Monday, January 26, 2009

錢志健-金融圈內



Yes, besides money, we should also take care of ourselves, our family, our friends, as well as those in need.

Sunday, January 4, 2009

The Standard & Poor's Guide to Long Term Investing.



7 Keys to Building Wealth:
1. Pay Yourself First
  • save for investment before consumption. Hold Stock for the Long Term
3. Buy What You Know
4. Dollar Cost Average
5. Keep Your Costs Down
6. Know When to Sell
  • take objective look at investments periodically;
  • revisit if the reason you bought the stock originally still apply today;
  • look for red flag: decline of earnings or dividend growth; higher than average P/E; management change; weakening balance sheet; sharply falling stock price;
  • sell some of the shares if stock position is too large (e.g. >10% of portfolio);
  • consider stop-loss order 10-15% below current level
7. Start Now
  • enjoy the effect of compounding as soon as possible

Guide To Analysing Companies



A good revision for basic financial accounting concepts, ratio analysis, and interpretation skill of financial statements.

Monday, December 15, 2008

匯豐金融帝國



It is a brief history of HSBC.

Monday, November 10, 2008

How to Refine Your Stock Strategy



Fat-Pitch Strategy:
  1. look for wide-moat companies
  2. always have margin of safety
  3. don't be afraid to hold cash
  4. don't be afraid to hold relatively few stocks
  5. don't trade very often

Avoid behavioral finance like overconfidence, active trading, mental accounting

20 stock investing tips
  1. keep it simple (company with economic moats, margin of safety, long time horizon)
  2. have the proper expectation
  3. be prepared to hold for a long time
  4. tune out the noise (focus on company performance instead of market price)
  5. behave like an owner
  6. buy low, sell high (but how?)
  7. watch where you anchor (avoid behavioral finance)
  8. remember that economics usually trump management competence (economy is more important than management ability)
  9. be careful of snakes (poor management, principal-agency problem)
  10. bear in mind that past trends often continue
  11. prepare for situation to proceed faster than you may think
  12. expect surprises to repeat
  13. don't be stubborn (sell when you make mistake or situation not as expected)
  14. listen to your gut
  15. know your friends, and your enemies (who buy with or sell against you)
  16. recognize the signs of a top
  17. look for quality
  18. don't buy without value
  19. always have a margin of safety
  20. think independently


Graham's simple formula:
implied growth rate g = (P/E ratio - 8.5)*(1/2)*(100%)

Fisher's 15 points for growth stock
  1. does the company have products or services with sufficient market potential to make possible a sizable increase in sales for at least several years?
  2. does the management have a determination to continue to develop products or processes that will still further increase total sales potentials when the growth potentials of current attractive product have largely been exploited?
  3. how effective are the company's research-and-development efforts in relation to its size?
  4. does the company have an above-average sales organization?
  5. does the company have a worthwhile profit margin?
  6. what is the company doing to maintain or improve profit margin?
  7. does the company have outstanding labor and personnel relations?
  8. does the company have outstanding executive relations?
  9. does the company have depth to its management?
  10. how good are the company's cost analysis and accounting controls?
  11. are there other aspects of the business, somewhat peculiar to the industry involved, which will give the investor important clues as to how outstanding the company may be in relation to its competition?
  12. does the company have a short-range or long-range outlook in regard to profits?
  13. in the foreseeable future, will the growth of the company require sufficient equity financing so that the larger number of shares then outstanding will largely cancel the existing stockholders' benefit from this anticipated growth?
  14. does management talk freely to investors about its affairs when things are going well but "clam up" when troubles and disappointments occur?
  15. does the company have a management of unquestionable integrity?



Fisher's 3 reasons to sell a stock
  1. you have made a serious mistake in assessment of the company
  2. the company condition deteriorate
  3. could reinvest the money in another far more attractive company (but can you sure one good company is certainly better than another good one? )

Sunday, October 19, 2008

投資奇才曼格─巴菲特首席智囊



An interesting book describing the story of Buffett's best partner in Berkshire Hathaway, who is also a very disciplined value investor.

Tuesday, October 14, 2008

百年利豐-從傳統商號到現代跨國集團



a must read to understand the history & philosophy of Li&Fung (00494)