Several months ago, Robert Kennedy Jr. believed his independent bid for the U.S. presidency had a shot. He explained that FDR won votes through radio in 1932, his uncle JFK benefitted from television in 1960, and long-form podcasts would help propel him into the White House in 2024. Though things evolved otherwise, hours of conversation […]
Investor Warren Buffett once said that he tries to “invest in a business so wonderful that an idiot could run it. Because sooner or later, one of them will.” This week, we discussed with Julie McLaren from Focus the red flags to watch out for when investing in founder-run businesses. Julie works with founders and […]
Our definition of “contrarian investing” is to purchase stocks that are temporarily out of favour. The reasons for any stock’s unpopularity can vary from a disappointing quarter, an operational misstep, or a poor allocation of capital. However, investing in companies facing an accounting impropriety is a fine line we won’t cross. We view any kind […]
As contrarian investors, we look to invest in ideas that are temporarily out of favour. Until recently, real estate had been a contrarian investment. Not knowing the true long-term effects of work-from-home, many have sought to avoid the space, especially in a high interest rate environment. However, real estate comprises many subsectors – office, retail, […]
We expect the market to propel higher regardless of the Presidential Election outcome on November 4. Between 1952 and today, the market has almost always driven higher regardless of the President’s political stripes. There’s no question that the S&P 500 returns have been far superior under Democratic than Republican administrations. In fact, ever since Eisenhower […]
We often receive similar questions from different people. Our communication with clients makes us better stewards of capital. If one person is thinking about something, chances are that there are other people wondering the same thing. Of the many emails and phone calls we receive each month, here are four questions we pulled from our […]
Last month, we discussed common cognitive biases that many investors face. Dr. Jack Muskat joined our webcast to explain several psychological biases that investors often deploy—sometimes to their detriment. Your stock isn’t more valuable just because you own it (“the endowment effect”), nor should you place much reliance on the price you paid to buy […]
Last summer, in 2023, the engineering and construction company Aecon Group reported dreadful quarterly earnings. The company’s earnings report was so bad that the stock tumbled 16% the following day. The poor results were largely due to four construction contracts that were losing money with no end in sight. Specifically, the work was related to […]
It’s difficult to dispute the seasonal weakness that September historically accompanies. Many call it the “September Effect”. Going back almost a century, it’s the only month of the year when the S&P 500 quite regularly accompanies a loss. Since 1930, September has delivered a medium return of -0.6%. In fact, September has posted a loss […]
In July 2022, we made a block trade purchase to buy shares of Hudbay Minerals (“HBM”) for $4.77/share for suitable clients. Recently, we sold the position across the board for $10.46/share. HBM is a copper and zinc producer with assets in Peru, Canada, and the United States. We’ve all heard the reasons why copper is […]
