Brian Tang, 32
Occupation: President of Fundamental Research Corp., a Vancouver-based equity research firm.
Portfolio: Berkshire Hathaway Inc. BRK.A-N, Cemex CX-N, LM Ericsson ERIC-Q, some smaller cap names, private companies and real estate.
His investment path
“I started working with my Mom in her financial-planning practice at a young age,” Mr. Tang says. “I remember the first time I saw how compound interest works. I was hooked.”
From that point on, he wanted to learn everything possible about investing. He read books on legendary investor Warren Buffett, as well as those written by Mr. Buffett’s mentor, Benjamin Graham. He even went so far as to earn his Chartered Financial Analyst designation.
Fundamental investor
His investment approach is fundamental, which mainly involves delving into the financial statements of companies. “I usually start by looking for companies with below-average price-earnings ratios and above-average revenue growth,” Mr. Tang notes.
“I then proceed to eliminate companies with high debt levels. With the remaining companies, I look more in-depth at each to find ones I like. It is a time-consuming process and sometimes I will do all that work and not find anything appealing.”
Diversifies with respect to job
His firm, Fundamental Research Corp., provides investment reports on small- and micro-cap companies. “Because my income is already indirectly tied to smaller caps, I like to diversify into larger caps.” Moreover, he can’t invest in the companies his boutique covers for compliance reasons.
An adviser he can trust
Since the demands of his job limit the time available for researching investment opportunities to the extent he deems desirable, he has enlisted the assistance of a financial adviser. “As an analyst, I know the amount of work needed, so I also rely on a broker – my Mom, at Mimi Tang Wealth Management and Consulting Ltd.”
Best move
“It was buying stocks like McDonald’s and Johnson & Johnson right after they announced bad news, on the premise the market tends to overreact and the long-term fundamentals of the companies did not change.”
Worst move
“Buying Citigroup in 2007 based on the same premise outlined above.”
Advice
“To be successful in investing you need to be able to evaluate a business, and … be able to buy it for less than what you think it is worth. In order to do that, you need to have a basic understanding of finance, accounting and economics.”
Special to The Globe and Mail
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