Episode 10: Australian property, selling Class and buying Webjet

When a share price underperforms the market, how much of that can be blamed on management? Conversely, when prices surge higher, how much credit do the senior execs deserve? Of course, in the short run, the answer is probably ‘not much’. But even over a period of a year or two it can be hard to connect executive decisions to […]

Is there more upside to come?

At bottom the ability to buy securities – particularly common stocks – successfully is the ability to look ahead accurately. Looking backward, however carefully, will not suffice, and may do more harm than good.” — Benjamin Graham The financial statements can tell you a great deal about a company, and any serious investor ignores them at their own peril. Revenue, margins, […]

Terry Smith is a former UK analyst and banker who, in 2010, founded Fundsmith with a philosophy that is disarmingly simple: “Buy good companies. Don’t overpay. Avoid fiddling.” It’s a straightforward but powerful approach that has allowed him to quietly outperform most professional investors. He looks for companies with high returns on capital, strong competitive advantages and robust cash generation. He […]

Are shares still a buy?

There is an old joke that captures well one of the central errors of our time. It goes like this: Two economists are walking through the countryside when they spot a pile of cow manure. One turns to the other and says, “I’ll give you fifty thousand dollars if you eat a spoonful.” The colleague contemplates the utility function, accepts the […]

Paradigm-shifting innovation always has its skeptics. It’s almost a rite of passage. Virtually all of our modern technological marvels — the things we today take for granted — were initially met with plenty of Fear, Uncertainty & Doubt (FUD). Steam power, electricity, radio, the internet are all great examples, but one less discussed tech revolution deserves special mention — simply because it seems so laughable […]

Discussion, analysis and investment ideas from three investing tragics