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Thoughts

Exclusive commentary and insights from Team CSC's deep fundamental research, repeatable investment process, and culture of continuous improvement.

Categories

Category: Thoughts

Oblique Strategies

While I will cop to a mildly obnoxious habit of introducing references that almost always require an internet search, I also will start this year

Jeffrey Bronchick, CFA January 14, 2020

All About CSC

Cove Street Gives – 2019

Every December our firm is excited to spend time and money toward a charitable cause that is chosen by a different CSC team member each

Jeffrey Bronchick, CFA January 2, 2020

Sometimes Early, Rarely Wrong!

‘The Second’ Is Best: How El Segundo Grew Into LA’s Premiere Office Market: Commercial Observer

Jeffrey Bronchick, CFA December 30, 2019

Great Governance Idea…Poor Execution

We really wanted to like what we read in the recently-released proxy statement for Acuity Brands (AYI). In response to an awful say-on-pay result from

Jeffrey Bronchick, CFA December 3, 2019

Gender Studies and Making Money

Female CEOs are not correlated any differently with success than their gender counterparts. CFOs However? Interesting. S&P Global Quantamental Research

Jeffrey Bronchick, CFA December 3, 2019

Is Imaginary Worse Than Adjusted?

Thank you FT for this little reference. Pulling from the recent Softbank investor presentation, we present two of their charts referencing some “problems” at WeWork.

Jeffrey Bronchick, CFA December 3, 2019

Up the Spout: UK Corporate Governance Fun

JD Wetherspoon founder Tim Martin has launched an attack on two of his pub chain’s biggest shareholders, accusing them of hypocrisy on corporate governance. Mr

Jeffrey Bronchick, CFA December 3, 2019

While We Hate Proxy Advisers and the Phony Industry That Has Sprung Around It

It could be worse. This was parsed from a recent piece written by the great defender of the American capitalist system, Carl Icahn. On Aug.

Jeffrey Bronchick, CFA December 3, 2019

Because We Are Tired of Talking to Ourselves

In a prolonged anti-value momentum-driven rally, it’s easy and natural to forget the long-term value proposition of a rebalancing discipline. The evidence and intuition underlying

Jeffrey Bronchick, CFA December 3, 2019

Willingness to Lose Money

Under the heading of things that just can’t last, today’s topic is venture capital firms continuing to invest in technology companies that consistently lose an

Jeffrey Bronchick, CFA November 15, 2019

Ornithology and Credit Markets

Selloff in Complex Investments Flashes Warning for Junk Bonds

Jeffrey Bronchick, CFA November 13, 2019

Counterfactual Investing

It may surprise you to hear that we sincerely believe there are aspects of the investment management industry that are truly unique. Before you start

Jeffrey Bronchick, CFA November 12, 2019

Somehow, This Never Goes Over Well

Pacific Investment Management Co. is moving the bar for an asset allocation fund co-managed by Rob Arnott. Arnott’s Pimco All Asset All Authority Fund has

Jeffrey Bronchick, CFA November 6, 2019

Interesting, but It’s Hard to See Either a “Traditional” Democrat or Republican Running in 2020.

Political Cycles and Stock Returns – Lubos Pastor and Pietro Veronesi

Jeffrey Bronchick, CFA November 4, 2019

Ben Claremon Interviewed on the Meb Faber Podcast

Meb Faber is a SoCal-based investor I have known for a number of years. Meb is the CIO of a quant firm called Cambria Investments.

Jeffrey Bronchick, CFA November 4, 2019

CSC Strategy Letter | Number 37 | Fitzgerald, Goethe, Value

Download Cove Street Capital’s October 2019 Strategy Letter Number 37: “Fitzgerald, Goethe, Value”

Jeffrey Bronchick, CFA October 22, 2019

Oh…and Just Be Right

You Can’t Be a Wimp — Make the Tough Calls — Harvard Business Review

Jeffrey Bronchick, CFA October 16, 2019

People Tend to Do Today What They Should Have Done Four Years Ago

Source: The Wall Street Journal

Jeffrey Bronchick, CFA October 14, 2019

The Next Time You Hear a CEO Touting EPS Growth…

…show him or her the following chart, courtesy of Goldman Sachs (with a hat tip to the Wall Street Journal): For those of you who

Jeffrey Bronchick, CFA October 9, 2019

While You Were Sleeping During that Earnings Call

Three American business school professors decided to find out. In a first-of-its-kind study, they analyzed more than 26,000 earnings calls from more than 2,100 public

Jeffrey Bronchick, CFA October 4, 2019

Fear the Righteous Person

In Michael Lewis’ interesting podcast, Against the Rules, he relays the biblical story of King Solomon adjudicating a dispute between two women who claimed they

Jeffrey Bronchick, CFA September 25, 2019

Not Sure If “Screw Loose” Is Our Lead Pitch, but There Is a Lot of This in US

Swensen likes to talk about how he looks for money managers who have “a screw loose.” In terms of self-interest, the rational thing to do

Andrew Leaf September 16, 2019

Al Rappaport Has Always Been an Important Read

How CEOs Can Forge a New Kind of Shareholder Value – Alfred Rappaport (Bloomberg Opinion) The Business Roundtable, the organization for chief executive officers of

Jeffrey Bronchick, CFA September 5, 2019

Hear Ye!

Today my colleagues propose to roll back the requirement that auditors attest to the adequacy of certain companies’ internal controls. The proposal’s analysis of the

Jeffrey Bronchick, CFA August 23, 2019

Read More Source Material

“In a free society…there is one and only one social responsibility of business – to use its resources and engage in activities designed to increase

Jeffrey Bronchick, CFA August 21, 2019

The Death of Value Investing…and Mean Reversion

I certainly have no interest in trying to call the top of any market cycle. No one has the ability to do that consistently. And

Jeffrey Bronchick, CFA July 29, 2019

Don’t Forget to Add the Value

“The paper is organized around a number of facts and fictions about the size effect that warrant clarification. The facts we present include: that the

Jeffrey Bronchick, CFA July 23, 2019

The First Quarter Since Q1 2009 That Our World Gets a Shout Out. We Wonder If It’s a Good Thing.

Jeffrey Bronchick, CFA July 23, 2019

Ben Claremon Interviewed by the Manual of Ideas

Continuing on the corporate governance theme, we are posting this oldie but goodie. A couple of years ago, I was interviewed by The Manual of

Jeffrey Bronchick, CFA July 18, 2019

CSC Strategy Letter | Number 36 | Big House, Small Doors?

Download Cove Street Capital’s July 2019 Strategy Letter Number 36 “Big House, Small Doors?”

Jeffrey Bronchick, CFA July 17, 2019