Friday, August 28, 2015

The Diamond Age

I don't read fiction very often, and yet some of my favourite books are fictional (e.g. Animal Farm, The Goal), so I like to throw one in there every now and then. The Diamond Age is a Peter Thiel recommendation that explores a great deal of themes.

Friday, August 21, 2015

Rayonier's Loss, But Whose Gain?

In dramatic fashion, Mr. Market took Rayonier (RYAM) to the woodshed over the last two days. The beating reduced RYAM's market cap by about 50%, or over $300 million. The reason: RYAM's largest customer is trying to get out of a fixed-price contract that doesn't end until 2018. What I find interesting is that this money that disappeared from Rayonier's market cap should show up somewhere else, but it doesn't!

Thursday, August 20, 2015

Innovation and Entrepreneurship

One of my favourite writers about business is Peter Drucker. He was a true innovator, as the field was pretty barren when he first started writing on the topic. In Innovation and Entrepreneurship, he tries to codify how successful new businesses can be created.

Monday, August 17, 2015

OTC Filings: Instantaneous

Many companies don't file with the SEC, but publicize their results nonetheless. These OTC filings are now available instantaneously on conferencecalltranscripts.org. As such, you can now receive a notification/alert as soon as a company you follow comes out with new results.

Friday, August 14, 2015

Sell Sell Cel!

Just three months ago, I discussed Cellcom as a potential value investment. The company was a market leader in an industry where market leadership has a strong advantage thanks to the economies of scale of network effects. The company was undergoing an industry price war, however, which made its price take a dive from the top rope.

Tuesday, August 11, 2015

Setting The Table

The restaurant business is a difficult one in which to develop a moat. You can't patent a flavour or a way of doing things, and you can't prevent the competition from opening next door. Customers are in no way tied to your restaurant just because they came once. As such, it's no surprise that so many restaurants close (60% in the first three years, according to research cited here). But Danny Meyer has bucked this trend, having successfully grown several restaurants, including the famous Shake Shack. In Setting The Table, he discusses his formula for success.

Tuesday, August 4, 2015

We Learn Nothing

Tim Kreider is a cartoonist for the NY Times, among other media. In We Learn Nothing, he looks back on his life. But the book is not so much an autobiography, as it is a sequence of chapters dedicated to specific times or moments in his life.