Playing FTSE

What’s been going on in the financial world and why should anyone care? Find out as we dive into the latest news and try to figure out what any of it means. We talk about stocks, markets, politics, and loads of other things in a way that’s accessible, light-hearted and (we hope) entertaining. For the people who know nothing, by the people who know even less. Enjoy!

This week Kasper (Briscord founder) has had a birthday! He's now 21. In his honour, Steve W has put together "Are You Smarter Than a 21 Year Old?" Paul and Steve D to battle to see if they can outsmart Kasper or each other. Then it's on to Berkshire Hathaway earnings to see what Steve W is looking for in assessing Warren Buffett's chances of outperforming the S&P 500 going forward. After that, it's a round of stocks we're looking at on our watchlists. Paul talks about Hargreaves Lansdown's business model, Steve D tells us about Nintendo's tumbling share price, Steve W talks about Compass Minerals and their massive moat. Lastly, Steve D gives us a whistle-stop tour of GoodRX's earnings, like Teladoc, but faster.

What’s been going on in the financial world and why should anyone care? Find out as we dive into the latest news and try to figure out what any of it means. We talk about stocks, markets, politics, and loads of other things in a way that’s accessible, light-hearted, and (we hope) entertaining. For the people who know nothing, by the people who know even less. Enjoy!

Is Colon Capital a SPAC? Find out as we play Talking Smack or Talking SPAC? Steve D’s been busy on SPACtrack, so find out whether Paul can finally win one as we play this week’s game. 

With the latest game out of the way, we turn to some FTSE news. Find out which FTSE company has been the target of an acquisition at 180% of its market cap, what Steve W thinks about the potential deal and what we think of the run of bids for UK companies from their US counterparts. 

After this, it’s on to some earnings reports. We start with Playing FTSE favourite Tesla, where Steve D tells us what it’s like being in a self-driven Tesla and Paul tells us what he’d get up to in the back of someone else’s. Our other earnings report is Berkshire Hathaway. This hasn’t happened yet, but Steve W is excited and he’ll tell you why. 

Lastly, it’s FINALLY time for us to come good on a promise to answer Equity Investor’s question about how to evaluate drug pipelines. Serious faces on as we talk about how we try to make sense of the prospects for unapproved drugs that we haven’t heard of, couldn’t spell, and are generally ill-qualified to come to an informed judgement on. 

Why does Paul watch so much kids TV? What has been happening to ASML lately? And which Chinese company would Steve W buy if he had to? The answers to all of these and more are in this week's Playing FTSE podcast!

With the band back together, Paul and the Steves pile into Chinese investments, earnings reports, and SPACs. Starting with the situation with Didi and the Chinese government, the boys discuss the risks of Chinese investing and how to approach them. Along the way, find out what Steve D would buy in China if forced to. 

Then it's on to earnings as reports have been coming in thick and fast. Find out what Paul has been looking at in the Netflix reports as the boys discuss Netflix, Unilever, and ASOS. 

Next is an update on what's been happening in the world of SPACs and Bill Ackman's latest deal. PSTH is back to looking for a target to merge with. And Steve W (yes Steve W) has his eye on some SPACs of his own...! 

We finish with a Steve D game as Briscoe and Steve W put their stock market knowledge to the test on CEOs, exchanges, and more!

No risk it no biscuit? This week the Playing FTSE podcast takes a look at how to figure out how risky a stock is BEFORE you buy it. Steve D’s been busy having a look at the Motley Fool’s risk calculator and developed a series of 25 straightforward yes/no questions to help you assess risk by looking at intrinsic facts about the company, its leadership, its competitive position, and some other factors. In this episode, Paul and Steve W have a look at some of their holdings and think about the risks that they’re willing to take. Paul looks at Broadcom, NanoX, and Rio Tinto. Steve W talks about Landstar System.

Download our risk calculator here on Google Sheets and play along - get your own version by hitting the menu button, share and export and then make a copy.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1RxRBU7PHT2Co8oUViFyy9J1xY5LS4n-61vybI02WJM8/edit?usp=drivesdk

This week on the Playing FTSE podcast, SVEN CARLIN IS IN THE HOUUUUUSE! Steve D takes a rest as Paul and Steve W talk with the author of Modern Value Investing on personal finance, investing, stocks, and markets. We talk about Sven’s early days of investing and find out what the first stock Sven ever bought was, what he thinks about the UK and the wave of new investors entering financial markets for the first time, and play our new quick-fire game Sven Carlin or Sven Carlout!

This week, the Steves take over the Playing FTSE podcast! With Paul away, the Steves get down to work. First up is a look back at Q2 and the year to date from the halfway point of the year. The Steves talk about what they've been buying and selling and how their (imaginary) 13Fs would look. Then it's onto news from the banks about capital releases following the latest stress tests from the FED. Find out why Steve D is fishing outside the US in his search for banks and financials. After that, it's a stock picking bonanza as the boys look forward to the next quarter, with three picks each for Q3 and to the next three years as they release their Motley Fool-style samplers to compete with David Gardner in his final outing. Lastly, the Steves tackle the UK and a question about what sectors they like the look of going forward.

In this show we celebrate the career of David Gardner—who announced his retirement with a 5 stock sampler on the theme of ‘pursued by a bear’. Led by Steve D, the boys talk about his latest picks, his success as a stock picker, and the rules he likes to break. Next, we come to a viewer question of how to divide up finances in a relationship. Unbelievably, both Steves are married and they talk about how they manage finances in their relationship and how much washing up Steve W does at home. But we start the show with a game of “Trading 21-2 Hot To Handle” where Paul and Steve D try to guess whether Wirecard or Nikola Motors is more popular with Trading 212 users. Enjoy!

This week, we talk about the top 5 positions in each of our portfolios. One company gets on everyone’s list—find out which one it is! We begin with Steve W and Briscoe duelling over “who’s got the biggest?” before tackling the FED’s latest comments and the response from the markets. Then it’s on to personal finance as we find out what investing sayings trigger Steve W, what Steve D’s been selling in the last year, and how Briscoe organises his salary. After a quick discussion of the latest EV news from YouTube favourite Lordstown Motors, we get onto talking about the top holdings in our portfolios and why they’re there.