Shows
Compounders PodcastDemocratizing Access to Private Real Estate with Matt Blair, CEO of REI Capital ManagementMy guest on the show today is Matt Blair, the co-founder and CEO of REI Capital Management. Private real estate has been an asset class that has performed well over many years—but has largely been inaccessible to the average individual investor. In co-founding REI, Matt has the goal of democratizing access to private real estate investments. In this enlightening conversation, Matt and I discussed:
How retail investors can typically access private real estate investments today;
Why REI has gone through a lengthy SEC process to try to expand access to private real estate;
The investment strategy REI is...2025-05-2759 minCompounders PodcastInvesting in Growing Cash Cows with Tim Call, President and CIO of The Capital Management CorporationOur guest on the show this week is Tim Call, the President and CIO of The Capital Management Corp., a long-only investment firm that focuses on cash cows. The firm has been around since the 1960s and has remarkable client retention numbers. In this enlightening conversation, Tim and I covered:
The lasting legacy of the firm;
What a cash cow means to CMC;
Why they think SMID cap is a great place to be investing;
The philosophy surrounding portfolio concentration; and
How to get the most out of a small investment team.
For more information about The...2025-03-241h 03Compounders PodcastBuilding a Moat Around Sky Harbor Group with Tal Keinan, CEO of Sky Harbor Group (NYSE American: SKYH)My guest on the show today is Tal Keinan, the CEO of Sky Harbor Group, a publicly traded developer and operator of airplane hangars. Before conducting the interview, I had the opportunity to learn a lot about Sky Harbor from an investor friend who owns the stock and knows the company as well as just about anyone on the planet. That led to a deep, rich conversation where we covered:
The process by which Sky Harbor became public;
Whether Sky Harbor is a real estate company, an operating company—or both;
An overview of the supply and demand dy...2025-03-031h 04Compounders PodcastEmploying an Investigative Journalist's Process within an Investment Firm with Tania Pouschine, Founder & Portfolio Manager of FithianMy guest on the show today is Tania Pouschine, the Founder and Portfolio Manager of Fithian. I reached out to Tania to have her on the podcast after I heard from an allocator friend that Fithian employed one of the most unique and differentiated investment processes in the public equity space. With that as the backdrop, I was excited to speak with Tania—who was formerly an investigative journalist—about:
The circumstances surrounding the founding of Fithian in 2016;
How being an investigative journalist informs her investment process;
Fithian's perspective on what performing deep due diligence on companies actually look...2025-02-111h 11Compounders PodcastAssessing Capital Allocation Prowess with Kevin Fogarty and Brent Robinson, Value Creators CapitalMy guests on the show today are Brent Robinson and Kevin Fogarty of Value Creators, a US-focused public equity firm that has a long track record of success. After working together for a number of years at Dupont Capital Management, Brent and Kevin helped found Value Creators in 2023. When I heard about the proprietary process the firm uses to assess capital allocation, I knew I had to have them on the podcast. In this fascinating conversation, we covered:
The long history the Value Creators team has together;
The circumstances surrounding the founding of the firm;
How they assess...2025-01-291h 06Compounders PodcastAligning Home Sellers with their Real Estate Agents with Nic Johnson, Founder of ListwiseMy guest on the show today is Nic Johnson, the founder of Listwise, a company that is trying to revolutionize how residential brokers get paid when helping clients sell their homes. After spending many years at PIMCO as a portfolio manager, Nic founded Listwise in 2022 to help create better alignment between home sellers and their brokers. In this wide-ranging discussion, we covered:
What led Nic to start Listwise;
The problem associated with selling a home that the company is attempting to solve;
How Listwise incentivizes brokers to get the highest price for a seller;
Common mistakes homeowners make...2025-01-221h 05Compounders PodcastWhy Moats Matter with Todd Wenning, President and CIO of KNA CapitalMy guest on the show today is Todd Wenning, the President and CIO of KNA Capital. Many of our listeners might have come across Todd’s excellent discussions of moats during his time at Morningstar and Ensemble Capital—or on his Substack Flyover Stocks. Todd founded KNA Capital earlier this year and I was eager to speak with Todd about:
What pushed him to start his own firm;
Why economic moats are so important to him and his process;
How he decided on the right level of concentration;
What he finds so valuable about the process of teaching unde...2025-01-1359 minCompounders PodcastTurning Over as Many Rocks as Possible with James Emanuel, Author of "Fabric of Success"My guest on the show this week is James Emanuel, a private investor and the founder of Rock & Turner. James has thought deeply about many aspects of the investment world—and is an active writer on his Substack as well as being the author of a number of books. In this deep conversation, we discussed:
What led James to focus on investing full time;
Why he decided to run what is essentially an all-cap global strategy;
The reasons he has such a negative opinion of dividends;
Why he calls stock-based compensation the most abused aspect of corporate finance; an...2024-12-051h 01Compounders PodcastHunting for Undervalued Compounders in Asia with Dan Rupp, Founder and CIO of Parkway CapitalMy guest on the show today is Dan Rupp, the Founder and CIO of Parkway Capital. After spending many years at a very well-known, Asia-focused investment firm called Overlook, Dan founded Parkway Capital to take advantage of some of the less liquid and smaller-cap opportunities he was consistently unearthing. Dan is the first Asia-only investor we have had on the podcast, and I was excited to speak with him about:
The types of opportunities he thought he could invest in with a smaller capital base;
How he is building his team and his asset base;
The Parkway portfolio...2024-11-201h 05Compounders PodcastFrom Kroger and Wal-Mart to Running a MicroCap Company with Bill Bennett, CEO of Innovative Food Holdings (OTCQB: IVFH)My guest on the show today is the Bill Bennett, the CEO of Innovative Foods Group. After a number of years for working for big companies like Wal-Mart and Kroger, Bill became the CEO of Innovative Foods in early 2023. Since that time, he has been leading an aggressive business improvement plan that has started to bear fruit. In this conversation, we covered:
What initially attracted Bill to the company and the CEO role;
Where Innovative Foods plays within the specialty foods subsegment of the massive foodservice industry;
The divestitures the company has made to simplify the business;
The...2024-11-121h 06Compounders PodcastMicroCaps with Durable Cash Flow Streams with Adam Wilk, Founder and CIO at Greystone Capital ManagementMy guest on the show today is Adam Wilk, the Founder and CIO of Greystone Capital Management. Adam is a savvy microcap investor who prefers to run a very concentrated portfolio. In this in-depth conversation, we covered:
How Adam applies learnings from being an NBA scout to the investing realm;
Why he has chosen to own so few companies;
The types of microcap companies that Adam gravitates toward;
His approach to assessing management teams; and
What it was like starting a new firm in March of 2020.
For full disclosure, Adam mentioned a number of securities on this...2024-10-161h 02Compounders PodcastTackling an Underdiagnosed Disease State with Jim Cunniff, President and CEO of Electromed (NYSE American: ELMD)My guest on the show today is Jim Cunniff, President and CEO of Electromed, Inc. (NYSE American: ELMD). Electromed is best known for its main products, the SmartVest, a medical device that helps people with a chronic lung condition breathe easier and have a better quality of life. After working at Baxter and Stryker, Jim became CEO in 2023 and has brought a new level of focus and urgency to the Electromed. In this conversation, covered:
Why Jim decided to take the CEO role at Electromed;
What is special about the SmartVest, as well as the drivers of growth;
...2024-10-091h 02Compounders PodcastAntifragile Businesses with the Most Upside with Jim Edwards, Founder and Managing Partner of Maestria PartnersMy guest on the show today is Jim Edwards, the founder and managing partner of Maestria Partners. Jim spent a number of years working for big university endowments until launching Maestria in 2023. Jim is a fundamental investor at heart who thought deeply about how to differentiate his firm before going out on his own. In this wide-ranging conversation, we discussed:
Jim’s journey from the allocator world to launching his own investment firm;
What he learned about differentiation and best practices during his time as an allocator;
The types of business models he gravitates toward;
His approach to va...2024-09-121h 04Compounders PodcastBuilding a Company with a Growth Mindset with Carl Herberger, CEO of Corero Network Security (LSE: CNS / OTCQB: DDOSF)My guest on the show today is Carl Herberger, the CEO or Corero Network Security. Carl joined Corero, a UK-listed microcap company, at an exciting time for the company. Cybersecurity is such a hot space that I was excited to speak with Carl about:
What he thought was so compelling about the opportunity to lead Corero;
Where the company’s products play in the cybersecurity ecosystem;
How a small company lands partnerships with well-known, large companies;
Ways in which AI is going to impact the cybersecurity market going forward; and
How he is currently balancing the tension between ac...2024-09-041h 09Compounders PodcastBuilding a Disruptive, Independent ETF Platform with Yuri Khodjamirian, CIO of Tema ETFsMy guest on the show today is Yuri Khodjamirian, the CIO at Tema. Tema is an innovative company that is trying to revolutionize the ETF industry. The company has a passion for providing investors, especially those in retail space, with access to institutional quality managers and strategies. In this in-depth discussion, we covered:
Tema’s mission at it relates to providing quality access to ETF strategies
How Tema is trying to differentiate its ETFs within a very crowded space
Why some prominent venture firms thought was so attractive about Tema to warrant an investment;
The strategy behind the Te...2024-08-081h 03Compounders PodcastThe Investment Case for Canadian MicroCaps with Mathieu Martin, Portfolio Manager of the Rivemont MicroCap FundMy guest on the show today is Mathieu Martin, the Portfolio Manager of the Rivemont Microcap Fund. Mathieu is a microcap specialist who focuses on Canadian stocks. I have personally become fascinated with the differences between the US and Canadian markets, and I was excited to talk to Mathieu about:
Where his love for microcap stocks began;
The level of inefficiency he sees within Canadian microcaps;
Why US-based investors don’t venture up to Canada as often as they should; and
What he learned after having a tough year in 2022;
Just how cheap Canadian microcaps are at the cu...2024-07-251h 05Compounders PodcastLearning from Markets in Chaos with Brendan Hughes, Author of "Markets in Chaos" and Investment Advisor at Lafayette InvestmentsMy guest on the show today is author and investor, Brendan Hughes. Brendan wrote a very interesting book entitled Markets in Chaos where he analyzed various boom-and-bust cycles that have happened over history. Brendan is also on the investment team at Lafayette Investments, a Maryland-based RIA. In this wide-ranging discussion, we covered:
The major lessons he learned from writing Markets in Chaos
Lafayette’s approach to security selection;
How he and his firm define a quality company;
Similarities and differences between today and the 1970s US energy crisis; and
Why he has a strong distaste for the value an...2024-07-1755 minCompounders PodcastBringing Institutional Quality Service to Wealthy Families with Chet Rastogi, Partner and Portfolio Manager of Heron Bay Capital ManagementMy guest on the show today is Chet Rastogi, Partner and Portfolio Manager of Heron Bay Capital Management. Chet is a seasoned investor who helps the firm run both its discretionary and systematic strategies. In this interesting conversation, we discussed:
Heron Bay’s definition of a quality company;
What it means to be a good steward of clients’ capital;
Why the firm employs both discretionary and systematic strategies;
How he thinks about concentration in both types of strategies; and
The case for continuing to run a microcap strategy
For more information about Heron Bay Capital Management, please visi...2024-06-251h 01Compounders PodcastInvesting with an Infinite Time Horizon with Bogumil Baranowski, Founder of Blue Infinitas CapitalMy guest on the show today is Bogumil Baranowski: author, podcast host and the Founder of Blue Infinitas Capital. Many people may know Bogumil for his excellent podcast, Talking Billions. However, as I turned the microphone around on Bogumil, I was interested in learning about his investment philosophy and approach. In this in-depth conversation, we covered:
The founding inspiration for Blue Infinitas Capital;
What types of clients he hopes to attract to his new firm
The types of companies Bogumil gravitates toward;
The value he derives from writing books; and
How you invest if you have an infinite...2024-06-191h 12Compounders PodcastFinding Value in Markets Other Investors Shun with Tom Bachrach, Principal at PFH CapitalMy guest on the show today is Tom Bachrach, the Principal at PFH Capital. Tom is an eclectic investor who travels around the world looking for mispriced smaller companies, especially those in markets that a lot of other investors shy away from. He also is willing to invest in sectors that other people shun for various reasons. With all of that as background, I was looking forward to chatting with Tom about:
The founding inspiration for PFH Capital;
The countries and markets he tends to gravitate towards;
What it means to seek companies with healthy financials;
Why he...2024-06-061h 17Compounders PodcastPower Laws and Public Markets with Meb Faber, Founder & CIO of Cambria Investment ManagementMy guest on this show today is Meb Faber, the CEO at Cambria Investment Management. Cambria manages a number of ETFs that in total have over $2 billion in AUM. Meb is also the host of an excellent podcast where he interviews people from all different corners of the investment world. I have been a listener of the podcast for years but recently realized that I knew a lot more about Meb the podcast host than I did about Cambria. Accordingly, I was interested to chat with Meb about:
Cambria’s journey to get to over $2 billion in AUM;
Wh...2024-05-311h 11Compounders PodcastSkin in the Game within MicroCap Companies with Whit Huguley, Portfolio Manager at River Oaks CapitalMy guest on the show today is Whit Huguley, the Portfolio Manager at River Oaks Capital. Whit is a microcap specialist who has been running this portfolio full time since early 2020. Whit puts together one of the most comprehensive quarterly letters I have ever seen—in many cases discussing all the companies in his portfolio. As I learned more about his process and philosophy I became curious about:
Why he first became interested in microcaps;
The checklist he uses to evaluate stocks;
His rationale for investing in small banks and financials;
Why he places so much value on tr...2024-05-221h 05
Planet MicroCap Podcast | MicroCap Investing StrategiesPlanet MicroCap Podcast: LIVE in VEGAS! with Artem Fokin (Caro-Kann Capital), Ben Claremon (Devonshire Partners), Sam Namiri (Ridgewood Investments), Michael Liu (Intelligent Fanatics Capital)PANEL: “Planet MicroCap Podcast: LIVE” at the Planet MicroCap Showcase: VEGAS | April 30-May 2, 2024Watch on YouTube:Moderator: Robert Kraft, Planet MicroCapTwitter: https://twitter.com/BobbyKKraftParticipants:Artem Fokin, Caro-Kann CapitalWebsite: https://caro-kann-capital.com/Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/artem-fokin-1a5479/Sam Namiri, Ridgewood InvestmentsWebsite: https://ridgewoodinvestments.com/Twitter: https://twitter.com/snamiriMichael Liu, Intelligent Fanatics Capital ManagementWebsite: https://if.capital/Twitter: https://twitter.com/michael2017lBe...2024-05-2158 min
Planet MicroCap Podcast | MicroCap Investing StrategiesPlanet MicroCap Podcast: LIVE in VEGAS! with Artem Fokin, Ben Claremon, Sam Namiri and Michael LiuPANEL: “Planet MicroCap Podcast: LIVE” at the Planet MicroCap Showcase: VEGAS | April 30-May 2, 2024
Moderator: Robert Kraft, Planet MicroCap
Twitter: https://twitter.com/BobbyKKraft
Participants:
Artem Fokin, Caro-Kann Capital
Website: https://caro-kann-capital.com/
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/artem-fokin-1a5479/
Sam Namiri, Ridgewood Investments
Website: https://ridgewoodinvestments.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/snamiri
Ben Claremon, Devonshire Partners
Twitter: https://twitter.com/BenClaremon
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ben-claremon/
Compounders: https://compounderspod.substack.com...2024-05-2158 minCompounders PodcastDigging for Tier One Quality MicroCaps with Maj Soueidan, Founder and Editor of GeoInvesting.comMy guest on the show today is Maj Soueidan, the Co-Founder of GeoInvesting. Maj is a microcap expert who has been investing in the space for over 30 years. Maj and his team are always searching for potential multi-baggers as they perform extensive research on top-tier microcap companies. Given how out of favor microcaps are at the moment, I was curious to speak with Maj about:
Why it has been so tough to be a microcap investor in recent years;
What he looks for when he is assessing management teams;
His approach to portfolio construction, especially given the illiquid...2024-04-171h 07Compounders PodcastEvangelizing The Human Capital Factor with Scott Colson, CIO of Irrational CapitalMy guest on the show today is Scott Colson, the CIO of Irrational Capital. Scott has partnered with well-known academic and author Dan Ariely to build indexes based on human capital assessment—and partner with asset managers to create ETFs--that are tied to a proprietary metric they call the Human Capital Factor. In this eye-opening discussion, we covered:
The founding of Irrational Capital and how Scott got involved;
The various ETFs that Irrational Capital has launched with Harbor Capital;
What types of companies score highly when it comes to the Human Capital Factor;
The simplicity of and alpha ge...2024-04-041h 05Compounders PodcastInvesting Behind the Tailwind of American Prosperity with Mac Sykes, Portfolio Manager of the Gabelli Financial Services Opportunities FundMy guest on the show today is Mac Sykes, the Portfolio Manager of the Gabelli Financial Services Opportunities Fund. Mac has been with Gabelli for over 15 years and runs a portfolio that is focused on the financial services industry. We haven’t had many chances to discuss banks on this podcast. So, I was excited to speak with Mac about:
The major tailwinds he and his team believer are supporting the companies in the portfolio;
How technology is transforming and impacting the incumbents in the financial services industry;
The future of Berkshire Hathaway as we approach an inevitable ch...2024-03-281h 06Compounders PodcastChanging the Way Men Think About Skin Care with Jen Yu and Alex Penfold, Co-Founders of Jaxon LaneMy guests on the show today are Jen Yu and Alex Penfold, the co-founders of Jaxon Lane, a beauty and skin care company they run as a husband and wife team. I have known these two for many years and am a user of their products. Jaxon Lane is known for its Bro Mask, a product whose goal it is to make healthy facial skin more accessible to men. In this wide ranging discussion, we covered:
The founding idea and story of Jaxon Lane;
How Jen and Alex figured out how to navigate a brand new industry;
The...2024-03-211h 02Compounders PodcastUsing Unit Level Economics to Invest in Retail and Restaurants with John Zolidis, President and Founder of Quo Vadis CapitalMy guest on the show today is John Zolidis, the President and Founder of Quo Vadis Capital. John is a consumer and retail specialist who manages money for clients and, harkening back to his sell-side days, offers single stock research to professional investors. Given all of the secular and cyclical factors that have impacted retail companies over the last decade, I was really looking forward to speaking with John about:
The unique return on capital lens that he approaches brick and mortar companies with;
How he structures an investment portfolio;
What people commonly get wrong about retail and...2024-03-131h 06Compounders PodcastThe Case for Making Reusable Digital Identities Ubiquitous with Jeff Schwartz, Founder & CEO of DentityMy guest on the show today is Jeff Schwartz, the CEO of Dentity. Jeff has a long track of success and has been the CEO of a number of public companies. Jeff’s newest venture is called Dentity, a company that is attempting to make digital identities ubiquitous across the internet. In this fascinating conversation, we discussed:
How a self-described “auto guy” got into the digital identity space;
The business model surrounding creating digital identities for people;
Why he enjoys building multi-sided markets from scratch;
The role that AI is going to play when it comes to demand for ve...2024-03-061h 08Compounders PodcastAssessing Manager Skill and Behavioral Alpha with Clare Flynn Levy, Founder & CEO of Essentia AnalyticsMy guest on the show today is Clare Flynn Levy, the Founder and CEO of Essentia Analytics. I met Clare several years ago when my prior firm worked with Essentia to help us improve our decision making. The process of having Essentia analyze past successes and mistakes was so insightful that I became a big fan of the product. Accordingly, when I reconnected with Clare recently, I was excited to speak with her about:
The founding inspiration for Essentia;
The concepts of Behavioral Alpha and of providing a helpful benchmark to managers;
Working with both managers and allocators...2024-02-291h 05Compounders PodcastCreating a New Financial Asset Class with Nick King, Co-Founder and CEO of VintMy guest on the show today is Nick King, the co-founder and CEO of Vint. Through Vint, Nick is on a mission to turn wine into a financial asset class. Nick was working on the buy-side at a value investment firm but left to work on Vint full-time in 2021. Since then, the company has gone through a rigorous SEC registration process and is now in position to offer investors the ability to participate in the returns available that come from owning wine. With that as a backdrop, I was eager to talk to Nick about:
The structural inefficiencies...2024-02-211h 06Compounders PodcastBuilding an Antifragile Investment Firm with Soo Chuen Tan, President at Discerene GroupMy guest on the show today is Soo Chuen Tan, the Founder and President at Discerene Group. Soo Chuen started the firm over 13 years ago with less than $100mm in assets. Since then, the firm has grown to manage over $2 billion in for clients. Discerene has one of the most compelling structures and relationships with its LPs of any public investing firm I know. I have had the privilege of listening to Soo Chuen speak on other podcasts and I was excited to chat with him on Compounders about:
How he managed to convince his LPs to provide...2024-02-071h 01Compounders PodcastThe Confidence Checklist with Corey Henegar and Jeff Fahrenbruch, Co-Portfolio Managers at Oakview Capital ManagementMy guests on the show today are Corey Henegar and Jeff Fahrenbruch, the co-portfolio managers at Oakview Capital. Oakview is an SEC-registered, Dallas-based investment firm that was started in 2010. Jeff and Corey bring a unique lens into value investing and I enjoyed talking to them about:
How decisions are made at Oakview given the co-PM structure;
The types of companies they look to invest in;
Portfolio construction, including position sizing;
How they use checklists within their process; and
Some of the unique metrics they use to determine business quality.
For more information about Oakview Capital Management, please...2024-01-311h 02Compounders PodcastThe Intersection of AI and Value Investing with Jim Falbe, Managing Principal, Portfolio Manager of Saguaro Capital ManagementMy guest on the show today is Jim Falbe, Managing Principal, Portfolio Manager at Saguaro Capital Management. After spending almost 8 years at Vulcan Value Partners, in 2021 Jim left to start Saguaro. The most unique thing about the Saguaro strategy is that it employs an internally-built AI system that helps with screening for stocks as well as with investment decision making. In this in-depth interview, we covered:
How Jim’s experiences at Vulcan have shaped his approach to starting Saguaro;
What the term AI actually means to Jim and Saguaro;
How the team members use AI now and how th...2024-01-241h 05Compounders PodcastThe Opportunity in Value-Add Multifamily Real Estate with Evan Curtis, Executive Director of Investments at Vanamor InvestmentsMy guest on the show today is Evan Curtis, the Executive Director of Investments at Vanamor Investments, a private real estate investment firm. Given the ongoing turmoil in the real estate market first caused by COVID and then exacerbated by the sharp rise in interest rates, I was excited to have Evan on as our first real estate-focused, private investor. In this wide-ranging conversation, we discussed:
The history of Vanamor, including the real estate verticals it has chosen to focus on;
What Evan has learned about investing through real estate cycles;
The opportunity set in investing in commercial...2024-01-101h 06Compounders PodcastMinority Growth Investing with Josh Collinsworth, Portfolio Manager at Nomadic Value PartnersMy guest on the show today is Josh Collinsworth, the Portfolio Manager at Nomadic Value Partners. Josh started Nomadic in 2019 after spending a number of years as an allocator. Josh is one of the most eclectic investors I know, and his understanding of the byzantine US healthcare system makes him my go-to investor when trying to navigate investments in that industry. In this enlightening conversation, we discussed:
Josh’s path from being an allocator to starting his own investment firm;
How he developed an expertise within healthcare;
Nomadic’s time horizon and how it compares to that of othe...2024-01-041h 17Compounders PodcastBuilding Permanent Wealth for Clients with Drew Estes, Portfolio Manager at Banyan CapitalMy guest on the show today is Drew Estes, the Portfolio Manager at Banyan Capital, a firm that has been around since the late-1980s. Drew joined Banyan in 2016 and then took control of the business in 2019. Drew has brought his own brand of long-term focus to build permanent wealth for the firm’s clients. In this engaging conversation, we covered:
The history of Banyan and how Drew came to control the firm;
Portfolio construction, including concentration and the ideal type of company;
Drew’s unique perspectives on client communications;
His affinity for insurance companies, including Berkshire Hathaway’s; and...2023-12-201h 05Compounders PodcastThe Business of Podcasting with Matt Reustle, CEO of ColossusMy guest on the show today is Matt Reustle, the CEO of Colossus. For anyone who is not familiar with the platform, Colossus is the home for a number of excellent podcasts, including Invest Like the Best, Founders, The Art of Investing and Business Breakdowns. Given my person experience with podcasts, I was really looking forward to learning from Matt about:
The economics of podcasting as a business;
Where the idea for Colossus came from;
How Matt and his partners decide which new podcasts to add to the platform;
Where we are in the maturation of the ad...2023-12-131h 12Compounders PodcastInvesting in Triple Threat Small Cap Companies with Jimmy Schwartz, Co-Founder and CIO of Harvey PartnersMy guest on the show today is Jimmy Schwartz, the Co-Founder and CIO of Harvey Partners. Jimmy founded the firm in 2006 with his partner, Jeff Moskowitz. Over the last 17 years, the firm has put up an enviable track record by focusing on stocks that other people neglect, as well as companies that are at an inflection point. In this enjoyable conversation, we covered:
The types of company-specific situations that get Jimmy excited;
How the firm sources companies that are at an inflection point;
How eclectic his portfolio is when it comes to the variety of companies;
How Harvey...2023-12-0657 minCompounders PodcastNever Get Complacent and Keep Changing with Aoifinn Devitt, CIO of Moneta GroupMy guest on the show today is Aoifinn Devitt, the CIO of Moneta, a wealth management firm with about 30 billion dollars of assets under management. Moneta has been around for over 150 years and has been an RIA since the late-1980s. The firm is 100% partner-owned and has grown to have over 400 employees. In this in-depth conversation, we discussed:
The general trends that having been driving clients towards RIAs and multi-family offices;
How Moneta approaches asset allocation for clients;
How Moneta differentiates itself from other large wealth management firms;
The use of outside managers versus leveraging internal investment strategies...2023-11-291h 03Compounders PodcastThe Evergreen Opportunity to Consolidate Dental Practices with Brandon Halcott, Co-Founder of Seva Dental TeamMy guest on the show today is Brandon Halcott, a true entrepreneur. Brandon founded a company called Tru Family Dental, which was a roll up of dental practices that was sold to a private equity owned dental company a few years ago. Now, Brandon is at it again but this time is focused on building both a dental practice platform and one dedicated to engineering and architectural firms. In this fast moving conversation, we discussed:
The journey that led to the founding of Tru Family dental;
The opportunity that still exists to consolidate dental practices;
What he finds...2023-11-221h 08Compounders PodcastConquering the Deli Aisle with Adam Michaels, Chairman & CEO of Mama’s Creations (NASDAQ: MAMA)My guest on the show today is Adam Michaels, the Chairman and CEO of Mama’s Creations, a $140 million market cap company that provides products to the deli aisle of large food retailers. Adam became CEO in 2022, after spending about 9 years at the large consumer packaging company, Mondelez. I met Adam at a recent investment conference and wanted to have him on the podcast to discuss:
Why he decided to take the role as CEO;
The playbook he has brought from Mondelez and its applicability at Mama’s;
Why there is such a large opportunity for the company to m...2023-11-151h 03Compounders PodcastCompanies with a Permanent Right to Win with Bo Knudsen, Managing Director of Global Equities at C Worldwide Asset ManagementMy guest on the show today is Bo Knudsen, the Managing Director of Global Equities at C Worldwide Asset Management. Many listeners may not be familiar with C Worldwide, but the Denmark-based firm manages over 20 billion dollars. Bo has been a portfolio manager since 1989 and has had his hand in some strategies that have generated incredible outperformance versus their benchmarks over long periods of time. In this insightful conversation, we discussed:
The characteristics of a typical C Worldwide compounder;
The investing culture that encourages employees to stay with the firm for decades;
His history with the company Novo...2023-11-011h 07Compounders PodcastWillingness to Fade the Prevailing Narrative with Tobias Carlisle, Founder and Managing Director of Acquirers Funds and Co-Host, Value After HoursMy guest on the show today needs no introduction. Tobias Carlisle, Founder and Managing Director of Acquirers Funds and Co-Host, Value After Hours. He manages two ETFs, a larger-cap deep value ETF with the ticker ZIG—and a smaller cap one with the ticker DEEP. He is the author of several books on value investing and is the co-host of the popular podcast: Value After Hours. You also may know him by his Twitter handle, Greenbackd. In this conversation, which started at a lunch table and continued in the podcast studio, we covered:
How he blends qualitative and qu...2023-10-251h 10Compounders PodcastConcentrating on Companies with Long Reinvestment Runways with Jeremy Kokemor, Founder of Right Tail CapitalMy guest on the show today is Jeremy Kokemor, the Founder of Right Tail Capital. After several buyside stints, including at T. Rowe Price, Jeremy founded Right Tail in 2022. Jeremy runs a concentrated portfolio of high-quality companies that just happen to be trading at large discounts to intrinsic value. In this wide-ranging conversation, we discussed:
Why he decided on the name Right Tail;
His definition of a quality company;
What concentration means to Jeremy and how that translates to position sizing;
The ways in which he has intentionally created alignment between himself and his investors; and
Stocks that...2023-10-181h 03Compounders PodcastOwn Stocks that are Working with Tyler Hardt, Senior Portfolio Manager at Seagate Capital ManagementMy guest on the show today is Tyler Hardt, the Senior Portfolio Manager at Seagate Capital Management. After spending about 9 years at Artisan Partners, Tyler decided to go out on his own and start his own firm in 2018. Tyler is an unabashed value investor who even wrote a book called, Value Investing: A Disciplined Framework. In this insightful conversation, we discussed:
The founding story of Seagate Capital and why Tyler felt like he was ready to be an entrepreneur;
How Tyler finds companies that both have sustainable competitive advantages and trade at reasonable valuations;
Why he decided to...2023-10-111h 07Compounders PodcastLong-Term Intrinsic Value Investing with Heather Brilliant, CEO of Diamond Hill Investment Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: DHIL)My guest on the show today is Heather Brilliant, the CEO of publicly traded company, Diamond Hill Investment Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: DHIL). Heather became CEO in 2019 after putting together an enviable resume of experiences at other investment firms. As of the most recent quarter, Diamond Hill had about $26 billion of assets under management, but still considers itself a boutique firm. In this holistic conversation, we discussed:
Heather’s experience becoming CEO right before the world shut down due to COVID;
Diamond Hill’s unique capital allocation strategy as relates to returning cash to shareholders;
How the firm differentiates its...2023-10-0456 minCompounders PodcastDemocratizing Philanthropy with Jake Wood, CEO of GroundswellMy guest on the show today is Jake Wood, the founder and CEO of Groundswell. Jake is a former Marine who founded a non-profit organization called Team Rubicon, which has over 100,000 volunteers located around the world. Jake stepped back from being Team Rubicon’s CEO in 2021 to start Groundswell, a company that is attempting to transform employee giving through the use of technology. My guess is that most people haven’t thought deeply about the nuances of employee giving or are familiar with what are known as Donor Advised Funds. But, when I had a chance to use the Grou...2023-09-0650 minCompounders PodcastBuy What You Can Predict with Joseph Shaposhnik, Portfolio Manager of the TCW New Americas Premier Equities FundMy guest on the show today is Joseph Shaposhnik, the portfolio manager of the TCW New Americas Premier Equities Fund. Joseph began managing the fund in 2015 and since then has assembled a concentrated portfolio of mostly US mid-to-large-cap stocks. Morningstar currently has a 4-star rating on the fund, which consists of a collection of high quality, recurring revenue businesses. In this conversation, we covered:
Why predictability of cash flows is so important to Joseph;
The rationale for having a heavy weighting in Constellation Software;
What he has learned about assessing management through his relationship with successful CEOs;
Why...2023-08-311h 06Compounders PodcastUnearthing Companies with Uniquely Supportive Cultures with Aaron Wasserman, Partner at Third Period CapitalToday’s episode is another in our series of interviews with emerging investment managers where we discuss how to build an investment firm that can compound. My guest on this show is Aaron Wasserman, a Partner at Third Period Capital. After a long and successful tenure at Baron Capital, in 2019 Aaron started Third Period, a long-only, global growth firm based in Los Angeles. Aaron believes he has cultivated an edge in identifying and owning companies with exceptional cultures—and he has engaged Wharton Professor and best-selling author Adam Grant to help widen his competitive advantage.
In this disc...2023-08-231h 05Compounders PodcastInvesting in Businesses that Create and Build Value with Sean Stannard-Stockton, President and CIO of Ensemble CapitalMy guest on the show today is Sean Stannard-Stockton, the President and CIO of Ensemble Capital, an investment and wealth management firm that has built up quite a following on social media as a result of its consistent output of thoughtful content. Sean and his team of analysts manage over a billion dollars in equities, consisting of a concentrated portfolio of super high-quality businesses. The team has developed a rigorous competitive advantage assessment process that is designed to identify only those companies with durable moats.
In this wide-ranging conversation, Sean and I discuss:
How Ensemble employs...2023-08-161h 09Compounders PodcastShooting for Hall of Fame Returns and World Class Service with Greg Dean, Langdon Equity PartnersToday’s episode is the next in our series of profiles of emerging investment firms. In these interviews, we dive deep into the various components of building an investment firm that can compound. Our guest on the show today is Greg Dean, the Founder and Lead of Investor at Toronto-based Langdon Equity Partners. Greg founded Langdon in 2021 after successful stints at Fidelity and Cambridge Global Asset Management. Langdon describes itself as an “active and engaged owner of world class smaller companies.” The firm has assembled concentrated portfolios of companies with enterprise values between $500 million and $5 billion that are cash genera...2023-08-091h 11Compounders PodcastClimate Impact Investing in Public Markets with Heather Beatty & Robin Kollannur, ScopeFour CapitalMy guests on the show to today are Heather Beatty and Robin Kollannur, the respective founder and Portfolio Manager of ScopeFour Capital. After a number of years working in business development at large investment firms, Heather started ScopeFour, a climate impact-focused firm, to take advantage of the investment opportunities associated with companies that are building impactful climate solutions. Robin has 30 years of experience in money management and has recently joined the firm to implement the ScopeFour process and vision.
In this extensive conversation, we discussed:
The founding of ScopeFour and the investing opportunity set;
The difference...2023-08-021h 02
Planet MicroCap Podcast | MicroCap Investing StrategiesBanks, Entertainment, Smallcap Value + “Quiet Compounders” with Ben Claremon, Host of the Compounders PodcastMy guest on the show today is Ben Claremon, Host of the Compounders Podcast. Ben and I have been in the lab focused on a re-imagining of the Compounders Podcast, and we’re finally ready to unveil some exciting new content on that podcast feed. I invited Ben on Planet MicroCap today to talk about what the new look Compounders Podcast is all about, plus: banks, entertainment industry, smallcap value, as well as what he describes as ”Quiet Compounders”. Be sure to subscribe to the Compounders Podcast audio feed which is available on Apple, Spotify or wherever you listen to podca...2023-08-0147 minPlanet MicroCap Podcast | MicroCap Investing StrategiesBanks, Entertainment, Smallcap Value + “Quiet Compounders” with Ben Claremon, Host of the Compounders PodcastMy guest on the show today is Ben Claremon, Host of the Compounders Podcast. Ben and I have been in the lab focused on a re-imagining of the Compounders Podcast, and we're finally ready to unveil some exciting new content on that podcast feed. I invited Ben on Planet MicroCap today to talk about what the new look Compounders Podcast is all about, plus: banks, entertainment industry, smallcap value, as well as what he describes as "Quiet Compounders". Be sure to subscribe to the Compounders Podcast audio feed which is available on Apple, Spotify or wherever you listen to po...2023-08-0147 minCompounders PodcastThe Underappreciated Power of Data Companies with Thomas Li, Co-Founder and CEO of DaloopaMy guest on the show today is Thomas Li, the co-founder and CEO of financial data company Daloopa. Daloopa is a private company that was founded by a group of former buy-side investment analysts who saw the opportunity to use technology to upgrade the research process at just about any type of investment firm; but with a specific focus on saving analysts and portfolio managers time. Just a few years into its journey, the company already has over 200 employees and has multiple offices around the world.
In this wide-ranging interview, Thomas and I discussed:
Where the...2023-06-131h 05Compounders PodcastBuilding the Modern Payments Network for Truckers with Aaron Graft, Founder & CEO of Triumph Financial (NASDAQ: TFIN)Our guest on the show this week was Aaron Graft, the Founder, Vice Chairman and CEO of Triumph Financial. Just as the impacts of the Great Financial Crisis were waning, Aaron led a team of people who took over a failed bank to create Triumph. Aaron has been CEO since the beginning and has been instrumental in transforming the bank into a transportation-focused industry leader. Specifically, Aaron has helped turn what was a small factoring business into a high margin one that buys $1 billion in invoices from truckers every month. In recent years, Aaron has turned his focus to...2023-03-071h 15
Planet MicroCap Podcast | MicroCap Investing StrategiesEp. 248 - Time to Look for “Fallen Angels” Stocks? with Fadi Diab (@TheGladiatorHC) and Billy Duberstein (Stone Oak Capital) [Planet MicroCap Podcast]For this episode of the Planet MicroCap Podcast, I spoke with Fadi Diab @TheGladiatorHC on Twitter and Billy Duberstein from Stone Oak Capital. We recently published the Q3 2022 issue of the Planet MicroCap Review magazine, which is now available on SCRIBD, ISSUU and Substack. The theme for this issue is "Time to Look for “Fallen Angels” Stocks?". According to the Planet MicroCap Index, from Jan 2022 to the end of Q3, MicroCaps are down 34.74%, not too far off from all major indices. Almost every MicroCap company you look at is down at least 30%-50% on average. As my friend and coll...2022-10-2556 minPlanet MicroCap Podcast | MicroCap Investing StrategiesEp. 248 - Time to Look for “Fallen Angels” Stocks? with Fadi Diab (@TheGladiatorHC) and Billy Duberstein (Stone Oak Capital)For this episode of the Planet MicroCap Podcast, I spoke with Fadi Diab @TheGladiatorHC on Twitter and Billy Duberstein from Stone Oak Capital. We recently published the Q3 2022 issue of the Planet MicroCap Review magazine, which is now available on SCRIBD, ISSUU and Substack. The theme for this issue is "Time to Look for “Fallen Angels” Stocks?". According to the Planet MicroCap Index, from Jan 2022 to the end of Q3, MicroCaps are down 34.74%, not too far off from all major indices. Almost every MicroCap company you look at is down at least 30%-50% on average. As my friend and coll...2022-10-2556 minCompounders PodcastThe Enduring Benefit of Running Permanent Capital Vehicles with Craig Packer, CEO of Owl Rock Capital Corporation (NYSE: ORCC)Our guest on the show today is Craig Packer, the CEO of Owl Rock Capital Corp, a 5.4 billion dollar market cap business development company that invests in middle market companies in the US. Craig is also the Chief Investment Officer of Owl Rock Capital, a New York-based direct lending platform with over 50 billion dollars of assets under management. This is the first business development company—or BDC for short—we have had on the podcast, so we wanted to make sure that we spent some time talking about BDCs in general and why Craig thinks they are an attractive niche...2022-09-081h 09Compounders PodcastConsolidating the Mechanical and Electrical Contracting Industries with Brian Lane, President and CEO of Comfort Systems USA, Inc. (NYSE: FIX)My guest on the show today is Brian Lane, the President and CEO of Comfort Systems, a 3.6 billion dollar market cap company that provides mechanical and electrical services, including installation, repair and maintenance, to customers in the US. Brian became CEO in 2011 and over the last 11 years, has overseen very impressive revenue growth and stock performance. The company has consistently made acquisitions over the last decade but still has a ton of white space left domestically. Given Comfort Systems’ track record and runway for future growth, it was great to talk with Brian about:
The company’s acquisition phil...2022-08-311h 11Compounders PodcastUsing Canvas to Ensure Access to Education for Everyone with Steve Daly, CEO of Instructure Holdings (NYSE: INST)Our guest on the show today is Steve Daly, the CEO of Instructure Holdings, a 3.6 billion dollar educational software company. After serving on the Board of the company, Steve became the CEO in late 2020, right in the middle of pivotal time for the company. Instructure’s core products consist of cloud-based learning management systems used by higher education and K through 12 schools all around the world. Listeners may not be familiar with Instructure, but the Canvas brand is likely something many people have heard of or even used.
In 2020, the COVID outbreak presented all kinds of challenges fo...2022-08-241h 09Compounders PodcastPutting the Customer First for 90 Years with Scott King, CEO, and Jeff Gorman, Executive Chairman of The Gorman-Rupp Company (NYSE: GRC)Our guests on the show today are Scott King and Jeff Gorman, the CEO and Executive Chairman of The Gorman-Rupp Company, a 700 million dollar market cap company that designs, manufactures, and sells pumps and pump systems to customers all over the world. 2022 has been quite an eventful for year for the company. Earlier in the year, Jeff Gorman stepped back to Chairman, allowing Scott to become the CEO, despite not having the Gorman last name. The company also completed a very large acquisition of a company called Fill-Rite. Given those events and all of the other challenges in the...2022-08-171h 03Compounders PodcastThe Building Blocks of a 100-Bagger with Chris Mayer, Portfolio Manager at Woodlock House Family Capital fundMy guest on the show today is Chris Mayer, the Portfolio Manager of the Woodlock House Family Capital fund and the co-founder of the firm. He is also the author of 100 Baggers: Stocks That Return 100-to-1 and How To Find Them. You will notice that we are doing something a little different with this episode. Chris is our first guest who is not an executive at a public company. But, since this podcast is called Compounders: The Anatomy of a Multibagger, we thought it would be great to have on the guy who literally wrote the book on finding 100...2022-05-1056 minCompounders PodcastRiding the Wave of Warehouse Outsourcing and Automation with Malcolm Wilson, CEO, and Mark Manduca, CIO, of GXO Logistics (NYSE: GXO)Our guests on the show today are Malcolm Wilson and Mark Manduca, the respective CEO and CIO of GXO Logistics. GXO is a 7-billion dollar market cap company that provides logistics services to companies around the world. The company was recently spun off from XPO Logistics and now has the freedom to invest aggressively to helps its customers with supply chain and warehouse automation. COVID, supply chain disruptions and rising labor rates around the world have made many companies start to think deeply about their supply chains and to consider outsourcing and automation. As such, given how well GXO...2022-04-271h 13Compounders PodcastDriving the Healthcare Industry to Embrace Non-Invasive Ventilation with Casey Hoyt, CEO of Viemed Healthcare, Inc. (NASDAQ/TSX: VMD)My guest on the show today is Casey Hoyt, the CEO of Viemed. Viemed is a 196 million dollar market cap company that provides in-home durable medical equipment (DME) and post-acute respiratory healthcare services to patients in the United States. The company has developed a specialty in providing non-invasive ventilation to patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease or COPD. Casey took over as CEO in 2017 and has helped the company grow its revenue meaningfully over that time, even accounting for the COVID headwinds the company has seen over the last few years. Given Viemed’s impressive recent track record and th...2022-04-131h 05Compounders PodcastJoining the Ranks of the Great Industrial Technology Companies with Tom Logan, CEO of Mirion Technologies, Inc. (NYSE: MIR)Our guest on the show today is Tom Logan, the CEO of Mirion Technologies. Mirion was founded in 2005 and Tom has been the company’s only CEO over that period of time. Mirion is a global leader in radiation measurement, serving end markets such as nuclear, life sciences, healthcare and industrial. Mirion recently became publicly traded via a SPAC, but unlike many other de-SPACed companies, Mirion has a long operating history and generates positive EBITDA. The company has had to weather a number of headwinds over Tom’s tenure, including the Great Financial Crisis, the Fukushima nuclear disaster in Japa...2022-04-061h 14Compounders PodcastCompounders: The Game Plan Moving ForwardWelcome to what I will call an update episode of Compounders. We are done with our executive interviews for Season 2. However, we are in the process of putting together a Season 2 recap show—similar to what we did for Season 1. Overall, we had a very eclectic mix of guest with some larger company CEOs and some smaller company CEOs. But the quality of the interview was really good in my humble opinion. The Joey Levin episode got the most engagement we have received for an interview. I think a lot of people discovered Compounders through that episode. Thanks for liste...2022-03-0902 minCompounders PodcastMonetizing a Library of Intellectual Property with Eric Ellenbogen, CEO and Vice Chair of WildBrain Ltd. (TSX: WILD)Our guest on the show today is Eric Ellenbogen, the CEO and Vice Chairman of WildBrain. WildBrain is a 500 million Canadian dollar market cap entertainment company listed on the TSX in Canada. The company operates through two segments, Content Business and Canadian Television Broadcasting, and through those develops, produces, and distributes films and television programs worldwide. WildBrain’s intellectual property includes well known characters such as Snoopy, Strawberry Shortcake and Inspector Gadget.
Eric became CEO during the summer of 2019, after being the Co-President of Classic Media at DreamWorks and having served as the CEO of Marvel before it...2022-03-011h 16Compounders PodcastWhy Viasat, Why Inmarsat, Why Now with Mark Dankberg, Co-Founder and Executive Chairman of Viasat, Inc. (NASDAQ: VSAT)Our returning guest on the show today is Mark Dankberg, the co-founder and Executive Chairman of Viasat. Viasat is a 3.1 billion dollar market cap company that provides broadband and communication products and services worldwide. Viasat started off a defense-oriented company but has since layered on consumer and business-facing offerings by developing the world’s leading high throughput geostationary satellites.
Subsequent to our first interview with Mark, Viasat announced its intent to merge with Inmarsat, a UK-based company that provides mobile satellite communications services on land, at sea, and in the air worldwide. Without question, the size and th...2022-02-221h 16Compounders PodcastReplay: Creating the Fastest Global Satellite Broadband Network with Mark Dankberg, Co-Founder and Executive Chairman of Viasat, Inc. (NASDAQ: VSAT)This week, we are replaying another one of our favorite episodes from Season 1. The reason is that we are about have the same guest on again to discuss a transformational merger the company announced after we released our interview. So, over the next two weeks we will have back-to-back episodes with Viasat’s Co-Founder and Executive Chairman, Mark Dankberg.
In the episode from last Season, Mark and I discussed the nuances of the very dynamic satellite broadband industry, including why satellite broadband is not likely to be a winner-take-all market as well as the value of having a h...2022-02-151h 20Compounders PodcastModernizing the Hospitality Management Software Industry with Ramesh Srinivasan, President and CEO of Agilysys, Inc. (NASDAQ: AGYS)Our guest on the show today is Ramesh Srinivasan, the CEO of Agilysys. Agilysys is a 900 million dollar market cap company that provides software and hardware products and services to the hospitality industry. Ramesh became CEO back in 2017, after a somewhat rocky turnaround attempt by a prior management team. Agilysys was starting to generate higher gross margins and revenue growth before the COVID outbreak impacted its trajectory, starting in the company’s fiscal year 2021. Given the recent challenges and with everything going on in the hospitality industry, I was eager to talk with Ramesh about:
The organic growth pa...2022-02-091h 09Compounders PodcastReplay: 30 Years of Investing as a Family with Tom Gayner, Co-CEO of Markel Corporation (NYSE: MKL)This week, we are replaying one of favorite episodes from Season 1. Due to the complexities that come with the upcoming Q4 earning reporting season, we needed to take a week off between new episodes. However, we will return the week after with a new interview with the CEO of an $800 million dollar market cap software company. Tom Gayner is the Co-CEO of Markel Corporation and the wisdom he shares on life and on investing is always eye opening and valuable. We interviewed Tom in August of last year for Episode 2 of Season 1. The Compounders audience has built since August...2022-02-011h 13Compounders PodcastSearching for Investments Where the Future is Obvious with Joey Levin, CEO of IAC/InterActive (NASDAQ: IAC)My guest on the show today is Joey Levin, CEO if IAC/Interactivecorp. IAC is a $12.4 billion market cap holding company that has a long history of investing in disruptive digital businesses, helping them grow, and then spinning them off to shareholders. In fact, the company’s Chairman, Barry Diller, has been influential in the success of a number of well-known public companies, including Expedia, TripAdvisor and LiveNation. In more recent times, the company has separated from Match Group and spun off Vimeo. Joey Levin has been CEO since 2015 and is tasked with creating value with the remaining group of...2022-01-2544 minCompounders PodcastBuilding a Major Global Production Studio with Jennifer Twiner McCarron, CEO of Thunderbird Entertainment (TSX-V: TBRD) (OTCQX: THBRF)My guest on the show today is Jennifer Twiner McCarron, the CEO of Thunderbird Entertainment Group (TSX-V: TBRD) (OTCQX: THBRF). Thunderbird is a 220 million Canadian dollar market cap company listed on the TSXV in Canada. The company develops, produces and distributes film and TV programs for customers such as Hulu, Disney and Netflix. Jennifer started off as the Head of Production of Atomic Cartoons, Thunderbird’s animation division, and became CEO in 2018. Since Jennifer joined the company in 2011, the content world has changed dramatically, mainly due to the proliferation of streaming services. Given the dynamic nature of the content pr...2022-01-181h 08Compounders PodcastSoftware-as-a-Service, Artificial Intelligence and Industry 4.0 with Daniel Harari, CEO of Lectra (FP: LSS)My guest on today’s show is Daniel Harari, the Chairman and CEO of Lectra. Lectra is a 1.5 billion Euro market cap company based in Paris, France. Lectra provides software, automated cutting equipment, and other services that enable customers to automate and optimize the design, development, and manufacturing of many different products. Specifically, the company has built a leading position in the automotive, fashion and furniture categories. Daniel has been the CEO of Lectra since 2002 and has overseen a significant amount of revenue and EBITDA growth during his tenure. Given the company’s track record, I was very interested to h...2022-01-111h 11Compounders PodcastBuilding the Largest Dental Supplier in the World with Stan Bergman, Chairman and CEO of Henry Schein (NASDAQ: HSIC)My guest on the show today is Stan Bergman, the Chairman and CEO of Henry Schein. Henry Schein is a Fortune 500, 10.6 billion dollar market cap, global distributor of medical and dental supplies and equipment. Stan has been CEO since 1989 and actually took the company public in 1995 for a split adjusted price of $6. From a revenue base of around 1 billion dollars in 1995, the company has grown to over $12 billion today and the stock price has appreciated to over $75. And, these numbers don’t even include the animal health business that was spun off in 2018. That company, Covetrus, currently has a 2.4 bi...2022-01-0459 minCompounders PodcastExecuting a Construction Services Roll-Up with Bruce Young, CEO of Concrete Pumping Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: BBCP)My guest on the show today is Bruce Young, the CEO or Concrete Pumping. The company has a 485 million dollar market cap and is the largest domestic player in a niche of construction-related services that is called concrete pumping. Bruce became CEO of the company back in 2008 but started his career in this industry way back in the 1980s. Concrete Pumping provides a high margin, mission critical service to its construction partners and has the ability to deploy capital at attractive multiples as it helps the industry consolidate further. Given that Concrete Pumping is rather new to public markets...2021-12-281h 01Compounders PodcastCapitalizing on 155 Years of Excellence in Coatings with Robert Bryant, CEO of Axalta (NYSE: AXTA)My guest on the show today is Robert Bryant, the CEO of Axalta Coating Systems. Axalta is a 7.6 billion dollar market cap company that manufactures and distributes high performance coatings that go into the industrial, automotive and refinish end markets. The company was originally a division of DuPont that was founded in 1866 but was carved out by private equity firm Carlyle—and then taken public in 2014. Axalta is the global leader in providing coatings to auto body repair shops and is a top 3 supplier to auto OEMs. The COVID-induced lockdowns and the subsequent supply chain issues—not to mention the...2021-12-211h 13Compounders PodcastCreating a Niche Global Franchise with Peter Holt, CEO of The Joint Corp. (NASDAQ: JYNT)My guest on the show today is Peter Holt, the CEO of The Joint Corp. The Joint is a 1.4 billion dollar market cap company that operates and franchises a chain of chiropractic offices. The company currently has over 600 total locations in about 35 states. Peter took the reins as CEO of The Joint in 2016 and has overseen a stock that has appreciate from under $3 in 2016 to over $90 today. In fact, the company was distinctly unprofitable when Peter became CEO but has since started generating very healthy margins with limited capital expenditures. Given all of the recent success, I was excited...2021-12-141h 12Compounders PodcastSpecialty Chemical Megatrends and Wide Moats with Ben Gliklich, CEO of Element Solutions, Inc. (NYSE: ESI)My guest on the show today is Ben Gliklich, the CEO of Element Solutions (Ticker: ESI), a 5.5 billion dollar market cap specialty chemicals company. Element Solutions was formerly known as Platform Specialty Chemicals and was founded by Martin Franklin of Jarden fame—with the help of Bill Ackman from Pershing Square. The company was designed to be a roll-up but, after some initial success, it was derailed by an over-levered balance sheet. Ben became CEO in 2019 and since then has overseen a process by which Element has reduced business complexity, fixed its balance sheet, and has proven out its cl...2021-12-071h 09
Planet MicroCap Podcast | MicroCap Investing StrategiesEp. 199 - Merger Arbitrage, Naked Wines and Value Traps with Luis Sanchez, Investor/Founder of LVS AdvisoryFor this episode of the Planet MicroCap Podcast, I spoke with Luis Sanchez, investor and founder of LVS Advisory; I was introduced to him by Ben Claremon, Host of the Compounders podcast (thank you Ben!). This was the first time I met with Luis and we chatted about a whole host of topics: his defensive portfolio strategy focused on merger arbitrages, growth portfolio philosophy, Naked Wines thesis, value traps and more! I really enjoyed meeting Luis and learning more about his investing approach. For more information about Luis Sanchez and LVS Advisory, please visit: https://l...2021-11-031h 14Compounders PodcastCompounders Season 1: Highlights, Lessons and TakeawaysDuring Season 1 of Compounders, we interviewed 12 public company executives from a variety of industries. The companies profiled ranged from two Fortune 500 insurance companies to a sub-$500 million market cap supplier to the medical device industry. In this episode, we discuss some of the key lessons and learnings from Season 1 by selecting our favorite vignettes from each episode. We also give a sneak preview of what is lining up to be an even better Season 2 of Compounders.
This episode of Compounders: The Anatomy of a Multibagger is sponsored by Tegus, an innovative and disruptive company that is changing...2021-11-0247 minCompounders PodcastPutting the Customer First for 25 Years with Jeff Bailly, Chairman and CEO of UFP Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ: UFPT)My guest on the show today is Jeff Bailly, the Chairman and CEO of UFP Technologies. UFP is a 480 million dollar market cap company that specializes in designing foams, films, and plastics materials for the medical, automotive, consumer, and aerospace markets in the United States. Jeff joined the company in 1988 and became CEO in 1995.
Jeff has been instrumental in helping turn UFP into the company it is today. After years of somewhat limited growth, UFP made its largest acquisition ever in 2018—of a company called Dielectrics--and that deal has transformed the company’s margin profile and growth traj...2021-10-261h 04Compounders PodcastAdapting to an Ever-Changing Media Landscape with Adam Symson, CEO of The E.W. Scripps Company (NASDAQ: SSP)My guest on the show today is Adam Symson, the CEO of E.W. Scripps. Scripps is a 1.45 billion dollar market cap company that owns and operates local and national television stations. The company was founded in 1878 and over the years has operated within a number of different media businesses. The company spun off its cable TV business, Scripps Networks Interactive, in 2008 and then exited the newspaper business in 2015. These transactions served to focus the company more on its local TV business.
However, since becoming CEO in 2017, Adam has led an aggressive acquisition campaign that has created...2021-10-191h 09Compounders PodcastLeading the Future of Waste Recycling with Brian Recatto, CEO of Heritage-Crystal Clean, Inc. (NASDAQ: HCCI)My guest on the show today is Brian Recatto. Brian is the CEO of Heritage-Crystal Clean, a 670 million dollar market cap company that provides cleaning and waste removal services to customers in the US. HCCI is one of the key competitors to Clean Harbors, a company whose CEO we also interviewed on this show. Specifically, Heritage operates in 2 segments: an Environmental Service division that offers parts cleaning and containerized waste management services; and an Oil Business segment that collects, re-refines and then re-sells used motor oil.
Brian took over the CEO role in 2017 and, aside from a...2021-10-121h 12
Planet MicroCap Podcast | MicroCap Investing StrategiesEp. 195 - Running Out of Gas? Thoughts on the Energy Crisis and Oil and Gas Markets with Josh Young, CIO of Bison InterestsFor this episode of the Planet MicroCap Podcast, I spoke with Josh Young. He is the CIO of Bison Interests. I recently met Josh at our last virtual event, when he participated on Ben Claremon's 10-K club panel and pitched SandRidge Energy - panel available on the SNN Network YouTube Channel. If you've been following Josh on Twitter, he has been very active discussing oil and gas investing, the energy crisis, rising gas prices; and I wanted to be more informed about what the heck is going on (gas ain't cheap here in Los Angeles). We not only go...2021-10-061h 22Compounders PodcastThe Next 50 Years in Western Florida with Jorge Gonzalez, CEO of The St. Joe Company (NYSE: JOE)My guest on the show today is Jorge Gonzalez, the CEO of The St. Joe Company. St. Joe is a 2.53 billion dollar market cap company whose main asset is a huge landholding in Northwest Florida. A lot of investors may remember that the company has been the subject of a number of short reports over the last decade but since Jorge became CEO in 2015, St Joe has consistently grown its revenue and EBITDA—and has diversified its revenue base. Also, after a period of time in which the stock was unable to break out, over the last year it ha...2021-10-051h 09Compounders PodcastCreating the Fastest Global Satellite Broadband Network with Mark Dankberg, Co-Founder and Executive Chairman of Viasat, Inc. (NASDAQ: VSAT)My guest on the show today is Mark Dankberg, the co-founder and Executive Chairman of Viasat. Viasat is a 3.8 billion dollar market cap company that provides broadband and communication products and services worldwide. Viasat started off a defense-oriented company but has since layered on consumer and business-facing offerings by developing the world’s leading high throughput geostationary satellites.
Over the next 2 years, Viasat will be launching 3 new satellites that will give the company the ability to offer global coverage to its military and in-flight WIFI customers. Additionally, Viasat is rolling out community WIFI initiatives to help people in...2021-09-281h 19Compounders Podcast40 Years of Moat Building with Alan McKim, Founder and CEO of Clean Harbors (NYSE: CLH)My guest on the show today is Alan McKim, the Founder, Chairman and CEO of Clean Harbors (NYSE: CLH). Clean Harbors is a 5.6 billion dollar market cap company that provides environmental and industrial services within North America. The company has two segments: Environmental Services and Safety-Kleen Sustainable Solutions. In the Environmental segment, Clean Harbors collects, treats and disposes of waste within its company-owned landfills and incinerators. In addition, the Safety-Kleen division provides cleaning and waste disposal services to customers such automotive repair shops. In fact, Clean Harbors is the largest recycler of used motor oil in North America.
2021-09-211h 07Compounders PodcastBuilding an Entertainment Software Powerhouse with Jeff Rosica, CEO of Avid Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ: AVID)My guest on this episode is Jeff Rosica, the CEO of Avid Technology, a 1.2 billion dollar market cap company that sells software and hardware for digital media production and management. For decades, Avid’s products have been considered the gold standard in the entertainment industry. In fact, its Media Composer and Pro Tools products are used to make many of the movies you see and to create the songs you listen to.
Jeff Rosica was Avid’s Chief Sales Office and became the CEO in 2018. Since then he has overseen the company’s transition to a SaaS, or sof...2021-09-141h 07Compounders PodcastApplying the John Malone Cable Playbook in Latin America with Mauricio Ramos, CEO of Millicom (NASDAQ: TIGO)My guest on the show today is Mauricio Ramos, the CEO of Millicom. Millicom is a 3.75 billion dollar market cap mobile and broadband company that primarily operates in Latin and South America. What is most interesting about Millicom is its leading positions in its largest markets and how rapidly the company is transforming itself into a broadband leader in the region.
Mauricio has been CEO since 2015 but has been involved with the industry since the late 1990s. Over his tenure, he has overseen the company’s ongoing exit from its African operations as well as its expansion th...2021-09-081h 06Compounders PodcastLeading the Used Car Auction Digital Revolution with Jim Hallett, Executive Chairman, KAR Auction Services, Inc. (NYSE: KAR)My guest on the show today is Jim Hallett, the former CEO and now Executive Chairman of KAR Auction Services. KAR is a $2.25B market cap company that operates within the wholesale auto remarketing industry. Jim is very well known in the used car auction industry and has built up a wealth of knowledge over his close to 30 years at KAR. He joined the company back in 1993, then became CEO in 2009 and just this past April stepped back to Executive Chairman.
During his tenure, Jim has overseen the company’s spin-off of IAA, which is now a $7.3B ma...2021-08-311h 03Compounders PodcastCreating a 100-Bagger with Sean O’Connor, CEO of StoneX Group Inc. (NASDAQ: SNEX)My guest on the show today is Sean O’Connor, the CEO of StoneX Group (NASDAQ: SNEX), a $1.2 billion dollar market cap financial services company that generated over $50 billion in revenue in fiscal year 2020. Sean became the CEO of International Assets Holding Company in 2002 and was a key architect of the 2009 transformational merger with FCStone that serves as the foundation of what StoneX is today. During his tenure, the company has been quite acquisitive and has added several new product lines and geographies. Currently, StoneX is involved in a number of businesses, including:
- Risk management and he...2021-08-241h 12Compounders Podcast30 Years of Investing as a Family with Tom Gayner, Co-CEO of Markel Corporation (NYSE: MKL)My guest on the show today is Tom Gayner, the co-CEO of Markel Corporation. Markel is a Fortune 500, $16.7 billion market cap financial holding company that primarily operates in the insurance and re-insurance industry. Though Tom has only been in the co-CEO seat since 2016, he has been with Markel for close to 30 years and he has been an investor longer than that. Markel has been compared to Berkshire Hathaway in both structure and performance and Tom has been a key architect of the company’s diversification away from insurance through the acquisition of operating businesses. In fact, Markel Ventures has go...2021-08-171h 12Compounders PodcastA Century of Wealth Creation with Weston Hicks, CEO of Alleghany Corporation (NYSE: Y)My guest on the show today is Weston Hicks, the CEO of Alleghany Corporation. Alleghany is a Fortune 500, $9.3B market cap company that focuses primarily on the insurance and re-insurance industry. Weston became CEO all the way back in late 2004 and since then, the company has grown its book value significantly and, like a mini-Berkshire Hathaway, has built up an interesting portfolio of non-insurance businesses that includes everything from a machine tool company to a toy company. And the Berkshire parallels don’t end there. Weston is a value investor at heart and is well known for his eclectic sh...2021-08-101h 15Compounders PodcastCompounders: The Anatomy of a Multibagger with Ben ClaremonWelcome to the Compounders Podcast, where we explore the anatomy of public company wealth creation stories. On this show, we invite you to be a fly on the wall for the actual conversations professional investors have with public company CEOs. Through a series of interviews, we will learn about how to create a compounder—a sustainable company whose success builds upon itself—by hearing about the real-life experiences of leaders who run smaller-cap public companies. I’m your host, Ben Claremon, a partner and portfolio manager at Cove Street Capital. In these conversations, I interview public company senior executives by pos...2021-07-3111 min
Planet MicroCap Podcast | MicroCap Investing StrategiesEp. 176 - MicroCap Investing Story Time with Ben Claremon and Eugene Robin, Cove Street CapitalFor this episode of the Planet MicroCap Podcast, I spoke with Ben Claremon and Eugene Robin, Principal Portfolio Manager and Principal Research Analyst at Cove Street Capital. When I chatted with Ben last year for Episode 135, he told me about his colleague, Eugene, who has some great MicroCap stories to tell. So, I thought it would be fun to have them both on to chat about all things MicroCap. Please enjoy!For more information about Cove Street Capital, please visit: http://covestreetcapital.com/You can Follow Ben Claremon on Twitter @InoculatedInves...2021-05-261h 14
Planet MicroCap Podcast | MicroCap Investing StrategiesEp. 135 - Many Levels to Being a Contrarian Investor with Ben Claremon, Cove Street CapitalFor this episode of the Planet MicroCap Podcast, I spoke with Ben Claremon, Principal, Portfolio Manager and Research Analyst at Cove Street Capital. Quick side note, I’ve met more LA-based investors during COVID-19 than before - definitely in-person happy hour once things normalize a bit. This was a fun chat with Ben, where we really dig in to the many levels of being a contrarian investor. Value investors, for the most part, are natural contrarians looking for great deals in the market. Trying to find ways to understand what the market doesn’t love and why, makes for a go...2020-08-191h 05