Episode 0004: Advanced Energy: What happens when Moore’s law is pushed to its limit?

In 1965 Gordon Moore, co-founder of Intel, made an astounding prediction that transistor density on chips would double roughly every two years.  But few know that at the same time he warned chip fabricators would hit a wall when the geometries involved became as small as atoms or particles themselves.  In this podcast, Bill Baker, CFA, describes how this nimble provider of precision power equipment has bucked a morose trend in the semiconductor industry and gained market share among a field of barely profitable competitors.  He also explains why industrial power equipment markets are being targeted by the management of Advanced Energy.

Episode 0003: Synaptics: What does China know about Synaptics that U.S. investors don’t?

When Synaptic’s stock price withered from over $100 per share this summer to the mid-60s, according to Bloomberg a state-backed buyer from China offered to pay $110 per share for the company, and was rebuffed.  What did China see in Synaptics that institutional investors in the U.S. may have missed in this company?  In this podcast, Bill Baker, CFA, tears apart the the pieces of the company hidden behind opaque segment reporting and discusses the unique competitive advantages held by Synaptics.

Episode 0002: Myriad Genetics: Strategic outlook discussed in NYC research analyst day

In Myriad’s analyst day held in NYC on September 14, 2015, management discussed the outlook for several new growth drivers, and it addressed challenges faced in its legacy BRCA1/2 hereditary cancer genetic testing franchise.  We explore what’s new, the ins and outs of each opportunity, and delve into the intricacies of companion diagnostics.

Episode 0001: Monotype Imaging: What clients are asking us…

Monotype Imaging is regarded as having a unique and somewhat bullet-proof franchise, being a “toll collector” when companies use fonts anywhere from on a laser printer to cloud-based publishing in mobile ads.  But why has there been margin erosion and deceleration of growth?  We explore what’s under the hood in this episode…