To become a better investor, study the following books

To become a better investor, study the following Books:

1. One Up on Wall Street by Peter Lynch
2. The Intelligent Investor by Benjamin Graham
3. Common Stocks and Uncommon Profits by Philip Fisher
4. The Five Rules for Successful Stock Investing by Pat Dorsey

Lynch’s book is the easiest read but contains all the guidelines for ‘fundamental analysis’ of companies. Graham’s book is an all-time classic, though a tougher read. Fisher’s book was used for the longest time as a text at Stanford University’s Graduate School of Business.

Dorsey has written a very practical book that uses real-life examples to explain fundamental concepts, and emphasizes the importance of the cash-flow statement to study the financial health of companies.

I think it was Lynch who humorously denigrated ‘technical analysis’ as “a science of wiggles”. Some of the books I found useful in understanding technical concepts are:

1. Technical Analysis Explained by Martin Pring
2. Timing the Market by Arnold and Rahfeldt (of Weiss Research)
3. It’s when you Sell that Counts by Donald Cassidy

The saint Sri Ramakrishna Paramhansa had demonstrated that there are many ways and different religious beliefs that can be followed to attain the common goal of Nirvana. In a future post, I will discuss why both fundamental and technical analysis should be followed to attain the common goal of becoming a better investor.