Sell the News

A market pattern in which a security's price declines after the release of anticipated good news, because the positive outcome was already priced in during the run-up. The full adage is "buy the rumor, sell the news." Classic examples include stocks rallying into earnings on optimism and then selling off despite beating estimates, or an index rising in anticipation of a rate cut and then dipping on the actual announcement. The pattern reflects the forward-looking nature of markets.