Equity Mates Investing Podcast

Australia loves investors. You need to understand the tax advantages of a lot of your investments to make the most of it. But trying to understand it all can be confusing, especially if it's your first time doing a tax return, or it's been your first year investing in stocks. Have no fear though, because in this episode we go through everything you need to know when it comes to your stocks and your tax return. In this episode you will learn: What we mean when we say Australia loves investors The basics - dividend income, capital gains, total assessable income Wen yu need to fill out a tax return The tax advantages of capital gains and capital losses About capital gains discount About tax loss selling About the beauty that are franking credits How margin loans can be advantageous if done right

Since our first interview with George Lucas a lot has changed. When we last interviewed him, he was the head of Acorns Australia. Now, less than 6 months later, he is the CEO of the publicly traded Raiz. We’ve been getting a lot of listener questions about the rebrand of Acorns Australia and what it means, so we thought who better to answer those questions than George Lucas himself. In this episode we get the back story and inside details of Acorns Australia's decision to rebrand as Raiz and to list on the ASX. This is also an exciting first for us, our first interview with an ASX-listed CEO.    In this episode you will learn: How Raiz, previously Acorns, helps you 'save in the background of life' Why Acorns Australia rebranded as Raiz. How George and his team came up with the name Raiz. The reasons why Raiz went public. The IPO process including the investor roadshow and how George felt on opening day.  How the company has performed since going public. Growth in the FinTech market that is making it easier for non-professionals to invest. Raiz’s plans to get into Superannuation The Raiz Rewards program, and how you can get companies to put money towards your investing goals  Stocks and Resources Discussed: Raiz Invest Limited (ASX: RZI) Link to Raiz website

"This is not mission impossible!" - Matt Leibowitz, CEO of Stake This episode is a cracker. As many of you are aware, we were invited to participate in a trading competition, hosted by Stake, to beta test their new trading app. The rules were simple. We were given $500 (USD$370) to trade through Stake, in American stocks. We had two weeks to make as much money as possible, and we had to trade at least three different companies. Mission accepted! However, for Equity Mates, this was going to be a massive challenge, because our view on investing is much, much longer-term than two weeks. We had to radically change our mindset. We sat down with Matt for what was going to be a short wrap-up of the competition, and reveal of the results. However, as we got started we couldn't help picking Matt's brain further and further with questions about his trading during the competition and his views on technical analysis. We had a very open conversation with him about the tricks and habits of being a successful trader. In this episode you will learn: How much money we won or lost in the competition, and where we placed What our biggest learnings were from the two weeks The stocks we picked, and why we picked them The stocks Matt picked, and why he picked them About the importance of using a stop loss, and how to best manage them The basics of volatility, and how Matt used it to his advantage How to "be a lion in the jungle, and wait for your prey to appear" Why money drives markets and not the news cycle Why everyone has the ability to manage their own money Why investing is not about being right, it's about making money The best books for technical analysis Stocks and resources discussed: Avalara (AVLR) Netflix (NFLX) ProShares UltraPro QQQ ETF 3x Leveraged (TQQQ) VIX Short-term futures ProShares (VIXY) Frontline (FRO) Fortinet (FTNT) ProShares Ultra VIX Short-term Futures ETF (UVXY)

This episode is a little different to most. When the rumours first broke about football superstar Christiano Ronaldo going to Juventus, the Juventus share price jumped 8%. We didn't realise Juventus was publicly traded and started doing some researching. This episode is the result of that investigation - an exploration of some of the strangest and most surprising companies out on the market.  In this episode you will learn: About sports teams that are publicly traded, including one from Australia How you can invest in stadiums  If owning a sporting league is better than owning a sports team About a company that searches for lost treasure  Some of the strangest futures markets that have been banned by the US Government Stocks and Resources Discussed: Juventus (Italy: JUVE) Machester United (NYSE: MANU) Brisbane Broncos (ASX: BBL) Madison Square Garden (NYSE: MSG) Churchill Downs (NASDAQ: CHDN) World Wrestling Entertainment (NYSE: WWE) Formula One (NYSE: FWONA) Odyssey Marine Exploration (NASDAQ: OMEX)  

Following on from the last episode, where we discussed three important elements for building an investment portfolio, we deep dive into our own portfolios to compare our strategies and see if they align with our investing goals. We both have similar long-term goals, yet the way we approach constructing our investment portfolios are quite different, based on our risk appetite, asset classes and our short-term view of the market. One of us is heavy in cash, expecting the market to turn, and wanting to be in a position to pounce. The other is well diversified across direct stock picks, hybrids and gold. We look at what the strategies are behind our portfolios and what our next moves are. In this episode you will learn: How we have approached our portfolio construction over the past few years How our portfolio reflects our long-term investing goals What a hybrid is, and why Alec has invested in them  

How to build a great investment portfolio? - it's easier than you think! There is no real hidden secret that only the professionals know about when it comes to building a successful investment portfolio. A portfolio is the total collection of assets that you invest in to create wealth. Now, it doesn't have to always be shares. Many portfolios of the best investors around the world are made up of different asset classes, from cash, to bonds and property. This episode we debunk the myth that you need to be an expert to start building a great portfolio. The truth is, it's simple, as long as you're dedicated, do your own research and are prepared to have some fun. We discuss the three building blocks that we think are fundamental to building a portfolio and that are achievable for the beginner. In this episode you will learn: What the three components are that make the foundations for a strong investment portfolio What Bryce and Alec's investing goals are, and if their portfolios are set up to achieve them The difference between Growth, Income and Protection portfolios Some of the most common asset classes that make up many investor's portfolios    

Stock buybacks are all the rage these days. Fuelled by tax cuts, low cost of capital and not a lot of growth opportunities on the horizon, companies have been buying back their shares by the bucketload. In fact, since 2010 there has been $3.5 trillion in shares bought back in the US alone. Buybacks are great for shareholders in theory - one day you owned 5% of the company, the next day you owned 7% without lifting a finger. How good! However, in reality buybacks haven't always been great for investors or for the companies buying back the shares. In this episode you will learn: What a buyback is and how it is done The theory behind buybacks Notable examples of recent buybacks - Apple, Boeing, Cisco, ANZ just to name a few Why Australia doesn't see as many buybacks as other markets The downside of buybacks, including some notable examples of buybacks gone wrong Stocks and Resources discussed in this episode: Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) Boeing (NYSE: BA) Cisco Systems Inc (NASDAQ: CSCO) ANZ (ASX:ANZ) General Electric Company (NYSE: GE) The Economist article on Buybacks (2014)

This is an exciting episode for us! We've been invited to join in a trading competition, hosted by our friends at Stake (if you haven't already, you must sign-up - you can trade stocks in the US without paying brokerage, and they'll swing you $25 to start you on your way, just head to www.equitymates.com/stake), and we're up against some of the best financial journalists in Australia. The rules are simple. We've been given a small amount of money to trade through the Stake platform, and can only buy sticks from the US. We have 2 weeks to make as much money as we can (all money going to charity, chosen by the winner). We must make a trade everyday, or be able to justify why we have decided not to trade, and we must trade at least 3 stocks over the two weeks. We know nothing about technical analysis trading. We invest with a long-term approach so we've never had to think about how to make trades that will get us a return in 2 weeks! It's going to be so fun! We're going to record the whole two weeks. Each conversation we have together about what to do, our strategy, which stocks to buy, we are going to record, and by the end we'll have an awesome package to share with you guys about an intro into technical analysis. So stay tuned! In this episode you will learn: How we came to choose our first stock for the trading competition we are in How competent we feel with technical analysis Where the 'ticker' originated from About the capitalist of all capitalists - JP Morgan About the history of one of the most famous finacial streets in the world - Wall Street Stocks and resources discussed: Avalara Inc Stake  

“Rule number 1: Never lose money. Rule number 2: Never forget rule number 1” - Warren Buffett Managing risk is critical to long term investing success. To fully enjoy the effects of compounding it is critical you don’t lose your money in the first place. Similarly, concerns around losing money are what stops a lot of people from ever investing in the first place. This episode will help you protect your downside, and manage your risk. We discuss strategies both of protecting your downside in individual trades and also across your portfolio as a whole.   What you will learn: Where Bryce has been and what he was doing. What we mean when we say ‘protecting your downside’. Key ways to protect your downside in individual trades Stop losses Trailing stops Key ways to protect your downside across your portfolio Shorting or inverse ETF’s Counter-cyclical assets Holding cash Stocks and Resources Discussed: Inverse ASX 200 ETF (ASX: BEAR)

Something we wanted to understand through this podcast is how expert investors find, evaluate and make decisions on stocks. End-to-end, what is their process? Andrew Brown, Executive Director of East 72 Holdings and first repeat podcast guest, agreed to spend some time walking through his process for a company he recently invested in. If you want to understand how expert investors think and understand what they look for, then this episode is for you. [If you haven’t listened to Part 1 of our interview with Andrew Brown (episode 52 here), we’d suggest checking that out first] In this episode you will learn: How Andrew identified Cabcharge as a potential investment. Andrew’s research process to study the company. Why Andrew drove Uber for 3 months, and what he discovered. How Andrew identified and valued ‘non-core’ assets the business owned. The questions Andrew took to the Cabcharge auditor at their Annual General Meeting. How Andrew then looked at Cabcharge’s balance sheet and valued the business. What happened with Cabcharge between our first interview and now. Andrew’s approach to managing his investments and staying on top of information once he’s made a trade. Stocks and Resources Discussed: Cabcharge (ASX: CAB)

This episode marks a first for Equity Mates. Our first repeat guest! Who better to have back on than Andrew Brown, the Executive Director of East 72 Holdings. Andrew is one of the most insightful investors we’ve met in our time doing Equity Mates, and is a true contrarian. Do you think the internet has made old media a bad investment? Not Andrew, who since our first interview last year has done extremely well investing in legacy media companies like News Corp, Fairfax and Channel 9. Or do you think Uber’s rise means we should avoid investing in the taxi industry? Not Andrew, who has been investing in Cabcharge (he takes us through his logic behind the Cabcharge investment in great detail in part 2 of this interview, to be released Thursday). So we hope you all enjoy listening to Andrew as much as we enjoyed talking to him. In this episode you will learn: Who Andrew is and how he invests at East 72 Holdings. How Andrew’s stock tips from our last interview are going. Andrew’s thoughts on McGrath Real Estate’s struggles. Why Andrew’s old-school media picks have done so well over the last year. Why Andrew isn’t backing down from his Apple short (Even after Warren Buffett has invested in the American tech giant). Good ways to manage investing information. The information sources Andrew doesn’t consider valuable. Where you can find client letters from some of the world’s best hedge funds. How Alec managed to overload his inbox trying to keep up with information. How Twitter helped build the case against Blue Sky Stocks and Resources Discussed: PM Capital Global Opportunities Fund (ASX: PGF) McGrath Real Estate (ASX: MEA) Kogan (ASX: KGN) News Corp (ASX: NSW) Nine entertainment group (ASX: NEC) Fairfax (ASX: FXJ) Domain (ASX: DHG) Apple Inc (NASDAQ: AAPL) Subreddit ‘Security Analysis’ The three hedge fund letters Andrew mentioned:Horizon Kinetics Greenhaven Road Greenwood Investments Blue Sky Alternative Investments (ASX: BLA)   [We know the audio isn’t perfect in this interview (especially with the background noise between 30min - 33min). Trust us, it’s worth persevering. Every time we speak to Andrew we leave as better investors and we’re confident listening to him will have the same impact on you.]

Can you believe that a casino got hacked via a digital thermometer in one of it's fish tanks? Our final episode in our three part series on exchange traded funds (ETFs) with BetaShares is a cracker! We sit down with Adam who is Manager of Distribution and Capital Markets to discuss Investing In Tomorrow - Technology, Hackers and Sustainability. The beauty of ETFs is that you don't have to choose one company, or stress or about picking the right one. If you have identified a theme in society, a trend that you think is going to do well, then it's more than likely an ETF will exist that will give you the opportunity to invest in that trend. We discuss three big themes with Adam that we believe are themes of the future, and have companies that are, and will be, the biggest in the world going forward. Technology - we look at how technology is shaping our world, and which companies are right there in the middle of it. Cybersecurity - this was the most exciting part of the conversation as it opened our eyes to the huge possibilities that exist in investing in cybersecurity. This industry is already huge, but it's going to get drastically bigger, and fast. We look at the best ways to get access to this industry and some of the companies leading the charge. Sustainability - investing in companies that are engaged in sustainable activities is becoming increasingly important to many investors. Some don't want to invest in businesses who use fossil fuels, or fund mining companies for controversial projects. We dive into investing sustainably and look at the surprising success of this theme. In this episode you will learn: How you can access the NASDAQ via an ETF, and get access to the top 100 tech stocks How big tech companies are evolving and changing the world What impact privacy regulations may have on the likes of Facebook and Google How and why cybersecurity is growing very quickly Some of the more elaborate ways that companies have been hacked What sustainable investing is, and why it's important How companies are screened for the sustainable funds The returns for the sustainable funds are quite surprising Stocks and resources discussed: Australian 200 ETF (ASX: A200) NASDAQ 100 ETF (ASX: NDQ) Global Sustainability Leaders ETF (ASX: ETHI) Australian Sustainability Leaders ETF (ASX: FAIR) Global Cybersecurity ETF (ASX: HACK) Gold Bullion ETF - Currency Hedged (ASX: QAU) Facebook (NASDAQ: FB) Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN) Symantec Corporation (NASDAQ: SYMC) Head over to our Basics ETF 101 page for more information

Ultimate Guide To ETFs Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) have been one of the buzz words in the investing world for a number of years. They're changing the way that people invest their money, and in some ways, making it a lot easier for beginner investors to enter the market. But the question we always hear is WTF is an ETF? We sat down with Ilan, the co-founder of BetaShares which is the largest Australian provider of ETFs, to discuss the fundamentals. ETFs are a fantastic way for you to get access to a huge variety of different companies and 'themes' on the stock market, both domestic and international. They also give you the opportunity to invest in commodities, such as gold and silver, or to bet against the market and profit if it goes down. ETFs can be a little confusing as there are so many out there, and sometimes it's hard to know what to buy. Ilan takes us through them, step by step, so by the end of this episode you'll know everything you need to get investing! In this episode you will learn: What an ETF actually is The different types of ETFs - active ETFs, passive ETFs, different asset classes than can be accessed via an ETF The difference between and ETF and an Index Fund and an Listed Investment Company (LIC) The 3 main benefits ETFs provide you Why ETFs have shaped the investing landscape since the Global Financial Crisis (GFC) The risks associated with investing in ETFs How to use ETFs in your portfolio Stocks and resources discussed:   Australian 200 ETF (ASX: A200) NASDAQ 100 ETF (ASX: NDQ) Global Sustainability Leaders ETF (ASX: ETHI) Australian Sustainability Leaders ETF (ASX: FAIR) Global Cybersecurity ETF (ASX: HACK) US Equities Strong Bear Hedge Fund - Currency Hedge (ASX : BBUS) Australian Equities Bear Hedge Fund (ASX: BEAR) Gold Bullion ETF - Currency Hedged (ASX: QAU)   Head over to our ETF Basics 101 page for more informartion

True or false? There is an exchange traded fund called 'Global Millennials ETF (Code: MILN)' that holds companies that service millenials. True or false? There is an exchange traded fund called 'Tobacco Companies ETF (Code: SMK)' that holds the world’s largest tobacco companies. Exchange Traded Funds give you the ability to access many different markets and invest in a large range of companies without the need to spend time investing in individual comapnies. This week we kick off our 3 part series on ETFs with BetaShares, and sit down with the founder, Ilan Israelstam. Ilan is Head of Strategy and Marketing at BetaShares and has vast experience in finaicla services and investing. After spending time in private equity and venture capital, Ilan worked for the world's leading strategy consulting firm The Boston Consulting Group, before spending 18 months of careful planning to launch BetaShares. BetaShares is the largest Australian provider of ETFs. This episode we discuss the history of BetaShares, Ilan's incredibly interesting background and then put his knowledge to the test with a game of exotic ETFs. Head over to our ETF 101 page for stacks of information on the ETFs BetaShares have on offer, as well as how to get started! In this episode you will learn: How Illan went from starting his first business in university to running BetaShares What BetaShares is Why it's important that BetaShares is Australian Hoe BetaShares combatted some of the world's biggest ETF comnpanies Stocks and resources discussed: Australian 200 ETF (ASX: A200) NASDAQ 100 ETF (ASX: NDQ) Global Sustainability Leaders ETF (ASX: ETHI) Australian Sustainability Leaders ETF (ASX: FAIR) Global Cybersecurity ETF (ASX: HACK) To keep up to date with the latest in the world of investing, and get tailored articles for the Basics 101 of investing, sign-up to our weekly Thought Starters email. Knowledge is power!

In this episode we wrap up our 3-part series 'Thinking like Warren Buffett'. We've pulled out a 9-question checklist from Buffettology, a book by Warren's daughter-in-law Mary Buffett. We've each chosen a stock and are running through the checklist and seeing if our chosen stocks pass the Buffettology test. In this episode we answer questions 7, 8 & 9. For Questions 1-4, check out episode 46. For Questions 5-6, check out episode 47.   In this episode you will learn: Why retained earnings are so important. What good capital allocation looks like for businesses. About share buybacks. Why Warren prefers buybacks to dividend payments. The importance of finding businesses that can adjust prices for inflation. Whether the boys chosen companies passed the 9-part checklist. Stocks and Resources Discussed: ResMed (ASX & NYSE: RMD) Boral (ASX: BLD) Buffettology by Mary Buffett Equity Mates Recommended Reading Page [This episode is brought to you by Stake – The Australian investing platform offering access and free brokerage to US markets. For more information & to sign up check out: equitymates.com/stake]