Tags
activist investors, agri-business, Asta Funding, beta, catalyst, Colony Financial, correlation, distressed assets, Europe, Event Driven, favourite stock, Fortress Investment Group, litigation funding, Margin of Safety, reading, Risk Arbitrage, risk management, stock ideas, umbrellas & ice cream, value investing, wind-down
Monday, I re-posted my appeal for your fave stock ideas, which was originally prompted by the dog days of summer. Those months when trading volume & news slows down, and you’re off for a relaxing holiday, are a perfect time to open your mind & embrace new ideas. Take along some good books for their historical perspective, magazines to dip into the current market/economy buzz, and (most importantly) stacks & stacks of annual reports. And just read, read, read..!
Personally, my focus over the summer’s been on correlation. Some investors are great at stock-picking, risk management & portfolio construction, while others are abysmal..! But, all too often, there’s precious little difference in respective performance. Because we’re all terribly correlated with the market, and with the economy – yep, we’re all making pretty much the same big bet! A preference for discounted assets, special situations & stocks with specific catalysts is my attempt to escape this correlation risk. Medium-longer term, I think this approach offers a genuine ‘edge‘ via lower beta stocks. Trouble is, shorter term, market correlation (especially in market setbacks) can simply trounce all other factors…
Wexboy 