Rating: 
Summary: Logic jumps
Review: This book is useful if you're already quite familiar with common valuation methods and can fill in the jumps & gaps. However, if any of the areas you're looking at is new to you or if you would like a more logical, well-reasoned approach or simply a discussion of all the various valuation methods in use, buy Damodaran's text instead.This book was the prescribed & provided reference in the Corporate Finance department I worked in but most of my colleagues and I purchased our own copies of Damodaran's text "Investment Valuation, Wiley, Aswath Damodaran", which is superior in breadth as well as logical description of valuation processes.
Rating:
Summary: Logic jumps
Review: This book is useful if you're already quite familiar with common valuation methods and can fill in the jumps & gaps. However, if any of the areas you're looking at is new to you or if you would like a more logical, well-reasoned approach or simply a discussion of all the various valuation methods in use, buy Damodaran's text instead. This book was the prescribed & provided reference in the Corporate Finance department I worked in but most of my colleagues and I purchased our own copies of Damodaran's text "Investment Valuation, Wiley, Aswath Damodaran", which is superior in breadth as well as logical description of valuation processes.
Rating: 
Summary: Good for Beginners - Should contain more about CFROI
Review: This book is well researched, well structured, well written. From a scientific point of view, however, there are 2 topics Mr CCopeland should improve in his next edition: (1) He should write more on CFROI and CVA (Cash-Value-Added) (2) Improve the chapter on forecsting future performance (1) His treatment of CVA was a bit unfair, because it was invented by Boston Consulting - McKinsey_#s arch enemy Nr.1. It is true, that CVA has got downsides, but ist seems that Mr Copeland did not see, or did not understand, that CVA has got a large advantage vs EVA/FCF-Valuation: It can be aligned with Strategy because you can simulate future performance more easily That means: If you use CVA, you can simulate how - experience curve effects change CVA - changes in lead time change CVA - slashing the number of product variants change CVA. If you try to do this with FCF-Valuation, you go nuts, because to forecast FCF you must -evaluate the companys strategy first and -forecast future cash flows over a ten year horizon for dozens of scenarios. The step form strategy to scenario opens the door for manipulations, and in most cases a consultant will simply use an ROIC-Tree with generic value drivers. If you tell a production manager to 'optimize his COGS/Sales ratio' he'll tell you that your nuts. All-in-all this book is still a must read for beginners. -
Rating:
Summary: An excellent resource for DCF applications, but...
Review: This book provides excellent information about the DCF Valuation process. The reader will learn how to develop the model and where to input the various data, as well as understand how to justify some of the assumptions such as cost of equity. The disk that accompanies the hardcover addition will be very useful to some practitioners, although analysts with strong modeling skills will likely want to create their own spreadsheet. The book, however, is not a comprehensive guide to valuation, as it does not discuss other methods such as the peer group comparison. Nonetheless, it is an excellent reference book on the topic of DCF Valuation, and it belongs on every financial analyst's desk.
Rating:
Summary: Good book, but too technical for most non-specialists
Review: This is a good technical treatise on business valuation, and if you are a specialist in that field, you'll probably like it a lot. But non-specialists (business owners or company accountants who need to get a handle on what their firms are worth) might want to check out "Unlocking the Value of Your Business" instead.
Rating: 
Summary: Best valuation book by far
Review: This is a really great book if you want to deepen into valuation concepts. But it is not just that.....it also offers a different perspective on how to manage companies in order to create wealth (Value-Based Management: Chapter 4.....very interesting). The book also offers some strategic considerations. I also recommend The Quest for Value by Bennet Stewart and Damodaran on Valuation (more technical).
Rating: 
Summary: Does not reflect the real-world techniques
Review: This is a typical example of how the MBA schools (like mine) ask students buy books written by McKinsey consultants when (not surprisingly), that firm is one of the companies that invests more in MBA schools... sounds suspicious? This book does not reflect the real life issues that professionals in Wall Street, face when performing a valuation. The links between strategy and valuation are very week exposed via a few kindergarten charts.
Rating: 
Summary: A lot of Fluff with some big names on the cover
Review: This was the text book for an advanced seminar on Valuation that I took in my MBA program, and I have a feeling the professor will not use this text book ever again. The problem is, as another reviewer observed, these McKinsey guys take great care not to reveal any trade secrets in their text. Therefore you will notice that there is an unusual amount of prose, and a conspicuous lack of financial formulae in this text book. Our professor had to prepare supplemental lecture notes chock full of formulae, exercises, and examples because she realized that much of what is really needed to learn Valuation is not covered, but only mentioned or alluded to in this book. For example, everyone accepts that a controlling interest in a firm is worth more than a minority interest in a firm, and Copeland et. al. mention that discounts and premiums may be necessary to accomodate for this situation, but they give no guidance in calculating such premiums. Further, this book is all about discounted cash flow analysis, which is really only one of several valuation methods. No space is given to relative valuation or the interpretation of multiples such as P/E. The authors' reason for shunning relative valuation is flimsy at best (they argue that relative valuation doesn't help you if you are investing in an industry in which ALL firms are over-valued by the Market). There are two different groups who might be interested in valuation: investors who want to use valuation techniques to make passive investments in public companies, like Warren Buffett; and entrepreneurs / managers who are charged with the job of buying or selling business assets for their firms. To the first group, I recommend the Valuation books of Aswath Damodaran (my favorite is "The Dark Side of Valuation"). Not only is Damodaran's treatment of the subject matter more complete, but he is much clearer in his explanations because he is not afraid to use an occasional formula (the rule of thumb is that for every formula omitted a writer will have to add an additional two pages of prose just to explain the concepts). Plus, readers get access to Damodaran's web page, which is an amazing supplement full of downloadable excel spreadsheets, PDF files, examples, problem sets, etc., all free to purchasers of his books. To the second group, I recommend the works of Shannon Pratt et. al., especially Valuing a Business, Valuing Intangible Assets, etc. Pratt is a professional Valuation expert, who is often hired by lawyers, accountants, and business owners to appraise businesses, projects, and assets. Pratt's books represent the state of the art, and cover all techniques in encyclopedic fashion. For my MBA class a Valuation expert from a Big 5 firm came to speak to us one day about her work, and much of the techniques she uses are consistent with Pratt's own writing. The only reason to read this book is as a bathtub refresher book after you have already studied the techniques of valuation and just want to read what someone else has written about the subject. Remember, though, reading a descriptive book about the French language is not the same as learning to speak it yourself!
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Summary: Copeland and Damodaran
Review: Valuation from Copeland and Investment Valuation from Damodaran are the the cutting edge for measure companies values. Those books are excellent and complement each other. Those books enhanced my understanding about valuation.
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Summary: Boring as hell
Review: Well, no one expects financial valuation book to be as catching as a suspense thriller but this book is ultimate in boring reading. I am currently pursuing my MBA and am not foreign to hard to read books. But more often than not I have been pleasantly surprised by how well books are written on topics like corporate finance and accounting. This book went straight to bottom of the heap on my shelf. Authors have made a difficult topic even more difficult. They would do well if they learn some writing skills. Then we can also talk about some financial valuation.
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