Investment with Moats Risk Management

 

While investing in equity, How to safeguard a Good story suddenly going bad, leaving no profitable exit…. lets choose companies with #unbreachable_moats. Capital flows to the point of maximum returns. When a company delivered outsized profits, its success attracts #competition. Other entrepreneurs enter the field with their own setup, often with #lower_priced_offerings, and take away the #first_movers market share. Competition forces the leader to cut prices and this whittles down his margins, impacting their bottom line directly.

Thus, over the time, the profits of most companies tend to regress to the mean. Legendry investors liked to invest in, the companies with big moat surrounding their business model and brand equity. Wealth creators in equity market guide big moats consists of following #matrix of

#early mover advantage

#high switching costs

#intangible assets

#network effect

# economies of scale.

If investors choose a company based on these moats, and do keep a close watch to ensure that the stocks script unfolds along the expected lines. One reason is that over the time lot of moats got breached, so timely moat tracking is must to keep value alive in equity. Next is to keep a watch on competitive advantage, other things could go wrong, say the management could slip up on execution, thus when you invest in a company with a visible economic advantage, you still cannot afford to let your guards down and let bottom line screwed up unknowingly. Its like building your investment castle, surrounded with big moats, having crocodiles within to create real value for your portfolio. One build, keep #tracking developments on the matrix of five, as mentioned above.

Disclaimer : This is purely a knowledge sharing article, not offering or influencing any deal or transaction or investments.

CA Yogesh Birla

Director
Birla WP Management Co.
read my blogs : www.YogeshBirlaCA.Blogspot.com

Value Investing v/s Growth Investing

 #Value_Investing vs. #Growth_Investing: What is Right for You????

There's no right or wrong when it comes to investing methods. Let's take a #closer_look at these two stock investment techniques, examining their advantages and disadvantages.

What is #Value_Investing?

A value investor seeks companies that are undervalued and invest in them. Typically, these businesses are undervalued and progress at a snail's pace. They do, however, have strong fundamentals. These investors believe that the market will quickly understand the value, and the stock's share price would 'catch up,' resulting in substantial gains.

If we look at metrics, value stocks have a lower PE ratio than other stocks, making them attractive to value investors.

The low PE ratio can be because of multiple factors such as economic conditions, consumer behaviour, and the industry's cyclical nature. During market highs and lows, value equities often have reduced price volatility.

#Features of Value Stocks

The stock price of value stocks is lower than the general market. The premise behind value investing is that if other investors recognize the inherent value of a company, the stock will rise in price.

It carries a lower risk than the overall market.

Value stocks may be better suited to long-term investors because they take longer to turn around.

#What is Growth Investing?

#growth_investor seeks companies with a higher-than-average growth rate. Revenues, balance sheets, cash flows, and profitability all reflect consistent and substantial growth. Growth stocks can be large-cap, mid-cap and small-cap stocks. These companies have new products, services, and prices that beat their competitors.

Growth stocks have a sound track record of profit growth and are projected to continue with this trend in the foreseeable future. This steady rate of growth is essential for attracting potential investors. Furthermore, because of their greater PE ratio, these stocks are more 'expensive' than other stocks. It is because investors are willing to pay a higher price for these equities than they are currently earning. After all, they believe future earnings will justify the price.

#Features of Growth stocks

The price of the stocks is higher than the average market. Investors are willing to pay high PE multiples hoping to sell the company at even greater prices as they grow.

These stocks have higher earnings growth. While some companies' earnings may suffer during periods of slower economic recovery, growing companies may be able to maintain high earnings growth regardless of economic conditions.

Growth stocks may be more #volatile than the broader market.

What Are the #Differences Between Growth and Value Stocks?

It's important to think about how long it took and how much risk was involved in getting the results you want when comparing the performance of growth and value stocks.

Because they are frequently found among larger, more established companies, value stocks are at least theoretically regarded as having a lower level of risk and volatility. Even if they don't return to the analyst or investor's target price, they may still provide some capital gain, and these companies frequently pay dividends.

On the other hand, growth stocks typically do not pay #dividends and instead reinvest retained earnings to help the firm grow. Growth stocks have a #higher #risk of losing money for investors, especially if the company fails to meet growth projections.

For example, a company with a hot new product may have its stock price drop if the product is a failure or has design defects that prevent it from functioning correctly. Growth stocks, in general, offer the greatest potential profit while also posing the most risk to investors.

#Investor's_Matrix

So, we can conclude that growth stocks can outperform when #interest_rates are down, and company earnings are growing.

They may do well when the market recovers, but #value_stocks are more inclined to underperform in a long-term bull market.

Importance of Digital Literacy in Education & Economy

Digital literacy is the ability to learn, understand, and adapt to technology-inclined changes in a constantly evolving digital world. The pandemic has re-emphasized the importance of being equipped with the right skill set to efficiently use technology to sustain and even preserve the “normalcy” of our day-to-day lives. The idea is to have in place a system so resilient that, despite severe disruptions, life can carry on without having to come to a screeching halt. Today, digital literacy is just as important as any other subject that children and young adults are taught at educational establishments and could even be leveraged as a teaching platform in itself.

The future has enormous potential to be transformed into a digital world; in fact, we are already witnessing a technological revolution. From ordering medicines to delivering shipments using drones, the future is set to be one where digital solutions are going to be able to cater to a myriad of requirements. The youth of today should be educated and well-versed in tech-enabled solutions as it is going to be their future. Industries across verticals have already begun adopting automated solutions that reflect a strong impact on numerous facets of their business, both internal and external. Tech will continue to govern numerous facets of our lives, from becoming a medium of teaching in itself to adopting digital solutions that provide better career and life prospects. Going forward, digital literacy is going to be an imperative aspect of our education system.

Companies which are consistently been investing in and adapting to new technology, which includes redesigning ERP to a microservices-based design and launching future-ready solutions. The intent is to make sure that decisions are based on data and not just instinct. Deploying ML also enables us to drive operational efficiencies through optimised routing, address correction, and also aids in operations by predicting volumes and manpower requirements. We keep exploring new avenues and areas where we could make use of AI and ML to impact operations and drive efficiency and optimization.

How the youth can be digitally empowered, what kind of exposure and engagement opportunities in the educational curriculum can educational institutes implement to raise the interest of youths to up-scale their digital skills, and should it become a must for schools, colleges, and other educational institutes to conduct workshops or crash-courses programmes to drive the importance of technology for businesses ???

Teaching and learning is a two-way street. The future necessitates individuals who can remain resilient by adapting to the needs of the hour efficiently. Therefore, schools and colleges must start building a technologically inclined foundation for students to help them adapt better to the world of tomorrow. The in-school curriculum must be tailored to include programmes that induct individuals into adopting tech solutions; this in turn will help them leverage their strengths to do more rewarding tasks. Currently, some institutes have an IT component as a pre-requisite course. However, the level of depth with which the subject is being taught needs to penetrate much further to truly make an impact. Courses to familiarise children with such subjects can also be introduced at an earlier stage with a much simpler explanation provided. We all begin school by learning the alphabet in order to speak fluently in any language; technology and automation should also be considered a language, allowing children to learn the basics, setting up a strong foundation for them and then banking on it to further increase their knowledge and agility in the long-run.

Having said that, schools and educational institutes can only do so much. Growth can only be witnessed if the individual is also willing to learn and invest well in themselves by looking online, finding the right courses, and actively working towards the pursuit of When asked what advice as an IT leader would he give to the youth considering their career in the technology industry, what should they know about the industry before starting their career, and what challenges they could face and how do they overcome the challenges, he said, to anyone looking to begin their careers in information technology or any of its sister streams, my only insight on this front is: opportunities and more opportunities! The industry is growing at an exponential pace, and the opportunity for career growth is optimal. Especially in a post-pandemic world, the significance of the industry has been propelled to much greater heights and shows immense promise. My only advice would be to grasp every opportunity coming your way and consistently invest in updating your industry knowledge.

Children of the present and in the future too, have and will grow up alongside technological leaps. Having said that, networking across industries and age groups will also be incredibly important. While technology and digitalization are the future of tomorrow, it is crucial to not entirely eliminate the element of human touch while interacting with a customer. Challenges on this front could arise. However, leveraging the insight of your seniors and curating solutions that are a combination of artificial and augmented intelligence is the best way forward to negate those challenges.

Getting introduced to learning more about industries and businesses early on is also a very important aspect of bridging the learning curve. This will assist students in connecting theory to real life and comprehending the impact of technology on actual business. Mentors also play an important role in guiding youth to take the right steps to achieve their goals; their experience and wisdom enrich one’s learning.

Understanding design concepts is another important step in this journey, and the earlier one begins, the better. Mathematics and physics are also important subjects to master, particularly for engineering, AI/ML, and analytics.Understanding the concepts in detail can help develop better solutions for businesses and customers in the future.

Disclaimer : This is purely a knowledge sharing article, not offering or influencing any deal or transaction or investments.

CA Yogesh Birla

Director
Birla WP Management Co.
read my blogs : www.YogeshBirlaCA.Blogspot.com

Saving Economy v/s Spending Economy; which is better……

Indians wastefully save…. Ask them to spend, on imported cars and, seriously, even on cosmetics!  This will put India on a growth curve. This is one of the reason for MNC's coming down to India, seeing the consumer spending. Does it not look true, with our traditional thought, let’s examine the same with global facts…

The Japanese save a lot.  They do not spend much.  Also, Japan exports far more than it imports. It has an annual trade surplus of over US$100 billion. Yet the Japanese economy is considered weak, even collapsing.

Americans spend a lot and save very little. Also United States of America (USA) imports more than it exports.  USA has an annual trade deficit of over $400 billion. Yet, the USA economy is considered strong and expected to get stronger.

But where do Americans get money to spend? 

They borrow from other countries like Japan, China and even India. Virtually others of the world have to save for the Americans to spend.  Global savings are mostly invested in USA, in dollars.

India itself keeps its foreign currency assets of over $50 billion in US securities.  China has sunk over $1.1 trillion in US securities.  Japan's stakes in US securities is in trillions.

RESULT :

The USA has taken over $5 trillion from the world.   

So, as the world saves for the USA - It is the Americans who are spending freely.   

Today, to keep the USA consumption going, that is for the USA economy to work, other countries have to remit $180 billion every quarter to the USA, which is $2 billion a day, to the USA!

A Chinese economist asked a neat question. Who has invested more, USA in China, or China in USA?   

The US has invested in China less than half of what China has invested in the USA.

The same is the case with India.  India has invested over $50 billion in the US.   

But the US has invested less than $20 billion in India.

Why is the world after USA?

The secret lies in American spending, that they hardly save for.  In fact they use their credit cards to spend their future income.  That the USA spends is what makes it attractive to export to the USA.  So USA imports more than what it exports year after year.

The result is…..The world is dependent on USA consumption for its growth.  By its deepening culture of consumption, the USA has habituated the world to feed on USA consumption. But as the USA needs money to finance its consumption, the world provides the money.

It is like a shopkeeper providing the money to a customer so that the customer keeps buying from the shop.  If the customer will not buy, the shop won't have business, unless the shopkeeper funds him. The US is like the lucky customer….and the world is like the helpless shopkeeper financier.

Who is America's biggest shopkeeper financier? Japan and China of course.  Yet Japan is regarded as weak economically.  Modern economists complain that Japanese do not spend, so they do not grow.  To force the Japanese to spend, the Japanese government exerted itself, reduced the savings interest rates to almost zero, even charged savers for keeping their money in the bank.  Still the Japanese did not spend (habits don't change, even with taxes, do they?).  Their traditional postal savings alone has over $1.2 trillion.  Thus, savings, far from being the strength of Japan, has become its pain.

CONCLUSION: That a nation cannot grow unless the people spend, not save. Not just spend, but borrow and spend.

This is a very Interesting article written by an Economist about the world economy. Disclaimer : This is purely a knowledge sharing article, not offering or influencing any deal or transaction or investments.

CA Yogesh Birla

Director
Birla WP Management Co.
read my blogs : www.YogeshBirlaCA.Blogspot.com

The Power of Money & Happiness Index

#Down_to_earth_&_very_practical_approach_to_happiness_with_Money

(Life experience, as written by a #youngest_billionaire at 26 yrs.)

Some of you may already know that I travel around the world pretty frequently, having to visit and conduct meets at my offices in Malaysia , Indonesia , Thailand and China. I am in the airport almost every other week so I get to bump into many people who have read my books.

Recently, someone came up to me on a plane to KL and looked rather shocked. He asked, 'How come a millionaire like you is traveling economy?' My reply was, 'That's why I am a millionaire. ' He still looked pretty confused.

This again confirms that greatest lie ever told about wealth (which I wrote about in my latest book 'Secrets of Self-Made Millionaires').

#Many people have been brainwashed to think that millionaires have to wear Gucci, Hugo Boss, Rolex, and sit on first class in air travel. This is why so many people never become rich #because the moment they earn more money, they think that it is only natural that they spend more, putting them back to square one.

#The truth is that most self-made millionaires are frugal and only spend on what is necessary and of value. That is why they are able to accumulate and multiply their wealth so much faster.

Over the last 7 years, I have saved about 80% of my income while today I save only about 60% (because I have my wife, mother in law, 2 maids, 2 kids, etc. to support). Still, it is way above most people who save 10% of their income (if they are lucky).

I refuse to buy a first class ticket or to buy a $300 shirt because I think that it is a complete waste of money. #However, I happily pay $1,300 to send my 2-year old daughter to Julia Gabriel Speech and Drama without thinking twice.

When I joined the YEO, a few years back (YEO is an exclusive club open to those who are under 40 and make over $1m a year in their own business), I discovered that those who were self-made thought like me. Many of them with net worth well over $5 m, #travelled economy class and some even drove Toyotas and Nissans, not Audis, Mercs, BMWs..

I noticed that it was only those who never had to work hard to build their own wealth (there were also a few ministers' and tycoons' sons in the club) who spent like there was no tomorrow. Somehow, #when you did not have to build everything from scratch, you do not really value money. #This is precisely the reason why a family's wealth (no matter how much) rarely lasts past the third generation.

#Thank_God_my_rich_dad foresaw this terrible possibility and refused to give me a cent to start my business.

Then some people ask me, 'What is the point in making so much money if you don't enjoy it?' 

#The thing is that I don't really find happiness in buying branded clothes, jewellery or sitting first class. Even if buying something makes me happy it is only for a while, it does not last.

#Material happiness never lasts, it just gives you a quick fix. After a while you feel lousy again and have to buy the next thing which you think will make you happy. I always think that if you need material things to make you happy, then you live a pretty sad and unfulfilled life..

#Instead, What makes me happy is........when I see my children laughing and playing and learning so fast. 

What makes me happy is when I see my companies and teams reaching more and more people every year in so many more countries.

What makes me really happy is when I read all the emails from people touched and inspired someone's life.

What makes me really happy is reading all your wonderful posts about how this blog is inspiring you. #This_happiness_makes me feel really good for a long time, much much more than what a Rolex would do for me.

I think the point I want to put across is that #happiness_must_come_from doing your life's work (be it teaching, building homes, designing, trading, winning tournaments etc.) and the money that comes is only a by-product.

#keep_sharing_this_with the children, and make them read this article, every year to follow....

Disclaimer : This is purely a knowledge sharing article, not offering or influencing any deal or transaction or investments.

CA Yogesh Birla

Director
Birla WP Management Co.
read my blogs : www.YogeshBirlaCA.Blogspot.com

USD v/s Rouble.... bigger trouble matrix for EU and favourable for India

https://www.linkedin.com/posts/yogesh-birla-323821229_if-the-eu-refuses-to-pay-gas-in-roubles-activity-6915636815701921792-5L-5?utm_source=linkedin_share&utm_medium=android_app

Disclaimer : This is purely a knowledge sharing article, not offering or influencing any deal or transaction or investments.

CA Yogesh Birla

Director
Birla WP Management Co.
read my blogs : www.YogeshBirlaCA.Blogspot.com

Indian Women in Saving and Investment Economy

One fine day, I was asked a perplexing question,

Why do Indian women play no role in savings and investments ?????

I replied it's not true and following will be sufficient enough to prove my views :-

Women in their inimitable manner, have played an important role on the savings front in Indian households. This is a popular misconception, because women's investment choices are possibly more traditional. Being wired differently than men, women place great importance on factors like safety and tangibility, which amply reflect in their saving & investing preferences.

##GOLD, most of the yellow metals in Indian homes is purchased and owned by women. Even the gold inherited, reflects women's choices, rooted in our society since time inmemorial. No wonder, how Indian household own enough gold to meet America's requirement for next 100 years. You will notice the emotive appeal of every gold loan advertisement, is always directed towards a female gender. This asset has helped finance and mushroom many small and medium businesses across the country. These precious assets are powerful hedging instrument that women safeguard for helping economy in business.

##PROPERTY, DIAMONDS, same is the case with property, diamonds, art and collectibles, which are investable assets of measurable value. The likes of Cryptos / Bitcoins have a long way to go before they can earn a ladies trust as lifetime asset creation.

##FIXED INCOME INSTRUMENTS, when it comes to fixed income, I bet most of the post office deposits and Kisan Vikas Patra instruments are driven by women savings.

##CASH is actually queen !! Women are adept at best cash management. All will agree that during demonetisation in India, most cash was deposited by the woman members of the family.

##SHARES, coming to Equities, there is a big difference between low participation and no participation by women. But this too is changing.....It is heartening to note that indian study found that proportion of women equity investors too have grown from 16 % to 24% in just last two years in India stock markets.

##INTANGIBLE ASSETS, last but not the least are the intangible assets. Our little kids are the most precious assets to us. Need not to be mentioned, who plays the pivotal role in nurturing our future generations for individual, or for the nation.

Is there a need for more equal opportunity ?? 

Yes, But no one can deny the immeasurable role women play in our finances, saving economy and our overall life.

HAPPY WOMEN'S DAY !!

Disclaimer : This is purely a knowledge sharing article, not offering or influencing any deal or transaction or investments.

CA Yogesh Birla

Director
Birla WP Management Co.
read my blogs : www.YogeshBirlaCA.Blogspot.com