David Iben is the Chief Investment Officer of Kopernik Global Investors and is the sole Portfolio Manager of the Kopernik Global All-Cap strategy, Lead Portfolio Manager of the Kopernik Global Unconstrained strategy, Co-Portfolio Manager of the Kopernik Global Long-Term Opportunities strategy and Co-Portfolio Manager of the Kopernik International strategies. He is the Managing Member, Founder and Chairman of the Board of Governors of Kopernik Global Investors.
With so much anxiety about the current euphoria in the market, we thought it was a good time to send out a little stocking stuffer with some of our thoughts. In a nutshell, we reach back into Greek mythology to explain why we believe that people are buying great companies but at the wrong prices. Of course, some are buying hopes and dreams at ridiculous prices as well, but that is a story for another time. More importantly, in our opinion, the real-money making opportunities lie elsewhere. This gives us hope as 2020 merges into 2021. Wishing you a Happy and Healthy New Year.
Our most recent commentary explores why the "Big Brother" interpretation of the British post-punk band XTC's song "Making Plans for Nigel" reminds us of the inevitable increase in angst that is being felt, in no small part due to a decade of QE monetary policy. One can only imagine what will eventually be felt as a consequence of QE-infinity. We discuss how our current era of palpable angst is similar to that of the late 1970s, which was the cyclical end of a period of high inflation, of big government, and the bull market in commodities while also the beginning of a super cycle in stocks and bonds. While the current era is likely another major inflection point in the markets and the end of all those cycles, the silver lining is that the valuation divide between expensive and attractively-priced stocks has probably never been this wide, making it a great time to be a bottom-up, value-conscious investor.
In our latest commentary, we look back to the great Jack London novel The Call of The Wild as a parallel to the herd mentality dominating the current investment environment. Following a dozen years of post-Global Financial Crisis policy designed to transfer wealth from financial assets to real assets, investors who are operating in panic mode are buying and selling the wrong assets. This has created incredibly cheap buying opportunities and, with that, a favorable environment for value investors.
In our most recent commentary, we pay homage to the 1960’s by contrasting our current environment to that of a mere half-century ago; it was a period when Wall Street saw only good things while Main Street saw turmoil and change. We view 2019 as arguably a supercharged version of the late 1960’s, which can serve as a guide and an excellent source of instruction on how to successfully navigate the current investment environment.
In his latest commentary, Kopernik Analyst and Co-portfolio manager for the International Strategy Mark McKinney describes how the “help” from economic policymakers and government officials has historically and will continue in the future to create more harm than benefit economically and societally.
In his latest commentary, Analyst and Portfolio Manager Mark McKinney discusses the rise of a new group of believers in the omnipotent power of the government and central banks, affectionately nicknamed “Fed Bugs,” who believe that printing more money will solve society’s problems. He argues that these Fed Bugs are missing the point: economic logic always wins in the long run.
In this white paper, Kopernik’s Investment Research team analyzes the potential risks and upsides of investing in the mining space and describes how Kopernik values mining companies.
In this update of our 2017 white paper, analyst Steve Rosenthal discusses Kopernik’s perspective on uranium, its unique properties, and the global opportunities Kopernik is currently seeing in the industry.
In this June 2020 white paper, analyst Taylor McKenna explores the similarities and differences between active and passive management strategies. He argues that passive management strategies, such as ETFs and closet indexers, cannot replicate a more active approach. Using the metaphor of a thoughtful baseball manager, Taylor suggests that active management adds value to an investment strategy.
In this update of our 2015 white paper, analyst and Director of Research Alissa Corcoran, CFA discusses Kopernik’s view on gold, its unique history, and the global opportunities Kopernik is finding in the industry.
Kopernik's Director of Research Alissa Corcoran went on BNN Bloomberg to discuss Kopernik's current incentive price for oil, and the big investing opportunities she's seeing in gold and uranium, which she feels continue to be undervalued. Watch the full segment here.
On March 30, 2021, Kopernik's President Neda Yarich hosted a discussion on Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) with Chief Investment Officer and Lead Portfolio Manager David Iben and Director of Research/Analyst Alissa Corcoran.
Presentation: Antidote to Correlation E.S.G. Webinar
Video Replay: Antidote to Correlation E.S.G. Webinar
Kopernik's CIO Dave Iben spoke with Barron's Penta for a column on why investors should consider opportunities outside the S&P 500, and why becoming an "international bargain hunter" is a great first step. Read the full story here.
Kopernik Founder and CIO Dave Iben was included in a Barron's feature story, where he spoke with the publication about the buying opportunities he's currently finding in commodities like uranium, energy, and more. Read the full story here.
Kopernik's Director of Research Alissa Corcoran went on BNN Bloomberg to discuss why commodities like uranium and gold have been underappreciated (partly due to momentum stocks), why the price of each will need to increase, and her key sector picks including Cameco and Centerra. Watch the full interview here.
Kopernik Founder and CIO Dave Iben recently spoke with Barron's for the publication's "Top Income Investments of 2021" cover story, where he discussed where he's currently finding value opportunities overseas. Read the full story here.
