I always tell people that paying too much for a stock is the cardinal sin.
I don't normally trade stocks. I buy them and hold them 5, 10 or more years. The key to long-term stock ownership is owning QUALITY stocks at low prices. This approach has worked extremely well for me.
Ross stores was an up and comer in 1993. It had solid growth in sales and earnings while also being well managed with excellent cost control. Ferber and Balmuth put them on a solid growth trajectory. It also sold with a mid-teens P/E. Then, it split three times in the next ten years.
