Beginning Investment Strategies – John Templeton pt. 2
Posted on | October 30, 2009 | No Comments
In looking at John Templeton’s Maxim’s in part one, we did not get to an actionable side to his investing philosophy. Good ideas but how did he really invest.
To me the story that sums up what he was about is probably the most famous tale he recounts in an interview for Smart Money. Just before World War II broke out he bought 100 shares of the 100 plus stocks that were trading on the New York Stock Exchange below 1 dollar, including 37 that were already in bankruptcy. He summed up his reason succinctly. War was looming in Europe. Things that had been in surplus before would not be in surplus in war time. He found opportunity in the political situation of his day. Three years later 100 of 104 companies were profitable. He looked for opportunities that value could be perceived that the herd of regular investors did not see.
The lesson to be learned is what in our political environment now is suggesting an investment strategy that Templeton would have liked. One to ponder. I just added it to my list of investment ideas. What would Templeton do now? Would he hedge inflation and buy gold? If you have any ideas, post a comment. I will return to this theme as ideas come to me.
Tags: Investing Strategies > Value Investing
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