Guide:
The most famous reverse investor in the 20th century, founded the Templeton Mutual Fund Group, which was once the largest and most successful in the world, and one of the most successful and prestigious professional investors in the past 100 years.
"Forbes" magazine praised him as "the originator of global investment", recognizing his efforts to find investment opportunities around the world when others dared not.
The New York Times selected him as one of the "Top 10 Fund Managers in the World in the 20th Century".
The American "Money" magazine praised Templeton as "the world's greatest stock picker in this century".
A philanthropist, the Queen of England awarded him a title in 1987 for his contributions to charity over the years.
Quotes are always born in despair, grow in doubt, mature in longing, and perish in hope.
—John Templeton
Templeton was born in Tennessee to a poor family. With excellent grades, he relied on a scholarship to complete his studies at Yale University, and obtained a degree in economics in 1934. He then continued his studies at Oxford University on a Rhodes Scholarship, earning a Master of Laws in 1936. After returning to the United States, he worked at Fenner & Beane in New York, one of the predecessors of today's Merrill Lynch.
Contrarian investments, $10,000 to $22 billion
In 1937, at the height of the Great Depression, Templeton founded his own company, Templeton, Dobbrow & Vance (TDV). In 1939, the 36-year-old Templeton relied on a loan of 10,000 US dollars to purchase 100 shares in each of 104 companies. A few years later, the success of 100 of these companies brought Templeton the first pot of gold. The company has achieved considerable success, rapidly growing its asset base to $100 million, with eight mutual funds under its umbrella.
He managed $2 million when he first set it up, and $400 million when he sold the firm in 1967. In the following 25 years, Templeton founded the world's largest and most successful Templeton mutual fund group, and his fund company never hired sales staff, relying entirely on investment performance to attract customers. In 1992, he sold the Templeton Fund to the Franklin Group again for US$440 million. At this time, the assets under management had reached US$22 billion.
In the 1960s and 1970s, Templeton was one of the first American fund managers to invest in Japan. He bought Japanese stocks at a lower price, jumped ahead of other investors, and after he bought, the Japanese stock market skyrocketed. Later, he discovered that Japan's stock market was overvalued, and discovered a new investment opportunity - the United States.
In fact, Templeton told shareholders in 1988 that Japan's stock market would shrink by 50% or more. A few years later, Japan's stock index, the Tokyo Stock Exchange, fell 60%.
During his 70-year career, Templeton founded and led the most successful mutual fund company of his era, with annual profits of up to $70 million, and his operation methods dazzled Wall Street. An equally famous and famous investor.
After retirement, he became active in various international philanthropic activities through his own John Templeton Foundation. Since 1972, the fund has rewarded people who have made outstanding contributions to humanities and scientific research every year. This is the Templeton Award with the richest prize money in the world.
On July 8, 2008, Templeton died in Nassau, Bahamas, where he had lived for a long time, at the age of 95. He died of pneumonia, according to a spokesman for the Templeton Foundation.
Investment method: Investing at the "most pessimistic point"
As the most famous contrarian investor in the last century, Templeton's investment method is summarized as, "buy at the low point of the Great Depression, sell at the crazy and irrational high point, and play with ease in between."
He sorts out and seeks countries and industries that have bottomed out but have excellent prospects around the world, and his investment targets are companies that are ignored by the public. He often takes low-in and high-out to the extreme, and invests at the "maximum pessimistic point".
As a contrarian value investor, Templeton believes that completely ignored stocks are the most exciting bargains -- especially those that investors haven't researched yet.
Classic case: In 1939, in the double horror atmosphere of the Great Depression and the war, he borrowed money to buy 100 shares of companies listed on the New York Stock Exchange and the American Stock Exchange with prices below $1. Of this total of 104 companies, 34 were in bankruptcy, four of which were later worthless, but the value of the entire portfolio rose to $40,000 four years later.
When to Sell Stocks?
This is a question that investors want to know. Templeton said that we can only replace the original stock when we have found a stock that is 50% better than the original stock. In other words, if we're owning a stock that's been doing really well, and it's trading at $100, and we think it's worth $100, then we need to buy a value stock. A new stock that is 50% undervalued.
For example, we may have found stocks that are trading at $25, but we think they are worth $37.50, in which case we should replace the old stock that is trading at $100 with a new stock that is trading at $25. stock.
Templeton's approach stemmed from his investing philosophy, in which his main goal was to buy things for far less than they were really worth. There are two points that should be noted: if it means that what you buy has limited growth potential, it doesn't matter; if it means that it will grow at a double-digit rate in the next 10 years, that's even better.
The key lies in the development of the company
If ideal penny stocks can be found in growing companies, they can continue to pay us handsomely for years. Therefore, it is the cases of extreme dislocation between stock price and value that should be noted, rather than dwelling on some simple trivial details.
John Templeton is known as the father of investment, because he let Americans know the benefits of investing in overseas regions and created a precedent for global investment. Although Sir Templeton has passed away, his investment is still worthy of our study.
Attachment: Investment Quotations
1. People always ask me, where is the best prospect, but in fact, this question is wrong, you should ask: where is the most pessimistic prospect?
2. God bless the heart of gratitude. Helping others is helping yourself. The strongest weapon on earth is love and prayer.
3. I have focused my life on opening the hearts of others, so that people will not be complacent to think that they know all the truths on earth. They should be enthusiastic about listening, researching, and not shutting down and hurting those they don't identify with.
4. The only way to avoid investing mistakes is not to invest, but this is the biggest mistake you can make. Don't worry about making investment mistakes, and don't put all your eggs in one basket to make up for the last loss. Instead, you should find out the reasons and avoid repeating the same mistakes.
5. If you keep going in and out of the stock market, just looking for a few price profits, or keep selling short, trading options or futures, the stock market has become a casino for you, and you are like a gambler, and you will eventually lose everything return.
6. Gossip sounds like it can make quick money, but know that "there is no such thing as a free lunch".
7. Before buying stocks, you must at least know what makes this company outstanding. If you are unable to do it yourself, ask an expert for help.
8. To outperform the market, you must not only outperform ordinary investors, but also outperform professional fund managers and be smarter than big investors. This is the biggest challenge.
9. Buy what you pay for, not market trends or economic prospects.
10. A high-quality company is a company that is better than its peers. For example, a company with leading sales in the market, a company with a leading technology in an industry of technological innovation, and a company with excellent operating records, effective cost control, the first to enter new markets, and high production. A company with an excellent reputation for profiting from consumer products.
11. "Buy low and sell high" is a law that is easier said than done, because when everyone buys, you also buy, resulting in "not worth the price" investment. On the contrary, when the stock price is low and investors retreat, you also follow suit, and finally become "buy high and sell low".
12. Even if everyone around you is selling, you don't have to follow, because the best time to sell is before the stock market crashes, not after. Instead, you should review your portfolio. The only reason to sell your existing stocks is if there are more attractive stocks. If not, you should continue to hold the stocks you have.
13. When calculating the return on investment, don't forget to take taxes and inflation into account, which is especially important for long-term investors.
14. Diversify your investment in different companies, industries and countries, as well as in stocks and bonds, because no matter how smart you are, you can't predict or control the future.
15. To accept investment projects of different types and regions, the proportion of cash in the portfolio is not constant, and no investment portfolio is always the best.
16. No investment is permanent. You must respond appropriately to changes in expectations. You cannot buy a stock and put it there forever. It is called "long-term investment".
17. Although the stock market will fall, or even crash, don't lose confidence in the stock market, because in the long run, the stock market will always rise. Only optimistic investors can win in the stock market.
18. A person with faith will have clearer and sharper thinking, and thus reduce the chance of making mistakes.
19. Be calm and determined, and be able to not be affected by the market environment.
20. Modesty and eagerness to learn are the magic weapon for success: Those who seem to know all the questions don't know the questions they really want to answer. In investment, arrogance and arrogance bring disaster and disappointment. Smart investors should know that success is a process of continuous exploration.