Long read: How to build a nuclear tomb to last millennia
It is fashionable these days to talk about how nuclear power is making a comeback in a world characterised by roaring power demand alongside concerns regarding climate change. For its proponents, nuclear power is a solution to both of these problems. These proponents might want to read this article in the BBC about nuclear waste. […]
Long read: Inside the enduring heft of big business groups
The Indian economy liberalised in 1991. This piece in the Mint uses comparative data on corporate assets and revenues to assess which business groups have risen in India over the last 30 years and which ones have faded away. The biggest winner is – you guessed it – Reliance which accounts for 9.6% of India’s […]
The Big Are Getting Bigger and the Southern Ascendancy
Over the last 10 years, whilst India Inc’s PAT has grown at 17% p.a. on an average, the median Indian company’s PAT has grown at 15%. Delving into this gap between the average vs the median gave us two findings: (a) larger companies have grown profits faster than smaller companies; and (b) southern Indian companies’ […]
‘Capitalism Without Capital’ Fuels CCP
Capitalism without capital, i.e., the growing prominence of companies who are plays on intellectual rather than physical assets, is now increasingly prominent in India. Marcellus’ Consistent Compounder Portfolio (CCP) is actively participating in this theme. Over the past 5 years, profits of companies in our current CCP portfolio have grown at a significantly faster pace […]
Portfolio performance and update on fundamentals
Note: For all strategies except GCP, Performance data shown is net of fixed fees and expenses charged till September 30th, 2024 and is net of annual performance fees (Except for Little Champs Portfolio) charged for client accounts whose account anniversary/performance calculation date falls upto the last date of this performance period. Since, for Little Champs Portfolio, […]
Short read: Should we Sleep on a Problem?
Apparently, when we say ‘sleep on a problem’, it is not just meant figuratively. As the author of this blog says, before he goes to bed, he goes through a tricky problem he is trying to solve and lets his subconscious mind have a crack at the solution whilst he is asleep. Turns out, he […]
Short read: Jeff Bezos faces Backlash for Refusal to Endorse Harris
The slow but steady decline in the business model of traditional media is well understood given that in most countries, India included, the bulk of advertising revenue is ending up in the hands of Google and the social media giants. One last hope for traditional media was that if some of the marquee names in […]
Short read: Researchers say an AI-powered Transcription Tool Used in Hospitals Invents things no one Ever Said
Even as discussions with our investee companies point to the inevitability of AI taking over roles which are currently performed by well-paid humans (well-paid in the Indian human context), it is becoming clear that there are still flaws even in the most advanced AI models. Quoting from the AP article: “Tech behemoth OpenAI has touted its […]
Long read: How to be a Norwegian Parent: Let your Kids Roam Free, Stay Home Alone, Have Fun – and Fail
The rest of the world has much to learn from the Scandinavian way of life. The results are there for everyone to see – “their sky-high living standards, low crime rates, enviable maternity and paternity rights and exceptional aesthetics.” Scandinavian countries consistently rank high on world happiness indicators. Another aspect of the Scandinavian way of life […]
Long read: Math Is Still Catching Up to the Mysterious Genius of Srinivasa Ramanujan
It is said that mathematics is fundamental to understanding any other subject from physics to economics. Even otherwise, it remains a beautiful subject in itself and so are its practitioners – the mathematicians. As the quote from this article says “As a budding mathematician, “I had the impression that these are beautiful people,” he said. “They […]
Long read: The Rapid Descent of Southwest Airlines: How the Company Plunged from Customer Cult-Favorite to Activist Investor Target
This is a brilliant case study of how even the greatest of companies can be taken apart in the stock market in the space of a four years. Almost all of us have grown up being fed the Southwest Airlines case study as one of disruptive innovation. Lisa Maclellan’s reprises the familiar story succinctly in […]
Global Compounders Portfolio: N.I.M.B.Y. Investing! – Turning Waste into Wealth
Marcellus’ Global Compounders Portfolio (GCP) strategically invests in 25-30 deeply moated global companies aligned with megatrends, fostering a consistent mid to high teens compounding of free cash flow/earnings. Investing globally, particularly in the US, is often equated with technology companies. While the US is home to iconic tech giants, exceptional value creation has occurred across […]
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