The Russell 2000 ended the year on a sour note over unease about where interest rates could go. In this episode of Inside Active, host David Cohne, mutual fund and active-management analyst with Bloomberg Intelligence, along with co-host Michael Casper, US small-cap and sector strategist at BI, spoke with John Barr, managing director at Needham Funds and portfolio manager for the Needham Aggressive Growth Fund (NEAGX) about hidden quality compounders and why investing with a margin of safety is crucial for long-term success. They also discussed why owning established businesses helps with downside protection, why founders are a shortcut to finding great management and how meeting with private companies can help with long-term success.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In the latter half of 2024, the healthcare sector underperformed the rest of the European market due to uncertainty related to potential policies of the new Trump administration and mixed news on pharmaceutical companies.  In this episode of Inside Active, host David Cohne, mutual fund and active management analyst with Bloomberg Intelligence, along with co-host Laurent Douillet, senior equity strategist for Bloomberg Intelligence, spoke with Colin McQueen, vice president of T. Rowe Price Group and a portfolio manager of the International Value Equity Fund (TRIGX) about the significance of free cash flow generation. They also discussed the need to look at downside valuations and downside risk, why restructuring provides opportunities and why the headwinds facing value companies could be abating.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Andrew Slimmon, Managing Director at Morgan Stanley Investment Management and lead portfolio manager for long equity strategies, shares his insights on equity factors. He discusses the outstanding performance of low volatility, momentum, and quality factors this year. Slimmon emphasizes the importance of a quantitative approach to stock exposure and the necessity of balancing client expectations with investment strategies. He delves into the implications of regional allocation and advocates for a systematic, 'quantamental' strategy to navigate the evolving market landscape.

The Bloomberg Intelligence Fair Value Model is currently showing a 19.1x multiple on the S&P 500, which is lower than where we currently are, due to the Mag 7 driving a lot of the valuation premium in the index. In this episode of Inside Active, host David Cohne, mutual fund and active management analyst with Bloomberg Intelligence and co-host Michael Casper, US small cap and sector strategist at BI, spoke with Christopher Davis, chairman and portfolio manager at Davis Advisors about the significance of the earnings yield and the selective nature of the Davis investment discipline. They also discuss why management culture is crucial for long-term success and why understanding management’s capital allocation decisions is vital.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Recent quarterly results from Japanese companies came out better than expected, with quarterly year-over-year growth of around 26%. In this episode of Inside Active, host David Cohne, mutual fund and active management analyst with Bloomberg Intelligence, along with co-host Laurent Douillet, senior equity strategist for Bloomberg Intelligence, spoke with Graeme Forster, an international equity strategy and global equity strategy portfolio manager at Orbis Investment Management, about the importance of intrinsic value and independent decision-making in stock evaluation. They also discuss how market inefficiencies can create significant investment opportunities, what industry he currently likes in Japan and the role of risk management in investment decisions.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Themes ranging from decentralized energy to nuclear to solar have found fresh footing this year due to secular growth trends such as the acceleration of electrification needs. In this episode of Inside Active, host David Cohne, mutual fund and active-management analyst with Bloomberg Intelligence, along with co-host Breanne Dougherty, head of thematic strategy at Bloomberg Intelligence, spoke with Jonathan Waghorn, a portfolio manager on the Guinness Global Energy and Guinness Sustainable Energy strategies, about the energy transition. They looked at why fossil fuels will continue to play a role in the shift and how technology companies are focusing on renewable sources. They also discuss the firm’s top-down and bottom-up approaches, including its global energy model and quantitative screening criteria, as well as why the portfolio is equal-weighted.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Out of the 31 global stocks found in four or more BI themes, the ones exposed to physical environment issues have outperformed tech stocks dramatically so far this year. In this episode of Inside Active, host David Cohne, mutual fund and active management analyst with Bloomberg Intelligence, along with co-host Breanne Dougherty, head of thematic strategy at BI, spoke with Albert Chu, a portfolio manager with the Man Group and manager for the American Beacon GLG Natural Resources ETF (MGNR). They discussed dispersion in commodities and why falling interest rates have historically been positive for commodity prices. They also spoke about the likelihood of a global restocking cycle amid rate cuts and a stimulus environment in China, and which subsectors Chu is bullish on.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

After the results of the US election were announced, the Russell 2000 index broke out of its 2024 range and approached all-time highs. On this episode of Inside Active, host David Cohne, mutual fund and active management analyst with Bloomberg Intelligence, along with co-host Michael Casper, BI’s sector and small-cap strategist, spoke with David Green, a principal of Hotchkis & Wiley and a portfolio manager on the Small Cap Value (HWSIX) and Value Opportunities (HWAIX) funds. They discussed the firm’s focus on high quality companies at low valuations and its fundamental risk-rating system. They also spoke on the challenges and opportunities for small caps and why mergers and acquisitions may increase under the new administration.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Profitable companies tend to perform well among small caps, as evidenced by the Bloomberg MVP small-cap portfolio, which returned 11.9% annualized in a backtest run from 1999 to September 2024. On this episode of Inside Active, host David Cohne, mutual fund and active management analyst with Bloomberg Intelligence, along with co-host Michael Casper, sector and small-cap strategist, spoke with Mitch Zacks, CEO and principal portfolio manager of Zacks Investment Management about the significance of upwards earnings-estimate revisions and why they could be crucial for predicting stock performance. They also discussed the evolving landscape of small-cap stocks and why valuation metrics are more relevant for larger companies.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Buffer ETFs, which use options to limit losses and offer upside potential, have taken in around $10 billion in new flows this year as their popularity grows. On this episode of Inside Active, host David Cohne, mutual fund and active-management analyst with Bloomberg Intelligence, along with co-host James Seyffart, a BI ETF analyst, spoke with Burke Ashenden, director of capital markets at Innovator ETFs, about the rise of defined-outcome ETFs. They examine the unique features that set them apart from traditional investment funds, and how they provide risk-managed exposure. They also discussed how the underlying management of these products works.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.