Michael Mauboussin: The One Job of an Equity Investor | Rational Reminder 344

Meet with PWL Capital: https://calendly.com/d/cpws-jyp-znp What if the key to successful investing is about understanding how market expectations, intangible assets, and even your own biases shape the outcome? In this episode, Cameron sits down with Michael Mauboussin, a renowned expert in investment strategies and behavioural finance, to explore how the evolving dynamics of investing influence valuation, investor decision-making, and market efficiency. Michael is the head of Consilient Research at Counterpoint Global, part of Morgan Stanley Investment Management, and an adjunct professor at Columbia Business School, where he teaches courses on investing and decision-making. His work focuses on behavioural biases, skill versus luck, complex adaptive systems, and valuation. In our conversation, we discuss the core principles of equity investing, unpack the evolution of intangible assets, and explore how market dynamics are influenced by index funds. You’ll learn about capital allocation strategies, the shifting landscape of private equity, accounting challenges with intangibles, and how traditional investment frameworks are being redefined. Michael also provides insight into the "free dividend" fallacy, the importance of understanding the basic unit of analysis, the paradox of skill in active management, and more. Join us to learn about market and investing fundamentals to improve your strategy with Michael Mauboussin. Tune in now! Timestamps: 0:00:00 Intro 0:03:24 The one job of an equity investor 0:06:15 How important, or unimportant dividends are to total shareholder returns 0:11:38 The problems with classifying stocks or investment managers as “value” or “growth” based on measures like price to book or price to earnings 0:23:46 How investors can determine where a company is in its competitive advantage lifecycle 0:34:17 What mistakes using valuation multiples alone to value firms can lead to 0:44:37 Other effects that the growing weight of indexed assets has on markets 0:53:19 How market concentration has been historically related to future returns 1:00:32 How the typical retail investor should approach the mix of active and passive in their portfolio 1:07:11 The benefits do private equities offer investors over public equities 1:16:21 Michael defines success in his life Links From Today’s Episode: Meet with PWL Capital: https://calendly.com/d/3vm-t2j-h3p Rational Reminder on iTunes — https://itunes.apple.com/ca/podcast/the-rational-reminder-podcast/id1426530582. Rational Reminder Website — https://rationalreminder.ca/ Rational Reminder on Instagram — https://www.instagram.com/rationalreminder/ Rational Reminder on X — https://x.com/RationalRemind Rational Reminder on TikTok — www.tiktok.com/@rationalreminder Rational Reminder on YouTube — https://www.youtube.com/channel/ Rational Reminder Email — [email protected] Benjamin Felix — https://pwlcapital.com/our-team/ Benjamin on X — https://x.com/benjaminwfelix Benjamin on LinkedIn — https://www.linkedin.com/in/benjaminwfelix/ Cameron Passmore — https://pwlcapital.com/our-team/ Cameron on X — https://x.com/CameronPassmore Cameron on LinkedIn — https://www.linkedin.com/in/cameronpassmore/ Michael Mauboussin — https://www.michaelmauboussin.com/ Michael Mauboussin on LinkedIn — https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-mauboussin-12519b2/ Michael Mauboussin on X — https://x.com/mjmauboussin Columbia Business School — https://business.columbia.edu/ Morgan Stanley | Counterpoint Global — https://www.morganstanley.com/im/en-us/individual-investor/about-us/investment-teams/active-fundamental-equity/counterpoint-global-team.html The Heilbrunn Center for Graham and Dodd Investing — https://business.columbia.edu/heilbrunn Episode 332: Randolph Cohen and Michael Green — https://rationalreminder.ca/podcast/332 Books From Today’s Episode: The Success Equation — https://www.amazon.com/Success-Equation-Untangling-Business-Investing/dp/1422184234 More Than You Know — https://www.amazon.com/More-Than-You-Know-Unconventional/dp/0231143729 Expectations Investing — https://www.amazon.com/Expectations-Investing-Reading-Prices-Returns/dp/159139127X Think Twice — https://www.amazon.com/Think-Twice-Harnessing-Power-Counterintuition/dp/1422187381 Creating Shareholder Value — https://www.amazon.com/Creating-Shareholder-Value-Managers-Investors/dp/0684844109 Capitalism Without Capital — https://www.amazon.com/Capitalism-without-Capital-Intangible-Economy/dp/0691175039 The New Goliaths — https://www.amazon.com/New-Goliaths-Corporations-Industries-Innovation/dp/0300255047 Security Analysis — https://www.amazon.com/Security-Analysis-Foreword-Buffett-Editions/dp/0071592539 Papers From Today’s Episode: 'The Dividend Disconnect' — https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2876373 'Trading Stages in the Company Life Cycle' — https://www.morganstanley.com/im/en-gb/intermediary-investor/insights/articles/trading-stages-in-the-company-life-cycle.html