Click to read: The Road to Million Dollars: How an Investor Masters “Buying Companies, Not Stocks” Through Crashes
1. Personal Background & Experience
Q: Can you briefly introduce your background and investment history?
A: I am a "Post-90s" millennial. After working in the corporate world for a few years, I became a full-time investor and content creator. In 2020, because the Hong Kong IPO market was hot and profitable, I opened a Tiger account to participate in Hong Kong and US IPO subscriptions. During that time, I started paying attention to listed companies. Since 2021, I have focused on the secondary market, covering A-shares, Hong Kong stocks, and US stocks.
2. Strategy & Time Horizon
Q: How do you formulate your strategy? Do you lean towards long-term or short-term?
A: My core strategy is "Buying a stock is buying the company." The essence of stock investing is investing in a corporation. Companies create value as GDP and the market economy grow, and the value held by shareholders grows in sync. When formulating strategy, I look at macro trends—currently focusing on the AI sector. Based on this logic, I lean heavily towards long-term investing.
3. Challenges & overcoming Them
Q: What was the biggest challenge you faced, and how did you overcome it?
A: The biggest challenge is a crash in a major holding. Take May 2025 as an example: my holding $Tempus AI(TEM)$ was attacked by Spruce Point, and the stock plummeted 19.23% in one day. The short report questioned two things: the founder's history of losing investor money in previous ventures, and the low percentage of AI-specific revenue.
Regarding the first point, my core logic for Tempus was its ability to help doctors access data for real-time clinical decisions (Precision Medicine). The founder, Eric Lefkofsky, started this in 2015 because of the pain points he faced accessing data when his wife had breast cancer—that hasn't changed. Regarding the second point, management explained in their Q2 2024 letter that AI (including LLMs) is a key component of the entire business; the specific segment named "AI Applications" was just a naming convention that caused misunderstanding (they later renamed it "Apps").
Based on this judgment, I held my position. The stock not only recovered but broke $100. It has dipped recently, but the impact is minimal.
4. Selection Factors
Q: What factors matter most when picking stocks?
A: Three core aspects:
Macro: Focus on the "Grand Trend" of the era (currently AI).
Selection: Reference the holdings of famous institutions like ARK, Hillhouse, Baillie Gifford, and Himalaya Capital.
Company: specific focus on management shareholding and "skin in the game."
5. Balancing Risk & Reward
Q: How do you balance risk and return? Do you have specific risk controls?
A: I believe the greatest risk lies in the company itself. Therefore, before buying, I gather all available information and clarify the investment logic. As long as the logic remains unchanged, the position remains unchanged. If I find a superior company, I will rotate capital. Because I believe "buying stock is buying the company," I don't intentionally "balance" risk and reward or use technical stop-losses. Everything is based on the company.
6. Most Memorable Trade
Q: Do you have a specific trading experience that stands out?
A: The most memorable was my full position in Palantir (PLTR) $Palantir Technologies Inc.(PLTR)$ . In October 2020, I read an article comparing founder Peter Thiel to Elon Musk, and another noting the market undervalued PLTR ( $Snowflake(SNOW)$ was valued at $70-80B with Buffett’s backing, while PLTR was only ~$20B).
I opened a position in Nov 2020, added once that year, added 8 times in 2021, twice in 2022, and finally went "all-in" on May 9, 2022.
The reason for the full position was partly to lower my cost basis because I was at a loss, and partly because I lacked risk awareness—I was "fearless out of ignorance."
My average cost was $15.87. PLTR hit an all-time low of $5.84 in Jan 2023 (a 63.2% drawdown). Because my account had already doubled previously, I could withstand the fluctuating loss. I held on, began selling in Sept 2024, and cleared the position in Jan 2025 for a ~3x return.
7. Options Trading
Q: Have you traded options?
A: No. I entered the market in 2020 via IPO subscriptions and have never traded options.
8. Trend Trading Success
Q: Can you share a successful trend trade? How did you identify the trend?
A: The biggest current trend is AI. My portfolio is mostly AI-related: $Tempus AI(TEM)$ (Apps), $Cloudflare, Inc.(NET)$ (Infra), $Figma(FIG)$ (Apps), $Recursion Pharmaceuticals, Inc.(RXRX)$ (Apps). Earlier this month, Tempus and Cloudflare both showed returns over 100%. Regarding trend identification: $NVIDIA(NVDA)$ becoming the first $5T company proves the market heat. Despite "bubble" debates, I firmly believe the AI revolution is happening and will fundamentally change economic and social operating models. It is not a bubble, but a profound transformation. The core key is identifying the real beneficiaries.
9. Market Outlook
Q: How do you see the market for the rest of the year?
A: I have no specific view on short-term market movements, but I see AI as the opportunity of the era. I divide it into three investment layers:
Hardware: GPU related ( $NVIDIA(NVDA)$ ), Chip manufacturing ( $Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing(TSM)$ ), Equipment ( $ASML Holding NV(ASML)$ ).
Infrastructure: Cloud providers buying chips to offer model training ( $Microsoft(MSFT)$ , $Alphabet(GOOGL)$ , $Amazon.com(AMZN)$ ). Cloudflare is also worth watching here.
Application: AI landing in the real world. $Tesla Motors(TSLA)$ (FSD/Robots), $Recursion Pharmaceuticals, Inc.(RXRX)$ (Drug discovery), $Meta Platforms, Inc.(META)$ (Ad targeting), $Spotify Technology S.A.(SPOT)$ (Personalization).
10. Source of Gains
Q: You made big money on PLTR and TEM. Did most of your gains come from these two?
A: Early gains came from IPO subscriptions (doubling the account). Mid-term gains came from PLTR (~3x). Current gains are primarily from TEM (Tempus AI) and NET (Cloudflare).
11. Influences
Q: Can you share the WeChat Official Account you mentioned?
A: The account is "Xiao Bing Investment Circle" (肖冰投资圈). The PLTR article I read was a guest post by an author named Huang Shuo, though that specific article is no longer available. Huang Shuo published seven investment essays on that account in Oct 2024, focusing on AI and specifically Meta.
12. The "Magnificent Seven"
Q: You invest mostly in small/mid-caps. Why not the "Magnificent Seven" (large caps)?
A: It is primarily a bias. I felt that large-cap stocks lacked sufficient elasticity (upside potential).
13. Information Sources
Q: How do you gather information?
A: For US stocks: Investor Relations websites, Prospectuses, Annual/Quarterly Reports. I also watch the websites of Baillie Gifford and ARK. The "Headlines/News" section in the Tiger app is a daily must-read.
14. Platform Feedback
Q: How has Tiger Brokers helped you?
A: Two practical features: 1. Clearly marking earnings release dates in the watchlist. 2. Instant push notifications for major events regarding watchlist stocks. The "Headlines" news section is my daily go-to.
15. Biggest Takeaway
Q: Beyond money, what is your biggest harvest from investing?
A: Money is just the result. The biggest harvest is the ability to stick to my own judgment amidst market volatility and not be swayed by price fluctuations.
16. Advice for Beginners
Q: What is your investment motto and advice for newbies?
A: Motto: "Buying a stock is buying the company."
Advice: First, understand the nature of the stock market, the types of participants, and their behaviors. Only after doing this should you build a strategy that suits you. Research the company before you invest, not just the share price.
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