Buffett Beyond Value (2010) by Prem C. Jain
The main argument in this book is that Warren Buffett is more than just a value investor -- he also looks for strong growth prospects and excellent management. In the first half of the book, the argument is adequately supported by insightful analyses of some of Buffett's most important investments. However, the second half of the book is a hodgepodge of short chapters dealing with risk, diversification, market efficiency, arbitrage, accounting, psychology, and corporate governance. Although the author makes some useful points, the connections to Buffett tend to be weaker, there seems to be more of the author's personal views than those of Buffett, and the book begins to lack coherence. In the section on corporate governance, there is a chapter about dividends that is just plain bad -- the author is clearly anti-dividend but his arguments against dividends are shallow. Overall, I agree with the author's view of Buffett as a "renaissance investor" rather than as a pure value investor, but the book is weakened by digressions from the main thesis.
Note: I read this book in January 2012.
I tend to agree. I was reading the book earlier this year. I got about halfway through it and didn't finish because it just started getting random. I guess like you said the main takeaway is to not exclusively focus on "value investments" in the traditional sense but rather look at investing as really both a value/growth approach.
ReplyDeleteOMM: Thanks for sharing your impressions of the book.
Delete