Previous studies of retail investor behavior have examined motivation from economic perspectives or studied relationships between economic and behavioral and demographic variables. Examination of the various utility-maximization and behavioral variables underlying individual investor behavior provides a more comprehensive understanding of the investment decision process.These variables can be grouped into seven summary factors that capture major investor considerations. Data collected from a questionnaire sent to a random sample of individual equity investors with substantial holdings in Fortune 500 firms reveal that individuals base their stock purchase decisions on classical wealth-maximization criteria combined with diverse other variables. They do not tend to rely on a single integrated approach.