Stephen Mandel Recommended Reading List

Stephen Frank Mandel, a legendary American hedge fund manager, investor, and philanthropist founded Lone Pine Capital in 1997, after working as the managing director at Tiger Management. Mandel stepped back from managing investments for Lone Pine Capital in January 2019 but remains a managing director.

Although there is not yet any public information about the books that Stephen personally recommends, we know he has built a reputation as one of the hedge fund industry’s best when it comes to fundamental analysis and bottom-up stock picking.

According to that, I have made recommended reading list that could enter Stephen Mandel investment framework with my reviews. Some of the links are affiliates, and I may earn a small commission when you make a purchase through them at no additional cost to you.

The Intelligent Investor by Benjamin Graham

I guess you heard about this one, classic fundamental investor book, the Intelligent Investor – bible for investors. I honestly think this is the best investment book ever written. And I am not the only one. Warren Buffet thinks that also. Stephen would like everyone to read this book to learn more about value investing.

If you want to be a good investor, this book is a must. Don’t have the money to buy it? Borrow it at your nearest library.

“The intelligent investor is a realist who sells to optimists and buys from pessimists.”

Benjamin Graham, The Intelligent Investor

You will find all sorts of quotes, and some of them will make you think and rethink. The book is not easy to read, people study it for months or even years, but when you finally understand it, a new world will open up to you – the world of investing.

The Security Analysis By Benjamin Graham – 1951 Edition

Along with the book The Intelligent Investor, the book Security Analysis by the same author, Benjamin Graham makes it inseparable duo for fundamental analysis. Both books go hand in hand for those who want to learn true value investing.

Although The Intelligent Investor is a better-known book, for those looking to deepen their knowledge of value investing strategies, Security Analysis is a must-read.

To be honest, this is a fat book with a lot of information to chew on, as with Graham’s other book. It’s not the easiest to understand. But once you understand, you will be at an advantage over other investors.

You may have noticed this is a 1951 version. The reason is that there are differences in newer available versions, and the current version has a lot of non-Graham-like stuff in it.

One Up On Wall Street by Peter Lynch

Okey, this one can be classified as easier book, after those first two meaty ones. Peter Lynch, legendary money manager will in easy to read and humorous tone explain his own strategies for investing and offer advice for how to pick stocks and mutual funds to assemble a successful investment portfolio.

The book will tell you how to invest with knowledge you already have. It doesn’t have to be hard, take long hours, or special skills. Look at the products you already use. Companies you already know. Read more in the book how to do it in detail.

The Outsiders: Eight Unconventional CEOs and Their Radically Rational Blueprint for Success by William N. Thorndike

Stephen Mandel mentioned in his podcast that he loves to invest in companies that are undergoing significant change. This book might help you understand how unconventional CEOs behave and can make change to the company.

The book looks at eight CEO’s who produced above average returns for shareholders over the long term. Great book for any thoughtful investor or manager. Also it is simple to read, informative and entertaining, a winning combination.

“It has an insightful chapter on our director, Tom Murphy, overall the best business manager I’ve ever met.

Warren Buffet, 2012

The Art of Short Selling by Kathryn Staley

Our great investor Mandel often talks about short selling. By reading this book you will learn how to successfully short a stock and why it should be shorted in the first place. The book is recommended by many short selling professionals. However, the book is quite dated and could use a refresh.

If you are interested on how to value a stock to short it, read this book, it will teach you about many investment scams and valuable tecnhniques on how to perfom it successfully.

Short-Selling with the O’Neil Disciples: Turn to the Dark Side of Trading (Wiley Trading) by Morales & Kacher

Here you can find another book on short selling, but this one is newer (from 2015, while the Art of Short Selling is from 1996). In this book you will learn not only about short selling but also valuable techniques that can be used in long investing. The book will provide you with charts noting key points. Also you will learn that corrections can be just as successful as bear market environments on the short side.

Short-selling is the act of identifying a change of trend in a stock from up to down, and seeking to profit from that change by riding the stock to the downside by selling the stock while not actually owning it, with the idea of buying the stock back later at a lower price. 

Common Stock and Uncommon Profits by Philip Fisher

Another great book on investing by Philip Fisher, great investor. In short, Philip will share with you his techniques that even Warren Buffet uses in his investment decisions. The book is also not hard to read, I recommend it to everyone.

“I am an eager reader of whatever Phil has to say, and I recommend him to you.”

Warren Buffett

Summary

Investing in yourself is the best investment you can make. This is something that shares the common opinion of all Superinvestors precisely because they know how valuable knowledge is.

Building your knowledge is the fastest and easiest way to improve your life and wealth.

One more interesting fact about Stephen is that he is a big donor to charter schools and sits on the national board of directors of Teach for America. He obviously believes people should get right education from early on.

Don’t Have Time to Read? Try Audiobooks

When I first started reading, I struggled with finding time to read, but then I tried to audiobooks. It changed my life. Try it, maybe you’re an audible guy too. The biggest advantage is that you can perform repetitive daily tasks (driving a car, exercising, housework) and learn a mountain of new information through audiobook.

I can say that I have tried a lot of audiobook apps and Audible is my favorite. In addition to having almost all books in its library, it is also the most developed app (for example, you can determine the exact listening speed, track the listening time, conquer various achievements, etc.). In short, a very exciting and useful application, but it also has a higher price than other competitors, for me it is worth every penny.

However, Amazon is currently offering a promo where you get three months of Audible Premium in a free trial. You get one credit per month (read: one book per month) with this free trial, and will have to pay for new books you want to listen to in each month.

Another interesting solution is Scribd. Audiobook app that costs a bit less, but also has fewer books available. Many times I couldn’t find the book I wanted, but when I found it, the service was pretty good. Anyway, The biggest advantage is that you can listen to as many book as you like (you don’t have pay extra for new books).

So, if you want cheaper option than Audible, less features, read more books per month and not pay extra, then Scribd might be good solution for you. Currently, Scribd is offering two months free.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.