Net net

    This is one of the strategies introduced by Benjamin Graham.

    Net Net is based on Net Current Asset Value (NCAV):

    NCAV = Current Assets - Total Liabilities
    

    Classical Net Net requires market cap be at least 1/3 below NCAV. I require an extra safety, so my definition of Net Net is slightly modified.

    Buy when🔗

    A stock should be bought if ALL the following conditions are met:

    • Market cap is equal or below 60% of NCAV
    • Company produces reliable earnings (loosing company can easily burn all the excess cash)
    • Total Liabilities / Equity < 20%
    • Historical analysis shows, that stock price is able to rebounce to make market cap be around NCAV level

    Do invest more than 5% of portoflio into a single Net Net stock.

    Sell when🔗

    Consider selling when one of the following is true:

    • Market cap > 90% of NCAV
    • Company becomes unprofitable
    • To be figured out: sell if stock still does not appreciate after 3 years? (Graham did so)

    Notes🔗

    About the risk🔗

    Unlike Graham and Buffet stated, I do not require to purchase Net Net stocks in group. Nowadays it's practically impossible to find 20 stocks that satisfy the mentioned above criteria.

    However ignoring opportunities with such high odds on investor's side would not be absurd.

    Instead of buying Net Net stocks in group I limit the risks by not investing more than 5% of my portfolio into a single Net Net stock.

    Pay attention to current assets🔗

    Pay attention to what exactly current assets are. It's perfect if most of current assets are cash. Avoid investing if most of high portion of current assets are receivables that company can not receive or inventory that are very difficult to sell.

    Ensure information balance sheet is reliable.🔗

    Read auditor's opinion about financial statements in 10-K to ensure information in balance sheet is reliable. Reject the investment idea if financial statement was not audited.

    For non US companies: evaluate management reputation to determine if information they provide is truthful. Avoid investing in third-party countries where financial market are very badly regulated.

    Pros🔗

    • A simple and easy to understand profitable strategy with very limited risk.
    • Does not require extremely deep research.

    Cons🔗

    • Nowadays, when everyone can use stock screeners, Net Nets are very rare.
    • As Graham and Buffet acknowledged, Net Nets are typically bad businesses, and some of them may never appreciate in price.

    Resources🔗

    Case studies🔗

    Cofidur SA (France)🔗

    Marufuji Sheet Piling Co (Japan)🔗