The 7investing Podcast

Welcome to our 7investing Market Madness competition! We are on a quest to find the best current stock opportunity for investors. All month, we’re matching popular stocks up in head-to-head matchups to determine which will provide the greatest upcoming three-year return. And through voting poll we include at the bottom of each article, you can help determine which tock will win each round and ultimately the tournament. In this first-round matchup, the top-ranked energy juggernaut Exxon Mobil (NYSE: XOM) squares up against consumer lending disruptive Upstart (NASDAQ: UPST).  Exxon’s stock returned an impressive 86% during 2022, while Upstart returned a dismal (91%). But past performance is not predictive of future returns. Which of these stocks do you believe will provide investors with the best forward three-year return? Read our investing thesis and cast your vote in the poll below! Follow along with our Market Madness tournament at 7investing.com/marketmadness Our Market Madness tournament is in support of our new 7investing Starter membership, which we are giving away free during the entire month of March. To get started with Starter — and to see how it’s already beating the market by 20 percentage points — click here to automatically apply your “madness” promo code.

No limit episode 12 features Luke’s explanation of his investing framework with Nvidia as a test case that will save you hundreds of future headaches.  We go back to the poker table to poke and prod at the meaning of “priced to perfection” and what to do when one of your stocks is feeling frothy — do you keep betting or do you fold the hand? Krzysztof meanwhile goes to some other kind of casino on the edge of town, where there are no high rollers but only old grizzled hucksters — can there be investing profit made on the fringes? Yes, if you can find reliable sources for who’s who at the table! Luke turns on the boosters and expounds on Orbital Aerospace as a big idea for future investing opportunities: reusable rocketry and low earth orbit is getting sophisticated and essential to the telecommunication industry. Meanwhile back on Earth, Krzysztof talks about his latest read, An Immense World, and the ways we can expand our senses both as human animals and as investors.  It’s another razzle-dazzle kind of show so step right up and push your chips into the pile! Everyone’s a winner at the No Limit 7investing podcast!

7investing CEO Simon Erickson and Marketing Manager JT Street introduce the Market Madness tournament. All month, 7investing will be publishing head-to-head matchups between 16 stocks in order to determine which represents the best current opportunity for investors.  7investing's Twitter account will also post live polls for you to vote on the matchups. And also host Spaces episodes to discuss the stocks with a live audience.  The tournament will run for the first three weeks of March and will support our new 7investing Starter membership. Starter is our lower-priced service, which offers two stock recommendations and Deep Dives for $17 per month. It's a great way to get started on a lifelong investing journey and to get introduced to 7investing's advisors, content, and investing approach. Learn more about 7investing.com/starter-membership. We'll be posting our Spaces episodes to our podcast all month. Welcome to 7investing's Market Madness!

It's relatively easy to argue that some type of exposure to emerging markets belongs in most U.S. investor portfolios. Emerging markets represent about 4.3 billion people, 50% of the global GDP, but only a relatively small percentage of global equities' market cap. Emerging markets are usually defined as a country with a developing economy that shares some, but not all, characteristics with a developed economy. To discuss emerging markets more, 7investing lead advisor Matthew Cochrane welcomed Perth Tolle, the founder of Life and Liberty Indexes, to 7investing's podcast. The two coincidentally talked on February 24, 2023, the first anniversary of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. As the conflict began, U.S. investors were forced to quickly confront the geopolitical risks of investing in emerging markets as Russian equities were removed from the emerging market indices at $0. Investors in Tolle's Freedom 100 Emerging Markets ETF (CBOE:FRDM) didn't face this problem as the ETF had no exposure to Russian securities. The ETF is a freedom-weighted equity strategy that uses personal and economic freedom metrics as primary factors in its investment process. This means it doesn't have heavy exposure to countries such as China or Russia, markets that traditionally hold larger allocations in emerging market funds. Tolle and Cochrane discuss that even as China's GDP growth has exploded in recent decades, shareholders in Chinese equities have managed to capture very little of that wealth. With China's government in virtually total control of its economy, it can change laws and regulations on a dime. It will often dictate new rules for businesses as it deems fit. This environment makes it very difficult for shareholders to recognize any profits. Tolle and Cochrane also discuss emerging markets that enjoy economic and personal freedoms, such as Chile, South Korea, and Taiwan. Exposure to Chilean markets, for instance, rarely rises above 1% allocations in most emerging market funds. The Freedom ETF enjoys a double-digit allocation that has tremendously boosted FRDM's returns compared to the emerging market index, contributing to Freedom's relative out-performance. To get our investing podcasts and articles delivered to your Inbox every day, join our 7investing email list at 7investing.com/email.

As a host of macro concerns continue to weigh on the global economy, investors are increasingly reassessing their risk tolerances and looking to contain volatility as much as maximizing returns. With this in mind, 7investing lead advisor Matthew Cochrane welcomed back Value Stock Geek to see how his self-proclaimed Weird Portfolio held up in 2022 amid a worrying economic backdrop. The Weird Portfolio consists of six low-cost ETFs representing five different asset classes and geographic diversity. While each of the asset classes are highly volatile on their own, when combined in a portfolio they have an overall smoothing effect, as each asset class delivers different returns during different environments. In the interview, Value Stock Geek walks Cochrane through the asset classes of the Weird Portfolio and the role each one plays, including U.S. small cap value stocks (20%), small cap international stocks (20%), real estate (10% domestic, 10% international), long-term treasuries (20%), and gold (20%). The Weird Portfolio is just part of Value Stock Geek's overall portfolio, however, with the rest dedicated to individual stocks that he believes are wonderful companies at wonderful prices. Cochrane and VSG discuss their mutually shared positions in Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:FB) and PayPal Holdings (NASDAQ:PYPL), and why VSG believes both have durable economic moats and trade at attractive valuations. VSG also walks Cochrane through his investment cases for Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (NYSE:TSM) and General Dynamics (NYSE:GD). VSG and Cochrane also discuss value traps and how they have each fallen for companies that looked cheap, but which were really declining businesses masked by cheap valuation multiples. To have our investing insights delivered directly to your Inbox, please join our email list at 7investing.com/email.

7investing's Episode 11 of No Limit has lead advisors Luke Hallard and Krzysztof Piekarski sinking their investing fangs into the new ARK Invest Big Ideas of 2023 paper, the dangers of being a futurist investor and the two essential elements to being a good investor— being right and being contrarian.  Luke and Krzys wonder whether they’re being contrarian about Alphabet given their latest kerfuffle with Microsoft. And if you want to know what TV episode is the best Luke’s ever seen, tune in to 7investing’s podcast for all levels of investors, from beginners to the sophisticates and beyond.

Morgan Stanley believes the space economy will be worth more than $1 trillion dollars by 2040. Bank of America Merrill Lynch believes it will reach $2.7 trillion by 2045.   If those estimates are even directionally-correct, outer space will soon become one of the biggest investment opportunities of our lifetime.  And it's more than just a science-fiction dream. The commercialization of space is already well-underway. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) recently granted SpaceX the right to launch 7,500 of its next-gen satellites, and it's working through a backlog of nearly 40,000 more applications. That would represent a quadrupling of the total number of satellites currently in orbit; as the whole sector is hitting an inflection point.   What's the best way to invest in this trend? Will satellite internet really account for half of the overall space market by 2040? Will we see a renewed "militarization of space", with demand for military intel vaulting defense contractors even higher? Will launch providers appeal to a new wave of commercial customers? And how should investors think of the newly-public "SPAC" companies who raised funding in 2021?   To help us answer those questions, 7investing CEO recently spoke with Procure Asset Management's co-founder Andrew Chanin. Andrew is a favorite guest of our 7investing show, and Procure's ETF with the ticker "UFO" offers pure-play exposure to the space economy.   In the first part of the discussion, Andrew describes the role of private companies in the militarization of space. Elon Musk's SpaceX played an important role in enabling satellite communications for Ukraine during its conflict with Russia. Other satellite operators are similarly assisting in military operations.   One of those companies, Maxar Technologies (NYSE: MAXR) was recently acquired at a 129% premium to its equity valuation -- which demonstrates how important military intelligence has become and the potential opportunity it offers to investors. Andrew goes on to discuss the implications of the Chinese spy balloon and how geopolitical tensions are escalating between the US, China, and Taiwan.   In the next segment, Simon and Andrew discuss how the FCC recently approved 7,500 of SpaceX's next-gen satellites for satellite-based internet. Other commercial enterprises are also interested in proving high-speed internet connectivity to enable new technologies -- such as 5G or the Internet of Things. This has led to a frenzy of applications for spectrum rights, as satellite internet will be one of the largest contributors to the future commercial space economy.   The two go on to discuss the role of consolidation, startups, and skilled labor in the space. Simon points out that Rocket Lab (Nasdaq: RKLB) is investing in infrastructure that would enable an order-of-magnitude increase in its current launch capacity, while Andrew discusses how many companies are actually collaborating to achieve common goals and milestone.  At the conclusion of the conversation, the two discuss additional M&A opportunities.

Jake Taylor is a man that wears many hats. He is the CEO of Farnam Street, the founder of the new Journalytic app, the author of The Rebel Allocator, and the co-host of the Value After Hours podcast. Somehow amid his busy schedule, he recently found time to sit down with 7investing lead advisor Matthew Cochrane to talk about these roles and dive deep into the inner workings of Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE:BRK.A)(NYSE:BRK.B). Their conversation begins with Taylor explaining to Cochrane the genesis of the idea for Journalytic, a journaling tool designed specifically for investors. Taylor says that one of the most challenging aspects of investing is that the only thing the individual investor has control over is their process, so he searched for an existing tool that could help him improve his investing process. When Taylor couldn't find anything, he decided to design something they could use in-house at Farnam Street and wield it as an advantage over other investment shops. This was before he decided to open Journalytic to everyone. Cochrane shows Taylor how he used sprawling Word documents for each stock he owned for years before it grew too tedious and cumbersome to continue. Taylor believes Journalytic can help investors organize data and opinions on stocks. By using it, he believes investors can improve their buying and selling processes by journaling their thoughts as they make investment decisions. Recording their thoughts and feelings as they own a company should help investors push back against many of the behavioral biases that have traditionally haunted investors and not let emotions overwhelm them in the heat of the moment. When Taylor wrote The Rebel Allocator, he started by writing a non-fictional thesis on capital allocation. He says it was so dry and dull that he could not envision anyone reading it. Taylor scrapped the non-fictional piece and started from scratch. He takes the same investment lessons he wanted to communicate in the earlier work and weaves them into a fictional story. The story follows a college graduate's journey into young adulthood, as the protagonist meets a fast-food mogul who takes him under his wing and teaches him the secrets to his business success. Meanwhile, the young hero falls in love, gets a promotion at work, and generally matures in his worldview as he learns about life. Taylor and Cochrane end their discussion by discussing Berkshire Hathaway, Warren Buffett's conglomerate that owns everything from Dairy Queen and GEICO Insurance to a significant stake in Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL). Taylor discusses the advantages of holding a Berkshire position, including the ethos with which Buffett has run the business. Taylor believes the company's culture, including its decentralized structure, will long outlast Buffett's and Charlie Munger's tenure. Taylor believes Buffett made one investment that encapsulates some of his best teachings. Berkshire acquired See's Candies for $25 million in 1972. Before acquiring See's, Buffett made "cigar butt" type investments, buying companies well below their book value. At this point, See's Candies has paid back Berkshire Hathaway about $2 billion, illustrating how time is on your side when buying great businesses. To subscribe to our free 7investing newsletter and get daily insights like these, please visit 7investing.com/email

Episode 10 of No Limit has Krzysztof pontificating on his recent trip to Las Vegas and the difference between an investing and gambling mindset.    Luke offers insight into the company Wise and the difficulties and solutions of getting paid across international borders. We critique the merits of investing in what you know, that old tried-and true-is Peter Lynch framework.    There’s also an appearance by Zen Master Hakuin and his powerful method of asking “Is that so?” We announce Peter Zeihan’s new book about the end of Globalization as an insightful place to see where the world is heading and encourage a 7investing group read.    Of course Luke can’t help getting a little poker theory into the conversation and triumphantly announces his hourly rate at the tables— any guesses? Plus, we find more AI toy suggestions for you to explore.    If you’re investing-curious or just getting started on the journey, we’re here to help you learn the basics, so give us a listen and send us your inquires via our discord channel or on twitter @7flyingplatypus and @7lukehallard—we aim to include our members’ questions and challenges in each episode whenever possible, so step right up and don’t be shy, because investing is a community sport!

There are few industries more important to the world than semiconductors. $600 billion worth of chips are sold across the globe each year that go into everything -- from permanent-pressing washing machines to application-crunching datacenters to self-aware automobiles. The world's thirst for computing is continually increasing and the chip industry is shifting into a higher gear to keep up. Yet it's not just market demand that heavy influences this industry's key players. Significant geopolitical implications are present as well, with developed economies needed cutting-edge chips as a crucial part of their national security. Many countries are scrambling to find ways to guarantee domestic chip supply, to avoid a potentially debilitating supply disruption. What does all of this mean for investors? Are there companies who have efficiently leveraged their fixed costs to achieve massive economies of scale? Are there newcomers or less-well-known companies who are necessary to the process and are opportunities to investors? And is the gravitational pull of national interests serving as an advantage to certain companies and as a huge headwind to others? To answer those questions, 7investing hosted a special "Semiconductor Roundtable" this month. 7investing lead advisors Simon Erickson and Krzysztof Piekarski were joined by external guests Jose Najarro and Nick Rossolillo. In the roundtable discussion, each panelist presented a key part or factor of the semiconductor industry. They also introduced a few of the important companies within it. First, Jose discussed the chip designers. He described how consumer-facing applications like self-driving automobiles or OpenAI's ChatGPT chatbot are powered by cloud datacenters, which use super-efficient chips designed by companies like NVIDIA (Nasdaq: NVDA) and AMD (Nasdaq: AMD). The computing horsepower necessary to run artificial intelligence algorithms is increasing quickly, meaning there's a skyrocketing demand for the world's most advanced chip designers. Nick then discussed the importance of validation software in the design process, to ensure new chips will pass specification and tests to perform as expected. One leader in providing electronic design automation software is Synopsys(Nasdaq: SNPS), whose subscription licensing business model has created a high-margin recurring revenue stream for investors. Krzysztof discussed the semiconductor manufacturing segment, citing Chris Miller's Chip War book as a key influence to his thinking. He described the importance of cutting-edge chips to national security interests and how two companies -- ASML (Nasdaq: ASML) and Taiwan Semiconductor (NYSE: TSM) -- are necessary for the developed world to continue to function. Fabrication facilities cost tens of billions of dollars to build, giving the companies in this capital-intensive segment high barriers-to-entry against potential competitors. Finally, Simon used geopolitical tensions as a frame for the investing thesis in Intel (Nasdaq: INTC). Intel has been one of the most important semiconductors of the past half-century, who pioneered the concept of "Moore's Law" that led to an exponential rise in the world's computing power. Intel has a boatload of problems, yet faces a unique opportunity of providing America with domestic chip supply. Selling cheaply at just 9x earnings, Intel could be an intriguing opportunity. At the conclusion, each of the panelists voted on which of the six stocks mentioned they believed was the best opportunity for investors today. We hope you enjoyed our 7investing Semiconductor Roundtable! To get daily insights like this delivered directly to your Inbox, please join our 7investing email list at 7investing.com/email.