Bull Sessions (4/19/2022)

These weekly discussions seek to explore relevant topics and/or actionable opportunities for deeper dives. The sessions are held on Tuesdays at 2 PM. The editorial calendar will include stock analysis methods, specific company studies, portfolio design and management, “missions” within Manifest Investing …

Celebrating the return to baseball with Bull Durham memories with a nod to Fielding Dreams (and the ever-quotable Kevin Costner) ... 2-time celebrity Groundhog Champion Ken Heebner (CGMFX) has returned to the top of the leader board. Kim urges investors to explore www.docoh.com -- looks like a promising aggregator and Cathie Wood (ARKK) continues to flail. We return to the early stage highly-profitable companies that we mentioned last week and ensure coverage at Manifest Investing.

Mark Robertson and Kim Butcher hosted the mid-April 2022 Bull Sessions webinar, focusing on the importance of medium-sized companies in a diversified investment portfolio. Drawing parallels from baseball movies and Ted Williams' batting analysis, the speakers emphasized the "Sweet Spot" investment philosophy—selecting quality companies at reasonable prices. They highlighted that the S&P 400 medium-cap index has historically outperformed both large-cap and small-cap indices over a 20-30 year period, supporting the modern investment club movement's recommended portfolio allocation of 25% large-cap, 50% mid-cap, and 25% small-cap stocks. The speakers stressed that seemingly small differences in annual returns compound into significant wealth differences over decades, underscoring the value of disciplined, long-term investing.

A significant portion of the webinar was dedicated to introducing Doco, a financial research website that Kim Butcher discovered as an alternative to Seeking Alpha's paywall. The platform aggregates quarterly earnings reports, analyst call transcripts, and SEC filings (10-K and 10-Q documents), allowing investors to conduct keyword searches and analyze executive compensation metrics. Kim emphasized her appreciation for accessing analyst questions and answers during earnings calls, as these insights can reveal overlooked investment considerations. The speakers demonstrated how such tools support fundamental analysis and informed decision-making aligned with Manifest Investing's methodology. Additionally, they announced an upcoming special roundtable session with the St. Louis chapter, which would focus on celebrating "flyover stocks"—the often-overlooked mid-cap workhorses that deserve portfolio attention.