Investment Process

Investment Process

Our process is disciplined and repeatable, but is not inhibiting. It always leaves room for spirited debate, healthy skepticism, and brutal honesty. The decision to add a stock to our portfolio is not taken lightly. . . nor is the decision to sell.

WHAT AN OAK RIDGE STOCK LOOKS LIKE

The Oak Ridge Way places a high priority on the consistency of results and steady improvement over time. That is true whether it is in terms of earnings, relative valuation, intangibles, or fundamentals.

Our goal is to achieve superior returns over a full-market cycle while taking less risk.

AN EXHAUSTIVE ANALYSIS OF COMPANY FACTORS

We are not in the business of predicting the stock market. Instead, we employ quantitative and qualitative idea generation. Though we trust in our instincts and our expertise to be able to anticipate when a company might go on to realize its full potential as we see it, we back that up with intense analysis. When it comes down to it, strength and vision are the concepts we share with the companies we believe in.

Security Selection

  • Consistent earnings growth
  • Strong financial metrics
  • Reasonable valuation
  • Leading products / services

Portfolio Construction

  • Thoughtful diversification by sector
  • Bottom-up driven and sector-theme aware
  • High-conviction in active positions

Risk Management

  • Selecting high-quality stocks relative to risk
  • Strive for stock selection to be key source of excess return
  • Mitigate unintended bets
  • Understand key drivers of performance and risk

Sell Discipline

  • Deteriorating company fundamentals
  • Unsupported valuation
  • Risk management concerns
The Review Process

IN THE HOT SEAT

The investments we make are in those securities that were able to survive a rigorous three-pronged peer review process that brings together our analysts and portfolio managers.

FOCUSED ON ACHIEVING RESULTS

We are slow to buy, and we commit to holdings for the long haul. This results in lower portfolio turnover. But, we are not inactive. Our holdings are subject to ongoing review—a process that incorporates the same rigor as our selection process. When a company’s fundamentals show signs of deterioration, its industry position erodes, or portfolio risk management concerns arise, we sell the position. Ultimately, we strive to retain an unwavering focus on delivering long-term growth for our investors regardless of short-term market conditions—with less risk—and by generating alpha over full market cycles.

CONTINUOUS REVIEW

Position Review and Outlook