By YOUNG MONEY Staff
22 September 2010

It may seem an unwise time to invest in the stock market - but buying at a time when stock prices are depressed is one of the smartest investing strategies around.

Taking advantage of low stock valuations is a cornerstone of value investing. By buying shares of stocks you like when their prices drop, you can lock in ownership at a substantial discount to those stocks' intrinsic value.

The present may be a great time to buy aggressively. Retail investors are fleeing the stock market; between January 2008 and July 2010, $244 billion was pulled from equity mutual funds, the Investment Company Institute says.

As a result, a new poll from financial-services firm Russell Investments reports, 57 percent of professional money managers think stocks are undervalued. Just 7 percent believe they're overvalued.

"The most positive managers may be holding out hope that a tidal change is beginning to gather momentum, one built on strong corporate earnings and a recovering economy," Russell Investments client investment strategist Mark Eibel said.

The economy has, in fact, shown signs of life in recent weeks, with the manufacturing sector posting growth and new-home construction rebounding. And for bold young investors, the time to buy stocks may be now.