No comments about One Up on Wall Street (in Simplified Chinese Characters).

3 comments about The Book of Investing Wisdom.

1. Well conceived and organized with keen insight into how some of the best investors attained their success through intelligent financial investments.



2. Krass' style creates an easy to follow, easy to understand narrative of some of the best business minds and their approach to financial investing.



3. An exceptional collection of essays by 46 great names business such as Pickens, Baruch, Moody, Buffet, Lynch, Forbes, Soros, and Trump. Key themes include: basic of analysis; attitude and philosophy; strategy; cycles; views from the inside; and more. Each essay includes a biographical sketch of the writer.

   This collection of essays proves to be interesting, entertaining, and filled with informative thoughts. This is not a 'how to get-rich-quick in the stock market book'; it is more of a solid, conservative investment for your reading portfolio. Reviewed by Gerry Stern, founder, Stern & Associates, author of Stern's Sourcefinder The Master Directory to HR and Business Management Information & Resources, Stern's CyberSpace SourceFinder, and the Compensation and Benefits SourceFinder.

No comments about Learn to Earn: A Beginner's Guide to the Basics of Investing and Business.

No comments about The Davis Discipline: Fifty Years of Successful Investing on Wall Street (Davis Edition).

4 comments about Corporate Social Investing: The Breakthrough Strategy for Giving & Getting Corporate Contributions.

1. This book lays out an easy to use approach for corporations and nonprofits who work together to get the most out of corporate contribution programs.

   Working in a national nonprofit heading up the communications department with our corporate members, I have seen first hand the need for a road map in uncharted territory. This book provides just that to anyone interested in the field.

   This is NOT just a business book -- it is a book that every nonprofit leader should be reading. This book could really make a difference in the way businesses and nonprofits work together.




2. Nonprofit organizations, particularly grassroots agencies, would do well to absorb the lessons in Corporate Social Investing which demystify and challenge corporate giving policies. We've found it much more enjoyable than most business texts, and we found ourselves laughing at some of Curt Weeden's analogies on more than one occasion.



3. Today corporate America has joined the sanctimonious trend in our society under the "giving back" theme. I imagine what a breath of fresh air it would be to hear the following candid statement from a corporate CEO or Board Chairman after refusing to kowtow to political correctness:

   "We sell a quality product that our customers value. We have provided our employees with the means of supporting themselves with dignity, good wages, benefits, and a good working environment. We have worked hard to create wealth for our investors who after all are people with varying needs and means - and not all of them fantastically wealthy. We pay our share of taxes. In summary we already gave back to the community! As for giving to charity - any of our investors has the right to give in any way or amount (time or money) to any organization he or she sees fit. They don't need us to make that decision for them."

   The "giving back to the community" phoniness implies that while running a business you are obviously taking from others - you are a drag on society at large and need to give back to equalize things - Karl Marx couldn't have come up with a better slogan.




4. Curt Weeden tells corporations that social investing through charitable contributions can help society, and can be good business. Then he explains why, and how. This detailed guide explains ways to get the most out of each philanthropic investment, benefiting the non-profit organization and the company's reputation, employee motivation and bottom line. Weeden provides only a few examples of companies that have engaged in corporate social investing, but the introductions by Paul Newman and Peter Lynch are more hands-on because both are active in philanthropy. The book focuses on instructions for setting up your firm's social investing system. Suggestions cover choosing a non-profit recipient, figuring tax benefits, and other nuts-and-bolts issues. The book is oriented to CEOs and top corporate managers, though we at getAbstract also recommend it to academics, stockholders and fundraisers. If you are considering social investing, this is a good guide. And if you're not, it'll explain why you should. (Note: Tax matters discussed are

1 comments about What Do I Do with My Money Now?: Answers to Any Market from Warren Buffett, Peter Lynch, and Other Investors You Can Trust.

1. The books is a collection of a few articles written by a few famous investors. Of course, there is some wisdom in their words, but overall the selection looks pretty random. The articles are not really logically connected, written about different markets, different times and often are given out of the context. Just like mixing the best ingridients is not nessesary makes a good meal, this books is not adding much value by combining the pieces together.
   
   It's also hard to recommend this book to any category of investors. It's clearly not a getting started guide for the beginners because there is no introduction to the market. And the serious investors would probably rather read the original works of those star investors.

1 comments about Learn to Earn: A Beginner's Guide to the Basics of Investing (The Classic Guide).

1. Having listened to Peter Lynch's "One Up On Wall Street" and "Beating the Street," I found this tape to offer almost nothing new except improved narration from Peter Lynch. You're better off getting one of his earlier works.

5 comments about Learn to Earn: A Beginner's Guide to the Basics of Investing and Business.

1. I thoroughly enjoyed this book for three reasons:
   1)It was written for teenagers, so it was easy to grasp its
   concepts, plus very humerous!
   2)It gave a good foundation to finance by teaching a short
   history of capitalism in the US which I found to be
   extremely fascinating.
   3)The whole book was very informative. I learned so much
   about history, how a company gets started and how it grows
   and of course about investing and why we should be investing
   money from our youth.
   You can tell the authors have a good grasp for finance and
   a genuine love of the subject and I applaud them for explaining
   the topic in a down to earth way that anyone can understand.



2. This is book is a great primer on the basics of investing. The language does seem geared towards a younger audience, but the information presented is useful for new and would-be investors of all ages and is very easy to read (I finished it in 3 days). For me, the book was a good brush up on different investing options. Lynch weighs the pros and cons of different investments and strategies, but in the end stresses that the most earning potential at the end of the day is in stocks. The book also includes great tips and advice on how to choose strong companies with potential for growth. This book was definitely the gentle 'shove' I needed to start investing and building a strong portfolio.
   
   I think the book would be even better with a little updating- a bit of information or insight on the different online brokers would have been very helpful.



3. This is a great book to understand the basics of investments.
   Unlike a TV set where you could buy it and least care how it works as long as you know how to work on with the remote control. Stock investing is a different venture, the fundamentals of economics need to be there. One must know what does P/E mean, net cash flow, P/S ratio, forward eps estimate.
   Why the penultimate year before the elections for bull market. Without fundamentals its hard to succeed in investing. Good foundation of terminlogies along with discipline and evaluating one own traits in stock investment makes one confident and a sure winner in the long run. Wall street is the same has been 100 years back there has been bulls and bear session, usually bear sessions have outpaced the bull session. But if one has picked the right stock and waits through the bear session when the bull session is around he is likely to make the maximum return. If one makes 10% return on a year to year basis one is a successful investor. All the eye catchers in newspapers and magazines with >100% return are seldom reptative. If inflation is around 3% and one makes 7% profit per year, with compounding affects anyone can become a wealthy person in the long run. Ofcourse, the real joy is to do your own research and invest and trade wisely. And with time one only excels.



4. I studied economics in college, and thought this book was as good of a general economics book as any I've read. It's unlike the very few investing books I've ever read--the title is more descriptive, it is a learn to earn book. About why companies grow, how one can earn from their growth, historical trends affecting growth, and the actions of these on financial markets. One can go through an entire major in economics and not know much about financial markets, their contribution to business, and how people make them work. This book is a great overview of this process.



5. Those wishing to read more about Peter Lynch's investment philosophy are better-off reading one of his two other books, particularly "One up on Wall Street," which is his best book. In this third and most recent book, Peter Lynch laments the failure of our high schools to educate America's children on investing for their financial future. No more job security. No more company pension plans. Good-bye social security. How can we teach "home economics" in school, but not the basic investment skills needed to succeed financially? The stakes could never be higher.
   
   Besides homeownership, only stock investing for the long-term can secure our children's financial future. Lynch fervently believes in the power of stocks as a tool for both wealth-building and democratizing markets. He writes, "Being a shareholder is the greatest method ever invented to allow masses of people to participate in the growth and prosperity of a country" (19). It appears that 50 million Americans agree.
   
   The stock market has grown to over $7 trillion dollars comprised of over 13,000 publicly-traded companies. From the United Dutch East Indian Company to Berkshire Hathaway, Lynch tells us how we got there. Those interested in the development of financial markets may also benefit from reading Peter Bernstein's book, "Capital Ideas." I also recommend that people read Robert Kiyosaki's book, "If You Want to be Rich & Happy Don't go to School," for a more detailed exposition on our public schools failings, and what can be done to rectify the situation. After laying the groundwork, Lynch moves on to discuss the "Basics of Investing" where his position can be summarized:
   
   "Twenty years or longer is the right time frame...A market timer tries to predict the short-term zigs and zags in stock prices, hoping to get out with a quick profit. Few people can make money at this, and nobody has come up with a fool proof method" (115).
   
   Agree or disagree with him, Lynch clearly prefers long-term investing to trading. Thankfully, not every stock takes 10-years to show a profit. Johnson & Johnson stock treated investors to a respectable "one-bagger" in just 18-months! More realistically, expect a longer lag-time for stock prices to catch-up to earnings. On average, the market price of a typical NYSE listed company can swing a total of 57% from it's 52-week high and low. For example, if Bank of America currently sells for $50 per/share, then it would not be surprising to have it trade between $36 and $64 during the year. Fortunately, this short-term noise dissipates over time. And while you can invest "play money" in internet stock market games, there is no substitute for having some "skin in the game."
   
   Those interested in treading slowly may want to visit the National Association of Investors Corp website at www.better-investing.org. Lynch focuses his final two chapters on profiling several companies, and the "heroes" driving their success. Besides these anecdotal stories, the book concludes with two appendices on "Stock Picking Tools" and "Reading the Numbers," which appear to have been hastily put together.

5 comments about Beating the Street.

1. If you are looking for books that will sharpen your skills as an investor put this one on the top of your list along with books about Warren Buffett and Phillip Fisher. Peter Lynch was one of the all time greatest mutual fund managers ever during his time at the Magellen Fund. We are fortunate that he wrote several books in his retirement. This book will give you a good understanding of Mr. Lynch's investment style which include: investing only in companies you understand, use the knowledge you have of your own industry to outperform Wall Street analysts, trips to the mall are great opportunities for research by looking at which stores are the busiest, and keeping your eyes wide open to hot trends around you. Lynch believes in buying stocks at reasonable P/E ratios, and loves to buy if the P/E matches the earnings growth rate of a company. He shys away from companies when the stock price out performs the earnings and the stock becomes over priced. Lynch believes that eventually the stock price will reflect the value of a company, so it is great to get an excellent company for a low stock price.You get many examples of how he picked stocks for his Barron's round table in 1993, this gives excellent insight into how his mind works, Peter Lynch is truly a genius at stock picking for long term investment. You will receive 25 golden rules from Peter Lynch in this book, follow them and you will do very well in the market.



2. After managing the Fidelity Magellan fund for thirteen years, mutual fund guru Peter Lynch retired on May 31, 1990 at the age of forty-six. Since then, Lynch continues to propound his message that the amateur investor has a distinct comparative advantage in stock picking relative to Wall Street professionals. For example, mutual fund managers are restricted to investing no more than 5% of their total assets in any one stock, and they cannot own more that 10% of any one company's stock. These constraints limit their profit, but not for the average investor. Lynch adamantly chants his mantra, "Buy stocks! If this is the only lesson you learn from this book, then writing it will have been worth the trouble" (18).
   
   One major reason for touting stocks is that they have grown by an average of 11% (i.e. 8% capital gain + 3% dividend) per/year over the last seventy-years, despite over forty market corrections. Aside from short-term stock-price fluctuations, Lynch believes that in the long-run there exists a strong correlation between the success of a business and its stock price. Therefore, anyone can successfully invest in stocks provided they use common sense observation, and proven valuation strategies that they recheck every three-months. Lynch recommends the NAIC (National Association of Investors Clubs) to neophyte investors who want to learn how to evaluate a business, and be part of an organization whose methods routinely beat the market averages. Amazingly, 75% of professional mutual fund managers fail to outperform the S&P after fees.
   
   When searching for possible companies to invest in, Lynch visits the Burlington Mall in Massachusetts to see where everyone shops. Lynch says, "The very homogeneity of taste in food and fashion that makes for a dull culture also makes fortunes for owners" (152). When analyzing stocks Lynch looks at several prospective indicators:
   
   Fundamental Analysis:
   1) Look at for stocks whose charts show earnings above price. These businesses have value that have yet to be priced-in
   2) The P/E ratio shouldn't be greater than the business' earnings growth rate
   3) Particularly in retail stocks, look for an increase in same-store sales
   4) Best conditions for businesses to grow earnings are in niche or regional markets where there is little competition and much room for expansion
   5) Insider buying is a good sign that the business is doing well
   6) Look for arbitrage opportunities where a business is selling at a discount relative to its peers despite similar composition and performance
   7) When taking a "top-down" approach look at the "affordability index," median home value, and % of mortgage defaults published by the National Association of Home Builders
   
   Technical Analysis:
   1) Buy stocks on Mondays, and from October through December when historical prices are lowest



3. After reading this book, I felt I got everything I set out to gain from this informative book. The content is relative today as it was when it was first written, the change in mindset gained from this book has been quite extraordinary.



4. This book is old school, but boy is it a classic. I've always been fascinated with stocks and the stock market but in the late 90s, past the apex of the day trading craze, I decided to set a small amount of money to partake in some of the action. I set up my account, started watching CNBC like a nut, and dove right in. Before doing so, I used Mr. Lynch's book as my guide and the biggest thing I learned is to stay grounded and avoid the mania and manic depression of the market. This book is not for slick, know-it-alls with pretensions of timing the market and making fast money, Vegas style. No, this book is for sober grown-ups who are willing to take a longer and more rational approach.
   
   I think the best lesson the book offers is to stick to investing in companies you know and trust (and buy from). By following that simple advice I've been able to earn very handsome gains. In addition, the primer on how to read a balance sheet is easily worth the price of admission. There's just lots of great information presented that will make you a relatively savvy investor. This book demystifies a lot of the perceived complexity of the market and shows ordinary people how to get in on the action. It's sober and timeless advice you can use even today.



5. Peter Lynch discusses his successful 13 years of running Fidelity's Magellan mutual fund. After a short professional autobiography, he explains his methodology for selecting stocks and explores a few dozen January 1992 stock picks in detail. Lynch wrote this book in the last days before the ubiquity of personal computers and the Internet's copious and accessible financial information. Still, Lynch offers pithy investment advice (each unfortunately titled with a boldface "Peter's Principle") that transcend the book's early-1990s setting. His enthusiasm should inspire most beginning to intermediate investors for whom this material is recommended. Due to its age, used copies of this book should be widely and cheaply available.

5 comments about One Up On Wall Street : How To Use What You Already Know To Make Money In The Market.

1. I got the book about a week ago and have read the first couple chapters. I'm new to the stock market and investing world, and this book has already educated me about several key topics in the investing world. I also bought "The Intelligent Investor" by Graham about the same time i bought this book. I have been reading them in parallel and finding the Lynch book a better read so far. His style is easy to read, humorous, and obviously educational in financial aspects. I won't be able to go into details about the book since I'm a noobie in the market, but i highly recommend "One Up" to anyone out there looking for a "beginner's" and fundamental guidebook to the market.



2. i was expecting the full book, not the miniature edition. note: this is an abridged, pocket size version of the book.



3. Very nice book for everyone who is interested in the financial markets. Highly recommended. Rich and detailed content.



4. It's a small book with no depth. Might be relevant for people who are clueless about stocks but definitely not for people with general idea about stocks.



5. I thought this book was an abreviated version of the full book, however this book is actually a miniture ~2inch micro-pocket version of the full book. Text is full size, thus it only contains a very few high-level comments. I was hoping for a boiled-down version, but got mini-me.