Writing about Companies with an Unfair Advantage, Unfair Advantage

Unfair Advantage

Writing about Companies with an Unfair Advantage

I write about companies that have an unfair advantage. I might invest in them as well.

Equity Bottom-Up

<ul><li>Nick Sleep is an investor who belongs in the Hall of Fame. 21% annualized returns over 13 years. He started buying cheap businesses.</li><li>Over time, he reached a harder and more useful conclusion: buy a great business, then let it work for years.</li><li>That is why I am on the hunt to find businesses I never have to sell.</li></ul>

Nick Sleep is an investor who belongs in the Hall of Fame. 21% annualized returns over 13 years. He started buying cheap businesses.Over time, he reached a harder and more useful conclusion: buy a great business, then let it work for years.That is why I am on the hunt to find businesses I never have to sell.

Costco Model Hidden Inside Wise, Domino’s and Floor & Decor

Independent research on the U.S. markets, Baptista Research

Baptista Research

Independent research on the U.S. markets

Baptista Research is an independent financial research house focused on the U.S. markets. We provide equity research as well as credit research reports on the top-listed U.S. companies with most of our focus on technology, consumer goods and services, automobiles, industrials, oil and gas, pharma, and healthcare. Our research has served more than 3000 institutional investors including mutual funds, hedge funds, banks, family offices, and various buy-side firms. We operate a research subscription service where institutions, as well as retail investors, can have priority access to all our research. We also have a wide distribution of our research reports across some of the top global financial platforms. Apart from equity research and credit research, we also provide advisory services with respect to mergers & acquisitions (M&A), private equity/ venture capital fundraising, valuation reports, and investment management services for corporates.
Baptista Research is owned and managed by Ishan Majumdar, an ex-Venture Capitalist/ Investment Banker, a Chartered Accountant, and a Masters’ degree holder in Management from HEC Paris. Ishan has nearly a decade of experience in Mergers and Acquisitions, Leveraged Buyouts (LBOs), Venture Capital Investing, Corporate Strategy, and Valuation in front-office roles at the likes of BNP Paribas CIB, Credit Agricole CIB, Groupe Danone, and TIW Private Equity. He has worked on and closed multiple acquisition deals, leveraged buyouts, and start-up investment transactions.

<ul><li>Costco Wholesale Corporation reported solid fourth-quarter fiscal 2026 results, supported by continued sales growth, membership expansion, and international development.</li><li>The company opened 12 warehouses during the quarter, bringing its global total to 939, and plans to accelerate openings to 33 locations in fiscal 2027 across the U.S., Europe, Canada, Mexico, Asia, and Australia.</li><li>Net sales increased 11.2% year-over-year to $93.87 billion, while comparable sales rose 9.4%.</li></ul>

Costco Wholesale Corporation reported solid fourth-quarter fiscal 2026 results, supported by continued sales growth, membership expansion, and international development.The company opened 12 warehouses during the quarter, bringing its global total to 939, and plans to accelerate openings to 33 locations in fiscal 2027 across the U.S., Europe, Canada, Mexico, Asia, and Australia.Net sales increased 11.2% year-over-year to $93.87 billion, while comparable sales rose 9.4%.

Costco’s $7.5 Billion Expansion Push: Can 33 New Warehouses Fuel Growth?

Equity Long-Short, Semiconductors, Fabricated Knowledge

Douglas O'Laughlin

Equity Long-Short, Semiconductors

Fabricated Knowledge

Learn more about the world's most important manufactured product. Meaningful insight, timely analysis, and an occasional investment idea.

Thematic (Sector/Industry)

<ul><li>Markets always act erratically, but I thought I would highlight one aspect that disproportionately impacts semiconductors.</li><li>Factor investing is not new, but we are in a unique period where Momentum has quite a period of outperformance and short-term outperformance.</li><li>This matters because semiconductors are (as far as my memory holds) the most significant weight in Momentum I’ve ever witnessed. </li></ul>

Markets always act erratically, but I thought I would highlight one aspect that disproportionately impacts semiconductors.Factor investing is not new, but we are in a unique period where Momentum has quite a period of outperformance and short-term outperformance.This matters because semiconductors are (as far as my memory holds) the most significant weight in Momentum I’ve ever witnessed. 

Pan-Asia Index Rebalances/ Events/ Delta One, Periscope Analytics

Brian Freitas

Pan-Asia Index Rebalances/ Events/ Delta One

Periscope Analytics

Periscope Analytics focuses on event-driven trades across Asia Pacific and provides comprehensive, timely and systematic coverage of index changes to major Asia Pacific indices in a structured manner.

The analysis includes forecasted inclusions and exclusions to all major Asian indices that have significant amount of tracking assets, including estimates of passive buy/sell flow on the stocks. The service also provides commentary and impact of market consultations, ground rule changes, and other events (IPOs, spin-offs, M&A) that could lead to index changes and passive flow.

Periscope Analytics works with multi-strategy hedge funds, proprietary trading firms, stat arb trading groups and long-only investors that invest and trade in the Asia Pacific region with the data being used to trade index rebalances, avoid pre-positioning and passive flow, and to time entry into and exit from stocks.

Event-Driven Trades Across Asia Pacific

Event-Driven

<ul>
<li>The changes to the <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/s-p-500-index" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:22886:1" rel="noopener">S&amp;P 500 INDEX (SPX INDEX)</a>, S&amp;P400 Index and S&amp;P600 Index will be announced after market close on Friday.</li>
<li>The conclusions of the market consultation to change the index weighting methodology for the Select Sector Indices to reduce concentration and avoid reverse turnover should also be announced.</li>
<li>Changes in the index weighting methodology will result in a round-trip trade of US$35bn across the Select Sector indices. The largest turnover is in the <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/consumer-staples-select-sector-spdr-fund" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:27536:1" rel="noopener">XLP</a> and <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/technology-select-sector-spdr" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:27543:1" rel="noopener">XLK</a>.</li>
</ul>


The changes to the S&amp;P 500 INDEX (SPX INDEX), S&amp;P400 Index and S&amp;P600 Index will be announced after market close on Friday.
The conclusions of the market consultation to change the index weighting methodology for the Select Sector Indices to reduce concentration and avoid reverse turnover should also be announced.
Changes in the index weighting methodology will result in a round-trip trade of US$35bn across the Select Sector indices. The largest turnover is in the XLP and XLK.


Select Sector Indices - Updated Flows as Round-Trip Trade Hits US$35bn

Pan-Asia Catalysts/Events, Quiddity Advisors

Travis Lundy

Pan-Asia Catalysts/Events

Quiddity Advisors

<ul>
<li>Today, part-way through the day, the Nikkei ran an article saying that <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/alimentation-couche-tard-inc" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:25103:1" rel="noopener">Alimentation Couche-Tard (ATD CN)</a> had made a confidential non-binding proposal to buy <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/seven-i-holdings-co-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:1041:1" rel="noopener">Seven &amp; I Holdings (3382 JP)</a>. </li>
<li>7&amp;i shares obviously went up (limit up in a hurry, staying there, large size traded limit up at close). </li>
<li>Now things get complicated. 7&amp;i has said they received a non-binding proposal for all the shares. There will be a Special Committee of all Independent Directors. All stakeholders will matter. </li>
</ul>


Today, part-way through the day, the Nikkei ran an article saying that Alimentation Couche-Tard (ATD CN) had made a confidential non-binding proposal to buy Seven &amp; I Holdings (3382 JP). 
7&amp;i shares obviously went up (limit up in a hurry, staying there, large size traded limit up at close). 
Now things get complicated. 7&amp;i has said they received a non-binding proposal for all the shares. There will be a Special Committee of all Independent Directors. All stakeholders will matter. 


MEGA M&A! 7&I (3382 JP) Gets Non-Binding Bid from Alimentation Couche-Tard (ATD CN)

United States

Costco Wholesale Corporation operates wholesale membership warehouses in multiple countries.  The Company sells all kinds of food, automotive supplies, toys, hardware, sporting goods, jewelry, electronics, apparel, health and beauty aids, as well as other goods.

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Costco Wholesale (COST US)

Costco Model Hidden Inside Wise, Domino’s and Floor & Decor

Nick Sleep is an investor who belongs in the Hall of Fame. 21% annualized returns over 13 years. He started buying cheap businesses.

Unfair Advantage

Costco’s $7.5 Billion Expansion Push: Can 33 New Warehouses Fuel Growth?

Costco Wholesale Corporation reported solid fourth-quarter fiscal 2026 results, supported by continued sales growth, membership expansion, and...

Baptista Research

Factors and Semiconductors

A friendly warning. Momentum is outperforming all factors this year, and Semiconductors are a large part of that. Markets always act erratically,...

Fabricated Knowledge

Select Sector Indices - Updated Flows as Round-Trip Trade Hits US$35bn

US$300bn tracks the Select Sector Indices. Implementation of proposed changes will set off a US$35bn trade. Apple could be bought by multiple...

Brian Freitas

MEGA M&A! 7&I (3382 JP) Gets Non-Binding Bid from Alimentation Couche-Tard (ATD CN)

Canadian CVS owner Alimentation Couche-Tard has lobbed in a bid to buy all the shares of 7&i. This is not as surprising as it looks. It's huge, and...

Travis Lundy

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