Product Description
Find all of the following explained in plain-English with no technical jargon:

Asset Allocation: What does it mean, why is it so important, and how should you determine your own?

How to Pick Mutual Funds: Learn how to choose funds that are mathematically certain to outperform the majority of other mutual funds.

Roth IRA vs. Traditional IRA vs. 401(k): What's the difference, and how should you choose between them?

Financial Advisors: Learn what to look for as well as pitfalls to avoid.

Frequent Investor Mistakes: Learn the most common mistakes and what you can do to avoid them.

Calculate Your Retirement Needs: Learn how to calculate how much you'll need saved in order to retire.

Who Is This Book For?
Anyone who has questions about investing, but who doesn't want to trudge through a 300-page textbook.

What This Book Is Not:
This book is not a great work of literary art.
This book is not going to make you an absolute expert on the topic, and
This book is not going to provide you with a way to get rich overnight.

What it will do (hopefully) is provide an easy-to-understand, concise introduction to the topic of prudent investing. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (11)

Simple, straightforward and well worth the read and investment
This book is tremendously simple and straightforward and provides a great background for those that are interested in the topic but don't have much time to spend collecting all the research.This book puts all the pertinent information into a single short read that doesn't make you have to go elsewhere to look.Highly recommended!

spectacular
This is the ONLY book ANY of us needs on investing. If we have over $1000 welcome to Vanguard... if you have less than that and want to invest, well then he has the page in there with EFT's you can buy them from tdameritrade for $10 and just buy and hold.

Now all you have to do is figure out how much you want to invest in stocks and bonds, many quizes online to help you with that. Just google "asset alocation" then go out and enjoy life, because this isone area of life that really is simple. If you are better with charts (visual) like me and everyone I know... go to vanguard dot com - then click on " go to site" above the cups and below the vanguard ship you should see one of the colums says "insights", you will see a row below that starts with "overview" on the left side...

Go to the right where it says "Investing truths", there will be a box that says "the truth about risk" click on that... then scroll down the page to 3. "Are all your eggs in one basket" in those paragraphs you will see a link that says " view our model portfolio applications" click on there and you will see how stocks and bonds did, in a way that makes it look simple, with a graph etc.
Its all a matter of finding low fees and growing with the market (period) doesn't matter if you are type A or B, Tall or short male or female, this should be one of the easiest area of your life.

Perfect for the new or experienced investor
I received this book for Christmas, and I have to admit, at first I was somewhat hesitant of this book because of its length. During a long flight home however, I decided to give it a read and I couldn't have been happier with the decision. As a young professional, I recognize how important it is to get started early in investing to one day meet my financial goals. This book clearly lays out a game plan to do so, while helping to understand/weed out much of the hype you hear about certain stocks, certain fund managers, and TV finance "guru's". The book is a perfect length, and well worth an afternoon read. The author's website ([...]) is also filled with great investing tips, and goes into further depth about many of the books topics. Highly recommended!

Read This Book
The perfect primer for anyone who wants to incorporate time proven investing techniques without having to become an "expert".

Written for the layman in simple, direct, concise language...if one takes the suggestions and recommendations of this book to heart, time and the proper asset allocation will take care of most of the rest.

Highly recommended, especially for those who thought they couldn't do it for themselves.

Great Introduction to Investing
If you are new to investing and want a short introduction this is an excellent book for you. It defines the basics concepts: stocks, bonds, mutual funds, index funds, IRAs, 401Ks, and asset allocation. It gives you solid strategies that are proven to work in the long run: avoiding taxes and fees, buying diverse investments, using an asset allocation plan, and annual rebalancing. Finally, the book warns you against common pitfalls that are hazardous to your wealth: Chasing hot funds, selling at a market low, and buying at market peaks. ... Read more

Product Description
The number of people investing online is increasing every year. This is due in large part to the advent of the necessary technology and the pervasiveness of computers. Online Investing: Everything You Need to Know Explained Simply will help you become one of the many people who have taken advantage of online investing and show you how to invest wisely. You will learn everything you need to know about market orders, limit orders, stop-loss orders, stop orders, day orders, good-till-cancelled orders, IPOs, DPOs, DRIPs, after hours trading, cash accounts, day trading, Electronic Communication Networks, liquidity, margins, margin accounts, margin calls, investment clubs, minimum maintenance requirements, and rates of return. We will provide you with links to investment resources and indispensable investing tools. In addition, you will learn how to develop a well-balanced portfolio, how to uncover hidden costs of online brokerage firms, how to conduct research, how to make carefully reasoned decisions, how to secure your information, how to avoid investment scams, how to set up stock screens, how to navigate financial Web sites, how to find your investment style, how to choose an online broker, and how to read financial charts. You will discover the truth about online investing, online broker ratings, and the advantages and disadvantages of online investing. You will also be presented with financial software options, such as Microsoft Quicken and Peachtree, to help you track your investments.Whether you are new to online investing or a seasoned pro, you will find valuable information and tips in this book. The easy to understand language makes reading this book not only highly informative but also enjoyable. In no time at all you will be making money through your online investments. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (11)

Very disapointed
Simply put, this book is crap. I read the 5 star reviews and figured I'd try it. This book is nothing more than a collection of haphazardly organized definitions of trading terms. They are poorly edited with many grammical errors Wish I could return it. A complete waste of my money.

The Complete Guide to Online Investing by Michelle Hooper
Excellent book for anyone diving into the stock market.Trading terms are explained in clear, easy to understand language.Examples of the many types of stock trades are shown and the book actually walks you step-by-step through how a trade is done.

The book is absolutely loaded with clear, easy to understand, pertinent information.What I really liked about the book is the number of websites listed for additional information.Government websites, stock company websites, financial sites, stock tracking sites, needed but not commonly known or easily found websites, the list is phenomenal!Some of this information I have been trying to find for years.You can find the information quickly and easily.I wish I had this book when I first started investing!

Very, very clear explanations on how to do online investing, great tips and suggestions on keeping your money safe, the types of retirement vehicles and why it is important to get started young and why not to panic if you are older, non-boring tax information, the difference between after-hours trading and day trading, how to start an investment club, how to chose between a broker and an investment advisor.

I highly recommend this book to ALL high school and college students.In fact, I really wish this book would be taught in all high schools.Knowledge is power and Online Investing is the beginning for a powerful, new life.

Amateurish
This book is for beginners who don't know much about the internet or investing. It appears to be a self-published book of [...] printing quality [...].

Excellent book
I bought this book for my son who is a grad student and has recently started investing online.He has been reading it and said it was a very thorough book and explains a lot of things about investing in stocks.

Great Advice for Beginners
As a student still struggling to learn the importance and benefits of investing, reading this book helped me to understand how investments can really help you in the future.The author provides many different ways of investing online and helps give ideas as to which method of investment is best suited for you.
In this book, the author provides examples and case studies of real people who have taken part in one of the many possible ways of investing, and the outcome of their investments.I feel that these case studies were very helpful to me, and could be very helpful to any other reader as well.
I found this book to be very resourceful, informative, and useful in discussing and comparing the different ways of investing to help you decide which is best suited for you.I recommend it to anyone looking for a detailed description, and detailed examples of each of these investments.
... Read more

Product Description
Investors who've primarily purchased equity securities in the past have been looking for more secure investment alternatives; namely, fixed income securities. This book demystifies the sometimes daunting fixed income market, through a user-friendly, sophisticated, yet not overly mathematical format. Investing in Fixed Income Securities covers a wide range of topics, including the different types of fixed income securities, their characteristics, the strategies necessary to manage a diversified portfolio, bond pricing concepts, and more, so you can make the most informed investment decisions possible. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

good book, but only for professionals in the field
I am not a professional in the financial field but was looking for help in managing the fixed income portion of my portofolio.Thought this book would help me get beyond simple mutual funds or muni bonds.Unfortunately (or fortunately, I guess?) it became clear upon reading this text that to do so, would be impractical without much more research than I was willing to put into individual bonds, not just for purchase but also their later resale, nor the equipment and programs available to professionals in the field.If you want to move beyond simple buy-and-hold in bonds, it doesn't seem very practical to do so unless you are a trained professional in the field.Hence, this book was informative to me in one sense, and I am sure that those in this field would get much more use, but I cannot recommend this to anyone but trained professionals working in this area.

Best Fixed Income book ever read
This book really helped me understand the ins and outs of fixed income securities.I never knew that prices dropped when yields rose and vice versa.Gary Strumeyer is a genius, and i'm sure handsome to boot.I wish there was a picture of him on the cover. ... Read more

Product Description
With a foreword from investing legend Charles Schwab, Investing Success is a practical, easy-to-understand guide that helps people take control of their financial lives, and avoid or fix common money management and investing mistakes.

By reading Investing Success, you will discover:
* Whether you're truly ready to invest in the stock market - or if you're investing "prematurely"
* How to determine if a potential investment is right for you
* Which simple rules of investing work, and which don't
* The biggest buying and selling blunders that investors make - and how to avoid or fix them
* Tried-and-true ways to help overcome your emotions and make smarter investing decisions
* The do's and don'ts of dealing with financial advisors (such as stockbrokers, CPAs, and financial planners)
* How to minimize your worries about investing and start multiplying your wealth!

Even if you've never invested before, author Lynnette Khalfani provides simple and straight-forward instructions about how to get your financial house in order - by getting rid of credit card debt, boosting your savings and taking care of the financial basics.

The best part about Lynnette's advice is that it will work in any environment - bull or bear market, a thriving economy or a recession.

By adopting the strategies that Lynnette recommends, you will feel confident managing your money, and will achieve financial and investing success! ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

Cogent Advice for Novice Investors
Each year, it seems reams of page are published on the subject of investing. Many are forgettable and some should absolutely be avoided. But a friend told me to check this book out and I was pleasantly surprised. Lynnette Khalfani is a former reporter for "The Wall Street Journal" and CNBC. To her credit, she keeps the chapters short and to the point and ends each with what she refers to as a "$ummary $uccess $tory." The book is clear, concise, and east to read and follow.

Khalfani essentially notes that mistakes made by people in investing are fairly common to the majority of investors. She divides the book into five sections: strategizing your goals, buying, holding, selling, and dealing with investment intermediaries such as stock brokers.She has an easy-to-read, friendly style of writing. The advice is basic, and more sophisticated investors will consider as remedial or average, at best, but for anyone who knows little about investing, it's a great starting point.

Her advice is solid throughout, and the piece of advice she considers most important is particularly good: Don't invest prematurely. By that she means you should have a stash of three-to-six months of expenses, a will, and disability insurance before you dive into investing. If you are new to investing, read this book first, you'll be glad you did.

A vital and fiscally savvy resource
Knowledgeably written for the non-specialist general reader by a veteran financial news journalist Lynnette Khalfani, Investing Success: How To Conquer 30 Costly Mistakes & Multiply Your Wealth! is a very practical guide to avoiding common mistakes in financial matters, ranging from investing prematurely; to relying too much on "inside" information; to lack of true diversification; to fiscal overconfidence; to failing to acknowledge mistakes; to neglecting to check the background of one's broker or financial planner, and more. Investing Success is commended as being a vital and fiscally savvy resource for learning from the mishaps of others before one's hard-earned life savings are on the line.

A Great Resource
Investing Success inspired me to kick start 2004...and to develop a strategy for investing.The book is sophisticated enough to be helpful, concise and well written.The examples Summery Success Strategies at the end of each chapter help me stay focused and on track.Finally, a book that tells you what to do and how to clean up the mess if you've made mistakes.

Basic, yes, but invaluable for many people
There are so many books which offer advice on investments and this is one of the best. At the outset, I presume to share some lessons I have learned over the years which seem relevant to Khalfani's suggestions as to how to "conquer 30 costly mistakes and multiply your wealth." First, the importance of systematic savings. Next, the importance of compounded interest on what we save. Finally, the importance of having a realistic plan for increasing one's net worth through systematic savings and the compound interest accumulated by it. Unless and until an individual investor fully appreciates the importance of the first two and then commits to the third,costly mistakes will be made with inevitable (but avoidable) results.

Khalfani organizes her material within five Parts: Strategic Slip-Ups, Buying Blunders, Holding/Monitoring Mishaps, Selling Snafus, and Financial Advisor Foul-Ups. Although each seems to focus on mistakes of judgment, she explains how to avoid the don'ts by doing their opposite. Whereas unsuccessful investors focus on products, successful investors focus on the process of investing. For example, they

* Set specific, measurable, and realistic investment goals (Chapter 1)

* Do not have concentrated wealth (Chapter 9)

* Monitor your investment frequently and rigorously (Chapter 13)

* Have a sell strategy (Chapter 17)

* Take full advantage of all available independent research (Chapter 25)

My guess (only a guess) is that this book will not be of substantial value to sophisticated investors. They and their financial advisors probably know which "costly mistakes" to avoid and how to avoid them. For so many others, however, I think that Khalfani's book will provide the guidance they need to achieve greater success with their investments than would otherwise be possible. As she explains, the investment process involves five distinct phases: strategizing to identify and then meet personal goals, buying the right (i.e. most appropriate) investments, holding and carefully monitoring those investments, selling investments in a judicious and prudent manner, and dealing effectively with intermediaries such as stockbrokers and financial planners. Basic stuff? Yes, of course, but so many private investors are either unaware of this process or (for whatever reasons) lose patience with it.

It remains for each of us to determine what "wealth" means. More to the point, it is our responsibility, indeed our obligation to protect and preserve whatever resources we may have, investing them wherever and whenever most appropriate. If you are among those in need of expert guidance when making such investment decisions, Khalfani's book can be of substantial assistance. However, as she correctly insists, you must first understand the process...and then invest as much of your time and energy may be required before you make investment decisions. ... Read more

Product Description
THE WALL STREET JOURNAL GUIDE TO MONEY & INVESTING has been substantially revised and updated to reflect highly popular new investment products, new rules on dividends, expanded coverage of mutual fund operations in light of recent disclosures, and significant changes in the capital markets, all of which are essential reading for beginning as well as seasoned investors. New topics covered in this guide include Exchange traded funds (ETFs) Managed accountsHedge funds Money and MarketsImpact of the Euro Stocks All of the changes are clearly presented using the straightforward style and informative graphics that have made this guide the number one financial primer and perennial best seller. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (10)

wall st or vegas?
great book, its more then just a book about money... teaches you why the world works.. and how people take your money and bet with it.. and if you know wut ur doin u can be rich

Handy Little Book
Although this isn't the largest book in the world, I really enjoyed reading it.I thought that I was pretty savvy as far as the way things worked, but this book definitely enlightened me.I also appreciated the pictures that made things clearer.

A little bit tough to read, but worth it.
If you're a beginner, interested in investing, this is a very decent primer to start with.Buy it with Eric Tyson's Investing for Dummies, and you'll be fully set!

To get the whole picture
I think this book did a great job in helping me understand the universe of money and investing beyong the scope of stock. I have been trading for 1 year and wanted to buy a small book that gave me a general education on the subject. Although much more can be written on each topic covered it is good for beginning to understand the whole picture.

82%
Most of the book is a great intro to money, stocks, bonds and mutual funds.But the last section, on Futures & Options, seems really rushed and lacks the clarity of the earlier sections (especially the material on options).For example, the authors do not define "calling" or "putting" options; and there is a blatant error on page 150 wherein a description of an option table is laughably out of sync with the table it is trying to describe.

Overall, the book is very good -- just beware of the shortcomings of its last section. ... Read more

Product Description
Benjamin Graham developed "value investing," a style adopted by Warren Buffett, one of history's most successful investors; it is based on "fundamental analysis," which quantitatively compares a company's stock price to various measures of financial strength and promise. "Growth investing" is a fundamentally different style that seeks to identify tomorrow's great business successes. Learn the ins and outs, and the pros and cons, of these basic investment styles.

The Secrets of the Great Investors series is a collection of presentations that explain, in understandable language, the strategies, tactics, and principles that have produced great wealth, and how you can improve your financial future. History's greatest investors used powerful investing philosophies to produce superior results, and you can learn from their successes and mistakes. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Excellent Narrative about Growth & Value Investings History
This first tape contained keen insights regarding Ben Graham, the dean ofvalue investing.Unfortunately, the second tape regarding growth investingwas a little slow.Overall the tapes were very gold. ... Read more

Product Description
How to determine what stocks are really worth­­ and buy the best at a discount

"The Five Keys to Value Investing is practical, insightful, and a great roadmap to not only value investing but how to make money in the stock market." -- Joel Greenblatt, Managing Partner, Gotham Capital

"Jean-Jacques has written a great how-to guide for both beginning and experienced value investors. He skillfully draws on the canon and legacy of the great value investors, such as Graham and Buffett…a terrific addition on this time-tested methodology." -- Eric T. McKissack, Vice Chairman, Ariel Capital Management/Ariel Mutual Funds

Investors left to pick up the pieces of the shattered stock market are rediscovering value investing­­ the time-tested technique based on assessing and buying businesses as opposed to "picking" hot stocks. The Five Keys to Value Investing provides a methodical framework for using value analysis to uncover investment opportunities based on their business strengths, and building a solid portfolio of stocks that is destined to provide superior long-term returns.

Written by a professional value investor who worked for the best, The Five Keys to Value Investing explains how to answer the four basic questions of value investing:

• Does this stock represent a good business to own?
• What is its balance between price and value?
• What specific events will spur it to appreciate?
• What are the stock's safety levels?

Customer Reviews (16)

Excellent Primer On Determining Value
Just got the thing and can't seem to put it down.This is an excellent treatise on valueing a company!Clearly will become one of the best value books of all time. Let's give it time, as it WILL get more notice. If there was a way to give 6 stars, I would do it in a heartbeat!

Strong buy
This is a wonderful book on the principles of value investing.The author does a fantastic job putting together (in a very understandable way) some of the most important tenets that every value investor should uphold.The book starts with "The Mind of the Value Investor" - which I believe to be the book's most important chapter.Here, Mr. Jean-Jacques describes what many successful practitioners believe to be the most critical attribute to becoming a good investor... and that is emotional intelligence.After examining the book a great detail (my copy is dog-eared, highlighted and well marked up), I would consider the following sections to be most important:

-- All of Chapter 1
-- Business Quality Red Flags (in Chapter 2)
-- Assessing Value: Tools to Consider (in Chapter 3)
-- All of Chapter 4
-- Identifying the Opportunity (in Chapter 6)
-- Appendices A, C and E

What I did not like about the book was the length.While it what not as lengthy as some books of this type might be, "The Five Keys to Value Investing" should have been much more concise in the breadth of topics and concepts covered.Also, the examples were good but were too many in number while using analytical concepts that might be a bit too philosophical for non-professional value investors, like me.However, on a lighter point, the analogy between the game of golf and value investing in Chapter 6 was very insightful and much appreciated (it was the only light moment in the entire book!!)

Look, this book is an absolute buy.No question about that.Readers just have to be a bit skilled in order the get the most out of this very informative and thorough work.

Vague Formulas, Poorly Written, Not for Beginners
I am trying to be an amateur investor and this book didn't help. I was hoping for clear formulas for valuing companies, assessing risk vs. reward etc.The most valuable part of the book is when the author describes his own transaction as a manager, but he makes huge leaps over how he reaches his conclusions.I guess I needed someone to say "take this and add it to that", etc., and this book didn't.

A good addition to your library
Interesting concepts and applicable... This book provides an interesting way to look at stocks.The author focuses on what makes the companies "tick" and outlines a few points to consider when considering buying shares of public companies.Thefive-point approach makes a lot of sense and can be a good foundation for an investment program.I am not sure however, if this book is for non-professionals.The author goes into detail with good examples, but he seems to forget his reader (the average, Joe... like me!).This book is a great addition to any serious investment library but I think one should read a few "beginner" books before picking this one up.This is clearly a value investing book for the experienced.

Tedious and boring read, great principles
Here are the five keys:
1. Is this a good business run by smart people?(How has management performed in the past?)
2. What is this company worth? (How does the actual book value of the company comapare to the market value of the outstanding shares?)
3. How attractive is the price for this company, and what should I pay for it?(Are you getting a great price for the stock based on the value of the company,earnings per share,52 week stock price, etc.?)
4. How realistic is the most effective catalyst?(Will something happen in the next year to cause the stock price to move to real value?)
5. What is my margin of safety at my purchase price?( Are you getting a low enogh price that it can not drop much farther based on intrinsic company value?)

If you understand how to analize these keys save your money on this book, if not it can show you how.

This book also has great appendixes:
Business assesment tools
Analyzing wall street analysts recommendations
The critical failing of EBITDA
Managements plan to restructure a company
Descriptions of SEC forms.

It was a boring, clinical read, but had great keys hidden in it.
... Read more

Product Description

Investing do's and don'ts from some of the most recognizable voices in personal finance

It's been a tough year for investors. Many have seen their retirement accounts dwindle dramatically and are looking for a safe way to protect what they have and make back some of what they've lost. That's why the bestselling author team of Ben Stein and Phil DeMuth have created The Little Book of Investing Do's and Don'ts.

When you invest, there are essential things you should do and many things you shouldn't. The Little Book of Investing Do's and Don'ts addresses this issue and shows you how to utilize the fundamentals of finance to achieve success in today's market. This practical guide contains proven advice on navigating today's treacherous financial landscape and will put you in a better position to make more informed investment decisions.

• Includes street-smart advice for the individual investor uncertain about their investment and retirement portfolios
• Written by a experienced team of bestselling authors whose investment advice is accessible to everyone
• Outlines the steps you must take to protect yourself from the financial calamities of modern life

The Little Book of Investing Do's and Don'ts offers quick, easy-to-follow, and entertaining advice for anyone looking to get back on the right investment track.Amazon.com Review

Investing do's and don'ts from some of the most recognizable voices in personal finance

It's been a tough year for investors. Many have seen their retirement accounts dwindle dramatically and are looking for a safe way to protect what they have and make back some of what they've lost. That's why the bestselling author team of Ben Stein and Phil DeMuth have created The Little Book of Bulletproof Investing.

When you invest, there are essential things you should do and many things you shouldn't. The Little Book of Bulletproof Investing addresses this issue and shows you how to utilize the fundamentals of finance to achieve success in today's market. This practical guide contains proven advice on navigating today's treacherous financial landscape and will put you in a better position to make more informed investment decisions.

• Includes street-smart advice for the individual investor uncertain about their investment and retirement portfolios
• Written by a experienced team of bestselling authors whose investment advice is accessible to everyone
• Outlines the steps you must take to protect yourself from the financial calamities of modern life

The Little Book of Bulletproof Investing offers quick, easy-to-follow, and entertaining advice for anyone looking to get back on the right investment track.

Do’s & Don’ts to Protect Your Financial Life

• DON’T assume that just because you are capable of managing your finances by yourself you will be better off in the long run if you do.

• DO trade as infrequently as possible.

• DON’T give any weight to market forecasts. All opinion pro and con is already built into the price of equities today.

• DO buy and hold; don’t buy and sell.

• DON’T assume that because you own a bunch of different-sounding mutual funds your investments are diversified.

• DO diversify globally with your stock and bond holdings.

• DON’T buy into a red-hot real estate market.

• DO park assets where they will suffer the least at the hands of the taxman.

• DON’T take Social Security as soon as you are eligible. It often pays to delay.

• DO postpone retirement as long as possible. The safest time to retire is never.

... Read more

Customer Reviews (25)

Whets the Appetite, but Doesn't Satisfy
Don't get me wrong.Stein and DeMuth deliver some excellent advice in this book.The embrace of stock and bond allocation as a primary step towards diversifying your portfolio, as well as the importance of investing in value stocks, small caps, and foreign equity, are just a few of the good points made within.My complaint is that they touch on these topics somewhat superficially, and given the lack of analytical depth, you are left with little guidance outside of the specific ETFs and mutual funds they recommend.For example, while I appreciate the value of investing in small cap stocks, to fully appreciate how much of your portfolio to allocate to this volatile class of equities, and whether you should begin with an index fund, a blend fund, or the value fund they recommend, you really need more than the page and a half devoted to them in this book.

I recognize this is a "little book" of investing guidance, but there were plenty of pages where the authors could have expanded on their main points without enlarging their pocket-sized presentation.Instead, they spent the last half of the book explaining how one should invest in oneself, rather than the capital markets, on a regular basis.Again, more good advice, but I hungered for the authors to elaborate on the book's first few chapters by erecting some guidelines and financial signposts a do-it-yourself investor could use to navigate the volatile landscape.In the end, the elaboration I longed for never came through, leaving me to question whether this book is more useful as a marketing tool for the author's recommended ETFs and mutual funds as opposed to an investor's guide.

Despite this shortcoming, I would recommend this book as an introduction to the general field of investing.It peppers you with lots of investing tidbits and delivers with the usual Stein-like humor any long time fan should enjoy.Before stepping off on any specific path in this large and dangerous landscape, though, I would read William Bernstein's The Four Pillars of Investing: Lessons for Building a Winning Portfolio.Bernstein makes many of the same recommendations as Stein and DeMuth, but does so with much more analytical depth (as well as many more pages).While Stein and DeMuth may be a good introduction, I would spend considerable more time on the sideline studying the investor's game before stepping onto the field.

Excellent Little Book on Investing
This is a funny short book that packs in a lot of wisdom. If you read a lot ofinvesting books and are looking for new investing techniques and insights, this may not be the book for you. On the other hand I think this would be an excellent book to give or recommend to those who are new to the subject or have felt that money management was a black box activity best left to professionals.

Whets the Appetite, but Doesn't Satisfy
Don't get me wrong.Stein and DeMuth deliver some excellent advice in this book.The embrace of stock and bond allocation as a primary step towards diversifying your portfolio, as well as the importance of investing in value stocks, small caps, and foreign equity, are just a few of the good points made within.My complaint is that they touch on these topics somewhat superficially, and given the lack of analytical depth, you are left with little guidance outside of the specific ETFs and mutual funds they recommend.For example, while I appreciate the value of investing in small cap stocks, to fully appreciate how much of your portfolio to allocate to this volatile class of equities, and whether you should begin with an index fund, a blend fund, or the value fund they recommend, you really need more than the page and a half devoted to them in this book.

I recognize this is a "little book" of investing guidance, but there were plenty of pages where the authors could have expanded on their main points.Instead, the last half of the book is spent explaining how one should invest in oneself on a regular basis.Again, more good advice, but I hungered for the authors to elaborate on the book's first few chapters by delivering some guidelines and financial signposts a do-it-yourself investor could use.In the end, the elaboration I longed for never came through, leaving me to question whether this book is more useful as a marketing tool rather than an investor's guide.

Despite this shortcoming, I would recommend this book as an introduction to the general field of investing.It peppers you with lots of investing tidbits and delivers them with the usual Stein-like humor any long time fan should enjoy.Before stepping off on any specific path in this large and dangerous landscape, though, I would read William Bernstein's The Four Pillars of Investing: Lessons for Building a Winning Portfolio.Bernstein makes many of the same recommendations as Stein and DeMuth, but does so with much more analytical depth (as well as many more pages).While Stein and DeMuth may be a good introduction, I would (and will) spend considerable more time on the sideline studying the investor's game before stepping onto the field.

A good place to start when learning about investing
Are you a novice trying to learn how to play the investing game? In The Little Book of Bulletproof Investing by Ben Stein and Phil DeMuth, you learn in a simple and easy to understand way the sociology of an investor and some of the most common tendencies and misconceptions of those trying to play the stock market investing game, both novice and guru alike.

Have you ever wondered what stocks and companies to invest in? What about the best way to diversify yourself in your stock portfolio? How about when to buy and when to sell your stock? I had questions like these that were answered by reading this book. Being young and somewhat ignorant to Wall Street and how to actually start investing some of my earnings, I picked up this book and found what I read very insightful for a beginning investor. Some of the advice was a no-brainer but there was also some very sound advice that I had never considered. Every time you decide to put your money into something you always run the risk of losing it.

This book is about how to build investing strategies to help "bulletproof" your investing. If you are hoping to find a book with a secret ingredient for making money through investing with no risk, it won't happen. The Authors said, "While we cannot control the outcome, we can control our strategy. We can try to prepare intelligently for this unknown future."There are tried and proved principles that can help you manage your risk.

I would recommend this book for anyone who is looking for a quick introduction into stock market investing do's and don'ts. Some advice I thought was well thought out was, "we need to take on more stress from our investments today so we can have less financial stress in our lives later."This book is a great easy read and really gives a real 101 look at stock market investing strategies and best practices for everyone.

Quick read, entertaining, informative
The humor is typical Ben Stein, the chapters were easy to read and apparently informative (I say "apparently" because, although they seemed to make sense, I haven't implemented the strategies yet, and even then, I guess only time will tell.

I certainly appreciate that 1) it uses 100 years of historical data to make the case, and 2) it includes the recent large-scale events which have significantly impacted the market.

I was disappointed that there was no mention of tithing, although contributions are mentioned towards the end of life. I think Stein is Jewish, and I thought the Judaeo-Christian perspective was that all creation came from God; therefore He is entitled to the first portion, not to what we have left over just before we die. Heck, what happens when you die? You render an accounting to Him of how you have fed the hungry, clothed the naked, etc.

Anyway, all in all it was a great book. I plan to purchase two more for my kids. ... Read more

Product Description
God encourages responsible and profitable handling of money, but many Christians don't know where to begin when it comes to investing. To help Christians navigate the sometimes choppy waters of finance, author Danny Fontana explains investing in terms anyone can understand. Writing with a Christian worldview, Fontana gives interactive exercises to guide both beginning and experienced investors through the complexities and pitfalls of finance, including how to sidestep the seven traps that snag almost every investor. From understanding the stock market to planning an estate, Fontana guides the reader through the terminologies, processes, and rewards of successful money management, showing them how to keep a responsible perspective as they plan for their future. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

What an eye opener!
I have been in the business world for many a years and never have I read something this easy to follow.

And, as a Christian, this book offered a refreshing and much needed departure from the typical financial roadmap.

Thank you Danny, and best of luck with your television and radio shows! ... Read more

Product Description
Stock Investing For Dummies, 3rd Edition includes information on stock investing in both bear and bull markets; unique investment segments; stock investing for different types of situations; and examples straight from the real world of stock investing as they have occurred in the past three years. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (44)

Good
Good for beginners and beyond.Some say the book refers back and forth too much but I like that because I'm a "Dummy".I've been investing on-line for a couple years and there is some good stuff in here to keep in mind.I'd recommend this for anyone getting into investing.When you know more you will need to focus on a particular area of investing.

Great book, covers many basics.
Keeps things fresh and avoids being dry. The author was great at making you feel like your reading something with personality rather than a stocks rule book. 5 stars.

It's ok - but only if you're solid on macroeconomics
The book is decent as a 30,000 foot overview of the mechanics of buying stocks.

That said, I would not touch it with a 30 foot pole if you do not have a good basis in macroeconomics. Its important to have an idea of how the economy as a whole will do, because you'll pick different investments if the economy is expanding than if it is failing or going into deflation. Instead of educating you about the major macroeconomic theories and then telling you why his is best, he treats the majority theories unfairly to try to convert you to his (very minority) view by default.

Of the two best-supported theories of macroeconomics, he doesn't mention one (the Chicago school) and spends his time distorting and engaging in fifth-grade name-calling about the other one (Keynesianism). For instance, he takes Keynes quotes out of context and attributes to Keynesians actions taken by Chicago economists. The author does not, however, critique his own theory, Austrian economics, at all - which is a problem since one thing the vast majority of the economics profession will agree on is that Austrianism is inconsistent with itself and makes empirically incorrect predictions.

Excellent beginner book
I knew very little about the stock market before I read this book (only what I learned in High School). I read it from cover to cover and it is very informative covering what I believe is all the bases. Some topics were covered more in depth than others. An example is discussing what options are, but not going into incredible detail about them. However, the author cites several web sites and other books that one could read to understand more about any subject that he covered. The focus of the author's strategy is more fundamental analysis than technical analysis. Both are discussed, but fundamentals are stressed. After having read it, I would describe it as a reference. Each section is self explanatory and when needing answers, one could skip to that page/section and understand it without having to read previous chapters (although that does help). I am still not an expert, but I feel I know enough to begin a small portfolio and start my retirement now.

Good but basic
If you have no clue at all about stocks/investing, this might well be a good starting place. It is a very easy to read book, well written and informative, but it does start right at the basics and only takes you a little way up the ladder of knowledge. ... Read more

Product Description
How to save and invest today for a secure financial tomorrow

A sound financial plan is absolutely essential for reaching your long-term goals, whether you want to purchase a new home, pay for a child's college education, or create a retirement nest egg. In this invaluable new guide, investment advisor W. Patrick Naylor provides a 10-step, easy-to-follow savings and investing program that will help you build a secure financial future. A flexible system that can be tailored to your income and risk tolerance levels, this proven strategy shows how to:

• Set short-, intermediate-, and long-term financial goals
• Establish a budget based on fixed and variable expenses
• Organize your banking for maximum benefit
• Create a separate fund for unforeseen emergencies
• Develop a 3-tiered investment strategy that includes mutual funds, dividend reinvestment programs (DRIPs), and individual growth stocks
• Monitor your investments regularly by determining your net asset value (NAV)

Customer Reviews (4)

Formula for Financial Indepencence
Following Dr. Naylor's step-by-step formula provides a solid foundation and framework for the creation of a sound lifelong financial plan.Written expressly for the uninitiated, this book will expand your personal finance knowledege base in hours!Unincombered with minimal technical jargon, this book cuts to the chase.Recommended without reservation!

Safe financial planning
This book delievers a sound financial plan.It's steps are concise and obtainable goals that will help to secure a firm financial base.It also has indexes that include companys with DRIP programs and others that you can buy directly from. It's definetly worth the price.

An excellent first step to financial freedom
This book provides the basic groundwork needed in order for almost anyone, regardless of financial circumstances, to begin formulating a serious saving and investment strategy. This book is highly suitable to theabsolute beginner, educating readers on some of the best ways to beginparticipating in the market, such as DRIP programs, mutual funds and"buy and hold" strategies.

This book will help readers quicklyaccumulate sound investment knowledge and well prepare them for futurestudy.

This book should be required reading for anyone seeking toincrease financial security through investing.

Clear, concise financial information and stratagies
Mr. Naylor strikes a chord with the financial novice.10 Steps to Financial Success provides clear, concise explanations of financial investment vehicles available to investors in every income range.Inaddition to the expected discussion of these investment options, there isalso a wealth of common sense stratagies that can be implemented byvirtually everyone to organize monthly income and expenses.

When followedfaithfully, these techniques can help the reader develop an accuratefinancial profile.This in turn, supports realistic goal setting andultimately promotes optimal financial growth.

Inspite of the fairly drynature of financial topics, Mr. Naylor does an admirable job of presentingthe information in a vibrant manner.Complex issues are discussed in'plain-english' and each chapter includes a review section that summarizeskey learning points.

There is quite possibly a better introductoryfinancial text somewhere, but I haven't read it. ... Read more

Product Description
Bonds and bond funds are among the safest and most reliable investments you can make to ensure an ample and dependable retirement income — if you do it right! Bond Investing For Dummies helps you do just that, with clear explanations of everything you need to know to build a diversified bond portfolio that will be there when you need it no matter what happens in the stock market.

This plain-English guide explains the pros and cons of investing in bonds, how they differ from stocks, and the best (and worst) ways to select and purchase bonds for your needs. You'll get up to speed on all the different types of bonds and discover how to know when it's time to sell and how to get the best prices when you do. Find out what you need to know about:

• Buying and selling bonds and bond funds
• Measuring bond risks and returns
• Taxes on bond interest and tax-free bonds
• Customizing and optimizing your bond portfolio
• Common bond-investing mistakes and how to avoid them
• "Risk-free" U.S. Treasury bonds
• Tax-free municipal bonds
• High yield corporate bonds
• The pros and cons agency bonds
• Convertible bonds, derivatives, and other exotic offerings

Packed with sound advice and dependable formulas for ensuring that your bond investments fulfill your retirement goals, Bond Investing For Dummies is the resource you need to put the gold in your golden years. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (6)

Excellent book
Another excellent book from author Russell Wild. Well written and informative. I would also rate the book seller as giving me excellent service and would purchase again from this seller.

Bond Investing For Dummies
I ordered 2 books on bond investing.Luckily, Bond Investing for Dummies arrived first.It was easy to read, and provided a great overview.It is an excellent foundation for understanding different bond types and bond strategies.I'm reading the second bond investing book now.It is written by a professor and reads like a text book.If I had not read Bond Investing for Dummies first, the second book would be difficult to comprehend. I highly recommend this book.

For Dummies?
You are no dummy by buying "Dummies" books!Always THE place to start any self-educating curriculum! Always full of additional references for further study.

Bond Investing for dummies
As with all "Dummies", this is a womb to tomb explanation of the Basics of Bond Investing. I recommend it for everyone especially retirees or those who are about to retire.

Best Book I've Seen on Bond Investing
I've seen many books and articles on bond investing- this one is by far the best in many ways, among them, the most comprehensive- 333 pages packed with useful information- I didnt think anyone could write 333 pages about bonds, which before reading the book I thought would require less study than stock investing, but the author did, writing 333 useful pages on the subject, and in easy to understand, conversation-like language.When I research anything I do it in breadth and depth, asking many questions, and there was no question that the author left unanswered, and then some that I had'nt thought to ask.The book also covers other related investing subjects, such as other sources of fixed income, asset allocation etc etc.There is so much information packed into the book, that not only novice bond investors would profit from it, so would experienced bond investors.I have always aggressively invested in stocks only, but given the current state of the stock market, I'm looking for the safety and predictability of bonds- this book sure helped!This may be an unusually enthusiastic review, but the author deserves it. ... Read more

Product Description
Meeting quality and performance improvement goals for your organization depends on your understanding of facts, data, and analysis. Fundamentals of Statistical Process Control shows you how to achieve that understanding. You'll learn how to: 1) Apply statistical thinking to qualilty improvement. 2) Select control charts for different applications. 3) Interpret variability in work processes. 4) Construct a histogram of set data. 5) Compute and interpret process capability indexes. 6) Quantify process capability through data analysis and control charts. This binder also contains a multiple-choice examination and an examination case study. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

New Comers Must Have it !
I joined a class named Investment Analysis in which we read John Barnes' What Investing is All About. Those who doesnot know anything about investments and stock market , must read this book. It is written verysimple and everybody who can read english can read this book. ... Read more

Product Description

In comments that were unfortunately prescient, Dr. Doroghazi said in the first edition "the author feels we are currently experiencing a real estate bubble." And in anticipation of the credit crisis, he said "banks are far too lenient in their lending practices...the problem is that bankers are often not lending their own money…considering that a significant percentages of mortgages are sold to Fannie Mae (FNM) and Freddie Mac (FRE), the problem is now actually everyone’s." This new and expanded edition provides commonsense advice that all investors, physicians and non-physicians will find profitable in these difficult times. Learn about the power of thrift, the magnificence of compound interest, the malevolence of debt and the perniciousness of fees. See how to pay off the mortgage by age 45, fund your children’s education and retire at a reasonable age rather than continue to work because you must.

Customer Reviews (10)

A little too condescending
I was very interested in this book as I saw some good reviews on it, am very interested in finances, and am also about to graduate medical school: So I had a ton of questions about what the financial future is going to look like for me.

I was actually really dissapointed in this book.

Firstly: The book hardly feels tailored to physicians. He makes some interesting points about not alerting salesmen to the fact you're a Doctor so they don't take advantage of you... but other than that: the real angle is that he uses a 250,000 salary as an assumption of what you make. I find this frustrating since I matched into Peds and I'm hardly going to make 250,000.

Secondly: The book is just rife with errors. It's the second edition: I would think they would have taken some of these problems out. (Duplicate words, truncated words, letters and punctuation missing etc.)

Thirdly: I felt like I was being talked down to the whole time. It's one thing to discuss everything in simple terms because you don't know the educational level of your readers... but to talk down to me is just insulting. This book is supposed to be for physicians... don't tell me "If you spend your tax refund splurging for something of luxury you might as well just put this book down now as you clearly aren't going to listen to anything else I have to say." I'm sorry... I used last years refund for a vacation after my extremely stressful 3rd year... are you punishing me? Do I not deserve this? what is splurging and what is enjoying life? This is never defined.

Fourthly: The book doesn't ever talk in great detail about anything... it merely skims the surface of a bunch of issues without ever really saying anything. The issues are usually then explained further with various metaphores and analogies of credit cards being like sirens making you crash on rocks or jedi's and the such... I felt like I was attending a church sermon and the only way the complex theory of good and evil could be explained was through little metaphores that really aren't applicable.

I think I was hoping for more substantial advice... something more clearly tailored to the common physician leaving medical school with 200,000 in loans and going into a specialty that really won't earn that much... but was hoping to find answers in how to stretch these sums of money for the better good of his family and the community... not merely "don't spend--put it all away... then when you retire don't spend much still... then die and donate it all" Ultimately that's what I got, and that doesn't answer anything.

Radical Surgery for Investment Professionals
I would prefer my surgeon concentrates on the task at hand, and not about assett allocation.However, I will be authoring a book called "Retinal Surgical Concepts for Investment Professionals."

Best One!
I got several financial books after my husband started private practice - this one is by far the most comprehensive and detailed.Doroghazi has many funny one-liners and direct advice.The table of contents is very helpful - I know right where to check back for info.I really wish I had purchased this sooner, before we received bad advice from financial advisors who were only looking out for themselves....Now I really feel like we have a better handle on our savings plan, goals, disability insurance & life insurance policies.This is a great book!

Product good condition; shipping fair
The product was in good condition but it took a while to get here, so shipping was only average.That is why I rated it a 3.

Must read for every new physician.
Any physician graduating medical school or finishing residency should read this book if they have not exposed themselves to studies or practical experience on the financial side both personally and professionally.The authoris a physician and provides a good basic theoretical approach with several real world practical examples.It is a quick read and can provide significant guidance to helping a physician make the leap from just cash flowing to building significant wealth.The author helps dispel the myths of high incomes versus high net worth. ... Read more

Product Description
This authoritative overview, written for institutional investors and those with financial oversight responsibilities, reveals strategies, risks, and technical insights into the world of hedge fund investing. Key investment concepts such as evaluation techniques, monitoring tips, and indexation create a solid foundation for making informed investment decisions time after time. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (6)

fantastic
I am lucky enough to have Mr. Crerend as one of my closest friends both inside and outside of the workplace.His book is a good one, especially for the new investor who is looking for advice and guidance from someone with years of experience in the field.Mr. Crerend has a unique point of view that makes his book a great one, and also made him successful.

Good primer and useful reference
Even though this book is 3 years old, it still serves as a very good primer to the hedge fund industry.Anyone wishing to gain a fundamental understanding of how hedge funds work and how they can be used will find the book easy to read.A lot of details are covered; e.g., a discussion about hedge fund indexes.Even for a professional like myself, I find the book to be a good reference every time I forget a concept or two.

Extremely General
Little information other than extremely general data on historic returns.One of the few investment books I have ever read that I did not find something useful to remember.

Tevfik Aksoy
Not bad for a someone on the street, however, it has very limited use for a professional. Contains a lot of repeats (and I mean a lot of). Would not recommend if a professional insight to hedge funds is being searched for.The book would be useful for those who are completely hedge fund illiterateor just curious what a hedge fund is.

Facts, but somewhat outdated
Contains same facts as other hedge fund books, but seems to be outdated.Little info on recent trends in industry. ... Read more

Product Description

The wisest investors don't waste time trying to capitalize on current market trends for short-term gains; rather, they focus on making their wealth grow over a lifetime.

In Lifespan Investing, veteran trader Clifford Pistolese reveals a long-term investment strategy designed to maximize the amount of wealth you will accumulate over the course of your life. Based on investment portfolios that deal with traditional stock market cycles, his age-based investment management plan shows you how to take full advantage of the market opportunities that will allow you to build truly outstanding profits.

Drawing upon his vast experience, Pistolese shows you how to perform the research needed to find and evaluate potential investments. He provides the tools you need to:

• Set your financial objective for retirement and select investments to meet your goals
• Identify the current market phase-one of the keys to investing successfully
• Know when to buy, how long to hold, and when to sell
• Rebalance your portfolio to make it appropriate for each stage in your life
• Multiply your assets over your lifetime

Pistolese presents three different portfolios as models for each type of market phase. You'll see how to use an aggressive strategy to make superior capital gains in bull markets, implement a defensive strategy to preserve those gains during bear markets, and create a strong income flow during range-bound markets. You'll also discover how to diversify your portfolio among different types of investments to better control your level of risk.

Competent guidance and disciplined effort are the keys to achieving wealth and sustaining it throughout your lifetime. Lifespan Investing offers the first; by bringing the second, you will build the fortune you desire to enjoy in your future years.

Product Description
In Foundation and Endowment Investing, authors Lawrence Kochard and Cathleen Rittereiser offer you a detailed look at this fascinating world and the strategies used to achieve success within it. Filled with in-depth insights and expert advice, this reliable resource profiles twelve of the most accomplished Chief Investment Officers within today’s foundation and endowment community—chronicling their experiences, investment philosophies, and the challenges they face—and shares important lessons that can be used as you go about your own investment endeavors. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (6)

Outstanding and Enjoyable Book on Investment Policy and Practice
This is an excellent and enjoyable text on investment policy and practice for endowments and foundations. I recommend it for any student or practitioner of institutional investments, whether they are focused on endowments or elsewhere. We all have something to learn from the wit and wisdom of this book.

Many investment books are either are too simplistic (not that it's rocket science) or so technical and lost in the numbers that they miss the gestalt of successful investing. This narrative does quite the opposite. The authors open with an excellent summary of the history, circumstances, and essential elements of endowment and foundation investment management. They follow with conversations with a dozen of the leading CIO's in the field, offering the reader real insight to the unique perspective of each institution, the passions and interests that make each CIO tick, and a better understanding of why successful investing doesn't come from a 'cookie cutter' approach. They close with a helpful summary of what we've learned along the way.

When you are done, you feel like you have enjoyed real conversations with some of the best practitioners in the field, and have a better sense of the depth, character, and focus that have made them successful. You won't be overwhelmed with jargon, just immersed in the real gestalt of successful investing. Sit down with this well written book, a glass of milk, and a warm cookie, and enjoy the conversation.

This book is a must read for all institutional marketers.
This book is a must read for all institutional marketers.I learned something new on every page.It was of particular interest to me to learn about the early work experiences of the featured CIO's and how they made it to the top of their field. I found the book well written and easy to read.Well done.

Excellent profiles of top endowment/foundation Chief Investment Officers.
"Foundation and Endowment Investing" by Larry Kochard (himself a top Chief Investment Officer) and Cathleen Rittereiser is a very well written and valuable book.While providing an excellent general overview of how the investment landscape has changed for some of the most innovative investors today, I found the most interesting and valuable section to be the profiles of 12 of the top endowment and foundation CIOs.The authors obviously spent hours interviewing and gaining insights from these titans of the investing world, resulting in a very readable and valuable book.

Candid insider perspectives on inner world of endowments & foundations
Clearly Kochard and Rittereiser know how to ask CIOs important questions as they themselves are insiders in the foundation/endowment field. Their years of industry experience and network with these accomplished CIOs has made reading their book an eye-opening experience. The interviews are conducted with highest quality that are conducive to bringing out sharpest, practical and candid observations by these industry-recognized CIOs.I also think that the writing is sharp and clear-cut that help to drive home key takeaways for readers . Many investment professionals, whether or not working in the endowment/foundation field will benefit from reading the book to have a grasp of today's fast-changing and more complexed global investing. I do hope to see sequels from the two authors as they have proven to work together so well.

Important & Rare Examination of Endowment & Foundation Investing
Authors Larry Kochard and Cathleen Rittereiser have published an instructive and rare look behind the scenes of a collection of elite endowments and foundations. Their important text enhances and expands the good work of David Swensen in "Pioneering Portfolio Management" by revealing the thoughts and investment processes of a dozen accomplished Chief Investment Officers. "Foundation & Investment Investing" will be valuable for a broad universe of readers including CIOs, board members, investment staff professionals, portfolio managers and analysts, fund marketing professionals, business professors and their students, and individual investors. As foundation and endowment investment offices can be challenging to understand, I have bought additional copies for my colleagues in our equity hedge fund. I have also bought copies for a few individual investors who have asked for my guidance on managing their retirement portfolios in this increasingly volatile and complex investment environment. The final chapter observes that the CIOs interviewed are "all likable people". I agree, and enjoyed the sharp and candid insights of each of the CIOs. The interviews with Mark Yusko and Alice Handy were particularly enjoyable and instructive.

As CIO of Georgetown University and investment management executive of Alternative Asset Managers, respectively, the authors' historical perspectives and informed commentary are interesting, and their organizations are lucky to have them.

I hope Kochard and Rittereiser are interviewing another dozen CIOs for a sequel to this excellent and important investment management book! ... Read more

Product Description
This Wall Street Journal bestseller has been completely revised, with expanded coverage of online investment resources. Investing For Dummies, 2nd Edition, shows you step-by-step how to assess your financial situation, gauge risks and returns, and make sound, sensible investment choices. It's the only book you need to start building wealth, whether you're a novice weary of living paycheck to paycheck or a market player.

Discover how to

• Get past the ten psychological obstacles to investing
• Understand investment terms and techniques
• Develop an investment strategy
• Pick winning stocks, bonds, and mutual funds
• Make money on real estate
• Build wealth with a small business

Customer Reviews (92)

A little too basic , even for dummies
I guess I was expecting too much because I have several other books in the series that I really liked.I read about 1/2 of the book and just couldnt take it anymore.Maybe from reading newspapers and talking to people,I learned too much to benefit from this book.I bought it because I was afraid that maybe I was missing some important basices like diversifying, etc.but I guess I wasnt.

Not Happy
Do not buy this book and pls do not loose ur money. Invest on something good but not this one. :(

Simple, to the point
A very straight forward book. General summary not so many specifics but exactly what it is intended for. Gives a broad explanation of all aspects of investment and a very good start up guide for people who do not plan on what to do with money. Thumbs up!

A little toobasic
My title says it all!The book is a little too basic but then again, I should have realized that given the title!If you have ever had even some exposure to investing, find something at the next level.It would be a better investment!:)

From Dummy to Smarty
After reading this book, I finally have the knowledge and confidence to invest. I'm 32 years old and I'm so glad I've taken the time to educated myself, now having 27 years to consider in making the most of my money and investments. ... Read more

Product Description
"As with his weekly column, James Montier's Value Investing is a must read for all students of the financial markets. In short order, Montier shreds the 'efficient market hypothesis', elucidates the pertinence of behavioral finance, and explains the crucial difference between investment process and investment outcomes. Montier makes his arguments with clear insight and spirited good humor, and then backs them up with cold hard facts. Buy this book for yourself, and for anyone you know who cares about their capital!"
—Seth Klarman, President, The Baupost Group LLC

The seductive elegance of classical finance theory is powerful, yet value investing requires that we reject both the precepts of modern portfolio theory (MPT) and pretty much all of its tools and techniques.

In this important new book, the highly respected and controversial value investor and behavioural analyst, James Montier explains how value investing is the only tried and tested method of delivering sustainable long-term returns.

James shows you why everything you learnt at business school is wrong; how to think properly about valuation and risk; how to avoid the dangers of growth investing; how to be a contrarian; how to short stocks; how to avoid value traps; how to hedge ignorance using cheap insurance. Crucially he also gives real time examples of the principles outlined in the context of the 2008/09 financial crisis.

In this book James shares his tried and tested techniques and provides the latest and most cutting edge tools you will need to deploy the value approach successfully.

It provides you with the tools to start thinking in a different fashion about the way in which you invest, introducing the ways of over-riding the emotional distractions that will bedevil the pursuit of a value approach and ultimately think and act differently from the herd. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (8)

A waste of an afternoon
If you haven't read any of the other books available on behavioral economics, you didn't know that low p/e stocks (or p/b, p/s, etc) tend to outperform high p/e stocks, you think that markets are efficient, or you haven't heard of Ben Graham, then you'd probably get a lot out of this book. It's well written, and often entertaining.
Personally though, I was dissapointed.The first section spells out, in laborious detail, that the markets are not always rational.I'm sure there are a few academics around who disagree, but not many.Other writers made the same points long ago, and I seriously doubt that anyone who would buy a book with "value investing" in the title takes the idea seriously.

The second section is on behavioral economics. He goes over the same fifty or so experiments that every book on the subject seems to cover, and offers no new insights.

The third and fourth sections lay out what he thinks value investing is all about.He's more along the lines of Ben Graham than Warren Buffett, and has little or nothing in common with Marty Whitman, who also wrote a book with the title "Value Investing."(Whitman's book is poorly written, and a much less pleasant read, but ultimately far more insightful and valuable.) Montier is fond of developing numerical models, then back-testing them to see how they would have done over the last 30 years or more.His approach strikes me as a bit naïve.He rails against those who put too much faith in mathematical models based on past performance, then spends a lot of time discussing mathematical models based on past performance.Value investing, as I understand it, is figuring out much something is worth and buying it if you can get away with paying substantially less.Montier pays lip service to this idea, but that isn't really what he advocates in a lot of the book.

The fifth section covers short selling.I found this to be the best section of the book.In brief, he explores the idea that a value investor, when unable to find much that's cheap enough to buy, might want to sell short the most expensive stocks. There's a bit more to it than that, including the basics of looking for problems on the balance sheet, problem CEOs, etc.I wasn't entirely convinced that the risks of shorting the high-flyers are worth the possible gains, but he did provide food for thought. I'll probably read this section again.
The final section is largely a collection of thoughts on what to do when the market crashed in 2008-9. In a word, buy.Frankly, if you're a value investor, you didn't have to be told.A few other topics were covered, but I didn't find anything useful or insightful.

I should also note, as other reviewers have, that the book is repetitive in the extreme.This is largely a collection of articles, with no real effort made to put them together in a cohesive way. In fact, you can probably track down a lot of it on the internet. You'll sometimes find the same sentence, or even an entire paragraph repeated verbatim three, four, or even more times.Several times I thought I might have misplaced my bookmark, but the problem was with the book, not with me.Bruce Greenwald, who wrote the Foreward, views this as an advantage. He's wrong.I should also point out that Montier, though sometimes insightful, at other times just doesn't make sense.For example, he spills quite a bit of ink telling the reader not to forecast.He doesn't admit it, but a lot of his methods (strictly speaking, all of his methods) involve forecasting.I think he's trying to distinguish some sorts of forecasts from others, but he doesn't make this clear, and certainly doesn't offer any convincing argument for this view. Oh, and there are precious few of the "Tools and Techniques" referred to in the subtitle.

Validates several value investing approaches through data
James Montier discusses several areas related to value investing. The book is a collection of articles he wrote. The book provides several insights - several of these have been tested for data going back a couple of centuries. Quite a bit of data / analysis overlaps amongst the different articles.

1. The first seven chapters are devoted to showing data and inferences that debunk the efficient market hypothesis. For those who have already bought into this argument, this may be a tad tiring.

2. The next seven chapters discuss theory and practical ways to incorporate behavioral aspects into investment decisions.

3. The third section discusses his philosophy of investing, focusing on process instead of outcomes, becoming aware of confirmation bias, becoming aware of action bias, and need for skepticism.

4. The fourth section validates value investing approaches by analyzing data from companies across the globe.

5. The fifth section deals with shorting from a value investing perspective. Past results in this section are the least compelling compared to the other sections.

6. The final section is a collection of articles analyzing financial events as they unfolded over the last couple of years around the globe.

The book could have been shorter if articles were combined into a cogent book form. We would, however, lose real-time aspects of analysis as events unfolded.

full of insight and great reading
I have always liked reading James Montier, his work generally helps one remember to take a step back and assess objectively from all angles whatever one is analysing.This book is a collection of essays written leading up to and during the financial crises we have been witnessing.Despite his continual claims that investors are unable to time markets with any consistency, the number of times in which the author seems to be able to do so gives some pause for thought.The book is a nice mixture of case evidence of major human biases as well as investment themes that hold true by hanging on to simple consistent measures.

The behavioral investment biases we all have are too numerous to state, but the author always does a remarkable job of reminding us that, they are always with us.These identifications and experimental evidence of our various cognitive biases are always fun to read, one often finds themselves falling into the same buckets as those who are making those "categorical" errors.The use of case examples is not without imperfection though as there are definitely some cases presented for which either the case does not correspond to a financial example or the case is a poor case study to begin with.As a quick example there was a scenario given in which a football(soccer) coach suffered a horrendous defeat and then played a subsequent game and either won or lost, and the audience was asked how the coach would feel in these two situations depending on whether he had changed the strategy after the first defeat, the audience tilted towards saying the coach would feel worse on the second defeat had he not changed the squad.This was then used towards arguing that people use results as the means of judgement rather than process.Had the experiment been roulette black/red bets, yes, for a 90 minute match suffering a massive defeat implies a process error.Anyway, minor issue, but every so often the points dont necessarily follow from the examples.

The investment theses of the book are very fun to read.The author is very vocal about the need to have simplicity at the heart of ones investment thesis, using a larger and larger set of variables generally does not improve predictive ability, in fact the author believes that information overload reduces predictive ability.He generally argues for the long run return of value over growth and backs it up with simple screening and subsequent return profiles of going long value short growth.One of the more remarkable results, though implicit in the previous sentance, was when the author discusses the negative correlation of GDP growth and stock market returns, ie the faster the economies were growing, the worse their equity returns (meaning that people's expectations tend to run ahead of reality).Slightly isoteric, but the the authors article on dividend swaps was perfect timing and an excellent call on a versatile hedge to many states of the world.

All in all, great reading.It was repetitive at times due to the combined essay approach rather than focused subject appraoch of the work.The author is always consistent and his conservatism allowed him to buy the markets he had been waiting for to be cheap and avoid the losses most of the crowds had been elusively chasing.His timing was excellent despite having no desire nor confidence in being able to do.The author forcefully argues that that at deep value, yes prices can go against you as they always can, the margin of safety that one has if right manifests itself in short/medium/long term outperformance.Strategies that are used with the goal of making consistent short term returns at the expense of long run value are more likely to be similar to picking up pennies in front of a steam roller.

Recycled
While this book contains interesting info and stats, it is mostly composed of articles/columns that were previously written over several years.Each chapter references the current crisis from a different spot on a time line.Because each chapter also comes from a different analytical perspective, there are a lot of variables between chapters so the book doesn't feel like it hangs together.There is not a lot of practical advice.The many screening variables mentioned are not available in the screens I have access to on my brokers' websites or online.The behavioral chapters are pretty much repeated in his "Little Book of Investing" which I liked a lot better.Interesting, but too haphazard.

Much ado about nothing
This is more of a definition of Value Investing rather than a "How To book." Boooooring !!! No useful insigh on how to find value stocks.The author spends laborish pages on definitions of value - who needs definitions.If you are looking for something that gets to the point then you are wasting your time reading this books.I bought the book because of the high profile recommenddations and with the hopes of gleaning seasoned knowledge of what I actually needed to look for when I'm valuing a stock.For example, should I screen for high ROE or low ROE, how do I put an intrinsic value on a stock, what pitfalls to look for.After reading the first two chapters and thumbed through 6 more, I finally came to the conclusion that I was on the wrong path to knowledge.Waste of your time.In regards to the high profile referrals - I doubt very seriously if they actually read the book. ... Read more