Mark Slater: three great growth shares I have been buying | Summary and Q&A

TL;DR

Mark Slater discusses his process of finding great growth businesses at a reasonable price, the impact of COVID-19 on the portfolio, and examples of holdings they have added or sold.

Key Insights

• ❓ Mark Slater's investment process involves quantitative screening, focusing on growth and reasonable valuations.
• 🍧 The Slater Growth Fund had a better year due to having a portfolio less affected by COVID-19.
• 👶 They were active in trading during the sell-off, picking up bargains and adding new positions.
• 🥹 Holdings that were impacted by COVID-19 are expected to recover and perform well in the long term.
• 🙃 The fund did not sell much and mainly engaged in profit-taking to de-risk.
• 🍉 They see opportunities in businesses that may have near-term challenges but have strong long-term potential.
• 🍉 Ten Entertainment, a bowling business, is an example of a holding with long-term potential despite short-term challenges.

Transcript

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Questions & Answers

Q: How does Mark Slater find great growth businesses at a reasonable price?

Mark Slater's process begins with quantitative screening, focusing on UK businesses that are growing above the average rate and can be bought cheaply. They also analyze cash flow and profit conversion into cash.

Q: Why did the Slater Growth Fund perform better than other funds during the COVID-19 pandemic?

The fund had a portfolio that was less affected by COVID-19, with a large portion of holdings not directly impacted. Even the affected companies have been recovering strongly in recent weeks.

Q: Was there increased trading activity in the fund during the COVID-19 sell-off?

Yes, there was increased trading activity. They first checked their exposure to at-risk businesses and absorbed a significant amount of data from company reports. They added to existing holdings and invested in 10 new positions.

Q: Can you provide examples of holdings that were added during or after the COVID-19 period?

Examples include Cape, a leading VPN company that was not negatively affected by COVID-19, and Jet2, in the holiday business, which was greatly affected. They invested in Jet2 to help the business and expect it to recover and gain market share in the long term.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• Mark Slater's process starts with quantitative screening, looking for UK businesses with above-average growth at a reasonable price.

• They then analyze cash flow and the conversion of profit into cash to identify potential investments.

• The Slater Growth Fund had a better year due to having a portfolio less affected by COVID-19 and making opportunistic investments.