Born in Oklahoma and raised in Texas, Mr. O'Neil began his career as a stockbroker in 1958 with Hayden, Stone & Company, where his passion for stock picking led him to develop his own computerized study of successful stocks based on historical precedent. He documented his findings as The Model Book of Greatest Stock Market Winners, a pioneering study that became the foundation of the method William O'Neil + Company uses today.
Mr. O'Neil has never stopped innovating to keep pace with accelerating changes in the investing landscape. In 1963, he founded William O'Neil + Co. Incorporated, where he continued his work developing securities databases and providing independent research for institutional investment managers. The O'Neil Database™ currently encompasses over 70,000 stocks and funds covering over 70 countries.
At the young age of 30, he purchased a seat on the New York Stock Exchange entrenching him as a highly regarded stock speculator. In 1972 he formed Daily Graphs, Incorporated® providing stock charts and data to individual investors. Daily Graphs, Incorporated transitioned into MarketSmith, Incorporated® in 2010, providing an online equity investment research tool aimed to help users become more proficient and profitable investors.
In 1973, he founded O'Neil Data Systems LLC, a state-of-the-art, high-speed printing facility that could deliver his time-sensitive market information ahead of the competition, and in the same year, he trademarked his Datagraphs™, the highly detailed, visual representation of the stock variables most critical to performance. An evolved version is still used by his firm today.
In 1984, Mr. O'Neil designed and launched Investor's Daily (later renamed Investor's Business Daily®) to fill an information gap for individual investors and the business community. It flourishes today in both print and online editions.
He is the author of several best-selling books on investing, selling a total of more than 4 million copies. His numerous accolades include being named one of the Top 100 Business Luminaries of the Century by TJFR Group and MasterCard International and the prestigious “Spirit of Lincoln” award from the Lincoln Club of Los Angeles for his contributions to society. Most recently, Mr. O'Neil was honored for his research and efforts in developing a plan to help jumpstart the U.S. economy.