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You could also buy one of the books actually printed back in 1940, but that will set you back big bucks, because original versions of Security Analysis are collectors' items today. Those written by Seth Klarman, James Grant, Roger Lowenstein and Bruce Berkowitz were my favorites. If all you really want is the 1940 edition, then the better choice for you is probably to buy the currently in-print reprint that's available (for a lower cost that this sixth edition). As other reviewers have pointed out, this (sixth) edition of Security Analysis includes a reprint of the popular 1940 edition (Warren Buffett's favorite), minus some chapters. Finally, if you haven't already read the 1940 edition, which book should you buy--a 1940 reprint or this sixth edition. The essays run about 15 pages, on average, and many of them are highly informative and useful.
Indeed, it was an honor to be asked to contribute to the sixth edition.
For example, a good copy of the first printing of the 1934 edition easily runs into five figures.Concerning the 1940 edition (or just the 1940 chapters contained in this sixth version), other than for the references to corporate examples from the 1920s or 1930s, the content is amazingly relevant to today's investing.
It's hard to improve much on Graham and Dodd, even after 70 years.
The deleted chapters, which can be found in the CD that accompanies the book, make room for (new) general introductory remarks to this edition and also to the eight major parts of the book, written by a variety of modern commentators.
As good as they are, though, they basically provide useful insights and more modern applications, rather than plow much new intellectual ground.
I had read Security Analysis (the fourth edition) many years ago, and I had forgotten just how clear, precise, insightful and truly sophisticated Graham and Dodd were.
Remarkably, in many instances this 1940 edition does a better job describing 21st century investing issues than the majority of material written today.What you get with this sixth edition that's not available in the other editions are a short (two page) foreword by Warren Buffett and 10 essays by some of the most well-regarded modern investors and authors.
If that seems hard to believe, read the book and see for yourself.
My choice is the sixth edition.
Few times in history are so many buys in the Stock Market there. This is the time to apply the strategies that made Warren Buffet rich. You may not be able to influence politicians to make you money as did Buffet on OHB in 2008, but the market has fundamentals this book teaches.It's not an easy read, but it's an education worthy of the time to finish it.
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The editors have also added a new essay on global value investing. This is not very convenient. These contributions provide a fresh perspective based on their own approaches to value investing. The editors have assembled a team of contributors who wrote prefaces for each chapter: a prominent financial writer and historian, a leading value-investing academic, an experienced financial journalist, and modern-day practitioners. The editors have decided to base this book on the second edition of Security Analysis, published in 1940, because it was the most comprehensive edition. Instead of that, they have an advertisement page in the book offering to purchase the 1951 edition separately from McGrawHill. In fact, the CD has no chapters but only a single link to a website where the chapters can be downloaded as separate PDFs. They analyze the most vital parts of the book, quoting the most prominent lines, and augmenting them with modern examples.The editors have decided to remove some chapters from the book, and to put it instead to the accompanying CD.
Alternatively, they could omit the CD and merely print the link somewhere in the book. The reason is that instead of focusing myopically on very recent developments, the editors took a long-term view that would be applicable in both good markets and bad. The editors have also decided not to alter the text of this classic work. I don't know what made the editors put these PDFs online rather than to the CD. Because these contributions were submitted during the second half of 2007 and early 2008, you will not see references to the credit crisis and sharp market sell-off. I have found these contributions very valuable. The editors could have also put the chapters of the 1951 edition to the CD. Summary:Pros: valuable contributions that comment the most promising ideas of the authors.Cons: the attached CD is a real mess.
I read the 1934 version from a local library and ordered this version for my library. However if you buy this book and want to read it you will either 1) have to print the missing material or 2) have your computer handy. But as someone else has pointed out the 6th edition is not the full 1940 version. There are actually 11 chapters & the appendix to the 1940 edition "missing" from the book and, using the CD, you can download them from the McGraw Hill website. I was unable to find a PDF of the full 1940 version on the CD or available for download. Also the print quality is uneven, especially towards the end of the book in my copy (some pages are darker than others).
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