The goals for the Marshfield Concentrated Opportunity Fund are capital preservation and long-term growth of principal, while targeting a pattern of performance at variance with that of the market.
Marshfield believes that to outperform the market, an investment strategy needs to be different from it in ways that add value on a risk-adjusted basis. The cornerstones of how the Fund differentiates itself are reflected in its name:
Concentrated
MRFOX seeks to own a limited number of stocks. Despite the apparent risks of such concentration, we prefer to mitigate risk through a smaller number of names we understand well and at an elemental level than through safety in numbers. We believe this level of diversification establishes an optimal balance between allowing our best ideas to help drive the portfolio while limiting the impact of our worst ideas.
Opportunity
The Fund is willing to hold cash while awaiting well-priced opportunities. Initial or augmented stock positions are bought if and when they trade at a discount. In frothy markets, we tend to sell more than we buy as it can be difficult in these periods to put cash to work at acceptable prices. The cash that accumulates serves as dry powder and provides us with optionality should the environment turn less frothy or an individual name falls for an idiosyncratic reason.
Through thoughtful concentration, a willingness to hold cash, avoidance of consensus stocks, and freedom from sector allocation constraints we seek to avoid the “closet index” trap, while laying the groundwork for superior returns over time.