Excess Returns

We have reached the one year anniversary of the podcast so we wanted to take a break from our regular investing episodes for a week and reflect back on our first year and what we have learned.  In this episode we talk about our biggest lessons from our first year of podcasting and some of the behind the scenes details that go into creating the podcast. As we begin our second year, we also would welcome any feedback on things we can do to improve the podcast and the types of episodes that listeners find the most useful. If you have any feedback, please send it to us at podcast@validea.com.  We want to thank everyone who took the time to listen to us in our first year. We really appreciate your support.  ABOUT THE PODCAST Excess Returns is an investing podcast hosted by Jack Forehand (@practicalquant) and Justin Carbonneau (@jjcarbonneau), partners at Validea. Justin and Jack discuss a wide range of investing topics including factor investing, value investing, momentum investing, multi-factor investing, trend following, market valuation and more with the goal of helping those who watch and listen become better long term investors. SEE LATEST EPISODES https://www.validea.com/excess-returns-podcast FIND OUT MORE ABOUT VALIDEA https://www.validea.com FOLLOW OUR BLOG https://blog.validea.com FIND OUT MORE ABOUT VALIDEA CAPITAL https://www.valideacapital.com FOLLOW JACK Twitter: https://twitter.com/practicalquant LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jack-forehand-8015094 FOLLOW JUSTIN Twitter: https://twitter.com/jjcarbonneau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jcarbonneau

There is a tendency for those of us who support quant models to talk about them as if they are these things that just run on autopilot over the long-term that are free from all the decision-making issues that plague us as human beings. That just isn’t the case, though. There are many decisions that go into the development, optimization, and evolution of quant models that require human intervention and a thoughtful, nuanced approach. In this episode, we discuss the human decisions that go into quant models and how to develop a thoughtful framework to make them.  JACK'S ARTICLE When Quantitative Becomes Discretionary – Validea's Guru Investor Blog ABOUT THE PODCAST Excess Returns is an investing podcast hosted by Jack Forehand (@practicalquant) and Justin Carbonneau (@jjcarbonneau), partners at Validea. Justin and Jack discuss a wide range of investing topics including factor investing, value investing, momentum investing, multi-factor investing, trend following, market valuation and more with the goal of helping those who watch and listen become better long term investors. SEE LATEST EPISODES https://www.validea.com/excess-returns-podcast FIND OUT MORE ABOUT VALIDEA https://www.validea.com FOLLOW OUR BLOG https://blog.validea.com FIND OUT MORE ABOUT VALIDEA CAPITAL https://www.valideacapital.com FOLLOW JACK Twitter: https://twitter.com/practicalquant LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jack-forehand-8015094 FOLLOW JUSTIN Twitter: https://twitter.com/jjcarbonneau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jcarbonneau

Value investing has struggled for over a decade now. Although no one will dispute that fact, there are significant disagreements about whether this is just another of the long periods of underperformance that have been common in the history of value or if something about the strategy has become broken.  In the first year of our podcast, we have talked to some of the smartest people we know in the investing world about this topic, including Jim O'Shaughnessy, Tobias Carlisle, Adam Butler, Partha Mohanram, Wes Gray, Vitaliy Katselnelson, and Kai Wu, and have received a diverse set of opinions.  In this episode, we bring together all of those insights in an effort to answer one question: Is Value Investing Dead?  ABOUT THE PODCAST Excess Returns is an investing podcast hosted by Jack Forehand (@practicalquant) and Justin Carbonneau (@jjcarbonneau), partners at Validea. Justin and Jack discuss a wide range of investing topics including factor investing, value investing, momentum investing, multi-factor investing, trend following, market valuation and more with the goal of helping those who watch and listen become better long term investors. SEE LATEST EPISODES https://www.validea.com/excess-returns-podcast FIND OUT MORE ABOUT VALIDEA https://www.validea.com FOLLOW OUR BLOG https://blog.validea.com FIND OUT MORE ABOUT VALIDEA CAPITAL https://www.valideacapital.com FOLLOW JACK Twitter: https://twitter.com/practicalquant LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jack-forehand-8015094 FOLLOW JUSTIN Twitter: https://twitter.com/jjcarbonneau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jcarbonneau

Warren Buffett is one of the greatest investors of all time. He has also been very generous in sharing the lessons he has learned over his career with all of us. There are many things all of us can and should learn from Buffett. But despite that, there are also many lessons that investors should not learn from what Buffett does. Like all investors, many of the things Buffett does are the result of his own unique situation. The majority of investors also have substantially smaller portfolios than Buffett and much shorter time frames.  In this episode, we look at some lessons that investors should not learn from Warren Buffett.  ABOUT THE PODCAST Excess Returns is an investing podcast hosted by Jack Forehand (@practicalquant) and Justin Carbonneau (@jjcarbonneau), partners at Validea. Justin and Jack discuss a wide range of investing topics including factor investing, value investing, momentum investing, multi-factor investing, trend following, market valuation and more with the goal of helping those who watch and listen become better long term investors. SEE LATEST EPISODES https://www.validea.com/excess-returns-podcast FIND OUT MORE ABOUT VALIDEA https://www.validea.com FOLLOW OUR BLOG https://blog.validea.com FIND OUT MORE ABOUT VALIDEA CAPITAL https://www.valideacapital.com FOLLOW JACK Twitter: https://twitter.com/practicalquant LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jack-forehand-8015094 FOLLOW JUSTIN Twitter: https://twitter.com/jjcarbonneau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jcarbonneau

Benjamin Graham is considered by many to be the father of value investing. Not only did Graham produce an exceptional track record during his lifetime, but he also counts some of the most successful value investors of all time among his disciples, including Warren Buffett.  But despite the long-term success of the deep value investing style popularized by Graham, many argue that things have changed and that value investors need to evolve to keep up with the times.  In this episode, we take a deep dive into the principles of Graham and the criteria of our quantitative strategy based on him, and debate whether his strategy is still relevant today.  We hope you enjoy the discussion.  ABOUT THE PODCAST Excess Returns is an investing podcast hosted by Jack Forehand (@practicalquant) and Justin Carbonneau (@jjcarbonneau), partners at Validea. Justin and Jack discuss a wide range of investing topics including factor investing, value investing, momentum investing, multi-factor investing, trend following, market valuation and more with the goal of helping those who watch and listen become better long term investors. SEE LATEST EPISODES https://www.validea.com/excess-returns-podcast FIND OUT MORE ABOUT VALIDEA https://www.validea.com FOLLOW OUR BLOG https://blog.validea.com FIND OUT MORE ABOUT VALIDEA CAPITAL https://www.valideacapital.com FOLLOW JACK Twitter: https://twitter.com/practicalquant LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jack-forehand-8015094 FOLLOW JUSTIN Twitter: https://twitter.com/jjcarbonneau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jcarbonneau

Our economy is changing. The largest, most successful companies in the world no longer require substantial tangible assets to operate their businesses. The businesses that are disrupting our world and wielding monopolistic power aren't powered by plants and factories. Instead their value lies in things like brands and technology and the value of their networks.  This new world has challenged many traditional beliefs about investing. Everything from how we define value to how we look at growth has changed.  More traditional methods are now being supplemented by things like alternative data and machine learning.  In this episode, we speak to Kai Wu of Sparkline Capital, who has written some of the best research we have seen on these topics.  We discuss:  - The forces causing disruption in our economy and how to measure its impact - How to measure intangible assets using both traditional fundamentals and more advanced metrics - The rise of monopolies and the implications for investors  - The impact of all of this for investors who use traditional fundamental strategies.  We hope you enjoy the discussion.  FIND OUT MORE ABOUT SPARKLINE CAPITAL https://www.sparklinecapital.com/ FOLLOW KAI ON TWITTER https://twitter.com/ckaiwu ABOUT THE PODCAST  Excess Returns is an investing podcast hosted by Jack Forehand (@practicalquant) and Justin Carbonneau (@jjcarbonneau), partners at Validea. Justin and Jack discuss a wide range of investing topics including factor investing, value investing, momentum investing, multi-factor investing, trend following, market valuation and more with the goal of helping those who watch and listen become better long term investors. SEE LATEST EPISODES https://www.validea.com/excess-returns-podcast FIND OUT MORE ABOUT VALIDEA https://www.validea.com FOLLOW OUR BLOG https://blog.validea.com FIND OUT MORE ABOUT VALIDEA CAPITAL https://www.valideacapital.com FOLLOW JACK Twitter: https://twitter.com/practicalquant LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jack-forehand-8015094 FOLLOW JUSTIN Twitter: https://twitter.com/jjcarbonneau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jcarbonneau

There is little disagreement among market observers that passive investing is growing. There is also little dispute that the trend is likely to continue as a result of the rise of ETFs, investors’ focus on fees, the inconsistency of active manager outperformance, and numerous other factors. That is where the agreement ends, though. There are substantial disagreements as to if there has been an impact on the pricing of securities within the market, and if so, what that impact is. There are two ways that some argue that the rise of passive investing is influencing the market. The first is that it has been a significant source of fuel behind the market and has caused it to go up more than it otherwise would have. The second is that it is impacting the relative pricing of stocks within the market and is benefitting the largest stocks that have the highest weights in market cap weighted indexes relative to all other stocks. In this episode, we discuss both of these and try to summarize the arguments both for and against the conclusion that passive investing is distorting the market.  ABOUT THE PODCAST Excess Returns is an investing podcast hosted by Jack Forehand (@practicalquant) and Justin Carbonneau (@jjcarbonneau), partners at Validea. Justin and Jack discuss a wide range of investing topics including factor investing, value investing, momentum investing, multi-factor investing, trend following, market valuation and more with the goal of helping those who watch and listen become better long term investors. SEE LATEST EPISODES https://www.validea.com/excess-returns-podcast FIND OUT MORE ABOUT VALIDEA https://www.validea.com FOLLOW OUR BLOG https://blog.validea.com FIND OUT MORE ABOUT VALIDEA CAPITAL https://www.valideacapital.com FOLLOW JACK Twitter: https://twitter.com/practicalquant LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jack-forehand-8015094 FOLLOW JUSTIN Twitter: https://twitter.com/jjcarbonneau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jcarbonneau

Many investors have come to accept the fact that the major factors like value and momentum will produce excess returns over the long-term. But what if the fact that these factors have become widely known and have strong evidence to support them has reduced or eliminated their effectiveness?  In this episode, we discuss this idea with Adam Butler of Resolve Asset Management. Adam is one of the deepest thinkers that we know in the investing world. He is also a prolific writer and host of the popular Gestalt University podcast.  We discuss:  - The life cycle of investment factors and why the factors that have the strongest evidence to support them may be the most vulnerable to having their premiums reduced or eliminated  - The framework for judging whether a factor has lost its effectiveness - How to construct an equity portfolio in a world where it is difficult to determine which factors will work going forward - The benefits of risk parity and why more investors don't use it.  We hope you enjoy the discussion.   FIND OUT MORE ABOUT RESOLVE ASSET MANAGEMENT https://investresolve.com/  FOLLOW THEIR PODCAST  https://investresolve.com/podcasts/  FOLLOW ADAM ON TWITTER  https://twitter.com/gestaltu  ABOUT THE PODCAST Excess Returns is an investing podcast hosted by Jack Forehand (@practicalquant) and Justin Carbonneau (@jjcarbonneau), partners at Validea. Justin and Jack discuss a wide range of investing topics including factor investing, value investing, momentum investing, multi-factor investing, trend following, market valuation and more with the goal of helping those who watch and listen become better long term investors.  SEE LATEST EPISODES  https://www.validea.com/excess-returns-podcast  FIND OUT MORE ABOUT VALIDEA  https://www.validea.com  FOLLOW OUR BLOG  https://blog.validea.com  FIND OUT MORE ABOUT VALIDEA CAPITAL  https://www.valideacapital.com  FOLLOW JACK  Twitter:  https://twitter.com/practicalquant LinkedIn:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/jack-forehand-8015094  FOLLOW JUSTIN  Twitter:  https://twitter.com/jjcarbonneau  LinkedIn:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/jcarbonneau

We all have our political views. We all have a series of policies that we think would make the world a better place than it is today. And in the polarized world we are in today, most people are more entrenched in these views than they ever have been.  No matter what you think about politics, though, it is important to understand that it is likely best to separate those views from what you do with your investment portfolio.  In this episode, we look at the historical data to explain why which party controls the White House is not likely predictive of how the market will perform.  We discuss:  - The historical performance of the market under Democratic and Republican administrations - The importance of sample size when judging historical returns - The role of the lag in the impact of economic policies - Why the policies of both parties going forward may be more similar than you think ABOUT THE PODCAST Excess Returns is an investing podcast hosted by Jack Forehand (@practicalquant) and Justin Carbonneau (@jjcarbonneau), partners at Validea. Justin and Jack discuss a wide range of investing topics including factor investing, value investing, momentum investing, multi-factor investing, trend following, market valuation and more with the goal of helping those who watch and listen become better long term investors. SEE LATEST EPISODES https://www.validea.com/excess-returns-podcast FIND OUT MORE ABOUT VALIDEA https://www.validea.com FOLLOW OUR BLOG https://blog.validea.com FIND OUT MORE ABOUT VALIDEA CAPITAL https://www.valideacapital.com FOLLOW JACK Twitter: https://twitter.com/practicalquant LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jack-forehand-8015094 FOLLOW JUSTIN Twitter: https://twitter.com/jjcarbonneau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jcarbonneau

All of us can fall into the trap of thinking that a certain outcome in investing is obvious. Whether it be the future direction of the market, which asset classes will perform best going forward, or the types of stocks that will lead the way, it is easy to think that certain outcomes are a virtual certainty. This can be particularly true during a period like the one we are in where opinions are polarized. But it is important to understand that the market's collective wisdom is usually smarter than all of us and what we think is obvious often is not.  In this episode, we discuss some of the things that may seem obvious in the current market, and why they might be wrong.  We discuss: - The challenges of deviating from the market consensus  - The impact of the Coronavirus on the market  - Why bonds may still belong in investor portfolios despite their low yields - the importance of avoiding binary decisions  ABOUT THE PODCAST Excess Returns is an investing podcast hosted by Jack Forehand (@practicalquant) and Justin Carbonneau (@jjcarbonneau), partners at Validea. Justin and Jack discuss a wide range of investing topics including factor investing, value investing, momentum investing, multi-factor investing, trend following, market valuation and more with the goal of helping those who watch and listen become better long term investors. SEE LATEST EPISODES https://www.validea.com/excess-returns-podcast FIND OUT MORE ABOUT VALIDEA https://www.validea.com FOLLOW OUR BLOG https://blog.validea.com FIND OUT MORE ABOUT VALIDEA CAPITAL https://www.valideacapital.com FOLLOW JACK Twitter: https://twitter.com/practicalquant LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jack-forehand-8015094 FOLLOW JUSTIN Twitter: https://twitter.com/jjcarbonneau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jcarbonneau