Hey guys ,
I just got myself security analysis , intellegent investor and beating the street . And i was wondering if security analysis would help a lv1 or lv2 student ? like cover a few parts of the portion on equity analysis or something ?
Regards,
HedgeFudge
I didn’t like it.
I’d recommend Damodaran’s Investment Valuation or Koller’s Valuation instead.
Pinto’s Equity Asset Valuation is also a good book and covers a lot of L2 equity section. It’s part of CFAI’s reading list. But I’d pick Damodaran instead as it’s less boring to read and covers more topics on valuation, to avoid redundancy.
thanks bro ,
I guess i have a list of 7-8 books to read for dec and jan after my level 1 .
Thanking ,
HedgeFudge
I might be missing something in this, but I would recommend reading just the CFA books. Anytime you move away from using the CFA books, you make study less accurate for no benefit.
There is so much stuff to read in the CFA books, why would you burden yoursef with more reading that may not be in the exam, or is already covered in the CFA litterature?
No Damodaran, no Pinto, no Koller, no. Intelligent Investor required - just CFA books.
The CFA is a simple process - read the books, learn the material, then answer the questions. It is not a trick-question exam.
agreed, 100%. if you know the curriculum, you’re good.
The CFA doesn’t cover a lot of topics. It’s good to read some staple books out there. The two books I’ve mentioned are staples in investment analysis and corporate valuation. You don’t get that extensively covered in the equity section in L1 and L2.
There is a bunch of stuff that is not covered well in the CFA curriculum…but …do you care?
You just want to pass your exams - don’t make it any harder than what it is.
If there is stuff you want to read about that is not in the CFA, read it after the exam - don’t use study time reading things for which you won’t get any credit; this is madness.
Remember also, L1 and L2 are multi-choice; additional inforrmation you obtain from reading non-CFA materials is redundant even for enhancement purposes because the best you can do is tick a box:
–> stick to the CFA materials for study - NOTHING else matters for passing the CFA exams.
I did additional tax study after the CFA because I though the CFA lacked in this area - there was however, no chance of me doing it during the exams; an absolute waste of study time.
Regardless if the answer is yes or no to your question, you still have to go rigorously through the curriculum.
Not everyone studies just to PASS. The CFA exams are a good tool to measure your financial knowledge, since they are a compilation of broad topics and properly scored through a board, That does not mean you shouldn’t read beyond what the curriculum has provided you. There are a LOT of stuff missing if you intend to fit in AM, IBD, or PE. Which is what’s important in the end.
I’d take a well rounded fellow with good hands-on experience in the field and an avid reader of financial and investment literature than another who is a master at writing exams.
The question is, is it your goal to pass the exams or simply learn more. If it’s learn more, then just read the CFA material as well as the supplemental books and just gain knowledge.
If you truly care about passsing the exams, reading extra is only going to divert your attention or confuse you.
^ This. It’s only after you pass the CFA exams that you realize how much working life you have left in front of you. Plenty of time to read extracurricular stuff afterwards. Focus, focus, focus. Can’t stress it enough.
Ask yourself, do you want to be set back 6 months or a year because you failed to focus, or have a smaller chance of passing strong, but, uh…you know some things out of some other books that perhaps only 1 in 10 people in the broad industry actually cares about or knows?
If your goal is not necessarily to pass the exams, then I guess there are no recommendations as to what you should do.
Nowadays people are registering and don’t have passing as their main goal?! I’ve heard it all.
just to put ‘cfa level 1 candidate on their resume’…cfai marketing dept is killin it
Destroyer is right. If you want to pass, you best focus. only 1 in 3 will pass each test. If your goal is to learn, then by all means, the curriculum is top notch. And unlike others, I respect people who pass even Level 1. Not everyone can pass it.
Are you kidding me? Sleep with the CFA books if you must. I can remember question topics that literally were covered in one sentence on page XXX of book X. I’m sure that those studying for the Bar Exam take a high and mighty attitude, and decide that the exam doesn’t go deep enough into real estate law and therefore supplement their studies. Sure, if you need additional materials to clarify your understanding of a concept, great, but beyond that you will be hurting your chances.
You must not have a finance background because L1 is a rehash of undergrad + ethics.
Passing Level 1 is the equivalent of 4.0 Finance GPA in undergrad., if not tougher. 80% of America probably couldnt pass Level 1 if you offered them $25,000 to do it.
^ No it’s not the equivalent of 4.0 Finance GPA in undergrad. I didn’t come close to that in undergrad and aced the exam. One is a multiple choice exam, the other combines exams, projects, oral presentations, group work, politics, etc.
Yes but
A. You are already studying Level 1 on top of the finance experience you have already learned
B. You were likely much more focused for the exam than during undergrad.
If you took two identically gifted people with zero finance knowledge and the same level of determination, I think a 4.0 Finance GPA would be easier than studying for CFA level 1 from scratch.