Market Insights

A Spotlight on Under-the-Radar Financials, Part 1

We are firm believers at Prospector that active management should not begin with a benchmark. Our bottom-up approach to portfolio construction and our focus on areas of the market where we possess competitive advantages generally produce stock and sector allocations in our portfolios that differ...

Achieving Outperformance with Lower Volatility

Prospector’s approach to equity investing has long been focused on the concept of upside participation and downside risk mitigation. As conservative investors, we eschew flashy names with brilliant growth prospects in favor of high quality, value-oriented stocks that can participate in rising...

Ending the Year with an Attitude of Gratitude

At Prospector Partners, we’re winding down the year with thoughts of appreciation, gratitude, and optimism. That’s not to say we were unfazed by the events that contributed to volatility in the markets this past year. However, in the 25 years since founding Prospector Partners, we’ve seen that the...

Old School Value Revived

Flip on financial TV, and you might come across a segment about the so-called death of value investing. After years of outperformance from high-flying and sexy growth stocks, many pundits proclaim a new paradigm for retail investors to pile into. The old school Warren Buffett-style investing...

A Remarkable Chart: Tesla vs Berkshire Hathaway

This blog was originally posted in December 2020, republished with updated data. 

Of the many charts illustrating the enormous run-up of growth stocks in the past few years, the chart below may take the cake.

Tesla (TSLA) began 2020 with a market capitalization under $100 billion, and by November 25

Commodity Prices Remind Us Why We’re Allergic to Leverage

One major impact from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has been to pour fuel on the fire of rising commodities. And, as we are often reminded during crises, it’s difficult to see around every corner, and predict corollary impacts from resulting volatility. 

An Abundance of Speculation: 2021’s Rise of Risk Assets

Last week* we reflected on the trillions of dollars of government stimulus and monetary support that has left the United States awash in cash.

The result of all of this has undoubtedly aided the rise in risk assets during the first few months of 2021, and has led to some speculative market...

Reflections on Value’s Outperformance and Our Outlook Going Forward

After the new $1.9 trillion stimulus package was passed along party lines early in the year, the multi-trillions of dollars of government stimulus and additional trillions of monetary support by the Fed left the United States awash in cash. As can be seen in the chart below, the U.S. money supply...

Upside Participation, Downside Risk Mitigation

The volatility of 2020 is still fresh in people’s minds.

On March 12th, 2020, the S&P 500 had it largest single-day percentage drop since the 1987 stock market crash, falling 9.5% in a single trading session.

This infamous record was short lived, as four days later on March 16th, the S&P 500 fell...

Questions We Ask Before We Invest

Successful investing doesn’t have to mimic rocket science. Warren Buffet breaks it down well in his first two rules of investing:

Rule #1 – Don’t lose money; Rule #2- Don’t forget Rule #1!

We adhere to this principle, and our entire investment process revolves around the idea of limiting downside...