Archive for October, 2013
PREMIUM: DONALD YACKTMAN
A Great Investor Turns More Conservative
Donald Yacktman, President and Founder of Yacktman Asset Management runs two five-star funds. Both have beaten the markets and their peers by wide margins over the years. This past Morningstar Stock Fund Manager of the Year explains while his approach to picking stocks has stayed the same, his current strategy is changing.
[bliptv id=”h9RKg5flWwA”]WEALTHTRACK Episode #1019; Originally Broadcast on November 01, 2013
Listen to the audio only version here:
Donald Yacktman
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We have compiled additional information and content related to this episode.
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[wptabtitle]Guest Info[/wptabtitle]
[wptabcontent]DONALD YACKTMAN
Portfolio Manager
The Yacktman Fund[/wptabcontent]
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Bull or Bear? To taper, or not to taper? Despite the constant back and forth, the S&P 500 is up 160% from its 2009 12-year low. It’s been a near historic high for 5 years. Former Merrill Lynch strategist turned successful money manager, Richard Bernstein told a small audience this week that this could be the greatest bull market of our generation. Recent WEALTHTRACK guest and former Merrill chief economist David Rosenberg, who now hangs his hat at Gluskin Sheff’ as their chief economist and strategist, has been getting flack for moving to a more bullish stance. For years he has been known for his prescient warnings about serious economic and market risks. He explained his shift to us on WEALTHTRACK three weeks ago. The Wall Street Journal recently covered the back lash he has gotten from some of his followers in its article “Top Bear’s Bullish Tilt Has Followers Growling.”
Bernstein and Rosenberg are not alone in seeing strength where there was once weakness. Another highly respected economist and strategist Ed Yardeni recently wrote about a possible market melt-up. Yardeni pointed out that in recent weeks, “The stock market continues to make new record highs, led by stocks with above-average P/E’s.” If you look at market performance year-to-date, there is a big difference among small, mid-sized and large company stocks. Small cap stocks have outdistanced midcap and both have raced ahead of large cap. Yardeni also notes that the pattern of outperformance among smaller company stocks is fairly uniform across different sectors and industries whether its energy, health care or consumer staple stocks.
This week’s WEALTHTRACK guest is tracking these developments and paying particular attention to the divergence in performance. He is value investor Donald Yacktman, President and founder of Yacktman Asset Management and co-portfolio manager of the 20-plus year old Yacktman Fund and the younger Yacktman Focused Fund. Both are rated five-star by Morningstar and have beaten the markets and their peers by wide margins over the years. Yacktman is also a past Morningstar Stock Fund Manager of the Year award winner and a finalist for Morningstar Stock Fund Manager of the Decade.
The last time I interviewed him in January of 2012, he described the values in the market as “amazing.” After the big run up since then he has turned more cautious and is making some changes.
We were delighted to have taped another episode of WEALTHTRACK at the Museum of American Finance, located at 48 Wall Street. It is a must-visit destination for those interested in the amazing financial history of this country and the foundation of our phenomenal economic success.
Have a great weekend and make the week ahead a profitable and a productive one.
Best regards,
Consuelo
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VISIT THE MUSEUM OF AMERICAN FINANCE
Located at 48 Wall Street, the Museum features a collection of historic documents, including bonds signed by George Washington and other founding fathers
[/wptabcontent] [wptabtitle]One Investment[/wptabtitle] [wptabcontent]YACKTMAN: “PUT IN DRAWER” INVESTMENT
Coca-Cola Co. (KO)
Price: $39.62 on 10/30/13
52-week range: $35.58 – $43.43
[/wptabcontent] [wptabtitle]Stock Mentions[/wptabtitle] [wptabcontent] Coca-Cola Co. (KO)
News Corporation (NWSA)
Viacom Inc. Class B (VIAB)
Procter & Gamble Co. (PG)
Microsoft Corporation (MSFT)
Oracle Corporation (ORCL)
PepsiCo Inc. (PEP)
Yacktman, the legendary founder of the 5 star rated Yacktman and Yacktman Focused Funds recently promoted a long time co-portfolio manager of both funds to his former Chief Investment Officer role. The portfolio manager just happens to be his son Stephen who has been with the firm for 20 years.
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Donald Yacktman from the Archives
January 27, 2012
Great Investor Don Yacktman, founder and co-manager of the Yacktman Fund tells us how he continues to beat the overall stock market landing in the top one percent of all large cap mutual funds over the past one, three, five and ten year periods. Such outstanding performance was recently recognized by Morningstar, the mutual fund rating firm, that nominated Yacktman for Domestic Manager of 2011.
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June 18, 2010
Don Yacktman explains how his penny pinching ways have translated into exceptional long-term returns for investors in his five star Yacktman Funds.
MARTIN WHITMAN: “SECOND CLASS” ROOTS
Third Avenue Management’s Founder and Chairman Marty Whitman has had enormous professional success as a deep value investor, but as a Jewish kid from the Bronx he once described feeling like a second class citizen for the first half of his life. How that has influenced him? We asked him.
THINK SAFE AND CHEAP
Whitman’s Basic Investment Rules: Buy Safe and Cheap
Safe = Financially Strong Company
Cheap = Buy at 30%+ discount to net asset value
MARTIN WHITMAN: THEY JUST DON’T GET IT!
They Just Don’t Get It! That’s the view of legendary deep value investor Martin Whitman, Founder and Chairman of Third Avenue Management. In this exclusive interview taped at the Museum of American Finance, Whitman takes on Congressional and Wall Street ignorance about debt, credit worthiness, and earnings. Whitman will also discuss his long term mantra, to buy “safe and cheap” stocks, and his four elements to getting growth at dirt cheap prices. Continue Reading »
PREMIUM: MARTIN WHITMAN
They Just Don’t Get It!
That’s the view of legendary deep value investor Martin Whitman, Founder and Chairman of Third Avenue Management. In this exclusive interview taped at the Museum of American Finance, Whitman takes on Congressional and Wall Street ignorance about debt, credit worthiness, and earnings. Whitman will also discuss his long term mantra, to buy “safe and cheap” stocks, and his four elements to getting growth at dirt cheap prices.
[bliptv id=”h9RKg5ehFAA”]WEALTHTRACK Episode #1018; Originally Broadcast on October 24, 2013
Listen to the audio only version here:
Martin Whitman
Explore This Episode
We have compiled additional information and content related to this episode.
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[wptabtitle]Guest Info[/wptabtitle]
[wptabcontent]
MARTIN WHITMAN
Founder and Chairman
Third Avenue Management[/wptabcontent]
[wptabtitle] Newsletter[/wptabtitle]
[wptabcontent]How do you feel about activist investors? PIMCO’s Bill Gross came out swinging in a tweet today criticizing legendary activist Carl Icahn for lobbying Apple to buy back more stock. Here’s the tweet:
Gross: Icahn should leave #Apple alone & spend more time like Bill Gates. If #Icahn’s so smart, use it to help people not yourself.
What got Bill started? An Icahn letter to Apple CEO Tim Cook published today and a TV interview on Bloomberg television. Here’s a link to a story about the controversy. It quotes Warren Buffett on the topic as well.
We have an exclusive interview this week with a Great Investor who knows a thing or two about activist investing, but has hung up his spurs in that area and is now focusing on buying stocks that are “safe and cheap” on their own.
He is legendary deep value investor, Marty Whitman. Whitman is the Founder and Chairman of Third Avenue Management, where he made a reputation for himself as a skillful investor in distressed debt. One of his most famous early investments was buying Penn Central mortgage bonds during its bankruptcy in the 1970’s. Since then Whitman and his team have decided to focus on financially strong companies whose stocks are selling at deep discounts. He jokes that instead of GAAP- Generally Accepted Accounting Principles – his analytical approach is GADCP- Growth At Dirt Cheap Prices!
Until March of 2012, Whitman was portfolio manager of the flagship Third Avenue Value Fund which he started in 1990. During his tenure, the fund outperformed the markets by a wide margin. Now in his late 80’s, Whitman still goes to work every day and is an active investor and mentor to his staff. For over 30 years he was a Distinguished Management Fellow at the Yale School of Management. He has taught securities analysis at Columbia Business School and his alma mater, Syracuse University which named its business school, the Whitman School of Management, in his honor.
Whitman is the author of several books. His most recent is Modern Security Analysis, co-authored with value investor, Fernando Diz. In it they take on two pillars of Wall Street thought, modern capital theory, at its simplest the theory that markets are efficient, and Graham and Dodd’s classic approach to analyzing stocks. Whitman maintains both were shown to have serious shortcomings during the financial crisis. He will talk about what those flaws are and what should replace them.
We were delighted to be taping at the Museum of American Finance where we did a live event with Whitman for members. Located at 48 Wall Street, it is a must visit destination for those interested in the amazing financial history of this country and the foundation of our phenomenal economic success.
If you are a PREMIUM subscriber you can see both the show and our EXTRA session with Whitman starting this evening. You will get a more personal sense of the man and his approach to life and giving in EXTRA. Otherwise it will all be available on our website beginning tomorrow evening.
Have a great weekend and make the week ahead a profitable and a productive one.
Best regards,
Consuelo
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Whitman’s Basic Investment Rules: Buy Safe and Cheap
Safe = Financially Strong Company
Cheap = Buy at 30%+ discount to net asset value
WHITMAN: COMFORT REAL ESTATE
Brookfield Asset Management Inc. Class A (BAM.A)
Price: $42.12 on 10/24/13
52-week range: $32.56-$42.27
“I know the culture, intimate with the people and we do much together while I can’t say the same about Hong Kong and China, though it’s not that bad. One of the things about Hong Kong, all of these companies are controlled by billionaires, and one of the things Hong Kong billionaires insist on doing is come to New York. We send someone over to Hong Kong once a month, but these companies keep visiting us, so you get a good sense, but I can’t get the same comfort that I get with Brookfield and Bruce Flatt and all my friends over there.”
– Marty Whitman
[/wptabcontent] [wptabtitle]Stock Mentions[/wptabtitle] [wptabcontent] Wheelock & Company, Ltd. ADR (WHLKY)Henderson Land Development Co., Ltd. ADR (HLDCY)
Cheung Kong Holdings, Ltd. ADR (CHEUY)
Hang Lung Group Ltd. ADR (HNLGY)
Lai Sun Garment (International) Ltd. (sold in Hong Kong)
Brookfield Asset Management (BAM.A)
[/wptabcontent] [/wptabs] WEB EXTRA: MARTY WHITMAN: A PHILANTHROPIST IN THE MAKING
Great Investor Marty Whitman tells how a Jewish kid growing up in the Bronx now focuses all his philanthropy on oppressed minorities, including scholarships for Palestinian students.
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Martin Whitman from the Archives
October 10, 2008
Surviving the world’s financial crisis. Central banks around the world are responding aggressively with rate cuts and intervention. What can individuals do to protect themselves and position their portfolios for future profits? Two veteran value investors – legendary portfolio manager Marty Whitman, founder of the Third Avenue Funds and Hersh Cohen, chief investment officer of Clearbridge Advisors will guide us. Plus long-time friend and colleague of Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke, NYU Economics Professor Mark Gertler, will explain the immediate and long term impact of the global financial rescue efforts.
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