Fund managers and CEOs around the world have been adjusting their estimates and guidance in the wake of the recent volatility. As defensive stocks have come back to the fore, and growth stocks have sold off, this has created an unexpected situation: based on EBITDA multiples, Amazon is currently cheaper... Show More
Paypal founder Peter Thiel predicted in his 2014 Wall Street Journal essay ‘Competition is for losers’ that Silicon Valley would become the centre of the global economy. He claimed that by operating under a set of rules that involve little competition or regulation, his own company, along with the likes... Show More
Apple made history on 2 August 2018, becoming the first company ever to reach one trillion US dollars in market value. Five weeks later Amazon followed, crossing the trillion dollar threshold intra-day momentarily. Show More
As volatility has picked up in recent months, many investors who thought they were protected in a down-market have quickly discovered otherwise. Asset consultants have discussed the value of finding genuinely uncorrelated returns, while also acknowledging the difficulty of finding them. Show More
“The trend is not Mr Hounsell’s friend — a sales drop of 4.8 per cent, which is nearly one in every $20 of sales disappearing, is something that even Father Christmas can’t turn around.” Show More
"Now, data is interesting but we're not really interested in it... We look at others' loyalty programs and their big data schemes and we really question the true value that’s delivered to customers...What we'd rather do is keep our business simple, focus on what matters most to customers, because it’s... Show More
For decades, traditional wisdom held that value investing is the only way to outperform, and with good reason. Until the GFC, value had outperformed growth in all but a few brief periods, and those periods immediately preceded a major bear market. But for nearly a decade now, growth has produced... Show More
Everyone shops on the Internet these days, don’t they? That’s why Armageddon looms for retailers and therefore investors in retail property. If you’re looking for a reason why the share price of Retail AREITs in the ASX 300 are down 2.3% over the last two years, there’s your answer. Show More
By definition, the largest companies by market cap are the most valued by investors in absolute terms. Over the past decade the composition of the world's most valuable companies has undergone significant change. You can blame it on technology, globalisation or even call it disruption, the reality is that companies... Show More
There has been no bigger retail story over the last 12 months than Amazon’s entry into the Australian market. This time last year we gave our initial view (Amazon Not Introducing Internet to Australia) on how Amazon will impact the Australian retail landscape with particular focus on ASX listed retail... Show More
When Warren Buffett first started buying businesses with ‘moats’ in the 80s, such as Coca Cola, his disciples thought he was crazy. More than 30 years later, buying businesses with a moat is accepted wisdom. Morningstar even offers a 'moat rating' on thousands of stocks from around the world. Show More
The best run businesses think long term. While it’s easy for management to roll out a few platitudes each quarter, talk is talk. The acid test is whether management embraces activities that hurt in the short run in order to reap in the long run. I’ve always thought of this... Show More
US based Global retail giant Walmart will buy a controlling stake of 77% in India’s largest e-commerce company Flipkart for US$16 billion, valuing the company at US$21 billion. This deal is the biggest in India’s e-commerce market and marks Walmart’s foray in the e-commerce space. Amazon and Walmart will now... Show More
The assumption that Amazon would sweep away all retailers that stand before it resulted in many US retailers being sold down. This hysteria created some interesting opportunities in the retail segment, one of which is Dollar General. Show More
The FAANG stocks (Facebook, Amazon, Apple, Netflix and Google/Alphabet) led the market up and participated in the recent correction. Their latest profit reports are an important guide to the sustainability of the tech sector's rise. Here we argue that on a Price Earnings Growth basis, they still look sharp. Show More
Little on the face of it, but from an investment perspective quite a lot. They are both second-order beneficiaries of someone else’s investment boom. The jeans manufacturer grew out of a dry goods business set up in San Francisco to supply the thousands of hopeful miners who flocked to California... Show More
Expectations of accelerated interest rate rises sent equity markets into a tailspin in February, impacting the first quarter and setting the tone for the calendar year. The good news is that it’s not all doom and gloom and investors can look to the media and retail sectors for opportunities over... Show More
Strava is an app that styles itself as “the social network for those that strive”. Runners, cyclists and others use the app to track, share and compare their exertions and even determine a ‘Suffer Score’. Show More
Five years is a long time in financial markets. Five years ago, the ASX 200 was just hitting 5,000 points for the first time since Lehman’s collapse, US stocks were being “whipsawed” by instability concerns in Italy, and Dick Smith Electronics was getting ready to debut on the ASX. Show More
JD.com (JD) is often referred to as China’s Amazon. However, JD is online retail shopping with a difference. Firstly, buying behaviour and the online shopping experience in China is quite different to Australia and the United States. Online shoppers in Australia typically buy discretionary items such as books, shoes and... Show More
