Article at a glance:

The truth about growth and value stocks

• The common language of equity markets suggests that growth stocks promise faster growth than value stocks.
• Operating under that premise, investors use growth indexes to find stocks with stronger growth—and executives try to bolster the standing of their stocks by pursuing growth investors.
• Both such investors and executives are misguided. In general, growth stocks and value stocks grow at the same rate. And investors don't cause a stock's designation as a growth stock; they respond after the fact.