Start Here
With the new year upon us, I thought it was a good chance to step back and give a proper introduction to what I’m doing here at Coughlin Capital.
If you’re new, welcome. If you’ve been around for a while, thanks for sticking with me.
What I Do
I’m a private investor who writes about the companies I’m researching, the positions I’m building, and the mistakes I’m making along the way.
This isn’t a tips service. I’m not going to tell you what to buy on Monday morning. What I will do is walk through how I think about businesses, show my work on valuation, and be honest when I’m uncertain or wrong.
Where I Focus
Most of my time goes into a handful of ideas. Right now that means Shift4 Payments as my largest position, a heavy allocation to Chinese equities (Alibaba chief among them), and a few other names where I think the market has gotten the math wrong. I also spend time on sectors I know well from my day job in construction, which gives me a different lens on building products, distribution, and industrial names.
What You’ll Find Here
The posts fall into a few categories:
Deep dives on individual companies, where I try to cover business quality, valuation, and what would break the thesis
Research on industries, sectors, or themes I’m spending time on
Broader pieces on topics like China’s recovery, capital cycles, or whatever else I’m chewing on
Occasional portfolio updates when I have something worth sharing
How I Think
My investment approach borrows from people who shaped how I think: Charlie Munger and Warren Buffett for the obvious reasons, Nick Sleep for the long-term business-owner mindset, and Michael Burry for the cycle awareness and willingness to be early.
I’m looking for quality businesses at reasonable prices, ideally where the market is pricing in problems that are temporary or already improving. I’m not necessarily interested in cheap for cheap’s sake.
A Few Things You Should Know
I’m not a registered investment advisor. Nothing here is advice. I write about companies I own, and those positions can change at any time. I try to be upfront about that in every post.
The audience here tends to be other individual investors, people who enjoy digging into filings, debating valuation, and learning in public. If that sounds like you, welcome.
If you want to see how I think before committing, start with the Alibaba, Shift4, Ferrari, Nelnet or Snapchat write-ups. Those are representative of the kind of work I’m trying to do here.
Thanks for reading, and happy new year.
Disclaimer: I am not a registered investment advisor. This newsletter is for informational purposes only. I hold positions in companies I write about, and those positions may change without notice. Do your own research.
This article comes at the perfect time, honestly. Been following for a bit and your breakdown of how you think about businesses is always so insightful.