Stock Stories
Alex Mason
This is the podcast that helps you decode the business behind the stock. Join Alex Mason, your stock storyteller, as we journey through the S&P 500, mental models, and more.
Episodes
Mentioned books
May 9, 2018 • 34min
American Express (AXP) - Prestige and Loyalty in the Credit Industry
Today we continue our discussion of the major credit card companies, and we're looking at American Express. It has a storied history and has changed it's approach throughout the decades. Now it's a credit card powerhouse that is also a massive bank (it's kind of like Discover's big brother). In this episode we explore the past and present of the company, as well as some ideas about its future outlook.Email: alex@stockstoriespodcast.com
May 2, 2018 • 17min
Mental Model: Inversion - Things Always Look Different From the Opposite Perspective
It's our first mental model podcast episode here on Stock Stories! Mental models are incredible tools for improving decision making. They are often simple, but highly practical thought experiments that force us to look at problems in different ways. Today we discuss our first mental model: inversion.Email: alex@stockstoriespodcast.com
Apr 25, 2018 • 41min
Visa (V) - The King of Credit Cards
Visa is one of the world's largest payment processors. Their cards are everywhere and they process billions of dollars of transactions per year. That's just part of the story - find out more on today's episode.Email: alex@stockstoriespodcast.com
Apr 18, 2018 • 39min
Discover Financial Services (DFS) - The Nature of Credit and Payment Processing
Discover Financial Services is one of the largest credit card issuers and payment processors in the world. They create credit cards for consumers and also lend money in a variety of ways. They also charge processing fees through their international PULSE network.Email: alex@stockstoriespodcast.com
Apr 11, 2018 • 12min
Sherwin Williams (SHW) - The Paint Industry and the Quest to Cover the Earth
Today we'll talk about one of the oldest and most successful paint companies in the world, Sherwin Williams. Can a company that's been around for over 150 years still be growing fast? We'll discuss:HistoryCompany OverviewFinancialsOutlookValuationEmail: alex@stockstoriespodcast.com
Apr 4, 2018 • 16min
General Electric (GE) - Will This Energy Powerhouse Survive the Downturn?
Today we begin our stock series, going through the companies that comprise the S&P 500. The first is what has long been considered the bluest of blue chips - General Electric. But with recent struggles, has it fallen from grace? Today we examine:A brief history of General ElectricGeneral Electric's core businesses segmentsIncome and Expenses Asset and LiabilitiesFuture OutlookEmail: alex@stockstoriespodcast.com
Mar 28, 2018 • 28min
The Anatomy of a Company
Today we discuss the anatomy of a company. At the individual company level, there are five parts that must work in harmony in order for it to be successful: Value creation Marketing Sales Value Delivery Finance Within the finance section of the business, there are three main financial statements: Income Statement Balance Sheet Cash Flow Statement Email: alex@stockstoriespodcast.com
Mar 21, 2018 • 34min
The Six Categories of Stocks
In today's episode we cover the six categories of stocks. These are: Slow Growers Stalwarts Fast Growers Cyclicals Turnarounds Asset Plays We can groups all stocks first by size, and then break them down further into one or two of these categories. This will give us a framework for understanding how they might behave in the future, both as a company and as a stock.Email: alex@stockstoriespodcast.com
Mar 11, 2018 • 21min
A Brief History of Stocks
This episode will cover: a brief recap of the advantages of investing in stocks and why they can make great investments, and a brief history of the stock market.Email: alex@stockstoriespodcast.com
Mar 11, 2018 • 47min
Three Asset Classes
In this episode we discuss the three asset classes of: paper assets, real assets, and private business. We look at the economics characteristics of each, considering the pros and cons within the investment universe.Email: alex@stockstoriespodcast.com
