2023 Q2 Newsletter

“The most important quality for an investor is temperament, not intellect.”
Warren Buffett

As we close the books on the first half of 2023, a brief recitation of What We Believe:

You and I are goal-focused, plan-driven lifetime owners of globally diversified portfolios of the world’s best companies. As such, we continuously act on our plans rather than react to current events and conditions. We are convinced that the economy cannot be consistently forecast — nor the market consistently timed — so we believe our best chance to capture the most we can out of the generous returns mainstream equities offer is to completely ignore the headlines and ride out their frequent, sometimes significant, but historically always temporary declines.

• The US did NOT default on its debt obligations.
• The US dollar did NOT lose its standing as the world’s currency.
• The US did NOT experience a banking crisis.
• Inflation did NOT continue rising.
• Corporate earnings did NOT crater.
• The US economy did NOT sink into recession.

What DID matter was that together we made the conscious decision to not react. In that sense, these six months represent for me, and I sincerely hope for you as well, a microcosm of a successful lifetime investment experience. In the face of near-universal pessimism, we steadfastly maintained our optimism and discipline. Is it possible that achieving success in investing (and life, for that matter) is just that simple? I certainly believe it is, and I am grateful that you trust me enough to believe it too.

Some blocking and tackling:

We are now in the final countdown to the conversion of our TDAmeritrade accounts to Charles Schwab, scheduled for Labor Day Weekend. If you have not already, you will soon begin to receive communications from TDAmeritrade with the details. Rest assured, our team is working diligently behind the scenes to ensure a seamless transition so very little will be required on your part. Some reminders:

• Feel free to visit Schwab’s transition website for a timeline of events.
• Please follow each of the links shown at the top of our DEM homepage to confirm you have active logins to each of our systems.
• For those taking regular distributions from their accounts, your August payment will be “doubled up” to avoid any potential issues with your September payment.
• We will complete all required minimum distributions from retirement accounts prior to the transition.

Lastly, heartfelt thanks to all who were able to attend our DEM 25th Anniversary Celebration at the Margaritaville Resort in Jacksonville Beach on June 23. Whether you were able to attend or not, here are links to a video montage and photos from a wonderful evening shared amongst your fellow Spartans. Please feel free to download, print, post, and share.

I can honestly say that having all of you, my team, my mentor Nick Murray, and my favorite singer, Nadirah Shakoor, together for one magical evening was the highlight of my professional career thus far. It continues to be an honor and a pleasure to serve as your family’s trusted advisor, and I look forward to guiding you through the next 25 years.

Happy Fourth of July!

Don Davey
Senior Portfolio Manager
Disciplined Equity Management
Plan Appropriately, Invest Intelligently, Diversify Broadly, Ignore the Noise