Articles
My Interview with World Class Performer
In early 2021, I was interviewed by the website WorldClassPerformer.com. What follows are a series of questions about my background, influences and habits.
Go Ahead, Covet Your Neighbor’s Wife.
I recently asked another value investor if he wanted Warren Buffett's success. While this may seem like a rhetorical question, the truth is many value investors are quietly envious of Buffett.
Our Sell Discipline
How our selling practice differs between high-growth companies with long runways for compounding and slow-growth companies.
The Renaissance of Pipelines
At first, investors loved them. Then, they hated them. Now, investors have left them for dead. Oil and gas pipeline companies are anything but popular. But they are essential businesses, with rising free cash flow and substantial dividend yields.
Girls’ Gambit
It all started after my daughter, Hannah, watched The Queen’s Gambit for a homework assignment. She told me I had to watch it. I did, and loved it. But then Hannah said, “Dad, let’s play chess!”
Value & Growth Demagogues
I have a problem with both value- and growth investing demagogues. While value demagogues tend to believe any company that trades at a P/E above the market average is too frothy, growth demagogues claim that price doesn't matter.
Don’t Be a Sophist
I discuss how to use a Stoic technique to help manage the emotions that come with the stock market.
Why Did I Write a 27-page Letter To Clients
In these letters I diligently walk clients through our research on stocks we own, including those we have recently bought and sold. I cover how we value them, why we own them, etc.
A Shift in Perception Transforms Reality
2020 will go into our memory banks as a very painful year. Stoicism, particularly the stoic practice of negative visualization, helped me put 2020 into a broader historical context, and compare what happened, which was bad, to what could have happened.
McKesson: Amazon Will Not Throw This Drug Railroad Off The Tracks
Amazon.com has announced an online pharmacy offering. How big of a punch could this be to drug distributors McKesson, Cardinal Health and AmerisourceBergen?
One Spreadsheet at a Time
Recalling a teaching moment I had with my daughter Hannah, in which I got to share my love of spreadsheets and their usefulness.
Letter from the Value Investing Mental Asylum or How I Embraced Stoics
Albert Einstein defined insanity as “doing the same thing over and over again but expecting a different outcome.” I can relate to this on some level. I share with you why I am not writing this from a mental asylum. I found solace in Stoicism.
Free Value Investing Curriculum for College Students
An announcement that should be of interest if you are a college student with a passion for value investing.
Jonah Doing Jonah’s Thing
I describe the next adventure my son Jonah will have going to college from Hawaii.
Svenska Handelsbanken and How to Use Book Value
I discuss our investment in Swedish bank Svenska Handelsbanken, and what makes their culture so unique. Then give a short explanation on when book value works as a measure of intrinsic value, and why it often doesn't.
Defense Stocks
We purchased stocks of several American and European defense companies. We like these businesses for several reasons.
Tesla’s Stock Price Discounts Temporal Wormhole into the Future
Low interest rates have messed with the temporal properties of the market and created a wormhole in time and in Tesla’s stock.
Santa Fe: “Remember This”
Santa Fe and my family go way back to the early 90s. It all started with my father and my stepmother. My father had his paintings exhibited in a gallery on Santa Fe’s famous Canyon Road. A few times a year, they would load up paintings in a minivan and drive them to Santa Fe.
When the Facts Change, We Change Our Minds (Anatomy of a Sale)
Even before the coronavirus we were not big fans of the airlines stocks. Planes are expensive. Airlines have to pay for them whether they are fully occupied during normal economic times or when they are half-loaded during recessions.
Uber Eats: Delivering Food and My 4 Seconds of Fame on PBS (not PBS Kids, unfortunately)
I was on PBS NewsHour talking about Uber Eats and the food delivery business (you can watch it here). When ...
Nifty FANGAM and Other “One Decision” Investment Strategies
In early January we would not have guessed the stock market would be at today’s level, there must be more to the stock market than FANGAM.
