The best books on financial modelling and valuation

Why am I passionate about this?

I come from an engineering background and early in my career I discover financial modelling as I had to assess the viability of business plans. I deal with financial models the last 20 years of my professional carrier as a Group Financial Officer of SIDMA STEEL SA. Moreover, I am teaching financial modelling in the American College of Greece, Deree, at University of Nicosia in collaboration with Globaltraing and many other places abroad. I am a numbers person, and I am fascinated by financial modelling as it provides you a tool to support effective decision-making. 


I wrote...

Financial Forecasting, Analysis and Modelling: A Framework for Long-Term Forecasting

By Michael Samonas,

Book cover of Financial Forecasting, Analysis and Modelling: A Framework for Long-Term Forecasting

What is my book about?

This book is a step-by-step practical guide targeting FP&A professionals on how to construct a financial model end-to-end. More experienced professionals could use it as a reference guide on how to apply Monte Carlo simulation to stress test their model. I would recommend this book to anyone who is looking to step foot into financial modeling as well as to gain proficiency in Excel. Moreover, the companion website provides a complete operational model that can be customized to develop financial projections or arrange other key financial measures, giving readers an immediately applicable tool to facilitate effective decision-making. 

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The books I picked & why

Book cover of Investment Banking: Valuation, LBOs, M&A, and IPOs

Michael Samonas Why did I love this book?

This book is one of the best I have seen on the topic of Investment Banking.

It is a very good primer. I would recommend it to everyone wanting to break into the industry. It is highly accessible, easy to understand and overall, an engaging presentation of the topic.

It is one of the books I consulted to write the valuation chapter of my book.

By Joshua Rosenbaum, Joshua Pearl,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Investment Banking as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

A timely update to the global bestselling book on investment banking and valuation - this new edition reflects valuable contributions from Nasdaq and the global law firm Latham & Watkins LLP plus access to the online valuation models and course.

In the constantly evolving world of finance, a solid technical foundation is an essential tool for success. Due to the fast-paced nature of this world, however, no one was able to take the time to properly codify its lifeblood--namely, valuation and dealmaking. Rosenbaum and Pearl originally responded to this need in 2009 by writing the first edition of the book…


Book cover of Valuation: Measuring and Managing the Value of Companies

Michael Samonas Why did I love this book?

It is the best reference guide on Valuations.

Includes a chapter on forecasting performance which is closely related to my book. It’s mainly focused on Discounted Cash Flow valuation adapted for many including banks, high-growth, cyclical companies, Emerging Markets, etc).

There exists also a version that gives access to the Excel spreadsheet that one can use to model future financial performance of companies and value them.

By McKinsey & Company Inc., Tim Koller, Marc Goedhart , David Wessels

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Valuation as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

McKinsey & Company's #1 best-selling guide to corporate valuation-the fully updated seventh edition

Valuation has been the foremost resource for measuring company value for nearly three decades. Now in its seventh edition, this acclaimed volume continues to help financial professionals around the world gain a deep understanding of valuation and help their companies create, manage, and maximize economic value for their shareholders.

This latest edition has been carefully revised and updated throughout, and includes new insights on topics such as digital, ESG (environmental, social and governance), and long-term investing, as well as fresh case studies.

Clear, accessible chapters cover the…


Book cover of Expectations Investing: Reading Stock Prices for Better Returns

Michael Samonas Why did I love this book?

Again, this is the kind of book that demonstrates practically how to forecast financial performance of a company and then value it.

It goes a step further and, as the title proclaims, the authors try to reverse engineer a price of a stock and match investors’ expectations with specific assumptions of the model. One of these assumptions is the growth period. This contrasts with the conventional practice of discounting a fixed growth period of five or ten years.

The book provides Excel models, backed up by the proper math, that are very helpful in deconstructing a share price to model assumptions and see if they are plausible or not.

By Michael J. Mauboussin, Alfred Rappaport,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Expectations Investing as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Most investment books try to assess the attractiveness of a stock price by estimating the value of the company. Expectations Investing provides a powerful and insightful alternative to identifying gaps between price and value.

Michael J. Mauboussin and Alfred Rappaport suggest that an investor start with a known quantity, the stock price, and ask what it implies for future financial results. After showing how to read expectations, Mauboussin and Rappaport provide a guide to rigorous strategic and financial analysis to help investors assess the likelihood of revisions to these expectations. Their framework traces value creation from the triggers that shape…


Book cover of Investment Valuation: Tools and Techniques for Determining the Value of any Asset

Michael Samonas Why did I love this book?

Another great resource for businessmen and students alike for Valuations.

Professor Damodaran (which gave praise on the back cover of my book) is considered as one of the world's foremost experts on the topic. He has built and provided, for free, a database at Stern NY University with data used in financial models for valuation purposes.

The book gathers a vast number of valuation techniques and gives great background and context for applying them and when they will tend to provide good information and when they can be misleading.

By Aswath Damodaran,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Investment Valuation as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

The definitive source of information on all topics related to investment valuation tools and techniques Valuation is at the heart of any investment decision, whether that decision is buy, sell or hold. But the pricing of many assets has become a more complex task in modern markets, especially after the recent financial crisis. In order to be successful at this endeavor, you must have a firm understanding of the proper valuation techniques. One valuation book stands out as withstanding the test of time among students of financial markets and investors, Aswath Damodaran'sInvestment Valuation. Now completely revised and updated to reflect…


Book cover of Pitch the Perfect Investment: The Essential Guide to Winning on Wall Street

Michael Samonas Why did I love this book?

Very good book covering the full investment process from the valuation of a business, to identifying a mispricing, to recognizing potential biases, and finally adding a business into a portfolio.

The concepts the book is dealing with, are derived from the Value Investing School at Columbia University where both the authors teach. The main raison d'être somebody would like to build a financial model is to use it to value an asset or a company.

I highly recommend it for the practical tips it provides on the valuation process.

By Paul D. Sonkin, Paul Johnson,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Pitch the Perfect Investment as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Learn the overlooked skill that is essential to Wall Street success Pitch the Perfect Investment combines investment analysis with persuasion and sales to teach you the "soft skill" so crucial to success in the financial markets. Written by the leading authorities in investment pitching, this book shows you how to develop and exploit the essential, career-advancing skill of pitching value-creating ideas to win over clients and investors. You'll gain world-class insight into search strategy, data collection and research, securities analysis, and risk assessment and management to help you uncover the perfect opportunity; you'll then strengthen your critical thinking skills and…


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