Customer Reviews

Security Analysis on Wall Street: A Comprehensive Guide to Today's Valuation Methods, Univ. Edition (Wiley Nonprofit Law, Finance, and Management Series)

5 star:		(18)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I just wanted to add several comments. Overall I am very familiar with the first edition of this book, because I had to use it as a major source of guidelines at my previous job. The book was a great source! I had some background in structured finance and investments analytics, but I had zero experience in equity valuation before. In some 40-60 hours I was able to learn a lot about firm valuation (especially useful material - dividend discount model, market comparables, and free cash flow models) so that I could start preparing my first equity valuation reports. The second edition is an extended version, which still has all the advantages of the first edition: straightforward approach to valuation, a lot of examples, as little cumbersome math as possible. It is definitely a must read for any private investor and novice financial analyst. By the way, some sections of this book (industry analysis) are still included in the CFA curriculum (level 2, Equity valuation).

The book is a terrific summary of how to value a stock. It gives a step by step outline of the process for a variety of stock categories. For example,you can value a manufacturing company with one technique, while savings and loans stocks and hi tech stocks , for example, require other methods. The book explains how all these different industries are handled.

The first five chapters really gave me the insiders view of how Wall Street operates, and how it prices IPO's, for example. The author, Jeffrey Hooke, worked on Wall Street a lot, and he doesn't pull any punches. Many things that go on are only semi-honest and he isn't afraid to reveal the dark underbelly of the securities business. I really liked the way he showed how many firms exaggerate their sales and earnings per share. You nevre see this sort of thing in other books.

Just by following his advice on pricing stocks on a relative value basis saved me about $3,000 on a recent trade. I recommend this book.

I would recommend this book to someone who wants a broad exposure of "Security Analysis on Wall Street." Mr. Hooke gives a great overview of the many facets of securities analysis. The drawback of this book is that it lacks specifics. For example, I was interested in getting a deeper analysis of valuation methodologies, however, what I found was a general overview of this section--the author then jumped right on to the next section. This example relates to all of the topic areas. Going deeper into topic areas so that more educated and experienced readers could get insight was not available for the most part. Nevertheless, I rate this book 4 stars because it does a great job of giving a strong overview of security analysis. I would recommend this book, especially for beginners and intermediate students and practitioners.

This book is a cross between a textbook for would- be security analysts, a how-to book for corporate execs and investors and an expose of the Wall Street security analysis profession. It's a great insider look at the secutiry analysis business and he tells many of the seamy hidden sides of the Wall Street business of valuing stocks. At the same time, Hooke provides a very practical outline of how the pros come up with prices for stocks.. He tackles many different kinds of securities, from hi tech stocks to the distressed variety.

The book does a good job of explaining things to the individual investor. It's a little complicated in the middle of the book, but I think most readers and investors can profit by his methodical approach.

A 1990's version of Warren Buffet would like the book because it adheres to a modern value approach. Too many of the books I read on stock selection are so basic that they don't help much. This ones is a good guide, and it also can assist execdutives that need to value their company stocks.

After working as a writer in the investment field for more than 10 years, I found myself using terms such as "discounted cash flow" without thorough understanding of what they really mean or how business valuation is done.

Now, after reading Security Analysis and Business Evaluation on Wall Street, I feel very well equipped to delve into the value of an investment and to better understand the analysis done by others.

The author clearly has thorough knowledge of a professional with many years of experience in investment banking, but he explains the concepts clearly so that any investor or business student can understand and use them.

Plenty of case histories explore specific companies and industries. It also includes a timely and cogent analysis of the 2008 crash--a fiasco largely caused by phony analysis of risk and value.

The book also includes access to a website with excellent working spreadsheets for Discounted Cash Flow and other valuation models. They alone are more than worth the price of the book. They could save an analyst or investor countless hours--plus they provide a great hands-on feel for the concepts so aptly illustrated in the book.

There are virtually no good textbooks for undergraduate and graduate students who need a broad introduction to the tools used by junior investment bankers (the ones that do the work), desk analysts, distressed securities investors and hedge fund traders. This book, newly updated, provides one. It is not a lot of theory. Rather it provides realistic descriptions of the techniques used everyday by professionals. And it is all in one place.

Hooke's treatment of security valuation is more popular than academic, and parts 1 and 2 can be skipped by anyone who has read authors such as Damodaran and Porter. Where Hooke is really valuable is in providing practical advice on how to value special cases: as a primer on distressed, natural resource, financial industry, and insurance stocks, this is really a good place to begin.

This is a very practical book on security research and valuation. Although it might not provide in depth discussion on many topics, its breadth and completeness is unmatched by others on similar topics. I highly recommend it to those who are interested in equity analysis, for their future careers or personal interests, as the first book to read.

University of Chicago MBAs looking to work on the Street live and die by this book. It happens to be one of my favorites...

Other valuation books I like

1. DAMADORAN'S book -- buy it; it walks you through the WACC, etc.......
2. the McKinsey and Co book is a Bible -- another MBA first year staple.....
3. the "Streetsmart Guide to..." isn't bad either, since it's DCF focused...

Picking stocks isn't just valaution, so make sure you read PORTER for an overview on industry dynamics.....

This book is the best I've ever read on stock valuation. It has helped me understand the fundamentals behind valuation. It is an easy read for those who have some background in finance but not impossible for the layman to understand.