such as market cycles, investor psychology, economic conditions and company valuation. His research on the price-to-sales ratio is particularly associated with his early investment work.
Rather than limiting his career to portfolio management, Fisher combined investment research with writing and public education. This helped him develop a recognizable presence in the financial media.
Kenneth Fisher’s Career Legacy
Ken Fisher’s career spans several areas of the financial industry. He founded an investment management firm, spent decades as its CEO, developed investment research ideas, wrote a long-running financial column and published numerous books.
Today, his role as Executive Chairman and Co-Chief Investment Officer allows him to remain involved with Fisher Investments while the company operates under a broader executive leadership structure.
His career demonstrates how investment research, entrepreneurship, writing and long-term business leadership can develop together. Fisher’s professional journey from an early investment career to building a global investment management firm has made him a notable figure in the American financial industry.
