CFA Books

This product arrived on time and in the condition stated. The value of this book has yet to be determined.

This book is very well written and insightful. It offers the individual investor/trader a workable trading plan/method, without requiring that they sit in front of their computer everyday during market hours. The book goes into great detail in describing various trading signals, along with actual trading examples. While no method is successful 100% of the time, this method will help you put the odds in your favor with a mimimal amount of risk. The best part of the book is the confidence it will give you in making sense out of what is going on in the market, and then taking action based on those signals. I highly recommend this book to anyone wanting to better understand what prices are telling us in the market.

Absolutely the Best Trading Book you can Buy. Solid Grounding in Fundamentals, Investor Sentiment, Technical Analysis and Stock Psychology. The author has done a fantastic job in laying out the book with Practical Elements of Making Money - Long and Short instead of the Academic View of most other Trading Books.

Best $20 Bill you will spend - Trust me this book will keep you off trouble. What do you expect written by a professional Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) knows how to make money. Good Luck to All


Dr. Ram

I strongly recommend this book for the people who are interested in learning trading tricks and making profit from the knowledge. Profit From Prices is the best book I came across so far.

PROFIT FROM PRICES stock trading strategy book was initially listed on eBay during Feb to March 2005. Here are the ***FIRST 10*** feedbacks received on eBay about this book. These were all voluntary, unsolicited feedbacks. (Remember: These are the "FIRST 10", not the "BEST 10" feedbacks.)

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Check out Dr Trixie above. Then read the book--after you buy it. Then check out the rest of the works of Fridson, as clear a writer on finance and political economy as there is. Blessed with ironic detachment from and a forgiving heart for the stupid and greedy who make our policies and populate our markets.

Great text from Fridson - a must-read for anyone with any interest in the inner workings of the U.S. government's involvement in economy. Fridson exposes inefficiencies all over the place without sparing either side of the aisle. The writing is well-versed, but at the same time extremely easy to follow.

Fridson is amazing. The research here is exhaustive, but at the same time highly accessible and enlightening.

Fridson quotes everyone from classical economists such as Ricardo to contemporary politicians in showing how unwarranted intrusions by the government into our lives invariably makes us much worse off. For those who love to debate, this book is a must. Fridson uncovers the various myths about Ethanol, payola, and our "low" savings rate. An essential book.

Citizens, rejoice! Marty Fridson, the D'Artagnan of finance, is back with his sharp and delicate sword, this time taking on the world of subsidy. Fridson is the eminently readable writer, historian, and Wall Street financial whiz whose books "It Was A Very Good Year" and "How To Be A Billionaire" offer wicked glimpses into the world of wealth accumulation, happily skewering the institutions from which all our rich fantasies spring. He now takes aim at the perennial use of government (read taxpayers') money to support troubled and misguided programs - Social Security! The FDIC! Fannie Mae! - which, he says, are better off left to the self-correcting forces of the marketplace.

Fridson gives lucid histories of government intervention - starting in 1867 with campaign-finance reform - showing that regulations and subsidized programs, dear to our hearts and psyches, that were created to reduce disparities in wealth and income, have generally achieved the opposite effect.

Politically-motivated bailouts -- aid to farmers, rent control, and property tax breaks for businesses -- create artificial shortages and gluts, making some people (usually the upper tax brackets: agribusiness, landlords, and CEOs) better off, at the cost of making everyone else worse - locally and globally. And the only people these subsidies invariably benefit are the politicians, who promote them to grease whichever wheel of the voters' cart is squeaking the loudest.

Market failure in any sector means disparity: goods and services are not allocated efficiently. Fridson says that government intervention in the economy is only appropriate when the market fails to produce an optimal outcome - in education, for example, where the need for skilled workers outweighs individuals' demands.

Direct income support is also necessary for workers who can't find employment, or who are unable to participate in the labor market. But other subsidies, protections, and regulations (like restrictions on short-selling and margin buying, or federal assistance to the big mortgage lenders, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac) generally benefit the privileged (brokers; middle- and upper-income home buyers), exclude low-to-moderate-income groups, and contribute to the sequestration of capital in the top ten percent. Fridson provides plenty of credible, readable data to back his points.

"Unwarranted Intrusions" is so sharp that it's painless; this book makes reading the political news fun again. Buy two copies - one for yourself and one for your favorite Congressperson.

I agree with nearly everything that the author says. His arguments against the economic effectiveness of government subsidies and intervention in the markets appeal to my libertarian streak and it is well known that many (most?) of the government programs are economically counterproductive. Some are downright silly. One of the most ridiculous, primarily because it went all the way to the United States Supreme Court, is the case of Karen Finley. She was an "artist" whose primary area of expertise was smearing her naked body with food. In special instances, she raised money by having people pay to lick the food, primarily chocolate, off her body. When her NEA grant application was rejected, Finley sued. So silly, yet so significant. For the real issue was twofold.

*) Should the federal government use tax money to fund art?
*) If the answer to the first question is yes, what are the bounds on the art?

And this also raises a more general question concerning the use of public money to benefit small groups, the often-reviled "special interests." For if the federal government could not stop funding the fringe artists, there is no hope of stopping the real expensive cases of corporate welfare.
One of the greatest is the enormous subsidy paid to American farmers to raise surplus food. Not only is it an expensive and deceptive program, it helps to keep subsistence farmers in other countries in poverty. As Fridson points out, while politicians demand that the program be kept alive to preserve the family farm, the reality is that there really is no such thing anymore. Billions of dollars in payments go to large corporate farms, which are the only ones that can grow the cheap food demanded by society at a price that it will accept. The hidden costs paid by the generic taxpayer are rarely factored in, and when they are they are conveniently ignored by the policy makers.
Fridson also debunks the so-called "ethanol solution." Namely, take all of the surplus corn, convert it into ethanol, use it as fuel for automobiles and free the United States from having to import foreign oil. Tax credits and other gifts are used to promote the use of ethanol, with the thought being that farm prices will rise. The reality is that the farmer gets very little of the benefit, the bulk going to the distiller and the retailer. In fact, a Department of Energy estimate stated that every extra dollar of farm income from the use of ethanol costs the taxpayer four. Furthermore, since it takes more energy to produce a gallon of ethanol than can be retrieved from using it, ethanol may actually increase the dependence on foreign oil. Finally, in my home state of Iowa, the bumper stickers praise the use of ethanol, as it is touted as a fuel that burns cleaner. This "fact" has been refuted, although ethanol has some advantages, the different disadvantages mean that overall it pollutes as much as the burning of fossil fuels.
Where I disagree with Fridson is in his unwavering belief in the markets and the thought that people will always act honorably and honestly. As the recent corporate scandals demonstrate, there are crooks in low and high places and only the government can make and enforce the rules that will keep them as honest as possible. However, in general, I agreed with Fridson, all the while knowing how futile the task of trying to change these things for the better is.

Required reading if you are in the appraisal business, even though it is a little dated.

This is a great book for a business library

I open this book every time I do a valuation. It is a great resource when you need to refresh your memory. The example of a professional practice valuation has been especially helpful. It's probably a little much for the business owner wanting to estimate the value of his/her business, but I would definitely recommend it to a professional.

Business Valuation is the single largest niche practice area for the CPA today. Dr. Pratt covers an extensive amount of material in this text. No valuation specialist should be without this text in his or her reference library.

I agree with the other reviewer's praise of the authors writing style. Their prose is elegant and they make use of examples to paint a clear picture of the concept for their readers.

I am an experienced investor and found it insightful and enjoyable. But I imagine a beginner would also benefit. The concepts are so well explained I thought it might make an excellent textbook for a college course.

There is a very interesting section that describes the authors' research into long-term investment cycles and how to best match an investment type to a particular cycle. The authors have included all of their research in the form of tables, but you can skip the tables and read just their conclusions and advice.

The author has also included his real brokerage statements as an appendix. I didn't read these. I suppose they are there to add credibility to his outstanding track record.

My favorite section was a scholarly recap of all of the different types of psychological biases that afflict investors. These can be helpful in gaining a trading advantage on other investors or can be therapeutic in evaluating your own trading foibles.

I also liked the section where they took you through a typical trading day and shared their routines for gathering and analyzing data. This section had lots of miscellaneous tips and practical trading techniques that the reader can employ.

I received the book as a gift, but I would gladly have bought it and would recommend it to anyone who is interested in being a better stock trader.

I have not yet carefully reviewed every chart in this thoroughly well researched book, but I have read the text, and I think it is the finest, most insightful investment book ever written --which is perhaps reflected in the author's astonishing performance.

I would recommend this book to every person who invests in stocks---even if only in mutual funds.

Mr. Matson is obviously exceedingly well educated and qualified, and perhaps just plain brilliant, so wading through some of the book it is a bit tough. Nevertheless, if anyone wants a truly superb, incisive education in actually making a great profit in the stock market, this book, more than any other I have read (including Lynch, Makiel, Buffet, Graham, etc.), is the one to buy and study.

One caveat---I doubt that Mr. Matson would be able to achieve the same astonishing peformance were he managing a portfolio of more than, say $100M, as the methodology he uses seems to me to be more uniquely suited to small stocks otherwise unsuitable for very large portfolios.

But, for the average investor, and anyone who has less than, say $5 million, invested in the market, this book should be your Bible.

Truly a stupendous effort, and an outstanding book richly laden with insights helpful to the somewhat sophisticated average investor.

This book is definitely a gem.

This book is extremely helpful for those who want to get into the stock business. It lays out stock trading clearly and also gives pointers to other avenues of information.

Most investment books are a lot of hype and repaetition of some tired theme. Not this little gem! Hamacher and Baldassarre have put together a little book that says a lot that will be useful to the investor who wants to know how to do it right.

Exceptional perspectives from every aspect of the investment field. Especially helpful are the changes in both the investment industry and the buying public over various segments of history. The writers paint a very clear visual picture of their discussions, easy to undestand.

Price 69 EUR. An overview of Financial Management, The cost of Capital, The Basic of Capital Budgeting, Cash Flow Estimation, and Other Topics in Capital Budgeting, Risk analysis and the Optimal Capital Budget, Capital structure and leverage, Dividend Policy.

This is obviously reading that is specialized only for us fools willing to give it a shot. Not for the weak-at-heart

As an Architect always in search of refreshing ideas I was truly pleased when I first reviewed this book. All architects should be familiar with Voysey's career and work. Next to my monograph of Mellor Meigs and Howe I can think of no more favorite book that I have purchased this past year. Voysey was a forerunner of the modern movement, a true innovator and artist.

Its a good book when it comes to Equity research. Its an essential research book for financial advisors and stock brokers seeking to develop their skills on research of the market and evaluation.