Cundill Value Fund – manager comments from the Mackenzie conference

Here are some remarks from the Cundill fund managers that I wrote down as they spoke at the November 2012 Due Diligence conference.

• We are not depending on economic growth to make gains for the fund, but on a return of shares owned by the fund to a fair level.
• We are most active in changing the fund when markets are most turbulent such as in 2007-2009, then reap benefits over the next three to five years.
• Expectations of slow growth are priced into the market, so even a little improvement can boost share prices.
• Biggest concern is about government regulatory actions that harm the economy.
• We buy and own shares that others won’t or can’t – that’s why they’re cheap!  We buy companies that are perceived to be broken.
• People are spending too much time looking in the rear view mirror instead of looking ahead.
• There was a four year stretch in the 1990’s when value investing was very tough, when people bought stocks that were not even businesses.  We knew it would change, but it was long, required great patience and saw a long period of under-performance before we were proven right and enjoyed many consecutive years of out-performance.