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To subscribe to Insights, email jliu@evergreengavekal.com; Note: all returns represent total return including dividends; YTD Market Style Returns are based on the Russell indices. Please see important disclosure below: DISCLOSURES: This material has been prepared or is distributed solely for informational purposes only and is not a solicitation or… Read More

Just between us billionaires… It’s not often you get a chance to hear one billionaire interview another. However, in January, that’s exactly what transpired at the Lost Tree Club in North Palm Beach, Florida, when Home Depot co-founder Ken Langone interviewed Stan Druckenmiller before a live audience. Although he’s not a household name to most US investors, Mr. Druckenmiller served as yet another billionaire’s investment chief during the glory years of George Soros’ legendary Quantum Fund. You may have heard of the Soros/Druckenmiller attack on Great Britain’s currency in 1992. That coup bestowed upon them the reputation of having “broken the pound” and ensured their status among the pantheon of investment demi-gods. In his interview with Ken Langone, the basis of this month’s Guest EVA, Mr. Druckenmiller describes this epic transaction, one that earned Mr. Soros even more billions and elevated Stan himself to the ten-figure net worth level. You’ll soon read that the main lesson he learned from George Soros was to make large capital commitments when convinced he had found an unusually attractive investment, such as shorting the pound. To qualify for that status, it needed to have an asymmetrical risk/reward characteristic—relatively minor downside with huge upside if you were right. Basically, Sorors taught him that when you come across such an extraordinary opportunity, you ignore the old Wall Street adage that bulls and bears both can make money, but pigs get slaughtered. Read More

Just between us billionaires… It’s not often you get a chance to hear one billionaire interview another. However, in January, that’s exactly what transpired at the Lost Tree Club in North Palm Beach, Florida, when Home Depot co-founder Ken Langone interviewed Stan Druckenmiller before a live audience. Although he’s not a household name to most US investors, Mr. Druckenmiller served as yet another billionaire’s investment chief during the glory years of George Soros’ legendary Quantum Fund. You may have heard of the Soros/Druckenmiller attack on Great Britain’s currency in 1992. That coup bestowed upon them the reputation of having “broken the pound” and ensured their status among the pantheon of investment demi-gods. In his interview with Ken Langone, the basis of this month’s Guest EVA, Mr. Druckenmiller describes this epic transaction, one that earned Mr. Soros even more billions and elevated Stan himself to the ten-figure net worth level. You’ll soon read that the main lesson he learned from George Soros was to make large capital commitments when convinced he had found an unusually attractive investment, such as shorting the pound. To qualify for that status, it needed to have an asymmetrical risk/reward characteristic—relatively minor downside with huge upside if you were right. Basically, Sorors taught him that when you come across such an extraordinary opportunity, you ignore the old Wall Street adage that bulls and bears both can make money, but pigs get slaughtered. Read More

To subscribe to Insights, email jliu@evergreengavekal.com; Note: all returns represent total return including dividends; YTD Market Style Returns are based on the Russell indices. Please see important disclosure below: DISCLOSURES: This material has been prepared or is distributed solely for informational purposes only and is not a solicitation or… Read More

After listening to the array of speakers, many of great notoriety, at the Mauldin/Altegris Strategic Investment Conference (SIC) held in San Diego last week, the Evergreen Exchange team elected to select one speaker—and his/her main theme—to highlight for our respective section of this month’s edition. Our selections were driven by what we felt was the most urgent topic based on the current state of the financial markets. In addition, each of us will try to persuade readers why their choice was the most important. You, as readers, will be asked to vote on which of us made the best case (the voting link can be found on page 7). Read More

After listening to the array of speakers, many of great notoriety, at the Mauldin/Altegris Strategic Investment Conference (SIC) held in San Diego last week, the Evergreen Exchange team elected to select one speaker—and his/her main theme—to highlight for our respective section of this month’s edition. Our selections were driven by what we felt was the most urgent topic based on the current state of the financial markets. In addition, each of us will try to persuade readers why their choice was the most important. You, as readers, will be asked to vote on which of us made the best case (the voting link can be found on page 7). Read More

Not-so-safe assumptions. One of those simple but clever old sayings goes, “You know what happens when you assume: You make an ass out of you and me.” Despite that admonition, we all continually make assumptions every day. Perhaps nowhere is this more evident than in the oft-intersecting worlds of investments and economics. For example, there are certain bed-rock assumptions about finance that are too obvious to question, such as lenders will always receive a positive rate of return on the funds they extend (at least from a safe borrower who doesn’t default.) In a healthy economy, this means an actual real yield (i.e., net of inflation). Read More