As you sit back and relax at the beach, tune into the cricket and tennis, and sip your mango cocktail, now is a great time to review some of the great thought leadership insights we produced during 2023.
Below is a neat summary of our most popular and most important articles and white papers in four key categories.
Spending some time on these summer reads will help you better understand the Montaka philosophy, learn how to become a better investor, and most importantly set you up for a successful and profitable 2024.
Portfolio perspectives – Get to know the Montaka portfolio better.
The Montaka portfolio doesn’t just consist of one type of stock.
You might be familiar with ‘compounders’, which are the bedrock of our portfolio. These stocks, such as Amazon, Microsoft and KKR, are established companies with strong dominant positions in attractive markets.
(Read a summary of compounders in 5 Questions: Why are ‘compounder’ stocks the bedrock of Montaka’s portfolio?)
But we also hold another style of stock, the ‘outlier’.
To help our investors learn more about outliers, the role they play in our portfolio, and how Spotify typifies this style of stock, we produced 6 Questions: Why we also hold ‘outlier’ stocks like Spotify in our portfolio.
Another core mission of our portfolio is to find stocks with strong ‘platforms’.
Platforms underpin great stocks like Apple, Amazon and Meta. Basically, the more people that use a platform the more valuable they become.
The power of platforms means many businesses claim they are running platforms.
But what is a true platform business?
In another great article that helps explain our portfolio, Investing in platforms: How to tell the difference between a platform goldmine and a value-destroying ‘trapdoor’, Amit outlines how we tell the difference between a real platform and a fake one.
It’s a process that helps us identify stocks with big upside and truly long-term potential.
Stock insights – Great stock ideas for 2024.
Markets in 2023 finished strongly.
Yet a lot of caution still exists, with many investors sitting on cash.
But as Andy argues in 3 stocks set for ‘takeoff’ there are some great opportunities market.
We look at 3 stocks where the market is simply extrapolating recent history and underestimating looming positive inflection points.
These stocks are set for ‘takeoff’ in 2024.
One of the 3 stocks is S&P Global.
For those wanting a deeper dive into why we are positive on the stock, read Lachlan’s Why the market is forgetting the remarkable long-term strength of S&P Global’s business model.
The market has been looking backwards at the low bond issuance of 2022, which depressed S&P’s earnings.
But bond issuance will reaccelerate, and S&P’s strong competitive position makes it a fantastic ‘defensive compounder’.
Education and evolution – Become a better investor.
At Montaka we are always looking to evolve, and seeking opportunities to learn.
In From Wagga to Wall Street. How I became a global equities investor, Andy tells his personal story of how he came to become a global investor.
He began in Wagga Wagga and traversed a variety of worlds including electrical engineering and management consulting.
On his journey, Andy learnt that the most powerful opportunities are in the ‘special class’ of companies around the world that have ‘privileged’ businesses.
These, of course, are stocks that Montaka focuses on in our portfolio to produce superior long-term compounding.
Also, in 5 steps to evolve your investing in the right direction, Andy outlines some the principles he has learnt that can help an investor continually improve their investing.
Landmark white papers – Settle into the hammock for some longer reads on big investment themes.
In 2023 we continued to publish landmark white papers, which provided investors with deep dives into our thinking on major investment themes.
As these themes continue to play out, particularly the rise of AI, these reports remain as relevant as ever.
In February we set the scene for a likely strong year for tech with our whitepaper Why reports of tech’s death are greatly exaggerated.
Our thesis played out strongly in 2023, with Amazon up 81%, Meta up 195% and Microsoft rising 58% for the year.
Much of our confidence in the strength of tech, of course, has been founded on the remarkable AI revolution.
Our white paper Why epoch-defining AI is today’s most important investment theme (and the safest way to profit) is a great read for investors who want to understand the AI revolution in a deeper way.
We provided a nice update on the AI white paper in a handy Q&A form in this article.
Another big theme in 2023 has been the emergence of a new market regime. In this environment, active management will be vital for investors hoping to reach their long-term financial goals.
In our whitepaper Concentrated, patient and disciplined: The 3 pillars of active management outperformance we examine the characteristics that you should be looking for in active managers.
These factors are deeply embedded in Montaka’s investment philosophy and process.
Here’s to another successful year
We wish everyone a safe and happy holiday season. Thank you for your support in 2023.
We look forward to everyone returning refreshed and revitalised for another great year.
Enjoy the reads.
To learn more about Montaka, please call +612 7202 0100.
Podcast: Join the Montaka Global Investments team on Spotify as they chat about the market dynamics that shape their investing decisions in Spotlight Series Podcast. Follow along as we share real-time examples and investing tips that govern our stockpicks. Click below to listen. Alternatively, click on this link: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/montaka
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Note: Montaka is invested in ServiceNow.