The New Investment Superstars: 13 Great Investors and Their Strategies for Superior Returns

Rating:
Summary: A long awaited
Review: complement to the John Train/Jack Schwager series of books on managers. This book measures up well with its well-regarded peers. Lois Peltz has collected interesting information on hedge fund manager, most of whom are unknown even to investment cognoscenti. They are in her book because of their stellar records, despite the low profile many share (due to strict marketing regs for these investment pools). For readers who want a peek behind the hedge fund curtain, this book is ideal. It captures the personalities and backgrounds of the managers, and it benefits from Peltz's analysis of commonalties and future thoughts on the industry. If you are investment professional looking to add a couple of nuggets to your repertoire, you might feel slightly let down (hence 4, not 5, stars). The eye opening aspect for me was the annual returns revealed for each of the managers. This information is not widely available, and the magnitude and consistency of the annual returns was amazing for several of the managers. The extent of and rationale behind leverage is explored as well. Overall, the book was excellent, and I was happy to add it to my extensive collection of investment related tomes.

Rating:
Summary: Useful background detracted by gross errors
Review: Contains useful background information and insights on managers, and the industry though it is of limited use regarding the strategies those managers use. Two really glaring errors (page 48 & 49 on incentive fees, and Page 65 on correlations - perhaps a misquote or a quote out of context) cast doubt on the reliability of other statements in the book for me. Consequently I recommend reading it, but with more than the usual level of skepticism.

Rating:
Summary: Useful background detracted by gross errors
Review: Contains useful background information and insights on managers, and the industry though it is of limited use regarding the strategies those managers use. Two really glaring errors (page 48 & 49 on incentive fees, and Page 65 on correlations - perhaps a misquote or a quote out of context) cast doubt on the reliability of other statements in the book for me. Consequently I recommend reading it, but with more than the usual level of skepticism.

Rating:
Summary: An Immensely Valuable Book
Review: It is rare to be able to read one book on a complex topic and have it contain information of use to both the novice and the veteran. Lois Peltz has done it in regard to hedge funds...the most erudite of investment arenas. Whether it be basic information (definitions, tables showing manager spin-offs, industry disasters) or advanced (the irony of having the objective of superior performance over the long-term being measured in 90 day intervals), this easily readable and fascinating treatise delivers. From her overview of superstar managers (including the counter-intuitive observation that they're not in it for the money but rather because they love the challenge) to the side-bars concluding each that allow the reader to compare highlights, the profiles are enlightening. Specific insights on managers (Bruce Kovner's analogy of managing money to painting, Paul Singer's analysis of model and herding risk, to Raj Rajaratnam's requirement that analysts performing due diligence fax in a daily "What I've learned" or risk not being reimbursed for their expenses) provide enormous understanding of each manager. Finally, her own perspective, including highlighting the issue of manager capacity, offers unusual help in selecting/understanding managers. A must-read!

Rating:
Summary: Insightful!
Review: Lois Peltz has stolen the keys to Wall Street's inner sanctum and is waving you over to take a peek inside. Her insights on the hedge fund money machine - how it works, who runs it and how - should enthrall insiders and outsiders alike. She begins with the grand old gentlemen of the game, the likes of Julian H. Robertson Jr., Michael Steinhardt and George Soros, and tells how Soros speculated his way to a $2 billion profit - in one day! She shows how the game is played, and gives an insider's perspective on the methods of the new superstar managers. The in-depth profiles include: Lee Ainslie, Leon Cooperman, Ken Griffin, John Henry, Mark Kingdon, Bruce Kovner, Daniel Och, Raj Rajartnam, Paul Singer and Brian Stark. These managers will build the vast fortunes of the future - while also amassing their own. We [...] encourage investors, Wall Street players and interested spectators to hedge their bets, and buy this book.

Rating:
Summary: If you are looking for trading ideas, look elsewhere
Review: This book contains an almost painful amount of detail concerning the organizational structure as well as the investor base of the hedge funds whose managers it profiles. Unfortunately, as far as actual trading strategies are concerned, it is a complete failure. It will tell you in which areas a fund is active, but give you excactly zero detail about the strategies and tactics used by its managers. Even some rather bad books I have read at least contained one or two ideas that were worth investigating, but I couldn't gain anything at all from this book. Also, some of the track records really aren't that impressive. Not really bad, but definitely not what you'd expect from "Superstars".

Rating:
Summary: Waste of Time
Review: Very poorly written. Comments were too general. Offered little insight regarding reasons for the success of the managers. Best part of the book was the compilation of track records for each of the managers.

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