🎙️ Cheers to 2024

Happy New Year!

As a reminder, this is our final edition of We Study Markets. This Sunday, we’ll send you the debut weekly edition of The Intrinsic Value Newsletter, diving deep into the first of many businesses we’ll study together, paired with a corresponding podcast, too.

The Intrinsic Value Newsletter and Podcast are meant to complement each other. The podcast will spend more time telling the “story” of the company, whereas the newsletter will go deeper into the numbers and models we used to estimate a given company’s intrinsic value.

We hope you’re as excited as we are — until Sunday, here are some things we’ve kept our eyes on during the holidays.

— Matthew & Shawn

2024’s market rundown, all numbers year-to-date:

Our Top Stories This Year

💪 How Charlie Munger rose from his greatest life challenge

🗣️ Evolution of a financial enthusiast: Chatting with our Shawn O’Malley

💡 Where the Money Is: Adam Seessel on value investing in the digital age

🍔 Will Guidara on creating extraordinary experiences

🙁 Uncertainty is your friend: Managing emotions like the best investors

📈 The Joys of Compounding: Lessons from Gautum Baid

🎯 Patience Pays: Edwin Lugo on patience, investing, and beating the market

Charts of the Week

Headlines We’re Watching

💵 Dollar eyes best year in almost a decade

📉 The anticipated ‘Santa Claus rally’ has been a flop in 2024 after strong year

😮 S&P 500's 2024 rally shocked forecasters expecting it to fizzle

🙏 NYSE to close on January 9 in honor of the late former President Jimmy Carter

👮‍♂️ Last Madoff victim fund payout brings recovery to nearly 94% of Ponzi scheme losses, DOJ says

Quick Poll

Last Monday, we asked: What is your top priority in 2025? Why?

— Many readers said they will prioritize health and wellness in 2025. “If you don't have this, then the rest of it won't matter, including even money and family.”

— Added another: “Because in 2024, I have had to deal with Hyperthyroidism, COPD, PAD, 4th heart attack, stage 4 CKD, and cancer. So I hope I make it to this time next year.”

— Another said they are focusing on personal development. “I am a year or two away from retirement. So I want to make sure I have everything in order.”

See you next time!

That's it for today on We Study Markets!

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