This is a complicated one. So, I’m going to do my best to boil it down to the things that really matter. That’s a judgment call. And it means I may be focusing on the wrong things. I may not be telling you enough about some things that do...
I’ll be doing write-ups on Focused Compounding more frequently now. This means that the quality of the ideas will be lower. Previously, I’d tried to focus on writing up just stocks that looked interesting enough to possibly qualify as...
One of the biggest risks for a value investor is buying into a business with poor momentum. Not momentum in the since of an upward movement in the price of the stock – that is often a problem, but it’s a difficult one for an investor (as...
I’m writing today’s Focused Compounding daily from a Best Western in Kansas. By the time you read this, I may already be back in Plano. Today will complete this short – only like four days total – research road trip by me and Andrew. We...
A couple days back, I read Tilman Fertitta’s book “Shut Up and Listen”. The book is short. And it’s full of a lot of basic, good advice especially for someone looking to build a big hospitality business (which is what Fertitta did). What...
In recent years – and especially recent months – many stocks have gotten a lot more expensive. Especially among bigger U.S. stocks, the “value” category has shrunk. I did a quick check of the biggest stocks in the U.S. – basically the top...
This might turn out to be a shorter initial interest write-up than some, because there isn’t as much to talk about with this company. It’s pretty simple. The company is BAB (BABB). The “BAB” stands for Big Apple Bagel. This is the entity...
I mentioned this stock on a recent podcast. This is more of an initial interest post than usual. It’s likely I’ll follow this post up with one that goes into more detail. Two things I don’t analyze in this write-up are: 1) What this...
A 12-minute read Hi Geoff, I think you have touched on this before but I will ask a bit more detailed. Do you think it’s better to be an expert on one industry and the stocks within that industry vs knowing a little about many...
Otis Worldwide (OTIS) is the world’s biggest elevator and escalator company. Like Carrier (CARR) – which I wrote up two days ago – it was spun-off from United Technologies. However, shareholders of United Technologies received one share...
Carrier (CARR) is a recent spin-off from United Technologies. The company has leading brands in Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning (HVAC), fire & safety, and refrigeration. The best known brand is the company’s namesake:...
Mills Music Trust (MMTRS) is an illiquid, over-the-counter stock. In fact, it’s not a stock at all. The security traded is a “trust certificate” that entitles the holder to quarterly distributions from the trust. These “dividends” are not...
Hi Geoff, I am very new to investing and I have most of my savings invested in Vanguard S&P 500. I would love to learn more about the world of investing but I just don’t know where to start. Could you please give me a roadmap to...
What Makes a Business Durable? Hey Geoff, I noticed in one of the recent videos you mentioned that the durability of the business matters more then the returns. I believe you were answering a viewer question on return on capital for the...
Someone sent Geoff this email: Hi Geoff, On regular days your focusing on overlooked stocks makes much sense to me and is the right place to look for good companies at a decent price. But in this market selloff, wouldn’t it be...
Interpublic (IPG) is one of the big ad agency holding companies around the world. Other examples include Omnicom (also a U.S. company), WPP (a U.K. company), Publicis (a French company), and Dentsu (a Japanese company). There are...
Someone Geoff this email ( to ask your own question: just send me an email ) : My question is a simple one. “What do you think is a fair price to pay for Omnicom?” Answer: Omnicom (OMC) Could be Worth Anywhere Between 1 to...
Miller Industries (MLR) has a lot of things to like about it. But, the timing of buying this stock now definitely isn’t one of them. Miller is in a very cyclical, highly durable capital good industry – it produces “car wreckers” and “car...
Someone sent Geoff this email (to ask your own question: just send me an email): I think that car dealers face a lot of competition, especially for used cars and service, that I could never thoroughly understand the competitive...
Middleby (MIDD) is a stock I was excited to write-up, because it’s rarely been cheap. I’ve seen 10-year financial type data on the company. I’ve seen it show up on screens. And now the government response to coronavirus – shutting down so...