Aside from his inexplicable disdain for tea, we love Ted Lasso. For those unfamiliar, the eponymous series focuses on an American football coach inexplicably hired to manage an English football, i.e., soccer team, despite the obvious hindrance of having never coached or played soccer, or even having a basic understanding of its rules.
Will and Adam explore the rebellion in stock markets, including the recent carnage prompted by margin calls on a highly levered family office. The two also discuss the red-hot housing market, transitory vs. lasting inflation, the bond market’s appetite for junk, the surprising strength of the dollar and its effect on Burl Ives’ favorite commodities.
Nano One recently issued stock at $5.35 Canadian to raise a total of $25M. While we were first concerned about this decision, after speaking to the company, we feel more sanguine about the prospects for this capital. Obviously, dilution is nothing we cheer, especially as shareholders of a company without earnings currently. But the impetus behind it, per our discussion with the company, is that its customer base is demanding larger proof of concept deliverables.
Will and Adam delve into grammar and how adding misused words, e.g., supposably, to the dictionary normalizes stupidity and is analogous to the market rewarding investors in meme stocks. We connect the dots on the disconnect between the Fed’s transitory view of inflation versus what the market is anticipating, look at the overlooked impact of the variant in Europe, and discuss other risks the market is currently ignoring in its desire to mitigate FOMO.
Cliches. The investing world is full of them. Wide-moat business. Intrinsic value. Be fearful when others are greedy. Skate to where the puck is going. Everyone has a plan until they get punched in the face.
Will and Adam welcome Jennie Ripps, co-founder and CEO of Owl’s Brew, an emerging leader in the rapidly growing hard tea category. The three talk about the history of the company, its pivot to boozy tea, the challenges and opportunities of running a business during a pandemic, and why ingredients matter if you want to drink wise. They put the latter to the test with an impromptu taste comparison, and conclude with an analysis of the relative perceived sagacity of spectacles versus monocles.
We looked at 2020 through the lens of 1999, specifically its worst music. Strangely, while the music from 1999 was dreadful, the films released that year were truly outstanding. This first month of 2021 reminded us of several classic films from 1999. With that, let’s Go (underrated cult classic).
What is clear is that this year has been widely regarded “unprecedented”, an overused term Recently, we have seen many instances of “unprecedented” behavior and this last two weeks of market trading is another chapter in this unprecedented time. In order to enjoy this “meal of information” we are going to now “set the table,” and try to explain what is happening in the stock market.
One of the books on our recent reading list was a fantastic biography on Winston Churchill. A quote of his we use often is, “You will never reach your destination if you stop and throw stones at every dog that barks.” Recently, dogs, so to speak, have been barking.
In September, 2020, we initially presented our thesis on Lithium Americas (NYSE: LAC), which was on sale thanks to Battery Day. Much has changed with the story, punctuated by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) approval of LAC’s Thacker Pass project in Nevada
