whatstheofficerproblem

Agreed. The forum is my best kept secret.

This is by far my favorite Senior Living Facility. Jokes aside, only 4 people 20-30 so far? Wonder how many are on the lower end of that range.

https://archive.is/WX51w Worth noting.

Cheerleaders? I think Spek is consuming a lil too much of DW & BBC content these days, no offense . I am not even trying to be Alex Jones, but kind of ironic that the DA who is prosecuting Adani has ties to the OSF & the even more ironic part of the injunction brought against Adani about bribery are states where unironically the Congress is in power . Either way, there are plenty of American billionaires who have had bribery charges bought against them. One of them is our dear friend, Mike Milken who btw was indicted on 98 counts of bribery and fraud & settled with the US govt for $600M. Now he runs the Milken Institute, the politics of which I don't think is worth getting into. I think India will continue to grow regardless, the beauty of emerging markets is such. Adani represents Indian economy as much as Jeff Bezos does the US economy. So I don't think it is even relevant to bring the guy into the topic. I think we have potential 10-100 baggers in the Indian market today considering even the biggest Indian companies are still very much in their growth phase. I'm planning on starting a thread on some names, but we'll see.

I agree with Spek on the Humanoid robots aspect. I truly believe they are, for the time being a gimmick, nothing more or less. Which is why I'm interested in ISRG & Baosight, they are manufacturing robots that solve problems, be it in surgeries or supply chain. That said dwy, I'm just looking to create a basket that will be a small % of the portfolio, because why not? I think we will see positive developments on the robotics side given the amount of compute that is in demand right now, especially from companies that already make robots. As for the rest, like another user on the forum stated (maybe Spek himself I think), we will see robotics become the new start-up fantasy land after the AI hype dies down.

MGNI, like how the tide is turning.

IREN, TMDX

With there being a lot of 'hype' and material advancements in Robots & broader robotics, wondering if any of you have any good ideas to invest in this basket. I'm trying to find a pureplay on robotics in the domestic market and looks like they are almost non existent. Here are what I've come across. Tesla (TSLA) - Not a pureplay, but with them expanding into 'Robots', the current extent of which I do not know, I feel very uncomfortable dipping my toes in the name for just one segment. Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) - The only domestic pureplay on robotics I could find. They make great surgical robots, lots of advancements, terrific moat as most of today's doctors are practically trained on their equipment and there is a very high switching cost associated which given the maze the US healthcare system is, I don't think is possible. Solid company, earnings are great and will only get better. Expensive, but worth tracking. Shanghai Baosight (900926) - International play on robotics. I am inclined to call this a pureplay on Robotics. They have an Information solutions business, Smart storage and best of all they manufacture industrial robots the advancements on which have led them to be confident in industrial level humanoid robots. They are literally expanding into Robot-as-a-Service (RaaS) model in real time. They also dabble in AI, the company is cheap on a relative basis but has a few structural problems. Might be worth buying, but not until I have a full picture, so closely monitoring this. What are your thoughts on the sector and some of the names you might be interested for the robotics basket?

Because that is what Wall St sells. Take a NOPAT, divide that by 'Invested Capital' the definition of which is vague by the way, different people/firms use different denominators. Wow, a $500M NOPAT on $2.5B invested capital (most of which by the way is debt & equity) that is a 20% ROIC. buy buy buy! The more sell-side research I read, the more I am disillusioned to the glory of Wall St. Let's say if Evercore's ISI starts using ROTA or RONTA, then there will be a lot of other buy-side shops using the metric. Which will then create demand for that metric on the sell-side and we'll see even more firms covering this until ROTA becomes a household metric much like ROIC is today. Another disappointing fact is that most people just quote Buffett, never follow him. We would have had a few more Berkshires & Fairfaxes had they done so.

Thanks all for the comments on Nintendo. My personal feelings aside, I genuinely think Nintendo as a stock is a buy. I do agree the piracy scene is niche, but I also stand on the statement that their games have been very mediocre to say the least. PalWorld was an idea they could have easily implemented themselves. They have an option to develop a killer Open World game with the Nintendo franchise, yet they don't. They play it way too safe with their IPs and are shy about pouring money into Game Freak which is their studio. If TTWO was shy about funding R* we wouldn't have GTA today. I think there is a big TAM in Video Game market that they can capture, especially given the fame of their IP but they are holding themselves back.

Precisely. This is my problem with DOGE, it could end up being nothing but hot air. But, they will definitely have a whole lot of influence. The problem here is, let's say they want to cut costs for a certain arm of the Fed, how will that be achieved, if it requires a majority vote in the senate? If the DOGE were a fed entity with power to unanimously evaluate and cut costs, it would have been a whole different ball game, but they don't. So we will have to wait & see. Given that it has already come this far and has favorable impressions on both the average red & blue voter, they should have some level of power. Time will tell.

I think this is a fair argument. Tesla & SpaceX are business, they can fail anytime. DOGE is a government entity, the US govt by definition is too big to fail, depends on how much jurisdiction & power will left at DOGE's discretion, if it's a namesake think tank then all of this would have been for naught, but the case is it isn't. Who cares, I personally don't mind if Elon makes a few billion if that means we can save trillions here after. His networth has increased $4B a week since election. I do think that if either of them were to abuse their power, they will be called out on it. A lot of Republicans are waiting for a chance to find fault with Vivek, the dems already hate him. I think Vivek & Elon will ultimately be each others' checks and balance, they will keep each other from pushing the line too far. Nothing speaks about govt efficiency more than hiring two people to do the same job, amirite.

I think it is possible. Even if DOGE was a muppet structure, they have now legitimized it by advertising it as the solution to govt spending. It has developed great traction among youth, they have even opened applications for people to apply so they can join DOGE. I think people from all sides of the political aisle will agree that govt spending is a far bigger problem than anything at hand. Pentagon failing trillion dollar audits, mayors not knowing what the allocated funds being used for etc. If Bernie Sanders has come out of the woodworks to support DOGE, as much as I think he is a giant hypocrite, it is one hell of an endorsement. We also have self-hating sepoy Ro Khanna volunteering, both sides support it. I would personally say demolish the IRS, a man can dream right?

Looks like both Elon & Vivek agree on this. Now the question is who will they choose for this project, how and why?

I haven't seen a grifter this slimy in a while. That scripted interview was ridiculous. On another note, VIC's co-founder John Petry seems to endorse the guy. He is hosting him at his house and soliciting donations from other VIC members. Whitney said that he won't raise money from his billionaire friends (Ackman) and connections and only from the common man. What I didn't know, is this guy being considered a 'Legend' on Wall St. There is only one legend on Wall St. and that is Dimon.

Yes, you read that right. Not the crypto coin but the Department of Government Efficiency. What stocks could be beneficiaries of D.O.G.E? Tesla is the obvious answer, but what else? Are Elon & Vivek going to audit departments, who will benefit from that? Are they going to update the tech stack in government offices? Curious to know who the members here think will be beneficiaries of D.O.G.E.

From the messages section of the recent VIC short rated write-up on BRK, titled Todd 'The Charlatan' Combs.

Since Trump favors cuts and spending, which is bad for the deficit because without additional taxes there will be issuance of more bonds, the bonds are selling off. Fairfax's bond portfolio duration was 3.5 years, the yields are up. How will this effect the mark-to-market value of the bonds in the interim?

https://valueinvestorsclub.com/idea/BERKSHIRE_HATHAWAY/4105781453#description I want what this guy is smoking. The comments pretty much laugh at the write-up. The quality of VIC write-ups has been going downhill for a while.

So, I spent $1640 to register for the CFA L1 Feb 2025 exam. This is before my graduation date, so I reckon passing the L1 before graduation is a plus point and looks good on my resume? Either way that's not what I care about. Over the last 2 years and in my being around several CFA charter holders, I was instilled the 'value' of the CFA. I've looked into the L1 course material, pretty basic stuff, it's a mile wide but an inch deep. The only thing I needed to learn outside my knowledge in foundational finance is how to plug numbers into a fancy calculator (excel is better). I liked the course material, a lot of things I knew but a lot of things I didn't know. I would say the curriculum has done a good job in contextualizing the knowledge I had and gained, which I think is pretty powerful as I am not a Finance major and most of my Finance knowledge is something I learned myself and of course, some of it to be attributed to my 'mentors' in this forum, your conversations have been gold dust to me. I'm curious if anyone on the forum is a charterholder or is working towards one. What are your thoughts on the program? I've had conversations with a lot of industry professionals, some speak very highly of it while some say it's an outright scam. They seem to be raising prices every year which for a 'non-profit' is very suspect, and the exams seem to be made deliberately tough so that a lot of folks have to fail and then take it again which flows right into the CFA society's topline. Others have told me I'd much rather spend my time studying for the GMAT and get placed into a good MBA program, which I don't think is possible because as an Asian, I am apparently 'white-adjacent' so this along with the legacy applicants and the experienced ones diminish my chances of getting into a good program. I plan on doing the MBA after I've gained at least 5 years of experience in the industry, so it's a long way from here. But in the meantime I would like to know the members thoughts and opinions on the program and any helpful tips and insights that will be of use when I sit for the L1. I know that the CFA doesn't make you a better investor, I thankfully have this forum for that, but it does seem to open a lot of doors.

@Viking, I think a 'thank you' would be too little to express what I am feeling right now. I thank god for all the detours that led me to this forum, I started reading the 500 pager at 12 AM, stopped at 6 AM. I can't recall any moment in my lifetime ever where I spent that amount of time reading. This is now my holy book. Your dedication and passion inspires me and your knowledge overwhelms me. Thank you.

Thanks for the detailed explanation Saluki. You are good at explaining things it seems, I suddenly feel like reading this book, going to pick it up.

I was looking for a Tyson Foods thread and didn't find one. But thought I'd place it here. I'll play @Luke's advocate. https://www.5newsonline.com/article/news/local/department-labor-child-labor-tyson/527-21c0bd01-6313-45a7-843a-f5f00582b841 Why does the western media that harps about sweatshops in China, conveniently forget to cover this news.

Since I am on the topic of songwriting: Jason Isbell, is for me easily one of the top 5 songwriters, at least in english music. Speed Trap Town is an excellent song, never was there a song that explores the themes he explores and the way he goes about exploring it. One of the few artists where the live experience is actually better than the Apple Music one.

Thanks Parsad, didn't know they had a new single out. To me, Pearl Jam peaked here: The crowd won't even let Vedder sing, and at MSG. A musician's dream, very few are able to achieve. I'm a sucker for songwriting and 'Better Man' is pure lyrical marvel. It touches a chord for a lot of women and men. Tell him, "Take no more" She practices her speech As he opens the door, she rolls over Pretends to sleep as he looks her over Talkin' to herself There's no one else who needs to know She tells herself, oh Memories back when she was bold and strong And waiting for the world to come along Swears she knew it, now she swears he's gone She dreams in color, she dreams in red Can't find a better man Can't find a better man Can't find a better man She loved him, yeah She don't want to leave this way She feeds him, yeah That's why she'll be back again How does someone write that? All by himself! There is music with rhyming words, and then there is music with poetry. This song is poetry at it's finest. The band is in a genre of their own.