3 Things to Consider Before Buying A Moat


Capital Allocation, Compounder, Moat, Valuation

Not all moats are the same. Some moats are wider but not as durable, while others might be durable but have little growth opportunities. The 3 things that determine the attractiveness of a moat and how much the business is worth are its return on capital, durability, and reinvestment opportunities.  Return on Capital Return on […]

3 Types of Capital Allocation Moats


Analysis, Capital Allocation, Compounder, Moat

I previously wrote about the 7 types of moats of quality companies. Another way to look at moats is from a capital allocation perspective. A few years ago, Connor Leonard from IMC made a wonderful presentation on 3 types of capital allocation moats: Legacy moat Reinvestment moat Capital-light compounder Legacy moat is companies that earn […]

Supply – How to find quality businesses


Compounder, Moat, Scale Economies, Value Creation

What differentiates a good business that earns a long-term above-average return from a mediocre business that, at best, only earns a return close to its cost of capital? A good business can control its supply while a mediocre business can’t.  Take Ferrari. Ferrari has a 24% operating margin with above-average return on capital, higher than […]

10 Lessons on Moats


Capital Allocation, Compounder, Moat, Strategy

Moat is independent of market size The common misunderstanding for moat like scale economies is that it only exist in large markets. While a company has to reach a certain size to achieve scale advantage, it is in relative to the size of its competitors, not the size of the market. A company that is […]

Is Dividend the Right Strategy for You?


Compounder, Dividend, Value Creation

Since 1930, dividend has been responsible for 42% (on S&P 500) of the stock market return so there’s little surprise that it is one of the main criteria we look for when picking stocks. However, in investing, everything involves an opportunity cost. So the question to ask is – Is focusing on dividend as a […]