The Last Straw

Valuation is — or at least should be — at the core of any investment decision. Without a general idea of what a stock is ‘really’ worth, how can you know if the market is offering you good value? Defining the true, or intrinsic, value of a business is easy; it’s the discounted value of the cash that can be taken […]

We’ve been a bit distracted at Strawman HQ this week due to an office relocation. More accurately, I got evicted and have been moving house. So apologies for the radio silence on Strawman. Having now relocated 7 times in nearly 11 years I’m pretty much a black belt in the art of the move. And believe you me, it really […]

Reporting season is always a great opportunity to help separate the signal (business fundamentals) from the noise (share prices). As companies start to drop their half-year results, it’s worth framing up what it is you’re looking for. How you do that will depend on the particular investment strategy you employ but, if you have a longer-term focus, here are a […]

As we gear up for another year of thrills and spills on the share market, it’s hard to avoid the blitz of market forecasts that are so reliably issued at this time of year. While it’s often interesting to hear what some people expect, you’d be wise to not take them too seriously. To put it bluntly, if your investment […]

We’ve seen a solid start to 2023, with the market as a whole already up by more than 6%. Some of the gains in the small-cap space have been far more impressive. Those that have enjoyed the biggest recoveries have tended to be ones that have reported: Strong balance sheets Positive (or at least improving) operating cash flows Sustained sales momentum […]

Here at Strawman, we like to poke around the lesser known corners of the market. And why not? There are lots of hidden gems to be found. In fact, there’s plenty of things to like about so-call ‘small cap’ stocks. More growth potential Less competition from other investors Less rational pricing (more opportunity to find significant mis-pricings) Better access to […]

Consisting of over 2100 individual companies, the Australian share market has a few interesting features. One of the first things a curious investor might notice is the significance of the major banks. There are only 21 businesses on the ASX classified (loosely) as banks, but the ‘Big 4’ — CBA, NAB, ANZ and Westpac — are the clear standouts. Combined, […]