Security Analysis: Sixth Edition: Foreword by Warren Buffett

it came the original new book as requested, the shipping was excellent, and good timing (International)

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I bought the e-book version, so I don't know if my comments also apply to the hardcopy version. Many have complained (as I did initially) about missing chapters. Also, the e-book was constantly referring to the Appendix, which I could not find. But, on the very last page of the book is the reference to these "missing" materials. I wish this reference was at the beginning of the book, and not on the last page. Three thumbs down to McGraw-Hill for this sloppy work. As to the book, the content is extremely dated, but the thought-process is exceptional. Timeless lessons.

As other reviewers have pointed out, this (sixth) edition of Security Analysis includes a reprint of the popular 1940 edition (Warren Buffett's favorite), minus some chapters. The deleted chapters, which can be found in the CD that accompanies the book, make room for (new) general introductory remarks to this edition and also to the eight major parts of the book, written by a variety of modern commentators. If all you really want is the 1940 edition, then the better choice for you is probably to buy the currently in-print reprint that's available (for a lower cost that this sixth edition). You could also buy one of the books actually printed back in 1940, but that will set you back big bucks, because original versions of Security Analysis are collectors' items today. For example, a good copy of the first printing of the 1934 edition easily runs into five figures.Concerning the 1940 edition (or just the 1940 chapters contained in this sixth version), other than for the references to corporate examples from the 1920s or 1930s, the content is amazingly relevant to today's investing. I had read Security Analysis (the fourth edition) many years ago, and I had forgotten just how clear, precise, insightful and truly sophisticated Graham and Dodd were. Remarkably, in many instances this 1940 edition does a better job describing 21st century investing issues than the majority of material written today.What you get with this sixth edition that's not available in the other editions are a short (two page) foreword by Warren Buffett and 10 essays by some of the most well-regarded modern investors and authors. Indeed, it was an honor to be asked to contribute to the sixth edition. The essays run about 15 pages, on average, and many of them are highly informative and useful. Those written by Seth Klarman, James Grant, Roger Lowenstein and Bruce Berkowitz were my favorites. As good as they are, though, they basically provide useful insights and more modern applications, rather than plow much new intellectual ground. It's hard to improve much on Graham and Dodd, even after 70 years. If that seems hard to believe, read the book and see for yourself. Finally, if you haven't already read the 1940 edition, which book should you buy--a 1940 reprint or this sixth edition? My choice is the sixth edition.

I have the same confession as Glenn Greenberg's (the one who wrote the intro to Part V of this book): I never read Security Analysis back in school, although I did read The Intelligent Investor. Many years into my career in investment research, I finally got around to writing about how I regret not picking up the book earlier. I would consider this a must-read, both as a textbook and a practical guide, for serious securities analysis professionals.My experience with reading this book has been wonderful. Not only did I pick up various specific lessons that would be valuable for my career in the stock market (particularly on behavioral biases, such as the market's tendency to value management quality twice), I also came to appreciate the various aspects about Ben Graham as a person:1. VISIONThe book helps you understand why Ben Graham is considered a 'man of ideas', whose investment philosophies transcend time. Decades after the various editions of this book were published, such ideas as 'speculation focuses primarily on, and attempts to profit from, the unknown future' as well as the classic 'margin of safety' would have served to prevent the dotcom or the subprime mortgage crashes. Moreover, observations such as that the P/E ratio was arbitrarily applied ('sometimes to the past, sometimes to the present, sometimes to the near future') still resonate with current practices in many markets.2. LOGICBen Graham was mathematically inclined. After all, he did elect to major in math at Columbia. Reflecting this, his writing consisted of many instructive guidelines that are both illuminating and elegantly succinct, like what you would expect of a mathematical equality. This makes it so easy for readers to quote his wisdom. Consider this sentence: 'It may be said, with some approximation to the truth, that investment is grounded on the past whereas speculation looks primarily to the future.' (although this is not a complete statement).3. CREATIVITYBen Graham's intellectual capacity is by no means confined to quantitative analysis. A reflection of his being offered post-graduation employment in English, math and philosophy, Ben Graham eventually went on to co-write a Broadway play, develop a patented Morse-code-based system, and translate a Spanish novel. In his writing, you would find such flair of his creativity as this: 'An indefinite and approximate measure of the intrinsic value may be sufficient. To use a homely simile, it is quite possible to decide by inspection that a woman is old enough to vote without knowing her age.'4. GENEROSITYWarren Buffett was impressed by Ben when he used his own stock picks as examples in his class at Columbia, thereby revealing his trade secrets, perhaps to his financial detriment. This tendency to be so generous is reflected in the book: the 'Dean of Wall Street' was so deeply concerned with the well-being of the laymen investor in the stock market that he lashed out on Wall Street as an institution, which he himself was part of. Warren Buffett was lucky to be at the receiving end of Ben's generosity.Note that this is still essentially a book about the technicality and psychology involved in the job of a security analyst. To obtain a more detailed picture of Ben Graham as a person, I would recommend his own Memoirs book, or The Einstein of Money by Joe Carlen.

Both the book, packaging and delivery were excellent.

Partiamo dal commentare il libro "security analysis" come è stato scritto da Graham e Todd: Il libro è fantastico ed infatti è per questo che viene definito la Bibbia del Value Investment. Questo testo, insieme a "The Intelligent Investor" dovrebbe essere letto da chiunque voglia investire. Sono libri simili. Le scelte editoriali sono, invece, totalmente dissimili.Una è ottima e l'altra, per me, è al limite del ridicolo. L'ultima edizione del "The Intelligent Investor" risale al 2003 e contiene il testo INTEGRALE (incredibile vero?), dell'opera di Graham in cui ogni capitolo è commentato da Zweig. Il testo di Graham è sublime e quello di Zweig è ad un livello piuttosto alto.Dall'altra parte abbiamo i geni che hanno partorito questa edizione, del 2008, di "Security Analysis", la sesta! Ma aspetta, le virgolette "" sul nome si riferiscono al fatto che questo libro che stai comprando non è la versione integrale scritta da Graham e Todd e studiata per 50 anni. Ma è un volume di 890 pagine in cui il testo originale (lungo anche esso originariamente intorno a 820 pag) si trova tagliato e castrato a meno di 650 pagine( ripeto, assolutamente non integrale). CHE IDEOLONA! e in cosa vanno le rimanenti 250 pagine? In commenti di 6/7 persone diverse, che cercano di "aggiornare" il contenuto originale in maniera sconnessa gli uni dagli altri e per la maggior parte in maniera sommaria e approssimativa (a differenza di Zweig) con frasi geniali del tipo: "nel 1934, Graham non avrebbe potuto prevedere gli strumenti esistenti nel 2007" Wow Grazie!! "Le linee guida che Graham da per le aziende classiche non valgono per le aziende internet con meno assets tangibili" Ma no, Pazzesco! Ti chiedi dove sono invece le rimanenti 180 pagine dell'opera originale? Su un CD...

A corner-stone piece of history for those, like me, do not appreciate that much technical analysis and follow the simple rule "Buy low, sell high" and "Do not see market fluctuations as your enemy, rather than your friend".

My husband wanted this and he never reads book but he has been glued to this as finance is his passion! Great delivery - it is a heavy book so beware!