Buy Hold Sell, by Livewire Markets

Buy Hold Sell: 4 disruptive winners and 2 overhyped darlings

Which were the winning listed companies of the last decade? Just take a look at the pointy end of the global rich list: Amazon's Jeff Bezos, Tesla's Elon Musk, Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg, Microsoft's Bill Gates, Google's Larry Page and Sergey Brin. 

But then these companies weren't always at the top. They had to displace others (General Electric, anyone?). And what they all have in common, beyond technology, is disruption. Which begs the question: which up-and-coming companies are now charging to the finish line - ready to take them on and even surpass them in the never-ending race to global domination? 

In this episode of Buy Hold Sell, two global growth juggernauts - Nick Griffin from Munro Partners and Alex Pollak from Loftus Peak - share their thoughts on four stocks already on the path to global disruption. 

Plus, our fundies will each share one stock that they think the market isn't getting right. 

Note: You can watch, listen or read an edited transcript below. This episode was filmed on 29 April 2021.

Everything you need to know about shorting

What's the first thing that comes to mind when you hear "shorting"? For me, it's every finance fanatic's favourite film The Big Short. Or, if you twisted my arm, the short squeeze we witnessed at the beginning of the year in GameStop. 

A LOT of money was lost (and made) in the above examples. And while Michael Burry may have been heralded a hero, the hedge funds in the GameStop saga certainly were not. 

So, let's address the elephant in the room. Shorting, more often than not, can get a bad rap, with investors accusing short-sellers of robbing innocent shareholders of returns. 

But Perpetual's Anthony Aboud and Sage Capital's Sean Fenton believe otherwise, arguing shorting brings flexibility to investors portfolios, helping them to profit from a greater variety of companies in both bull and bear markets.

So, in this episode of Buy Hold Sell, Aboud and Fenton join Livewire Market's Ally Selby to discuss the ins and outs of shorting, where they are seeing opportunities in the current environment, and whether you should add shorting techniques to your investing toolbox. 

Note: This episode was filmed on 14 April 2021.

Buy Hold Sell: 4 outperformers and the ASX's most shorted stock

The last 12 months in markets have sure been wild. On average, the top five gainers across the ASX 200 returned a whopping 371.5%. And no to you cynics out there, that wasn't all driven by Afterpay. The biggest gainer was in fact Pilbara Minerals, an emerging lithium miner up 551.9% since April 2020.

While growth stocks and stay at home plays dominated markets in 2020, Q1 2021 has told a different story as value and cyclicals made their comeback. It has got the Livewire team thinking, have these stocks run too hard?

So, in this episode of Buy Hold Sell, Ally Selby is joined by two long/short experts - Perpetual's Anthony Aboud and Sage Capital's Sean Fenton – to determine whether it's time to turn short or stay long on these winners. Plus, our fundies weigh in on the ASX's most shorted stock. 

Note: This episode was filmed on 14 March 2021.

Buy Hold Sell: 6 quality compounders for your back pocket

It was Albert Einstein who reportedly described compound interest as "the eighth wonder of the world", dubbing the process the universe's most powerful force.

 

Whether or not that is true, the magic of compounding truly is that, magic. With an investment's earnings, from either interest or gains, reinvested to reward patient investors with further growth over time.

 

It's what sees Warren Buffett - whose US$101.2 billion fortune has ordained him the title of The Oracle of Omaha - argue investors only buy stocks they would be happy holding if the market shut down for ten years.

 

So, in this episode of Buy Hold Sell, Livewire Markets' Ally Selby is joined by Perpetual's Anthony Aboud and Sage Capital's Sean Fenton to put four companies with long term growth potential to the test. Plus, each of our fundies shares one business that they believe investors can be comfortable holding if the market closed for the foreseeable future.

 

You'll be bending it like Buffett in no time.

Buy Hold Sell: 2 core ETFs and 4 satellites for some sizzle

Here's a little sizzling fun fact for your Friday after-work drinks. There is now more than $102 billion invested in exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in Australia, with almost half of that amount ($46 billion) invested over the past 12 months alone.

For some perspective, that's bigger than the GDP of nearly 130 countries (according to the International Monetary Fund), like Luxembourg, Guatemala, Bulgaria, Ghana, Croatia, Iceland, the Maldives and Fiji, to name a few.

It's safe to say then that ETFs are well and truly on their way to world domination - with investors young and old using the investment vehicles for index-like returns, active management, and various exposures to exciting thematics.

To help distinguish the steak from the sizzle, Livewire's Bella Kidman is joined by Shaw and Partners' Adam Dawes and VFS Group's James Whelan for their thoughts on two core ETFs, as well as four satellites with upside potential.

NB This episode was filmed on 31 March 2021. 

Your most-asked ETF questions answered

There are so many things in life that remain unanswered: how to cure hiccups, why time runs in only one direction, why there is only one word for thesaurus.

However, there is one thing we've been able to bring to light: all your questions on exchange-traded funds, or ETFs. 

From liquidity and management expense ratios to the benefits and disadvantages of using passive and active funds. This thematic episode of Buy Hold Sell hopes to answer some of the market's most common queries and questions on ETFs. Livewire Market's Bella Kidman is joined by the ETF experts; Shaw and Partners' Adam Dawes and VFS Group's James Whelan, to help join the dots on these investment products. 

You're welcome. 

Note: This episode was filmed on 31 March 2021.

Buy Hold Sell: 3 ETFs for bulls and 3 for bears

The VIX is uncharacteristically calm at the moment. Since rocketing to an all-time high of 82.69 in mid-March - which was its highest level since its inception in 1990, by the way - the index which tracks future expectations of volatility has since taken a tumble, falling nearly 80% to around 17.

However, as much as we have bulls running, the bears are still at large in equal numbers. To consider the prospects of both beasts, Buy Hold Sell has lured Shaw and Partners' Adam Dawes and VFS Group's James Whelan to share their thoughts on three exchange-traded funds for bulls and three for bears. 

As of the end of February, there were 215 ETFs listed on the ASX, with the market cap of these funds increasing by 52.6% over the past 12 months. Average transactions increased by 151.5% over the same period.

And, as Livewire Markets' Bella Kidman says, with six ETFs in the spotlight there truly is "something for everyone" in this BHS special. 

Note: You can watch, read or listen to the discussion below. This episode was filmed on 31 March 2021.

Buy Hold Sell: 3 underperforming blue chips and 2 winners

They're big, they're bold, but they've been bleeding red through investors' portfolios. Over the past 12 months, ASX darlings CSL (ASX:CSL), Brambles (ASX:BXB) and Coles (ASX:COL) have haemorrhaged 15.69%, 2.67% and 2.23%, respectively, making them the only three S&P/ASX20 stocks to fall into the red over the past year. 

So is it time to cut our losses or top-up? In this episode of Buy Hold Sell, we are sending these three big caps to the surgeon's theatre to see whether an economic infusion or two can bring these stocks back to life. 

Centennial Asset Management's Matthew Kidman is joined by Airlie Funds Management's Emma Fisher and Alphinity Investment Management's Stuart Welch to throw on some scrubs and put these three red giants under the knife. 

Plus, our fundies share one S&P/ASX20 stock that they believe still has plenty of upside ahead of it. 

Note: This episode was filmed on 30 March 2021.

Where exactly are we in the recovery?

As Winston Churchill memorably put it in 1940, after a year in which Britain almost succumbed to a different sort of wide-ranging existential threat that the world faced down in 2020: "We're not at the beginning of the end but the end of the beginning."  

It was an observation that reset expectations soberly and sanely, summoning the blood and stiffening sinews. And all of us surveying the current economic moment to gauge precisely where we're at could probably use a bit of the same clear-eyed judgment.

Cue Airlie Funds Management's Emma Fisher and Alphinity Investment Management's Stuart Welch who both argue we are halfway through the economic recovery having clambered out of the pit of despair that gripped markets 12 months ago

In this episode of Buy Hold Sell, Centennial Asset Management's Matthew Kidman finds out how they are positioning their portfolios in the current environment. Plus, Emma and Stuart share one stock that they believe has emerged stronger from the COVID-19 crisis.

Buy Hold Sell: 5 stocks with cyclical tailwinds

Value investors are hailing the beginning of a new era, with many throwing their hard-earned cash at cyclical stocks, such as industrials and retailers, as pandemic conditions recede.

True - we're not out of the COVID-woods yet (we send our best wishes to Brisbane and Byron). But the rest of Australia is beginning to believe that Easter might indeed signal the beginning of a much-vaunted economic boom.

In this episode of Buy Hold Sell, Centennial Asset Management's Matthew Kidman sits down with Airlie Funds Management's Emma Fisher and Alphinity Investment Management's Stuart Welch to get their thoughts on James Hardie (ASX:JHX), Harvey Norman (ASX:HVN), Super Retail Group (ASX:SUL), Mineral Resources (ASX:MIN), and Incitec Pivot (ASX:IPL).

So, is it bargains galore for these cyclical stocks? Watch the episode to find out.