Seeking Alpha Interview - Value Investing

Summary:

- Value investing has continued to morph as the long bull market marches on.

- Our panel's views on the market and the way they are approaching all-time highs suggest value remains in the eye of the beholder.

- This is leading to finding value in some obvious places - large-cap tech, for example - but also further flung spots like foreign markets and, yes, financials.

By Daniel Shvartsman

The first half of 2019 saw a lot of green in the markets, as broader indices recovered from the brief bear market in the second half of 2018 and returned to new heights. Despite that, the wall of worry continued to grow, even if the specific concerns changed. Instead of a rising rate environment, expectations have shifted to a possible rate cut even with good job numbers. Geopolitical flash points have (re-)emerged in Venezuela, Iran, and in the ongoing China-US trade conflict. European economic growth appears to be slowing, and nobody's quite sure where we are in the US cycle. Oh, and another presidential election cycle is beginning.

So, what to make of this all? We decided to take the temperature of the markets with a midyear Marketplace Roundtable. We asked our Seeking Alpha Marketplace contributors - authors who run investing services and provide ideas and guidance to members about how to think about the markets or at least certain parts of it - to share their views on the current climate and how they're positioning as a result.

Over 55 authors participated in our survey. We've grouped their responses into several categories, ranging from tech to commodities, biotech to dividends and income investing. We're going to share their responses in those grouped categories over the coming week or so. Each discussion will have two common questions about the market as a whole, two sector-specific questions, and a round of current favorite ideas. We hope you enjoy the discussion, and welcome you to join with comments on these issues or on any key points that didn't come up, or follow-up questions.

Today's edition covers value investing, which remains as heterodox and diverse as ever in 2019. Here's our panel:

Andres Cardenal, CFA, author of The Data Driven Investor
Chris Lau, author of DIY Value Investing
David Krejca, author of Global Wealth Ideation
Dining Stocks Online, author of DSO Restaurant Analysis
Fred Piard, author of Quantitative Risk & Value
Michael Boyd, author of Industrial Insights
Ruerd Heeg, author of Global Deep Value Stocks
Fear & Greed Trader, author of The Savvy Investor
Trapping Value, contributing author of High Dividend Opportunities
David Trainer, author of Value Investing 2.0
JD Henning, author of Value & Momentum Breakouts
WG Investment Research, author of Going Long With W.G.
Value Digger, author of Value Investor's Stock Club
Joseph L. Shaefer, author of The Investor's Edge
Lejun James Shao, author of Momentum Play