The SOIC Podcast

For a business to succeed over a long period, it must have some kind of competitive advantage. This becomes even more important in the case of businesses that have commodity characteristics. As commodity cycles are brutal if not timed correctly, we investors need to be very careful while assessing such businesses as potential investment candidates. This is where we can separate the wheat from the chaff by finding the cyclical business with some kind of competitive advantage that makes them stand tall in their industry and take the brunt of cold harsh weather once it comes knocking. It provides them with enough safety to bear downturns and rise again once the cycle resumes.

Intro + Book Recommendation

Commodity King: Business Segments

P2P Analysis 

Sources of Competitive Advantages 

Thesis and Antithesis Pointers 

To succeed in the capital markets or in life, be it your career or relationships, thinking long term and keeping the faith and same level of attention throughout will bring phenomenal results. If you keenly observe, you'll find that people or management or businesses who have had this quality of long term attention have done better than someone who has had shorter term attention span. We look at one such business that has kept its attention span of long term intact despite circumstances. They focused on the business and opportunities lying ahead. They used the cash flows of one business to make more businesses and gain more and more capabilities and perfect them.

The name of the business is SRF Ltd. We will look at the history, promoters, business divisions, competitive advantages, thesis-antithesis & a conclusion to wrap up. It took an enormous amount of research and deep focus on our side to bring this detailed analysis on the wonderful conglomerate. We hope you find this informative and you're also able to use the learnings for future research in other businesses. 

We often read businesses bottoms up and try to analyse the competitive advantage. However, sometimes we can get a much better idea about the competitive position and trade advantages of an industry by looking top down and studying the peers. We saw a similar situation emerging in the business we are going to cover. The industry seems to be a commodity sorts, still most players in this industry are commanding good sustainable margins. The nature of the industry is slow growing and still the dominant players are consistent with a lot of entry barriers built in. To cover this business we have tried to cover the whole industry of Soda Ash. We studied the peers from domestic as well as international markets.

We will learn about the history of TATA Chemicals and how it emerged from the stable of so many wonderful companies under the TATA brand. A deep dive detailed analysis is being done of the Soda Ash industry to understand why the margins persist in this cyclical commodity based industry. In an intuitive way we list all the thesis and antithesis pointers. Most importantly we have covered the near term triggers and even more importantly we have covered the risk we foresee in this peak environment.

We often come across people who are disgruntled with stock markets as they have not been able to fulfill their expectations. The reason for their displeasure isn’t the stock markets instead, the real reason is their unreal expectations from the markets. Stock Markets are not casinos to double or triple your money in a jiffy, rather they are the source for enormous compounding but over a long period of time. You’d have to experience it to believe it. We have observed that anyone who is seriously committed and has patience can make handsome returns here. Even those who have no time to study different businesses or don’t have the interest to dig deep into financials of a business also have a huge opportunity to create a good amount of capital. One just needs to be disciplined and have a plan. We analyse and explain to you, what are indices and the different ways to invest in an Index. We also explain and give examples of how Free Float Indices are made, what is tracking, error and why Exchange Traded Funds (ETF) have lower tracking error compared to Index Funds. We conclude by giving the pros and cons of both ETFs and Index Funds. You will get a flavour of how powerful Passive Investing can be.

In our journeys to be good investors we come across many super investors. We read about them, we watch their interviews and often aspire to make decisions like them. It is nearly impossible to ape someone and have the exact same outcomes in life as the masters have had. However, it is always beneficial to keep learning from the masters as the impact they will have in shaping up our mindset and inculcating good habits in our life is irreplaceable.

Recently we lost one such gem, Mr. Rakesh Jhunjhunwala, The Big Bull of Indian Stock Market. His style and aura is known to all who have ever even stepped a foot in Stock Markets in India. We take a look at Top 5 Multibagger Learnings we could gather from his speeches, interviews and interactions over the years. We learn about his framework for investing and some of the traits about his nature and character that helped him ace the markets for such a long time and achieve a mind boggling 52.7% CAGR returns on his portfolio over the years (better CAGR returns than Warren Buffett).

A business is often measured on the basis of the growth it has been witnessing over a period of time. However, there are many other factors that must work behind the scenes in making a business a success in the long term. This is a detailed analysis of Solar Industries, that makes explosives for the Industrial & Defence Sector. They are also venturing into the uncharted territories of Space Science and bolstering Indian Defence by homegrown ammunition.

The ultimate goal of all investors is to make a decent to above average return on their capital. In pursuit of these returns and building a good corpus for our determined goals we take risks with our present capital. It pays well if one has enough time to study and invest in the ideas that fit their framework. However, for many finding time or having that much passion for investing is not a possibility. This is where the magic of mutual funds plays the trick. It requires discipline and perseverance as with “DIY” investing as well. The fruits of compounding are always back-ended, one needs to be patient and have a goal in mind. It is a boon for many retail investors who want to have the flavour of equity but don’t have the time or find the research part tedious.

We discuss in detail the Active & Passive Funds, an interesting bet of Warren Buffett, Basics of Mutual Funds, Categories, Expense Ratio, Direct vs Regular & Tax Saving that will save you crores via ELSS.

A podcast about the latest Howard Marks letter with detailed Indian case studies.

There's no point in learning without case studies. :) We have covered 10+ Indian examples.

A business with ~50% Operating & ~30 PAT Margins from Indian Retail Sector

We bring you a business from the sector of The Big Fat Indian Wedding. The story behind this business is as beautiful as the products it is making. We'll cover different segments, comparison with other brands, financials and a very special scuttlebutt segment. The story of an entrepreneur who has forayed into the highly unorganised market of Indian Wedding and how he is gaining a considerable amount of ground. They are making their presence felt by so many different models like mass opening of Exclusive Brand Outlets, Considerable Ad Spends and Cross Selling. (Manyavar Stock Analysis)

You will have an in-depth knowledge of the Indian Wedding Industry and be well versed with the key metrics that are to be tracked in this industry.

“Your Network is your Net Worth.” —Porter Gale  

To be successful in an industry one needs to first enter it. Your entry will largely depend upon your skills. However, there is an aspect of soft skills, which is underappreciated but holds the key to great success in your life and career. We'll answer a very important question that is hot among youngsters interested in Financial Markets. This is our take on: How you can land a job in Financial Markets.