The Roots of Contrarian Investing

This chapter explores the upbringing of Sir John Templeton, focusing on how his unique parenting and early life experiences shaped his investment philosophy. It highlights his self-reliance, independent thinking, and ability to find opportunity in adversity, cultivated during the Great Depression. The chapter also examines the importance of instilling financial wisdom in today's children amidst a culture of consumerism.

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Episode notes

On today’s episode, Clay is joined by Scott Phillips to discuss how to invest during times of max pessimism. Scott is married to and manages money with Lauren Templeton, who is Sir John Templeton’s great-niece. Sir John was one of the greatest international investors of the 20th century and the master of finding pockets of the market that were most distressed and offered the highest level of asymmetric returns.

Scott Phillips is a Principal and Chief Investment Officer at Templeton and Phillips Capital Management, LLC. Mr. Phillips also serves as a Managing Member to the Templeton and Phillips Partners Fund, LLC.

IN THIS EPISODE, YOU’LL LEARN:

00:00 - Intro.

03:02 - What helped Sir John Templeton think independently and have the courage to stray from the crowd.

10:01 - Sir John’s lessons living through the Great Depression.

15:24 - How Scott works to teach his children the values around money that Templeton embodied.

22:20 - The investment lessons that Scott learned from studying the career of Templeton.

35:09 - The three ways to generate excess returns in the markets.

43:48 - How Scott’s fund capitalized on the market panic in March 2020.

49:25 - Areas of the market Scott deems to be significantly undervalued.

56:30 - Why US investors should consider diversifying away from the dollar.

56:48 - Scott’s current thoughts on investing in China.

01:10:27 - How Scott thinks about shorting the occasional bubble in the market.

01:18:21 - Scott’s thoughts on continuing to be optimistic about the future.

BOOKS AND RESOURCES

Join the exclusive TIP Mastermind Community to engage in meaningful stock investing discussions with Stig, Clay, and the other community members.
Check out Templeton & Phillips Capital Management.
Scott’s books: Investing the Templeton Way, The Templeton Touch, & Buying at the Point of Maximum Pessimism.
Sir John Templeton’s book: The Templeton Plan.
Learn more about the Berkshire Summit by clicking here or emailing Clay at clay@theinvestorspodcast.com.
Related Episode:TIP585: Concentrated Value Investing w/ Shree Viswanathan or watch the video.
Check out all the books mentioned and discussed in our podcast episodes here.

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