Rating: 
Summary: This book is not for beginners
Review: I was reading some of the reviews here and I was surprised that some people say this book is great for beginners. Well, I'm a beginner in investing and I was just totally lost on some of the concepts preached in this book. Concepts like "Owner's Earnings" is alittle new to me. Although the book explained this is net income plus amortization/depreciation minus capital expenditures, I thought it could elaborate just what all these terms are. But it doesn't. It doesn't even clearly explain the reason for this formula. Definitely not beginner stuff. I think everyone should read this book because it does teach some solid investing principles. Advice that I believe really makes sense. But I was just going nuts at the vagueries in this book. Probably one of the most important points is "how to value a company". But it just runs through the calculations like it was some easy arithmetic problem. I must have read those portions ten times and still couldn't figure it out. I was relieved to find some examples in the appendix. Goodie! Wrong. That was just as hard to follow...no step by step explanation. But I managed to figure it out. For anyone who might be wondering what the heck is a discount factor (which nowhere in the book mentioned, but is required for the calculations), here is the formula 1/(1+r)^t where r is the discount rate and t is the Nth year. I found this on the internet! Lastly, someone made a comment about Hagstrom writing this book to promote his own mutual fund. I don't see anything wrong with that. I think that is great. Now there is proof for all to see if this book really works. As of now, it only gives you a 5-year annualized growth of 3.52%. S&P 500 is 3.16%, FYI! So the fund is not so hot. I only brought this up because Hagstrom never interviewed Buffet for this book (Says so in the preface). His take on the Buffet Way is anyone's good research in the Bershire Hathaway annual reports. Noone will probably know how to trade like Warren Buffet but Warren Buffet himself! That makes sense because after all, if I know how to make money in stocks to become the second richest man, would I want to tell you?
Rating: 
Summary: It's how Buffets invests, shouldn't you?
Review: He's arguably the World's most successful investor. He's made billions for not only himself but also his business partners. It all leads one to believe that Warren Buffet knows something about which companies are good investments."The Warren Buffet Way" spells out just how and why he became such a success. It starts with short biography of Buffet's life and his background in business and investing in his earlier days. The book then moves into what companies Buffet invested in and why. Throughout the briefs on companies he has invested in, it explains just why Buffet decided to buy into them. How Buffet valued the company compared to its going stock price and when that price was a bargain. "Buffet Way" comes down to doing your homework. It's not a roadmap on how to glean the wealth that Buffet has and its not a "get rich quick" scam. It reinforces Buffet's principles of investing for the long term, not worrying about short term price changes and not bothering with those "hot tips" from your broker. In the end it comes down to doing your research, your buying a business not a stock symbol as the man from Omaha puts it. This book will show you how he did it and how you can use his investment principles too.
Rating: 
Summary: Poorly written and not very useful
Review: This book was a chore to read, which is a shame because it could have been a great book due to its subject matter (Warren Buffet, one of the greatest investors ever). Unfortunately, the author's presentation is dry and dull, and the information detailed within is not as useful as it should be -- I had hoped to see more detailed discussions of the process by which Buffet makes his investments. My expectations for this book were high and they were dashed. Instead of reading this book, I would seek out and read Warren Buffet's own writings, as well as articles about him and his investments in magazines such as Business Week. Doing this will give you a rounded picture of "The Warren Buffet Way" with the additional benefit of Buffet's own commentary.
Rating: 
Summary: Belongs on the list of all time investment classics.
Review: Other reviewers have written that this book is undervalued and they are right. Right from the start Hagstrom gives us advice on the nature of the market. He then gives management tenants, how to value a business and all kinds of investment tenants. These tenents are so fundamental that its very difficult to see how investing can be done without them in one form or the other. This makes the book timeless. Numerous examples are given from real world cases of how these tenants are used. There is also an excellent appendix that gives examples of how a business is valued. This is very helpful. Some reviewers have criticized Hagstrom, saying that if the book is true, why isnt he rich? But this is not how information is to be judged. There are many books that contain solid gold advice, but there are few who master them. Buffett is among them. If one wants additional information on Buffets methods, I suggest reading "How to pick stocks like Warren Buffett" by Tim Vick. But The Warren Buffett Way is a classic and at the top of the heap.
Rating:
Summary: Masterpiece on investing
Review: I bought this book back in 1997. Up to then I had never invested in the stock market and did not give it any thought. This book opened a new door to me. I remember to grow ever more enthusiastic as I read through its pages for it showed me a whole new world. A gust of fresh air made me realize the overwhealming advantages of partly owning a great company in the stock market at a reasonable price as a small investor. I quit looking at the stock market as a simple casino and turned serious attention to it for long term investment. Not only did I find the studying of different companies by fundamentals and the process of investing very fun, but also financially very rewarding. Today I want to thank from these pages Warren Buffett and Robert Hagstrom for contributing to the spread of financial common sense in a world where the lack of it is stunning. And above all, for the privilege to read this masterpiece on investing and get an insight of Warren Buffett investment style. This book is strongly undervalued and should be bought by everyone that cares about his financial future. Strong buy recommendation. Full of wisdom and fun to read. And I owe to it my personal financial success, averaging 40% yield per year, just applying the investment principles taught here. Superb.
Rating:
Summary: Makes very valuable points, but is technically flawed.
Review: This book is good for beginners. Hagstrom's tenets provide a good foundation. However, he uses a seriously flawed method when determining the Intrinsic Value of a business. He says that the value of a business is the 'present value of all future cash flows discounted at an appropriate rate.' This is correct. For some reason though, when faced with the challenge of actually calculating this, he abandons this method in favor of another less accurate one. Another thing that bothered me was his "bending of the rules" when it came to analyzing Buffet's holdings. The tenets he set forth in the beginning of the book are supposed to be hard-and-fast rules that Buffet applies when screening potential investments. However, when compared side-by-side with Buffet's actual investments, there are more contrasts than similarities. As I said, a good book for beginners, but I would also recommend that they learn how to calculate Net Present Value (or buy a financial calculator) if they want an accurate picture of a company's Intrinsic Value.
Rating:
Summary: Too little content
Review: There really isn't much content in the book. I suspect the author had other interests, such as his management of a mutual fund that claims to be inspired by Buffet. First it goes into a little historical background on Buffet and his companies. Then one reasonably good chapter that summarizes his investment strategies. The final chapter repeats this all over again; a waste of print and paper. In the middle there are several chapters that describe his company's permenant holdings, long term holdings, and other holdings. These sections are extremly tedious and boring, and add very little value to the reader. Birkshire is very honest and strait shooting in its annual reports. Many readers would be better off reading to a copy of that, before picking up this book. And the annual report is free.
Rating:
Summary: Insightful!
Review: Robert G. Hagstrom discusses Warren Buffett's secrets, covering how he became the most successful investor in the world and, as a result, one of the world's wealthiest men. Hagstrom begins by describing Buffett's early influences, from Benjamin Graham, the first professional financial analyst, to Philip Fisher, a professor and investment counselor. The key to Buffett's success is that he held onto his core principles for making investment decisions, based on four key steps: Turn off the stock market; don't worry about the economy; buy a business, not a stock; and manage a portfolio of businesses. The book is an excellent summary of the major principles and practices that led to Buffett's success. However, the extensive amount of financial analysis provides a lot of information about each of Buffett's investments. This can seem like too much detail if you just want an understanding of his basic investment principles. This fundamental book is written for everyone involved in making investment decisions.
Rating:
Summary: Good primer on sound investing
Review: Hagstrom provides the novice with a basic understanding of the process by which Buffett has achieved stunning returns over the decades. The evaluation methods of the companies chosen are fundamental and lead the professional investor on the path to better stock picks. This method is not in depth but rather directed toward the public at large. The calculations for valuation of the target companies are sketchy at best. For those without experience or practice at understanding these calculations I don't believe they would be useful. This analysis of the Buffet Way of investing describes a careful search of undervalued solid performers that we all can learn from, though. It also demonstrates that the average investor would be better off trusting a professional to continuously search for those companies rather than attempting to take on this task himself.
Rating:
Summary: STOCK MARKET FUNDAMENTALS CLEARLY EXPLAINED AND APPLIED
Review: This comments is about the paperback edition. This book is not suitable for short-term traders (speculators). However, it is highly considered as a suitable book for medium and long-term investors.Here you have an opportunity to see why an "opportunity" was chosen and the reasons for one to keep holding on until it is time to take profits. It can also help the managers and directors to understand what investors think about their company Apart from equity, it also deals with debt instruments. I like the quote on p.48 by Descartes which states: "It is not good enough to have good intelligence. the principle thing is to apply it."
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