Scorecard # 37 – The Golden Rule
“Buy quality companies when they are on sale. Avoid leverage, folly and big mistakes that set you back. It is simple, but not easy.”
Scorecard # 35 – Realpolitik
“No Chinese leader has ever abandoned the insistence on ultimate unification [of Taiwan] or can be expected to do so. No foreseeable American leader will jettison the American conviction that this process should be peaceful or alter the American view on the subject”.
Henry Kissinger, On China (1)
Scorecard # 34 – Bedrock
Trying to predict and successfully time when the next storm will arrive is not a substitute for sturdy construction. Financial storms tend to arrive with little warning. The key to resilience is to know that they will inevitably come and to prepare in advance.
Scorecard # 33 – Value Returns
During the quarter we initiated a position in TVA Group (TSX:TVA.B). Based in Quebec, the company is a leading broadcaster and owner of specialty channels targeting the French-Canadian audience.
Scorecard # 32 – The Other Virus
…when we see foolishness all around us, we remind ourselves that we are investors. Not speculators, investors. Value will once again have its day. It always does.
Scorecard # 30 – Flashback
“As Mark Twain so aptly put it, history doesn’t repeat itself, but it often rhymes. The current market environment — especially in certain tech stocks — reminds us a little of the late ‘90s stock market.
Scorecard # 29 – The Bear
COVID-19 pulled a bear market out of hibernation and humanity took its place.
Scorecard # 28 – Momentum
“This past year was our eighth consecutive year of positive returns. Our two biggest contributors to the portfolio in 2019 were our investments in Apple +58.8% (AAPL) and Facebook +56.6% (FB), both of which were purchased during the Q4 2018 selloff. Just a few meaningful and timely decisions can make a big difference to portfolio returns.”