๐ฃ๏ธ Investor Talk #24: Alex Divinsky
Founder - Ticker Symbol: YOU
Welcome to Investor Talk โ where we interview successful investors to uncover their journeys, strategies, and the lessons they've learned. Get inspired by real stories and gain valuable insights to sharpen your own investment approach.
Every interview follows the same set of sharp, insightful questions โ such as โWhat is your investment strategy?โ, โWhat are your highest conviction stocks?โ, and โWhatโs the biggest investment mistake youโve made?โ
In this edition, we have the pleasure of interviewing:
Name: Alex Divinsky @TickerSymbolYOU
Age: 35
Residence/Country: USA
Invests since: 2015
๐๐ป๐๐ฟ๐ผ๐ฑ๐๐ฐ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป
I was working overseas as a forward-deployed rocket scientist for MIT, living on a tiny island called Kwajalein (where SpaceX conducted their initial rocket tests). There was poor internet and little to do between launches, so I decided to learn about investing. Given my interest in building PCs and gaming at the time, I began with stocks like Microsoft $MSFT, Nvidia $NVDA, and AMD $AMD, which are still three of my largest positions today.
๐ช๐ต๐ฎ๐ ๐ถ๐ ๐๐ผ๐๐ฟ ๐ถ๐ป๐๐ฒ๐๐๐บ๐ฒ๐ป๐ ๐๐๐ฟ๐ฎ๐๐ฒ๐ด๐?
My background is in electrical engineering and AI, so I invest exclusively in my circle of competence, which is in the semiconductor supply chain and AI software companies built on top of them (both B2B and B2C). I don't diversify my stocks. Instead, I diversify my assets; I also invest in private equity and real estate.
๐๐ผ๐ ๐บ๐ฎ๐ป๐ ๐๐๐ผ๐ฐ๐ธ๐ ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฒ ๐ฐ๐๐ฟ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ป๐๐น๐ ๐ต๐ฒ๐น๐ฑ ๐ถ๐ป ๐๐ผ๐๐ฟ ๐ฝ๐ผ๐ฟ๐๐ณ๐ผ๐น๐ถ๐ผ?
I own 12 stocks at the moment.
๐ช๐ต๐ถ๐ฐ๐ต ๐๐ฒ๐ฐ๐๐ผ๐ฟ๐ ๐ฑ๐ผ ๐๐ผ๐ ๐บ๐ฎ๐ถ๐ป๐น๐ ๐ณ๐ผ๐ฐ๐๐ ๐ผ๐ป?
I primarily focus on three sectors: - Semiconductors - CSPs (Cloud Service Providers) - SaaS (Software as a Service)
๐ช๐ต๐ฎ๐ ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฒ ๐๐ผ๐๐ฟ ๐ต๐ถ๐ด๐ต๐ฒ๐๐ ๐ฐ๐ผ๐ป๐๐ถ๐ฐ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป ๐๐๐ผ๐ฐ๐ธ๐?
$NVDA - Nvidia
$MSFT - Microsoft
$TSM - Taiwan Semiconductor
๐ช๐ต๐ถ๐ฐ๐ต ๐๐๐ผ๐ฐ๐ธ ๐ต๐ฎ๐ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ต๐ถ๐ด๐ต๐ฒ๐๐ ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐๐๐ฟ๐ป?
$NVDA - Nvidia, currently around 3500% on my initial shares in 2016, around 1100% overall.
๐ช๐ต๐ฎ๐ ๐ถ๐ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฏ๐ถ๐ด๐ด๐ฒ๐๐ ๐ถ๐ป๐๐ฒ๐๐๐บ๐ฒ๐ป๐ ๐บ๐ถ๐๐๐ฎ๐ธ๐ฒ ๐๐ผ๐ ๐ต๐ฎ๐๐ฒ ๐บ๐ฎ๐ฑ๐ฒ?
In 2020-2021 I invested heavily in ARK Invest's funds and individual stocks like Teladoc $TDOC. When Cathie Wood didn't adjust her strategy to account for rising interest rates, I followed suit and ended up losing over $200,000 on those stocks. I learned my lesson and pivoted my investments (and my YouTube channel) to focus only on my circle of competence. That way I only have myself to blame for my losses (and my wins).
๐ ๐ ๐ณ๐ฎ๐๐ผ๐ฟ๐ถ๐๐ฒ๐
Favorite book: Thinking Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman
Favorite podcasts: BG2 Pod by Bill Gurley and Brad Gerstner @BG2Pod
Favorite quote: "Slow is smooth. Smooth is fast." - U.S. Navy SEAL Mantra
Favorite FinX account: @The_AI_Investor and @bluechipdaily are solid resources for me.
๐ช๐ต๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ฒ ๐ฐ๐ฎ๐ป ๐๐ฒ ๐ณ๐ถ๐ป๐ฑ ๐บ๐ผ๐ฟ๐ฒ ๐ถ๐ป๐ณ๐ผ ๐ฎ๐ฏ๐ผ๐๐ ๐๐ผ๐?
You can find more information about me on my 300K+ subscribers YouTube channel, TickerSymbolYou, where I share insights and analysis on investing in advanced technology. Check it out at: https://youtube.com/c/tickersymbolyou
Disclaimer:
The information and opinions provided in this article are for informational and educational purposes only and should not be considered as investment advice or a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any financial product, security, or asset. The Future Investors does not provide personalized investment advice and is not a licensed financial advisor. Always do your own research before making any investment decisions and consult with a qualified financial professional before making any investment decisions. Please consult the general disclaimer for more details.