Rich's Library
Through experience and unending research, I have seen what works for investors and what doesn't, and I am constantly in search of a better way. I find that people make better decisions when they have good information, and so I like to pass along interesting things I’ve read, what grabs my attention and a personal opinion or two. I hope you find my “library” helpful, and I encourage you to contact me with your questions and thoughts.
“An investment operation is one which, upon thorough analysis, promises safety of principal and an adequate return. Operations not meeting these requirements are speculative.” Benjamin Graham.
Investment versus Speculation – Recognizing the importance of well-informed investors, I make every effort to educate all my clients about the complexities of investing, while encouraging reasonable expectations of investment results. Many of my main investment management principles can be found in the following books.
o The Intelligent Investor: The Definitive Book on Value Investing (2003), by Benjamin Graham, updated with new commentary by Jason Zweig
o Even Buffett Isn't Perfect: What You Can -- and Can't -- Learn From the World's Greatest Value Investor (2008), by Vahan Janjigian, with foreword by Steve Forbes
o Buffett: The Making of an American Capitalist (1995), by Roger Lowenstein
CEOs are people, too – Good management can turn a company around or propel it forward, and bad management can sink even a great company. Though a CEO is just one guy or gal, over time his or her decisions can mean the difference between success and failure. Here are some of my recent good management/bad management readings.
o King of the Club: Richard Grasso and the survival of the New York Stock Exchange (2007), by Charles Gasparino
o The House of Dimon: How JPMorgan's Jamie Dimon Rose to the Top of the Financial World (2009), by Patricia Crisafulli
o Last Man Standing: The Ascent of Jamie Dimon and JPMorgan Chase (2009),
by Duff McDonald
o A Colossal Failure of Common Sense: The Inside Story of the Collapse of Lehman Brothers (2009), by Lawrence G. McDonald
o The Devil’s Casino: Friendship, Betrayal, and the High-Stakes Games Played Inside Lehman Brothers (2010), by Vicky Ward
o Chainsaw: The Notorious Career of Al Dunlap in the Era of Profit-at-Any-Price (1999),
by John A. Byrne
o In Sam We Trust: The untold story of Sam Walton and how Wal-Mart is devouring America (1998), by Bob Ortega
o Steinbrenner: the last lion of baseball (2010), by Bill Madden
Life and Debt – Some people have become very rich with borrowed money, but that’s also a way to get very poor. When leverage works, it magnifies your gains. But leverage is addictive. And as we all learned in third grade, any series of positive numbers evaporates when multiplied by a single zero. The following books support the statement “debt is your enemy.”
o Panic: The Story of Modern Financial Insanity (2009), by Michael Lewis
o The Big Short: Inside the Doomsday Machine (2010), by Michael Lewis
o The End of Wall Street (2010), by Roger Lowenstein
o Origins of the Crash: The Great Bubble and its Undoing (2004), by Roger Lowenstein
o A Piece of the Action: How the middle class joined the money class (1994),
by Joseph Nocera
o Liar's Poker: Rising Through the Wreckage on Wall Street (1989), by Michael Lewis
Why I Hate Analysts – Key lessons from my personal and professional investment experiences with analysts:
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o Confessions of a Wall Street Analyst: A True Story of Inside Information and Corruption in the Stock Market (2006), by Daniel Reingold
o Blood on the Street: The Sensational Inside Story of How Wall Street Analysts Duped a Generation of Investors (2005), by Charles Gasparino
Leave your political baggage at the door – I am of opinion that when it comes to Wall Street, Democrats and Republicans, liberals and conservatives, have joined hands. Together, putting aside all differences, the left and the right have seen to it that very little of what the SEC and other regulators do has an impact on you. It is my suggestion that you put aside your political leanings should you have an interest in reading these books.
o Barbarians at the Gate: The fall of RJR Nabisco (1990), by Bryan Burrough and John Helyar
o Bought and Paid For: The Unholy Alliance Between Barack Obama and Wall Street (2010), by Charles Gasparino
o The Sellout: How Three Decades of Wall Street Greed and Government Mismanagement Destroyed the Global Financial System (2009, by Charles Gasparino
o While America Aged: How Pension Debts Ruined General Motors, Stopped the NYC Subways, Bankrupted San Diego, and Loom as the Next Financial Crisis (2008), by Roger Lowenstein
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