Business Breakdowns

May 01 2024 2k
Business Breakdowns Podcast artwork

Learn how companies work from the people who know them best. We do deep research and interview industry veterans, investment professionals, and corporate executives to explain the inner workings of public stocks and private businesses. For each company, we break down their history, business model, financial statements, secret sauce, and bull/bear case. We believe every business has lessons to teach us and Breakdowns is here to highlight them. Learn more and stay up to date at www.joincolossus.com.

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AMETEK: Industrial Excellence - [Business Breakdowns, EP.161]

May 01 2024 54 mins  
Today, we cover the industrial conglomerate AMETEK. This is one of eight companies that Mark Leonard and his team at Constellation Software studied as they built their own empire. And it's one well worthy of a discussion as you'll hear. To break down AMETEK, I'm joined by Nael Fakhry, Co-CIO of the Osterweis Capital Management Growth and Income Strategy. Nael has spent a significan

Gartner: Compound Insights - [Business Breakdowns, EP.160]

Apr 24 2024 47 mins  
Today, we're covering a behemoth in the research market, Gartner. Executives are willing to pay up to $30,000 for reports and $50,000+ for full subscriptions so they can access insights and data to help them make business decisions, purchasing decisions, and pivoting decisions. Our guest is Alvise Peggion, portfolio manager at Fairlight Asset Management. He helps us cover how Gartn

Winmark: Resale at Scale - [Business Breakdowns, EP.159]

Apr 17 2024 50 mins  
This is Matt Reustle. Today, we break down Winmark, a major player in the reseller economy. You're likely familiar with some of Winmark’s brands, like Plato's Closet or Play It Again Sports. Altogether, Winmark operates five brands through a franchising model. Our guest to break down Winmark is the current CEO, Brett Heffes. During our conversation, we discuss the broader reselle

Embraer: Defying Gravity - [Business Breakdowns, EP.158]

Apr 10 2024 49 mins  
This is Matt Reustle. We are back in the world of aviation today, breaking down Embraer. Embraer has carved out an interesting niche, manufacturing regional jets, business jets, and military aircrafts. Our guest is Richard Aboulafia, Managing Director at AeroDynamic Advisory and long-time aviation analyst and consultant. We break down how this aviation success story grew out of Bra

Boeing (REPLAY): Turbulent Times - [Business Breakdowns]

Apr 08 2024 47 mins  
Today we’re replaying our Breakdown on Boeing, hosted by Zack Fuss. We recorded the episode in September before the mid-air blowout on a Boeing 737 operated by Alaska Airlines and the subsequent management changes, but it serves as a useful overview of the commercial airline industry writ large, how we got here, and what the future might look like. It also pairs well with the bre

Duolingo: Free Speech - [Business Breakdowns, EP.157]

Apr 03 2024 59 mins  
This is Matt Reustle. Today we are breaking down Duolingo, the learning app built on language learning that is increasingly expanding into other territories like math and music. Founder Luis von Ahn is constantly looking for ways to make this accessible and free to use for people all around the world while simultaneously finding reasonable ways to monetize and create a profitable,

Mitsubishi Corporation: A Japanese Trading Company - [Business Breakdowns, EP.156]

Mar 27 2024 44 mins  
This is Zack Fuss. Today we are breaking down the Mitsubishi Corporation. In Japan, the business model of a trading company is prominent. The big five trading companies caught the attention of global investors in 2020, when Berkshire Hathaway disclosed a major stake in all of them: Mitsubishi, Mitsui, Itochu, Marubeni, and Sumitomo. Today's Berkshire stake is nearly 10%. I'm joined

Intuitive Surgical: Robotic Precision - [Business Breakdowns, EP.155]

Mar 20 2024 65 mins  
Today, we are breaking down a giant in the medical device space, Intuitive Surgical. Intuitive creates robotic products to assist minimally invasive surgeries. Its Da Vinci system is a pioneer in this area as it increases the efficiency & accuracy of surgery and reduces the burden on the surgeons themselves. To break down Intuitive, I'm joined by Joseph Thomas, equity analyst at th

D.R. Horton: Building a New Model - [Business Breakdowns, EP.154]

Mar 13 2024 64 mins  
This is Matt Reustle. Today, we are breaking down D.R. Horton, America’s largest homebuilder. Our guest is Ed Wachenheim, Founder of Greenhaven Associates. Ed takes us through an incredible discussion of D.R. Horton and homebuilders broadly, including how much has changed with this business model over the years. Ed shares countless entertaining stories with the management teams a

FTX: Inside the Restructuring - [Business Breakdowns, EP.153]

Mar 11 2024 47 mins  
This is Matt Reustle. Today we are releasing a bonus episode of Breakdowns. While we typically love to cover businesses, this was an interesting opportunity to cover a special situation around a business. And in this case, the FTX bankruptcy. I was joined by Erin Broderick, Head of U.S. Cross-Border Restructuring & Insolvency at Eversheds Sutherland. Erin represents the Ad Hoc Comm