On Catalonia
The general view on Twitter and in the media seems to be that ‘Spain is grossly overreacting to the illegal Catalan referendum.’ Fair point. It is not a pretty picture. However, if we ask why Spain is overreacting, a different picture emerges: Autonomy Although a parliamentary monarchy, Spain is a decentralized nation composed of autonomous regions and cities. …
What is a synthetic subprime CDO?
Six months ago I was asked to explain what a synthetic CDO was. Well pal, the sky is blue because bankers in Wall Street…. I sort of did my best and drew a few diagrams and we got about halfway there and came to a halt. I understand roughly how a synthetic CDO works, I …
Q1 2018: 10foot is up 70% FYTD
As we prepare our upcoming quarterly review, we are pleased to announce that the 10foot portfolio has returned approximately 70% since last quarter and now has an unaudited total net asset value (NAV) of $16,830 versus an initial value of $10,000 at inception. There has also been a change in the structure of the fund, …
Through a Mayne Pharma, Concisely
I put 5% of the 10foot portfolio in Mayne Pharma (ASX: MYX). My purchase thesis was way too long to be useful to readers. I have created an abbreviated version here: Mayne is undervalued given its cash earning ability Performance in FY18 will provide a much clearer picture of the combined organisation’s (post Teva/Allergan portfolio acquisition) …
Purchase #7: Mayne Pharma Group Ltd
I’ve made another purchase for the 10foot portfolio, generic pharmaceutical company Mayne Pharma Group Ltd (ASX: MYX). Mayne manufactures and sells generics, consults for third parties, sells its own specialty branded drugs, and develops new formulations for existing molecules. Mayne Pharma recently had a huge step-change in its operations after the $900m acquisition of a portfolio …
The things that move share prices
I have recently been reading through well-known investing blogs like Bronte Capital (John Hempton) and Bristlemouth (Forager/Steve Johnson) from their beginnings in 2008 or so. They are very good. I read Hempton’s in its entirety a few years ago and I would recommend his earlier posts as an excellent crash course in how the truck …
The Gig Economy
Despite being financially comfortable and gainfully employed myself, one of the things I find myself becoming increasingly opposed to is the growing ‘gig-ification’ of work and/or what I see as the increasing abuse of workers (which are sometimes the same thing and sometimes two separate issues). So much has been said about this in the …
Sell #2: Sold Thorn Group Ltd
I’ve sold my stake in Thorn Group Ltd (ASX: TGA). Upon careful reflection, which I hinted at recently , I’ve lost confidence in my investment in the company. It’s not so much that things have changed, more that I think I was framing the investment the wrong way when I bought. I have also tied together …
Scuttlebutt – August 2017 edition
I’m a big believer in the usefulness of scuttlebutt for investing. I think you typically can’t rely on it as it is all anecdotal, but you can use it to check that progress is happening, or to check that you’re thinking about your investment in the right way. Here are a few tidbits I’ve noted …
Purchase #6: NGE Capital Ltd
Recently I made the 6th purchase for the 10foot portfolio, a small LIC known as NGE Capital Ltd (ASX: NGE), formerly New Guinea Energy. It’s ultra-concentrated, with a market capitalisation of $18 million, and lead by an experienced manager with a solid track record. I’ve never owned an LIC of this style before, so I’m breaking …
