Frederic Kerr's Reviews > The Little Book of Valuation: How to Value a Company, Pick a Stock and Profit

The title is a misnomer, as the author spends no time on stock picking. He does break down several valuation methods and suggests which might be most relevant in various situations as companies grow, mature and decline.

There is not much discussion of earnings or cash flow based multiples and their application to various sectors, as he prefers the bottom up, discounted cash flow models that comprise the bulk of the book. These are more rigorous but are also rife with assumptions.

Despite the title, this is not a book for people with no financial background. The writing is a bit dry, but it's still probably useful as a reference for formulas, etc.

I have found other investment books more absorbing, like Ben Graham's The Intelligent Investor, anything by Joel Greenblatt, whose writing is much more entertaining, or the Peter Lynch books from the late 1980s.