Customer Reviews

The Jubak Picks: 50 Stocks That Will Rebuild Your Wealth & Safeguard Your Future

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Being an avid reader of Jubak's column in MSN's moneycentral, most of his theses and discussions on macro trends (the usual suspects - BRIC, commodities/food, infrastructure, aging population and money management) seemed a little tired, and that perhaps was why the book didnt meet my expectations. While Jukak's exposition of the key macro trends are systematic and well-made, most readers familiar with his column and financial press in general, may be hard pressed to find any new dramatic insights from this discussion.

The book starts off with his opinions (and rationale) on fundamental and technical investing ("both are wrong"), identifying common themes and stocks that move according to that theme, and an overview of his method of stock selection. He then organizes his thoughts in this book based on a list of macro themes, evidence and arguments to support these themes and 'risks' associated with that trend. For each trend, he identifies key stocks that are his picks to play that sector. In addition, each chapter also lists additional stocks that he considers to be worthy additions if one were to overweight that theme/sector in one's portfolio, including mutual funds/ETFs that could mimic his opinion expresses in a particular chapter.

The book then concludes with a comprehensive list of his picks and short blurbs on that stock, including which chapter that stock or associated theme was mentioned. For the more experienced reader who may choose to buy this book, this particular section is perhaps more useful - quick scan of the list and then explore in detail when needed. If you are more familiar with the investment media, you may find the under-representation of healthcare stocks a bit unusual when most authors touting the aging population focus on medical device companies like Stryker, Medtronic, etc. while Jubak focuses on money management. A relative novice investor may benefit tremendously from the discussion on the trends and specific stocks for that trend. If you are not familiar with Jubak and his thought process, you may want to check out Moneycentral's website to view his portfolios (he has 4 different ones; he will be monitoring the 50 stocks mentioned in this book as well) before you invest in this book.

In short,good investment for a relatively new investor; if you are already tuned in to the financial press, monitoring his columns and portfolio on Moneycentral is a better pick.

This well organized, informative attempt to show major trends in the world should help you with some guidance in the investment world. The world can turn abruptly. In 2008, the world turned from strong inflation to deflation. Most of this book is still in the inflation mode. So, his short term picks were toasted by the downturn. His facts in this book are quite excellent. His investment points are true. His stock picks make sense. Overall, I enjoy and agree with his thoughts. I find this book one of the best on the topic. Many of his thoughts are from his online articles which are well done. The real world cannot be described in a simple book. This book will be placed in my investment library. The trends and stocks that he has discussed will help me in the future.

I have read hundreds of investment books over the years and this one ranks as one of the best. It is a masterpiece as far as investment books go. The book identifies many of the same trends that Jim Rogers also discusses, but the analysis is extremely detailed.

I disagree with those that think this book is only for beginners and only identifies the same old trends. The book is designed to teach a man to fish rather than just sell him some fish. It works through the author's thoughts of how he identified the trends he sees and how he monitors those trends for increases or decreases in momentum. In essence he shows investors how to make money when today's trends are long gone because he tells you how he identifies and monitors them.

Very few authors with books that look at long-term trends have any track record to speak of. Jim Rogers is probably the most notable exception. Those reading the book to make a quick buck or trade might as well save their money and read the Author's online journal for free, but if you want to develop your skills at identifying and monitoring trends this book is for you.

This is an author's note. At the end of The Jubak Picks I promised an online portfolio tracking the performance of the 50 stocks profiled in the book and online updates for these stocks. Well, the portfolio is now up on MSN Money and I've also posted the first group of updates with another batch to come at the end of February. You can find the portfolio and updates by following the link to The Jubak Picks 50 Best portfolio in the left margin of any of my Jubak's Journal columns or by pasting this URL into your browser: http://moneycentral.msn.com/articles/invest/jubak/fifty.asp I hope you find this online addition useful in keeping the book up to date.

An excellent book for any independent investor (not just beginners) who like to manage their money on their own. I love Jim's writing because the common man can understand it. To the reviewer who said Jim's fundamental and technical analysis are both wrong........have you done better in the market over the past decade? He's in the upper echelon of folks who make stock picks, so I wouldn't be so quick to dismiss his analysis.

No two people will ever agree on everything. I may not agree with all of Jim's picks, but I do agree with the ten trends. To beat the market, I'm a firm believer you'll need to go with these trends. That's the point of the book - beating the market. Any ol' buffoon can match the market.

Only complaint is that the book was written right before the Oct/Nov 2008 crash even though editing and whatnot led to the book not being released until Dec 2008. Things change so quickly and some references are already outdated.

While the publisher promotes the book for its stock picks, the greater merit lies in Yubak's thoughtful analysis of world-wide economic trends looking ten years out. The "picks" serve as concrete illustrations of where the trends point. The stock recommedations by themselves are available in Yubak's MSN Money articles.

Bill 22066

In the midst of rampant fear and speculation in the stock market, this book takes a rational, long term view striped of the emotional day trading mentality. Mr Jubak builds an investment strategy based on 10 long term economic trends that are well defined and discussed in the book. I particularly like the way he builds a portfolio with predefined proportions for each stock and establishes triggers for rebalancing. If you want to cut to the chase and see his stock recommendations, you can find those on MSN Money. But, I recommend reading the book because it provides the context and backdrop for building a successful stock portfolio in clear non-technical terms. Then, when the market zigs and you expected it to zag, you might have the conviction to stick with compelling long term stocks.

Anyone from young couples to retired folk will benefit from Jubak's clear, concise, and successful investment advice. He offers a daily update and review as an extension of his book. His book is "priceless" and his site is free ([...]). Few of the 400,000 investment advisors can match his stock pick success. Even those who earn 2-300,000 dollars per year for their investment advice!

As usual, Jubak has produced a cogent picture of the macro investment environment, with lots of good ideas for further research. I like his approach to investing -- not buy and hold precisely, but buying a story about a sector/stock and holding as long as the story holds. It is an approach that has worked for him consistently over the years.

This book is worth reading. He definitely doesn't go over your head. He has a quite a few recommendations for stock.