Forms, checklists, and step-by-step instructions for choosing and implementing an ESOP

Financial officers need to know how to compare an Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP) with other comparable plans and how to effectively present an ESOP proposal to corporate executives. ESOP Workbook: The Ultimate Instrument in Succession Planning is designed to help the corporate owner, financial officer, CPA, and attorney determine if an ESOP is appropriate for meeting a company’s objectives and, if so, how to successfully implement a suitable ESOP.

The Workbook’s step-by-step use of forms and checklists shows the financial officer how to judge the feasibility of installing an ESOP versus other qualified or nonqualified plans or approaches. Divided into three sections–– Decision Stage, Valuation and Financing Stage, and Transaction Stage–– the Workbook answers such questions as:

• How to decide upon your objectives
• How to value your company
• How to determine the feasibility of an ESOP
• How to obtain financing
• What to do about your present plan
• How to invest the proceeds
• How to do the accounting
• How to communicate the ESOP to employees

Once a suitable plan is chosen, the Workbook then guides readers through the entire implementation process.

The Workbook also contains useful information for financial advisors and life insurance agents who need to know about ESOPs for their business. Valuable as a supplement to ESOP: The Ultimate Instrument in Succession Planning or as an independent resource, the ESOP Workbook is a one-stop practical guide for CPAs, attorneys, CFOs, and owners of private and public companies.

Now completely revised and expanded!

THE bestselling guide to Getting Started in Stocks

Thinking of getting your feet wet in the stock market, but don't know where to begin? Perhaps you've already taken the plunge but would like to know more about the stock and mutual fund investments you've made? Tens of thousands of investors already know the place to start is this best-selling guide by Alvin D. Hall, whose dynamic style of teaching investment professionals has earned him the moniker, the "Professor of Wall Street." Packed with new material on mutual funds, dozens of new real-life examples, and up-to-the-minute information, this thoroughly updated edition will help you:

• Set clear financial goals
• Determine the level of risk you can afford to take
• Evaluate stocks and securities for risks and rewards
• Track market trends for solid, informed choices
• Use mutual funds to diversify and cut risk
• Determine the right proportion of stocks for your portfolio
• Fully exploit international market opportunities

Don’t spend your time worrying whether you can beat the markets: you don’t need to beat them to be a successful investor. By showing you how to build a simple and rational portfolio and tailor it to your specific needs, Investing Demystified will help you generate superior returns.

With his straightforward and jargon-free advice, Lars Kroijer simplies the often complex world of finance and tells you everything you need to know – and everything that you don’t need to worry about – in order to make the most from your investments.

In Investing Demystified you will:

• Discover the mix of stocks, bonds and cash needed for a top performing portfolio

• Learn why the most broadly diversified and simplest portfolio makes the most sense

• Understand the right level of risk for you and how this affects your investments

• Find out why a low cost approach will yield benefits whilst leaving you with a higher quality portfolio

• Understand the implications of tax and liquidity

This study provides a fascinating, fresh analysis of the virtues of shareholder participation in the context of contemporary corporate governance. By applying recent empirical studies to human happiness, McConvill convincingly argues that shareholders, particularly individuals, should be included in the internal governance framework of public corporations and enjoy a direct participatory role in the corporation if they so choose. Recent studies have consistently shown that active participation is one of a limited number of factors that has a positive correlation with levels of personal happiness, however while disciplines within the social sciences have long considered the implications of these findings, legal scholars have failed to grasp their significance. Shareholder Participation and the Corporation addresses the dearth of literature currently available by exploring and evaluating the implications of empirical happiness studies in relation to corporate law and governance, focusing specifically on the role of the shareholder. It provides a compelling argument for those seeking to analyze shareholder participation in a different light.

This book provides a clear but thorough explanation of the concepts of smile modeling that are at the forefront of modern derivatives pricing theory. Furthermore, it is unique in containing modern approaches to multi-asset on-smile modelling and will be an invaluable reference for practitioners in banks and other financial institutions.

The Wall Street Journal, New York Times, BusinessWeek, and USA Today Business Bestseller!

From the publisher of Investors Business Daily and best-selling author of How to Make Money in Stocks, comes the National Bestseller, 24 Essential Lessons for Investment Success, two dozen of the most important lessons for investors. In this one accessible guide, William J. ONeil puts his popular and easy-to-follow techniques for building a profitable portfolio firmaly in the hands of investors­­and the goal of long-term financial security easily within their reach.

24 Essential Lessons for Investment Success is based upon the closely followed 26 Weeks to Investment Success editorials that appear in Investors Business Daily. Edited and updated, ONeils timeless advice encapsulates such investing nuggets as buy high and sell higher to making a million in mutual funds. Concentrate your investments in a few areas, know them well, and watch them carefully.

Dont just rely upon PE ratios and other common technical tools. Learn to use Relative Price Strength to help you choose stocks. ONeils cautionary yet pro-active advice has helped to make Investors Business Daily one of Americas fastest growing and most respected newspapers. Now investors can benefit from his timeless words of wisdom, collected in one easy-to-use resource.

The book will concentrate on the investment style of Business Perspective Investing, as practiced by Benjamin Graham and Warren Buffett. It will take the reader through the realisation that the thought process involved when buying shares in a company is no different to buying the company in its entirety. Beginning with how to assess the quality of a business, it will explain and illustrate with examples what to look for in company accounts, how to determine the value drivers of a business, the strength of its franchise and how to interpret key financial ratios and performance indicators. It will discuss the ideal characteristics of a business worthy of investment so that the reader will develop a mental checklist of what to look out for. Next, the book will set out a number of valuation methods to determine the likely economic worth of a company. It is against this estimate that a judgement can be made as to whether the share price offers good value. The book will conclude with thoughts on portfolio construction, in particular Focus Investing, where a concentrated approach is taken, and legitimate reasons for deciding to sell a holding.Throughout, the emphasis will be on the methodology used to manage the SDL UK Buffettology Fund.

NASDAQ brings together, in one volume, a comprehensive annotated bibliography of books, theses and dissertations, US Government reports, journal articles, databases, indexes and abstracts and websites from 1939 to 2000.

Irrational exuberance - the now-famous utterance of Alan Greenspan, referred to the seemingly unending upward spiral of the stock market. As every investor knows, the stock market plummeted after this comment was made, only to recover and exceed every known record over the next year. Nothing, it appears, could keep this market down: not inflationary pressures, concerns over the Asian economic crisis, lack of earnings in many companies, nor elevated stock prices. Nothing, it seems, could stop investors in their passion for bidding up prices of stocks, especially technology and telecommunications. This text warns that Americans are living in an economic dreamland, and that the long bull market and low unemployment levels have only masked a disturbing economic reality - in short, we're in for a rude awakening. Based on extensive research, the book is intended to be sobering reading for any current or would be investor.

The basic skills for becoming a successful trader from a master of the game Written by Fausto Pugliese (founder and CEO of Cyber Trading University) this must-have resource offers a hands-on guide to learning the ins and outs of active trading. How to Beat the Market Makers at Their Own Game gives professionals, as well as those relatively new to investing, a behind-the-scenes look at the inner workings of the marketplace and a comprehensive overview of basic trading techniques. The book explains how to apply the trading strategies of acclaimed trader Fausto Pugliese. Step by step the author covers the most common market maker setups, shows how to identify market maker traps, and most importantly, reveals how to follow the direction of the lead market maker in an individual stock. Throughout the book, Pugliese puts the spotlight on Level II quotes to help investors understand how market makers drive prices and manipulate the market. This handy resource is filled with the tools needed to interpret market maker activity so traders can truly understand the market and trade accordingly. * Offers an accessible guide for developing the investing skills to trade with confidence * Filled with the real-world trading experiences and techniques of Fausto Pugliese * Covers simple technical patterns that are important in day trading * Includes a website with exercises to help master the book's techniques How to Beat the Market Makers at their Own Game will become your well-thumbed resource for learning what it takes to succeed in short-term stock trading.

A rare opportunity to go one-on-one with an industry giant and one of today's most respected financial thinkers, Merton Miller on Derivatives is a refreshingly accessible overview of derivatives, the revolution they have wrought, and the disasters they've supposedly caused.

Though routinely assailed by regulators and the media, derivatives are hailed by a celebrated group of practitioners, analysts, and theorists, led most notably by Nobel laureate Merton Miller. Miller is legendary for repeatedly demonstrating—often with humor and always with grace—the value of derivatives in price discovery, managing financial risk, and tailoring a risk-return profile.

Here, in this collection of his recent essays, Miller expounds on a number of critical derivatives issues. Is it a problem that some organizations have lost substantial sums on derivatives? Miller's short answer: Some organizations will always find ways to lose money. Nor does he believe that more government regulation is the answer. He notes, for example, that for all the horror stories about derivatives, the world's banks have lost vastly more in bad real estate deals than they'll ever lose on their derivatives portfolios.

Merton Miller on Derivatives offers twenty-two provocative chapters. A sampling: "The Recent Derivatives 'Disasters': Assessing the Damage" takes a close look at such debacles as Procter & Gamble, Orange County, and Barings Bank. "Financial Regulation: The Inside Game" uses an apt sports analogy to show how the derivatives regulatory game is really played, as opposed to the way outsiders imagine it is played. "Japanese-American Trade Relations: Can Rambo Beat Godzilla?" succinctly sums up the nature of Japanese-American trade. And "Risk and Return on Futures Contracts: A Chicago View" highlights the pivotal role derivatives play in hedging risk.

There are also penetrating pieces on corporate governance that compare the system existing in the United States and England with the one existing in Germany and Japan. To complete the collection, a section called "Questions I'm Often Asked" features Miller's unique perspective on a wide range of topics, from what's ahead for China to what we've learned from the Crash of 1987.

Contrary to widely held perceptions, the so-called "derivatives revolution" has made the world safer, not more dangerous. This explains the phenomenal growth of financial futures. As Miller shows, derivatives enable organizations to deal effectively with risks that have plagued them for decades, even centuries.

Praise for merton miller on derivatives

"Miller is one of the clearest thinkers of our time. Once again, he provides a simple, insightful, and witty analysis of an important and complex topic. This book is truly fun to read." —Kenneth R. French Beinecke Professor of Management Studies and Finance Yale University School of Management.

"Some of us trade markets; others of us observe markets; Merton Miller understands markets. As this volume demonstrates, Professor Miller is unsurpassed at cutting through fluff, misinterpretation, and even obfuscation to get to the heart of highly charged issues." —Charles W. Smithson Managing Director, CIBC Wood Gundy.

"Vintage Merton Miller: zesty writing and forcefully communicated ideas, not only on derivatives, but on a wide range of topics in financial markets. This is no ponderous academic tome, but rather a series of entertaining, yet devastatingly analytical essays on controversial issues in finance. Great reading and great analysis." —Hans R. Stoll Walker Professor of Finance and Director of the Financial Markets Research Center, Vanderbilt University.

"I am grateful to Merton Miller for setting the record straight, once again, regarding derivatives. With his customary brilliance, Merton cuts through the fog of misunderstanding and nonsense that too often surrounds derivatives and reveals them for what they truly are: phenomenally successful and essential risk management tools." —Jack Sandner Chairman, Chicago Mercantile Exchange.

"This book brings together Merton Miller's most important works on derivatives markets. One of the most creative and analytical minds of our time, Merton is also a great writer and storyteller. This book is a must-read for anyone seriously interested in derivatives markets." —Rick Kilcollin President and CEO, Chicago Mercantile Exchange.

This book is the new edition of John Magee's classic General Semantics of Wall Street.
An indispensable companion to John Magee's and Robert Edward's classic, Technical Analysis of Stock Trends, Winning the Mental Game on Wall Street covers the mind set, the preconceptions, the false and misleading habits that hinder peak performance. It exhaustively deconstructs the movement of the stock market, shows you how to decipher its behavior, and teaches you its symbolic language or general semantics.
Written by John Magee and edited by W.H. Charles Bassetti, this book prepares you for the mental game on Wall Street. The book re-trains your mind to handle the market skillfully. Magee, arguably the wisest investment advisor in history, leads you toward a common sense mentality and method that virtually assures success in the long run. The secret? Right mind, right habits, right techniques. Through careful study and application of the concepts suggested by Magee, an average investor becomes a highly effective trader. Winning the Mental Game on Wall Street prepares your mind to operate effectively in the financial markets.

The first comprehensive guide on maximum adverse excursion — a powerful new tool for dramatically lessening trading risks

"Trading successfully, like everything else, is built upon solid preparation. It is the well-prepared individual who will be able to cope in today's competitive market. John Sweeney's Maximum Adverse Excursion will provide you with the steps to perform the analytical review of your trading system that you should undertake before you ever risk your capital." — Thomas Hartle, Editor Technical Analysis of Stocks & Commodities magazine

"Maximum Adverse Excursion deals with a much overlooked subject: how to minimize losses. If every trader took John Sweeney's advice and learned how to minimize losses before trying to make profits, they would be financially ahead." — Martin J. Pring, President The International Institute for Economic Research

"John Sweeney has done it again. As with Campaign Trading, he takes a complex set of ideas and explains them in a simple, easy-to-understand manner, in a form that traders can use to help them make informed and profitable buy-sell decisions." — Clifford Sherry, PhD, author The Mathematics of Technical Analysis

Most successful traders have a "sixth sense" that alerts them to loss points and amounts. But what happens when intuition fails?

When the potential loss incurred on a trade is significant, you need more than guesswork. But is it possible to estimate the loss point accurately—quantitatively? With maximum adverse excursion (MAE), the answer is a resounding "YES". This innovative method of risk management enables traders to steer clear of potentially devastating results by pinpointing loss points before implementing trading decisions. Now, in the first book to provide an in-depth examination of this vital trading tool, John Sweeney, MAE developer and Technical Editor of the highly regarded Technical Analysis of Stocks & Commodities magazine, takes you step by step through its various intricacies.

In this comprehensive and accessible reference, Sweeney shows how the key to successful MAE implementation lies in determining whether there is any consistency in market behavior. By measuring and charting price excursion from a set point of entry, you can establish—quickly and easily—whether prices show consistent behavior over a finite time frame. If, in fact, some regularity, some pattern in price changes is revealed, you can then exploit it while in the trade. The bottom line is a more reliable system for discerning whether your trade is going in your direction or not, and—in either case—what likely events are next. By replacing guesswork with statistical descriptions, you can objectively determine when to cut off a loser, or put in a protective stop . . . or take profits.

Maximum Adverse Excursion can give you "the elusive edge that traders seek . . . a line all your own, from which profits can flow with minimized, quantifiable risk." This comprehensive, accessible reference gives you the tools you need to employ MAE successfully, including detailed information on:

• Defining and calculating adverse, minimum, and maximum favorable excursion (MinFE and MaxFE)
• Displaying MAE—aggregation, frequency diagrams, stop size
• Determining specific capital requirements—capital conservation, defining drawdowns
• Profit definition by stop level—profit tradeoffs, profit curves, interpretation
• Impact of volatility changes—tweaks, changing stops by range or volatility
• Trading management—portfolio impacts, day-to-day management, elaborations

Complete with sample calculations, practical examples, and EXCEL programs for creating your own charts, this is the definitive guide to using MAE effectively—and profitably.

The Options Primer provides a brief yet comprehensive introduction to the complex issues surrounding options.

Trading is a business and, and as with any business, those businesses who survive and thrive have a business plan in place. "Smart Trading Plans" guides readers through defining and documenting a trading plan which applies to their individual trading business. Smart Action Steps and example plan elements are included to guide readers through and illustrate the process of developing a plan.

"Smart Trading Plans" guides readers through the following: Creating a trading systemDeveloping a trading routineSelecting the right trading toolsEntries, exits and trade managementUnderstanding risk and money managementDeveloping a profitable mindsetStrategies for trading

Complete with useful trading tips and bonus planning templates (available at www.smarttrading.com.au), Smart Trading Plans is essential reading for all savvy traders.

Created over a hundred years ago by Wall Street Journal founder Charles H. Dow, the Dow Theory is the grandfather and foundation of all technical stock market analyses. The Theory operates on the premise that the market itself is the best predictor of future performance. By using Dow averages to explain the current condition of the market, forecast future trends, and determine investment strategy, the Dow Theory continues to be a sound technique for successful stock investing.
Cashing in on the Dow takes a contemporary look at the Dow Theory and shows investors how they can effectively --and profitably--apply the theory to today's rapidly changing market. With discussion s on origin, evolution, and core influence on other market indicators, this invaluable reference offers insights into how to understand the signals generated by stock market indicators, leading to better stock selection timing, and higher returns.

In Physics of Finance Kirill Ilinski offers the first insight in book form into what could become a totally new approach to pricing financial assets.

Equilibrium asset pricing is a cornerstone of contemporary finance and is widely used for a variety of purposes, from asset allocation to risk management. However, recent events, such as the collapse of Long Term Capital Management has prompted the need to re-examine the basic assumptions underlying equilibrium pricing. In response, and based on several year's research and work that applies the methods of theoretical physics to financial economics, the author has developed an important new approach that steps outside the equilibrium paradigm in finance.

In Physics of Finance:

• Basic assumptions underlying equilibrium pricing are re-examined
• The risk factors hidden in the implications of equilibrium theory and the potential profit in unstable markets are discussed at length
• Gauge modelling, an important new approach to the problem of tackling non-equilibrium pricing, is introduced

"The author applies field theory to non-equilibrium market dynamics thus opening an entirely new view on the subject. The result is a highly entertaining read packed with novel ideas. It will be a constant source of inspiration for both theoretical physicists and financial analysts for years to come"
Oliver Brockhaus, Head of Equity Derivatives Research, Chase

"A fascinating book and an excellent read. Refreshingly different from the thousands of nondescript books on quantitative finance."
Paul Wilmott

Why do stock and housing markets sometimes experience amazing booms followed by massive busts and why is this happening more and more frequently? In order to answer these questions, William Quinn and John D. Turner take us on a riveting ride through the history of financial bubbles, visiting, among other places, Paris and London in 1720, Latin America in the 1820s, Melbourne in the 1880s, New York in the 1920s, Tokyo in the 1980s, Silicon Valley in the 1990s and Shanghai in the 2000s. As they do so, they help us understand why bubbles happen, and why some have catastrophic economic, social and political consequences whilst others have actually benefited society. They reveal that bubbles start when investors and speculators react to new technology or political initiatives, showing that our ability to predict future bubbles will ultimately come down to being able to predict these sparks.

From the "Father of Candlesticks"—penetrating new Japanese techniques for forecasting and tracking market prices and improving market timing Steve Nison has done it again. The man who revolutionized technical analysis by introducing Japanese candlestick charting techniques to Western traders is back—this time with a quartet of powerful Japanese techniques never before published or used in the West. Stunningly effective on their own, these new techniques pack an even greater wallop when teamed up with traditional trading, investing, or hedging strategies, and Steve Nison shows you how to do it. Beyond Candlesticks provides step-by-step instructions, detailed charts and graphs, and clear-cut guidance on tracking and analyzing results—everything you need to pick up these sharp new tools and take your place at the cutting edge of technical analysis. Critical praise for Steve Nison’s first book … "… destined to become the classic reference on the subject." —Charles Lebeau and David Lucas Technical Trader’s Bulletin "I believe Steve Nison’s new candlestick book is destined to become one of the truly great books for this time period.… Whether you trade futures, commodities, or equities, day trade or hold positions overnight, this book is a must." —Lee Siegfried Investor’s Library, Data Broadcasting Corp. "It is hard to be too effusive about the quality of NiSon’s work … this is clearly one of the best investment books ever written in terms of covering a subject with pedagogical ability and writing skill. The organization is impeccable … reading it was a pleasure." —Commodity Traders Consumer Report

The Stock Exchange has been described as the mart of the world; as the nerve-centre of the politics and finances of nations; as the barometer of their prosperity and adversity; and as the bottomless pit of London, worse than all the hells. This book, first published in 1904, examines the London Stock Exchange in its purest sense, as the market for stocks and shares.

Why the Bubble Burst provides a comprehensive look at the most dramatic run-up in equity values in US history. Lawrance Evans takes the reader from theory to empirics, illustrating why we need to go beyond the efficient markets hypothesis and the theory of domestic irrational exuberance to fully unpack the unprecedented phenomenon, why the market was destined for a major decline and why the fallout will be severe and protracted. Quantitative evidence suggests that mutual funds, international portfolio flows, and the decline in the amount of corporate equity outstanding all played an integral role in the stock market boom. These ingredients in the context of a supply and demand based theory of equity price determination indicate that supply and demand forces unrelated to corporate profitability elevated US equity valuations to unsustainable levels. The author's conclusions carry implications for economic theory and policy, retirement security and stock market investments in general. Economists, finance professionals and policymakers will find this volume a unique investigation into the stock market boom and bust.

A common denominator among most new traders is that, within six months of launching their new pursuit, they are out of money and out of trading. High-Probability Trading softens the impact of this traders tuition, detailing a comprehensive program for weathering those perilous first months and becoming a profitable trader.

This no-nonsense book takes a uniquely blunt look at the realities of trading. Filled with real-life examples and intended for use by both short- and long-term traders, it explores each aspect of successful trading.

In a straightforward approach, Hanania Benklifa provides readers the practical knowledge needed to trade options conservatively in Profiting with Iron Condor Options: Strategies from the Frontline for Trading in Up or Down Markets. The objectives are simple: make 2%-4% a month staying in the market as little as possible. Market experts use option condors to consistently earn monthly returns while trading conservatively and staying in the market as little as possible. Benklifa--who manages $10+ million in condor trades each month--shows you exactly how to run these trades and earn these returns, delivering all the details you need to master every nuance of this remarkable strategy. Benklifa shares option condors examples using market realities, not oversimplified abstractions. You'll learn how to handle real-life market dynamics that can dramatically impact results, including rising and falling volatility, changing bid-ask spreads, and distorted call parity. You'll learn how to profit in the sideways markets where condor options are most widely used--and also in extreme-trending markets that offer their own surprising opportunities. Traders who focus on a specific type of trade have a history of outperforming stock pickers and directional investors. This book will give you that deep and usable level of knowledge about one of today's most well-proven strategies: option condors.