Essays

Alex Mason
My Latest Thoughts On
Long Term Investing
Franklin Resources (BEN) – Asset Management With A Value Focus
Franklin Templeton offices. Image Source: Investment News Franklin Resources is one of the largest asset managers in the country and boasts a very clean balance sheet and a strong record of delivering returns to shareholders. Will the future be as great as the past...
Starbucks (SBUX) – Creating Wealth With The Coffee Industry
Starbucks holiday cups. Image Source: Glamour Starbucks sells coffee, and is one of the largest coffee companies in the world. History of Starbucks Business Overview Financials Valuation and Closing Thoughts Want to listen to another episode or...
Johnson and Johnson (JNJ) – A Healthcare Fund In A Single Stock
Johnson and Johnson has a long history of creating medical and health-related products. Image Source: Johnson and Johnson It's one of the largest healthcare companies in the world. From medical devices, to drugs, to Band-Aids and Tylenol, Johnson and Johnson is the...
Mastercard (MA) – Building a Global Payment Network? Priceless
Paying with a Mastercard credit card. Image Source: Mastercard Mastercard is the other face of the American credit card duopoly (with the other being Visa). An incredibly successful business, Mastercard's success has been built based on its network effect and its...
Hershey (HSY) – Reese’s, Kisses, And The Emperor of Chocolate
Reese's peanut butter cups. Image Source: Hershey
Phillip Morris International (PM) – Global Tobacco and the Future of Smoking
A man smoking with the Phillip Morris IQOS system. Image Source: The Bureau of Investigative Journalism The offspring of Altria, Phillip Morris International is one of the world's largest tobacco producers. It was spun off in 2008 and is making headway in switching...
Altria (MO) – The Surviving Tobacco Giant of America
An Altria representative at a store. Image Source: Altria Q3 2022 Investor Presentation Altria is the last remaining tobacco giant in the United States, after a series of acquisitions and mergers over the last few decades. They sell traditional cigarettes, but...
Disney (DIS) – Capturing Imagination Through Storytelling
The Guardians of the Galaxy roller coaster at Epcot. Image Source: Travel Weekly Disney is well known in the entertainment industry for crafting powerful stories that tug at the heart and capture the imagination. The business has been making media for decades and is...
American Express (AXP) – Prestige and Loyalty in the Credit Industry
An American Express business card. Image Source: Nerd Wallet American Express is a credit card company that tends to cater to business customers and the affluent. They have a long history of loyalty programs that are well known in the credit card industry....