Aswath Damodaran: "Dean of Valuation"

Aswath Damodaran has over 35 years of experience as a university professor at the Stern School of Business at NYU, and 28 years as a writer. He has written eleven books on valuation, corporate finance and portfolio composition. In the books, he takes a deep dive into different valuation methods and explains in which industries and sectors these should be applied.  Given his great interest in the subject and pedagogical abilities, he is known as the "Dean of Valuation".

The combination of being university professor and author has led to several of his books being used at prestigious universities. Damodaran's educational experience, and how he uses real and current examples, means that his books are accessible and can be used as a template for valuing companies.  Damodaran's ability to adapt to market conditions and new insights shines through both in his books, but also in his lectures.

Many followers

With his passionate interest in valuation, corporate finance, and the teaching profession, he is an avid publisher on YouTube. Here he publishes, among other things, lectures he has held at Stern University, market updates and practical videos. The mix of theoretical videos and marketable material makes him worth following on the platform if you are interested in the subject.  The videos are simple yet insightful, and are designed to reach a wide audience.

In 2015, he collaborated with Google Talks on an introductory course in valuation. The program received wide recognition among both academics and students. Here Damodaran talks broadly about the subject itself, but also the typical pitfalls that investors can fall into initially. The program provides a good indication of the effort and energy needed to value individual stocks.

Important voice

A common denominator for Damodaran's work is that he wants to make his knowledge available to the public. Examples of this are both the YouTube channel and his collaboration with Google Talks, but also his blog Musings on Markets. Here, Damodaran covers a variety of topics: be it the impact of inflation on valuations, specific investment cases, and the policies of central banks around the world. The Times recently named this blog one of the most important blogs for investors.

Warned against inflation

Today's market is largely influenced by underlying macro trends, with arguably the biggest influence in the Western world being inflation.  Damodaran warned the U.S. Federal Reserve not to take inflation too lightly last year, and in hindsight, one could say that his analysis was correct. This year, he has been a frequent participant on news channels in the United States, discussing the importance of expected inflation and what tools the Fed has at its disposal.

Aswath Damodaran is one of the speakers at our New Year's Conference 2023