Investment-company

A very good overview - but by no means an in depth survey - of establishing and maintaining a defined contribution or benefit plan for a company.

Covered are the compliance issues, changes and ammendments to ERISA, and detail on plan distributions.

Not the only book to have on the pension industry - but if you work in the field, one to include in your pension library!

Author Butler is famous for the "Butler Index," which shows the hidden costs of having your 401k managed by the wrong people. Because he is not selling anything, unlike many others in the pension advice field, his advice is reliable. Well written and "two thumbs up" for this walking "consumer reports of 401k."

I was really disappointed with this book, particularly given that it was written by seasoned bankruptcy experts. The book is very skinny on content - it spends about 30 pages on bankruptcy law and its procedures, a few on case studies that are superficial/poorly written and several on bond analysis, and standard research tools that are well-known to a person with basic financial knowledge, ie the sort of people who would be interested in something relatively exotic as Bankruptcy Investing. The few useful pages that there are are marred by poor writing, and a complete absence of analytical frameworks that stay with the reader.

Bankruptcy is a complex topic and there is a need for a book of the sort Branch and Ray have attempted. However, this is most certainly not that book.

Great introduction and overview of the world of distressed and bankruptcy investing. The authors managed to synthesize a very complicated subject into an easy-to-read and understandible book. Of course no one book can cover the entire subject in detail, but this one comes amazingly close. Highly recommended.

This book has everything I needed to make money in this market. They do need to update their data and bring it forward, but the analysis is first rate and the methodology was very new to me although quite understandable in plain english for someone without a law degree or an mba. I now understand what is going on here and I can see how the vulture investors get the large returns. I reread the first part after several months of buying and it all still held together. Interesting and moneymaking as well.

I gave this book a less than stellar rating because it is simply hard to read. Following all the acronyms and financial terms was hard enough, but the book was written too much like a text book for brokers and financial gurus. That being said, the information in this book is of the 5 star quality and is well worth the effort of digging for if one is considering any kind of investing in the stock market, especially the high tech sectors.

The sarcastic wit and biting humor found in the pages are a real bonus, the authors make their points and then add interesting quotes, articles or they simply point out the patently obvious (making the point that the information wasn't all that obvious to millions that lost billions of dollars in bad investments).

Bubba Greaterfool is their name for the poor sucker that bought into the hype, didn't know what he was doing, probably never heard of the great tulip market, thought that the sky was the limit and then got stuck holding the empty bag as the hot air was expelled from the over inflated stocks that made up the tech stocks of 96-00. My main complaint with this book is that it isn't written in a way that would appeal to or be read by the general public, Bubba especially. And he is the guy that really needs this information.

I would highly recommend reading this to anyone that handles their own stock investments or plans too, the information is too valuable to ignore and the insight can be used to gauge other markets besides just tech stocks (remember the silver fiasco in the early eighties?) As for casual readers I would recommending passing on this offering as it is just too much work to read, but keep it in mind if you ever consider buying that stock that just can't possibly do anything but go up...

Clark and Neill have done it again. With a combination of clarity and foresight spiced with humor, Net Value is a guide book for looking at tomorrows investing today. For an insightful and revealing look at the value of Internet-related stocks, this book is excellent.

This book is timely, up-to-date and makes some predictions which are proving to be amazingly accurate. Its tounge-in-cheek prose makes for a great read - I have a much better understanding of the dotcom land after reading this - highy recommended

Precious few individual companies in a portfolio should be held for the very long-term. Only companies that can create shareholder value, increase profits and intrinsic value steadily, and dominate their markets should be considered.

"Great Companies, Great Returns" is a guide to developing a core investing strategy with the highest quality companies. This strategy includes owning companies with household names such as Citigroup, General Electric, and Johnson & Johnson, and is meant to be a viable alternative to indexing.

As Jim Huguet says, "Core strategies differ from other investing strategies in that they are long-term, tax efficient, easy to understand, and proven, and provide excellent returns relative to the level of risk. This differs from "black box" strategies that buy stocks rather then companies, cost you dearly in taxes, and often underperform the market at high levels of risk."

"Great Companies, Great Returns" does define the qualities of "terrific businesses," and then builds the case for a great company though twelve criteria (i.e., "screens"). The book is a primer for anyone who wants a disciplined methodology for identifying and selecting companies for long-term investment.

The twelve screens in the book generated fourteen large capitalization companies. An overview for each of these companies is presented. This "Super Investing" strategy, in the author's opinion, invests in the 14 greatest public companies headquartered in the United States.

The "Great Companies" strategy is also applied to IPO's, international companies, and mostly technology-based "Great Companies of the Future." The author covers, in detail, allocating, managing, and monitoring funds in a "Great Companies" portfolio.

"Great Companies, Great Returns" contains charts, graphs, CEO interviews, worksheets, and a partial listing of helpful web sites.

Huguet realizes that many investors are frustrated by the fact that the performance of their investment portfolio is below their expectations. They are often confused about the world of investing. Because they are busy people, they are frequently short of time. Many rely primarily on indexing. Others have just begun their investment journey. They pay too much in taxes. They are concerned about pre-retirement investing. Or they are retired and fear that they will outlive their money. They may be concerned about financing the education of children or grandchildren. "Is there an investment strategy which will produce great returns over the long-term cycle of bull and bear markets?" Huguet asked himself this question and then began rigorous and extensive research to answer it. Great Companies, Great Returns is the result of his research.

Essentially, Huguet concluded that there are certain stocks which every investor should own. Which stocks? He next concluded that there are a few great American companies in which to invest, companies whose stocks will produce outstanding, tax-efficient returns in a variety of market conditions. OK but which Great Companies? He identifies and then explains his selections.

The strategy which Huguet advocates makes compelling sense for those whose long-term investment objectives are to maximize returns while minimizing risks and taxes, and thereby achieving the greatest returns (over time) from publicly-traded stocks. Large-cap companies really do have significant strategic advantages over their smaller-cap counterparts. Of these, Huguet has selected only 14. If a reader of Great Companies, Great Returns has a better combination of traits and/or a better selection of Great Companies in which to invest, Huguet would be delighted to know. (So would I.)

I rate his book so highly for two reasons: Huguet's rationale for long-term investment is sound, and, while explaining his reasons for it, he provides a brilliant analysis of the companies in which he believes such an investment should be made. My guess is that this book will be most valuable to those who need both the rationale and the research in support of it.

If you're fed up with mediocre returns but can't stomach the volatility of internet stocks, this book offers an alternative. Huguet explains how a number of old-line companies have collectively been trouncing the S&P 500 by a wide margin for years. But just any established company won't do. Huguet explains in clear and concise terms how to identify these companies by focusing on what makes them great, not some obscure technical analysis that doesn't even look inside the company. This book could easily be titled "It's the basics, Stupid!". In short, a must read for serious long term investors who want to be able to sleep at night content that they own the bluest of blue chips.

This book was written before the likes of Ameritrade and E-Trade came along, and therefore is rather dated. The fees associated with most plans today and their minimum investments make DRIPs less attractive today then they were five years ago. However, for those who want to buy stock in companies and hold for ten or 20 years, they are worthwhile. Carlson writes in easy-to-understand language that a person not well-versed in Wall Street can grasp. Plenty of information on the company's listed along with telephone numbers and websites. Different kinds of portfloios are profiled so the investor can see what they can do with whatever funds they have to invest. The pros and cons of this kind of investing are listed so a person can decide if it is for them. It is a worthwhile read.

I first purchased this book years ago, and I have to admit at the time it was a revelation. I was trying to buy stocks and usually failed to do so simply because I did not want to pay broker fees and I was rarely in a position to buy 100 shares at a time (if you bought less, the stock price and the broker fee both usually went up). Back then, the book was a great aid. I still own a stock list in the book that I purchased thanks to this book.

But in many ways, this book has lost a lot of relevance. Now one can go online and purchase stocks in any amount with fees of as little as $3.00. And the fact that the book has not been updated since 1996 weighs heavily against recommending it be purchased by anyone today. Perhaps Carlson has not bothered to further update because of the ease with which stocks may eb purchased on-line.

Still, for someone who is a long term investor, it provides some choices as far as investing without involving a broker. And it is definitely an option if you have no desire to use the internet to make stock purchases. Just be aware that your options are limited; most companies do not offer direct purchase of their stock or Dividend Reinvestment Plans (DRIPs) to the public at large.

This book did it all, I learned more about stocks and purchases from this one book than any other. The information in this book takes you from the first step all the way to purchases. This book is the credit for my recent stock portfolio. And for that I Thank the author for a job very well done. I am an inexperienced investor who needed a mentor and teacher, this book/author filled that need. Outstanding, I read it cover to cover several times.

I double my money at least once every 6 months. If you are serious at all about making money in the stock market, then you're talking about selling options, not investing in the traditional way.

This book is good, that is if you want to double your money every 5 years. It is not powerful enough.

Bill Staton has a very simple investment plan. Buy stock in companies that have a great long term record(he provides a list of over 400) and hold them as long as they continue to perform. Not very exciting or complex, but it should work great. With deep discount brokers not offering trades for as little as $8, I think he should spend more time pointing out the advantage of using them over using DRIP plans. I would think that his investment plan would be better than the way that over 90% of investors now invest. His book is very easy to read.

Staton provides a clear and simple method of building a solid portfolio of stocks representing America's best companies. His advice to the reader is -- buy and accumulate periodically, a small number of stocks belonging to America's Finest Companies (and there are over 400 of them in his book) and to sell rarely. Which is exactky what super-investor Warren Buffett does. Staton also explains what kind of stocks to choose if your account is taxable and what type of stocks would be suitable for a tax-sheltered account like an IRA. And if the reader doesn't ever want to pay a broker, Staton provides a list of America's Finest Companies that allow investors to invest directly with the companies. The only thing that I missed seeing in his book was a list of companies that might make it to the list in subsequent years IF they maintained their progress. A lot of investors would be interested in such "stars on the horizon".

This book was OK, but it was pretty basic. More information was definately needed-especially to spice up parts on the company financial section. Overall, it offers a pretty simple read, with some "lingo" being explained. This is a great book though for people just getting into small cap investing.

I began my stock market investing with the purchase of small stocks. Back then, they were called penny stocks because some companies sold their stock for just a few cents a share. Later, penny stocks were any stocks selling for less than $3 or $5 or $10 a share. This book deals with how to make serious money from investing in small or start-up companies. Small companies appear to be where the action is, and where the profits are. I like this book. It gave me valuable hints on profiting with small companies. There is another book you must read if you are interested in this subject. Get a copy of MAKING DOLLARS WITH PENNIES: HOW THE SMALL INVESTOR CAN BEAT THE WIZARDS ON WALL STREET by R. Max Bowser. Bowser has been writing a top financial newsletter for twenty-five years. He monitors many promising small companies. He gives advice on what to buy, when to buy and when to sell. He gives monthly updates on the stocks he recommends. I refer to Bowser's book often.

Over the past decade, Howard Schilit has built a reputation as a financial statement bloodhound through his organization, Center for Financial Research and Analysis (CFRA). His focus is on rooting out elements of public company financial reports that lessen the quality of reported earnings. However, Blue Chips & Hot Tips, his first of two books, has a different focus, though it relies on many of the same principles. In it, Schilit and his brother methodically walk you through the evaluation of young companies (upcoming or recent IPOs), with the objective of identifying big winners early and avoiding companies that will not pan out. What was great for me when I read this book back in 1994 is that I learned how to break down a prospectus, which can appear overwhelming at first glance. Everything is covered, including analyzing product superiority and competition, analyzing management, directors and the auditors, and digging into the financial statements in order to assess the true health of the company. Schilit is a CPA and a detail freak so the most helpful chapters focused on the financials and the deal terms. I should acknowledge that some of his suggestions have grown to be too idealistic in an age where many companies are simply brought public too early. However, as we've seen over the past two years, applying the principles of this book would have kept you away from practically all of the blowups and bankruptcies that occurred in the aftermath of the dotcom frenzy. I should also note that the later chapters analyze several stocks, weeding out the promising ones from the less promising. Cisco Systems (CSCO) was one of four stocks that made the cut (quite prescient back in 1992). Clearly, these will be outdated recommendations, though they are still instructive examples of his approach. Bottom line - I highly recommend this book for any investor who wants to move beyond the Peter Lynch "buy what you know and hang on to it" approach. Eight years later, I am still utilizing tools introduced to me by this book.

This book provides an overview of the basic recent history and dynamics of global trade and investment, focussing on the United States. Its primary value lies in understanding the use and misuse of trade deficit statistics - a phenomenon which has plagued the United States since its trade surpluses vanished at the end of the 1970s - which should also make this book a boon to business executives who periodically read of journalistic lanments of the lack of U.S. corporate competitiveness when looking at figures of U.S. trade deficits.

Quinlan points out that there are at least two channels through which a US firm (or a national firm of another country) can sell good and services abroad: either directly trhoguh exports, or through an overseas affiliate, or both. In fact, he spends considerable effort in assembling statistics to show that U.S. multinational affiliate sales are a very significant share of the sales of corporations to consumers in a given nation, say Germany or Australia.

Quinlan ably draws from datasets provided through surveys undertaken by the U.S. Department of Commerce to correct the misleading impression that U.S. trade deficits create among certain commentators. However, such data are not generally available on a worldwide basis for all countries, and until they are available, we may have to content ourselves with what trade statistics do report and signify.

Janet Lowe has done a reasonable job of chronicling the life of Charlie Munger.

For people who have read a considerable amount about Warren Buffett and Berkshire, a lot of what is included in this book would already be known.

I found that there was too much space devoted to Munger's family at the expense of Munger himself. The book is sub-titled: "Behind the Scenes with Berkshire Hathaway Billionaire Charlie Munger" not: "Behind the Scenes with Berkshire Hathaway Billionaire Charlie Munger's Family", which is what it risked turning into (especially in the first half or so of the book). Munger might have a wonderful family but no-one is buying the book to read about them.

Munger is obviously known primarily as an extraordinarily successful investor and as such it is a little disappointing that Lowe did not probe deeper into the underlying thought behind some of the major investment decisions that Munger has been involved with during his career, especially given that Munger made himself accessible to the author for the purposes of this book. I was not looking for a Robert Hagstrom type analysis, but some more detailed textual information would have been appropriate. If you want an example of what I'm talking about read Roger Lowenstein's excellent biography Buffett (The Making of an American Capitalist).

I also found it disappointing that Lowe re-published in one of the appendices a talk that Munger gave in 1996 which Andy Kilpatrick had already included in his 1998 edition of Of Permanent Value, perhaps Lowe could have found something previously unpublished for this book.

For the record Page 254 states that See's Candy was purchased for $2m (it should read $25 million), page 255 states that the Buffalo Evening News was purchased for $2.5 million (it should read $32.5 million).

Overall the book is worth having a look at but if you're a seasoned Buffett/Berkshire follower do not expect to learn a lot in addition to what you already know.

Mr. Charlie Munger, Vice-Chairman of Berkshire Hathaway, is the partner/sidekick of Mr. Warren Buffett and is considered the man behind the scenes at Berkshire Hathaway. Charlie is a very entertaining guy, and this book shows why Warren Buffett calls him "one of a kind." Janet Lowe provides readers with an in-depth look at the full and interesting life of Mr. Munger. Many useful lessons on life and investing can be uncovered by a thorough reading of this excellent book. The book also includes two excellent speeches by Mr. Munger in the appendix: Multidisciplinary Skills: Educational Implications and Practical Thought about Practical Thought?

While there's too much genealogy of the Mungers from the 1600's on, the book does give a thorough grounding in what makes Charles Munger tick.
While this book provides no easy investment answers, Mr. Munger's values and wise quotes* make this book a winner. It makes me want to go to a Berkshire (or to hear more from Mr. Munger, a Wesco Financial) annual meeting.
* "Good businesses throw up one easy decision after another; bad businesses throw up painful decisions time after time." This is both a wonderful quote and a very Berkshire Hathaway way of looking at businesses in which to invest.