25iq

My views on the market, tech, and everything else

A Dozen Things I’ve Learned from David Einhorn About Investing

    David Einhorn is the President of Greenlight Capital which is “a value oriented investment advisor… that emphasizes intrinsic value will achieve consistent absolute investment returns and safeguard capital regardless of market conditions.” “He learned the hedge fund business from Gary Siegler and Peter Collery, who managed the SC Fundamental Value Fund. David Einhorn is one of the most successful long/short equity hedge fund managers of the past decade.” […]

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A Dozen Things Charlie Munger has said about Reading

  “In my whole life, I have known no wise people (over a broad subject matter area) who didn’t read all the time – none, zero.”   “You’d be amazed at how much Warren reads – at how much I read. My children laugh at me. They think I’m a book with a couple of legs sticking out.”    “As long as I have a book in my hand, I […]

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A Dozen Things I’ve Learned from Paul Tudor Jones About Investing and Trading

Paul Tudor Jones is the founder of the hedge fund Tudor Investment Corporation. The New York Times reported in March of 2014: Mr. Jones can “claim long-term annual returns of close to 19.5 percent in his $10.3 billion flagship fund, Tudor BVI Global.”   1. “Certain people have a greater proclivity for [macro trading] because they don’t have the need to feel intellectually superior to the crowd. It’s a personality […]

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A Dozen Things I’ve Learned from Sam Altman about Venture Capital, Startups and Business

Sam Altman is the president of Y Combinator. He was also the cofounder of Loopt, a location-based social networking app. Altman studied computer science at Stanford University. 1. “The best companies are almost always mission oriented.” “Eventually, the company needs to evolve to become a mission that everyone, but especially the founders, are exceptionally dedicated to. The ‘missionaries vs. mercenaries’ soundbite is overused but true.” If the founders of a […]

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A Dozen Things I’ve Learned from Ben Horowitz about Management, Investing and Business

Ben Horowitz is a co-founder of the venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz.  Prior to being a venture capitalist,  he co-founded Loudcloud, a managed services provider which became Opsware, a data center automation software provider.  He is the author of The Hard Thing About Hard Things: Building a Business When There Are No Easy Answers.  Horowitz earned a BA in Computer Science from Columbia University in 1988 and a MS in […]

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A Dozen Things I’ve Learned from Leon Cooperman About Investing

Leon Cooperman is the founder of the multi-billion dollar hedge fund Omega Advisors. Cooperman founded the firm after a 25 year career at Goldman Sachs where he was a partner and served as chairman and CEO of Goldman Sachs Asset Management. His biography is extensive. The fund’s approach to investing is described as: “We are a value-based, catalyst driven investor, focused on a variant perception of company fundamentals. Our disciplined, […]

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A Dozen Things I’ve Learned from Peter Fenton About Business, Investing and Venture Capital

Peter Fenton is a partner at Benchmark. He spent seven years as a partner with Accel before joining Benchmark. The list of businesses he has invested in and mentored is extensive. They include Twitter, Yelp, New Relic, Hortonworks, Quip, Zuora, Zendesk, and Polyvore – among others. He is so well spoken and careful about conveying his ideas that it is particularly hard to add my usual commentary to what he […]

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A Dozen Things I’ve Learned from Mario Gabelli about Investing and Business

Mario Gabelli is the founder of the money-management firm GAMCO Investors, Inc.  Bloomberg writes: “His investment methodology combines the pioneers of value-oriented investing and the iconic boss of Berkshire Hathaway Inc.”   1. “We’re not buying a piece of paper when we buy stock, we’re buying a business.” “Think like an owner.” A security represents a partial share in an actual business. When you are buying that business you should […]

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A Dozen Things I’ve Learned from Jim Goetz about Business, Startups and Venture Capital

Jim Goetz is a venture capitalist at Sequoia Capital.  His list of accomplishments is long and impressive. 1. “I am looking for unknowns, who are passionate and mission-based.” Mercenaries are motivated primarily by money. Missionaries, in contrast, are driven by a cause. Missionaries are not only more likely to persevere during hard or challenging times they are more likely to work to keep the business independent – which tends to […]

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