Xavier MacDuff @xvrmdf.bsky.social · 08/09/2026Added to my holding in Knights Group, a UK-listed consolidator of regional law firms. Growing organically, and at an incredibly cheap valuation. KGH 010
Xavier MacDuff @xvrmdf.bsky.social · 05/09/2026The conclusion... UK productivity growth is understated, with the result that fiscal and monetary policy is too tight. Whilst businesses are substituting labour for capital, further driving productivity growth. 030
Xavier MacDuff @xvrmdf.bsky.social · 05/09/2026Good podcast here from fund management bad boy Neil Woodford on how mismeasurement of UK productivity growth is leading to fiscal and monetary policy mistakes.open.spotify.comBritain’s Productivity Crisis: A Great Deception?Noise Cancelling with Neil Woodford · Episode 110
Xavier MacDuff @xvrmdf.bsky.social · 02/09/2026Adding this here:newstatesman.comMeet Generation ScrewedYoung people are lost in the chasm between aspiration and reality 000
Xavier MacDuff @xvrmdf.bsky.social · 01/09/2026A pretty depressing take on life as a young person in small town UK. ignatius55.substack.com/p/britains-n...ignatius55.substack.comBritain’s New UnderclassAmerica’s ‘Pyjama Pants Whites’ are here! 110
Xavier MacDuff @xvrmdf.bsky.social · 31/08/2026We have a hybrid and it's great! Electric power does most of our day-to-day driving, and then the petrol engine kicks in for longer journeys, with no worries about range and battery charging.latimes.comHybrid cars are hot again globallyToyota and Chinese automakers are seeing intense demand while other companies rush to add more hybrids to their lineups. 030
Xavier MacDuff @xvrmdf.bsky.social · 19/08/2026And Cambridge have questions to answer too. Hiring an unqualified professor severely let down all his students and colleagues who were relying on him for his teaching and professional guidance. It also damages the reputation of the university. 000
Xavier MacDuff @xvrmdf.bsky.social · 19/08/2026Seeing quite a few normally sensible people defending Jason Arday and criticising the investigation into him. * Liar/fantastist/plagiarist/fraudster. * Calls police and libel lawyers to shut-down his critics. * Gets found out, can't deal with the consequences. 110
Xavier MacDuff @xvrmdf.bsky.social · 13/08/2026Me, an idiot: "This stock looks really good value here, I'll just sit back and watch it rally 25% in 2 months." 020
Xavier MacDuff @xvrmdf.bsky.social · 31/07/2026"Jevons strikes again!"open.substack.comWhy Bears Will Be Wrong About AI, AgainA basic explanation of Jevon's Paradox and Joseph Schumpeter's Theory of Innovation 000
Xavier MacDuff @xvrmdf.bsky.social · 22/06/2026I keep looking at former "no-brainer" compounder stocks and seeing that they're down ~50%. Painful. 030
Xavier MacDuff @xvrmdf.bsky.social · 15/06/2026Full piece here:open.substack.comI Studied Millions of Portfolios. Here's What Actually Kills CompoundingThe cost that never shows up on your statement is the one doing the most damage. 030
Xavier MacDuff @xvrmdf.bsky.social · 15/06/2026Good piece of analysis here (based on simulated portfolios using actual share price data) showing how taking profits on winning positions is a toxic strategy. 120
Xavier MacDuff @xvrmdf.bsky.social · 15/06/2026Superb podcast with Whale Rock Capital founder Alex Sacerdote. If the valuations of Al/tech stocks seem baffling (they do to me), then this is great for understanding why the bulls seemingly pay such hugh multiples.open.spotify.comAlex Sacerdote - How to Invest Through Technology Cycles - [Invest Like the Best, EP.477]Invest Like the Best with Patrick O'Shaughnessy · Episode 010
Xavier MacDuff @xvrmdf.bsky.social · 08/06/2026The key feature about the social media ban is to provide some red meat to hungry lobby groups. 010
Xavier MacDuff @xvrmdf.bsky.social · 03/06/2026Just looking to allocate my wife's pension contributions and you can no longer buy any sort of passive global, US, or EM fund without being up to the eyeballs in AI risk exposure. 230
Xavier MacDuff @xvrmdf.bsky.social · 01/06/2026Ah, headline just hit Bloomberg. Fraud investigation explains today's move. 010
Xavier MacDuff @xvrmdf.bsky.social · 01/06/2026Move your primary listing to the United States, get yourself a valuation uplift. Like Wise has done. Oh, wait. 130
Xavier MacDuff @xvrmdf.bsky.social · 29/05/2026Houses in London are better quality simply because they're located in London and therefore provide access to the UK's best employment market. 110
Xavier MacDuff @xvrmdf.bsky.social · 29/05/2026Yep, some index of house prices. Clearly, for 20yrs we're now measuring from the pre-GFC peak. 230
Xavier MacDuff @xvrmdf.bsky.social · 29/05/2026If you've been following the US economy, you'll know that their energy independence - driven by the shale revolution - has been an important factor in their economic outperformance. By closing down the North Sea, the UK government has made it policy to do the reverse. 020
Xavier MacDuff @xvrmdf.bsky.social · 29/05/2026Starmer uses that line so favoured by UK net zero proponents: "North Sea oil ... has no discernible impact on the global price of oil and gas." Technically true, but highly disingenuous. Every barrel from the North Sea is more secure, has lower transport costs, and creates jobs/tax revenue.open.substack.comTony Blair might not like my plan, but he's wrong: it's changing Britain for the betterA Britain built for all 220
Xavier MacDuff @xvrmdf.bsky.social · 28/05/2026Latest reading: "Born to be Wired" by John Malone. Autobiography from the enormously successful telecommunications and media investor. An enormous amount of deal-making detail. 010
Xavier MacDuff @xvrmdf.bsky.social · 27/05/2026And another one...open.substack.comPOOL CORPORATION (NASDAQ: POOL) [UPDATED: MAR 2026]Why the real estate 'hangover' is offering us the best opportunity to buy a logistics monopoly. 000
Xavier MacDuff @xvrmdf.bsky.social · 27/05/2026A detailed write-up here...open.substack.comUnder The Hood, Pool Corporation - $POOLCompany Analysis & Valuation 100
Xavier MacDuff @xvrmdf.bsky.social · 20/05/2026And looks like an ideal Berkshire business. Yeah, sure, they're in a downturn. But they been consistently earning a >15% ROIC, and >30% when times are good. $POOL $BRK 010
Xavier MacDuff @xvrmdf.bsky.social · 20/05/2026It wasn't a small position, either. Until recently, Berkshire owned 3,068,885 shares, or 8% of the company. Would be worth $560m at the current price. 100
Xavier MacDuff @xvrmdf.bsky.social · 20/05/2026Interesting to see in the Berkshire 13-F that they've sold out of Pool Corp, just as sales growth is inflecting positively. They bought in during mid-2024, when the share price was much higher, and the sales growth severely negative. What was their rationale back then? $BRK $POOL 120
Xavier MacDuff @xvrmdf.bsky.social · 18/05/2026Key attraction here is that the tenants are often doctors and dentists. There is no cyclicality and their rental payments (with inflation uplifts) are long-duration and government-backed. 000
Xavier MacDuff @xvrmdf.bsky.social · 18/05/2026Good note here on UK healthcare REIT Primary Health Properties plc. (I own it).open.substack.comPrimary Health Properties (LON: PHP)The NHS’s Landlord Just Got a Lot Bigger 100
Xavier MacDuff @xvrmdf.bsky.social · 18/05/2026My Instagram feed is suddenly full of adverts like this for property in the Gulf. Good luck selling those! Note: Not sure how this is being targeted - I've never searched or browsed for this. 020
Xavier MacDuff @xvrmdf.bsky.social · 17/05/2026Good piece here on the Greggs investment case. (I own it).substack.comThe Economics of a Sausage RollEveryday indulgences, scaled with discipline, and quietly mispriced. 030
Xavier MacDuff @xvrmdf.bsky.social · 08/05/2026Pattern in the Scottish election is one of Reform helping the SNP to stay in power by splitting the unionist or Conservative vote in a way that denies the nearest challenger a chance of winning. 200
Xavier MacDuff @xvrmdf.bsky.social · 08/05/2026Along with Edinburgh, St Andrews, and Bearsden (Glasgow), many of the highest income parts of the UK are now Lib Dem strongholds. 140
Xavier MacDuff @xvrmdf.bsky.social · 06/05/2026Diet and exercise standards are really poor in Scotland.bbc.co.ukFormer council leader jailed for sexually assaulting young menJordan Linden stood down as leader of North Lanarkshire Council in 2022 after the allegations emerged. 000
Xavier MacDuff @xvrmdf.bsky.social · 17/04/2026Increasingly in the UK, the response to economic problems is not to treat causes, but instead to treat symptoms with price regulation. We have: ⚠️ Minimum wage ⚠️ Energy price cap ⚠️ Rent controls ⚠️ Affordable housing quotas And plans for: ⚠️ Maximum wage controls ⚠️ Food price caps 040
Xavier MacDuff @xvrmdf.bsky.social · 10/04/2026Terry did a great job of spotting this new market opportunity. However, what the book lacks is much discussion of the failure of the few years. He simply kept buying (mainly) consumer stocks that blew-up due to management mis-steps: Nike, Estée Lauder, Brown-Forman, PayPal, Unilever, McCormick. 110
Xavier MacDuff @xvrmdf.bsky.social · 10/04/2026Very good for seeing Terry's evolution from focused almost exclusively upon consumer staples investing to an embrace of a broad array technology-enabled growth companies across healthcare, payments, software, and data services. 100
Xavier MacDuff @xvrmdf.bsky.social · 10/04/2026Latest reading: "Investing for Growth" by Terry Smith. This is an anthology of his previous writings (annual reports, press articles), so nothing new in here for dedicated Terry followers. 100
Xavier MacDuff @xvrmdf.bsky.social · 27/03/2026UKTI ⅛ 2046 at 65.6 for a YTM of RPI+2.3% is surely interesting? 020
