Thomas Chua
@steadycompound.bsky.social
Filling my stock portfolio with steady compounders and sharing my analysis at http://steadycompounding.com
ROIC across industries.
Interestingly, ROIC has been trending upwards in recent years, particularly for winners.
Interestingly, ROIC has been trending upwards in recent years, particularly for winners.
January 15, 2026 at 10:29 PM
ROIC across industries.
Interestingly, ROIC has been trending upwards in recent years, particularly for winners.
Interestingly, ROIC has been trending upwards in recent years, particularly for winners.
Capital intensity can serve as a moat, but it's an expensive one.
The ideal business requires minimal reinvestment while maintaining a barrier against competitors through elements like brand, network effects, or switching costs.
High returns on capital with low capital requirements.
The ideal business requires minimal reinvestment while maintaining a barrier against competitors through elements like brand, network effects, or switching costs.
High returns on capital with low capital requirements.
January 14, 2026 at 10:58 AM
Capital intensity can serve as a moat, but it's an expensive one.
The ideal business requires minimal reinvestment while maintaining a barrier against competitors through elements like brand, network effects, or switching costs.
High returns on capital with low capital requirements.
The ideal business requires minimal reinvestment while maintaining a barrier against competitors through elements like brand, network effects, or switching costs.
High returns on capital with low capital requirements.
The work reveals itself as you go - Rick Rubin
Start.
Start.
January 14, 2026 at 5:58 AM
The work reveals itself as you go - Rick Rubin
Start.
Start.
More information doesn't mean better decisions.
"The more information you give someone, the more hypotheses they will formulate along the way, and the worse off they will be. They see more random noise and mistake it for information." The Black Swan
Sometimes less is more.
"The more information you give someone, the more hypotheses they will formulate along the way, and the worse off they will be. They see more random noise and mistake it for information." The Black Swan
Sometimes less is more.
January 13, 2026 at 10:26 PM
More information doesn't mean better decisions.
"The more information you give someone, the more hypotheses they will formulate along the way, and the worse off they will be. They see more random noise and mistake it for information." The Black Swan
Sometimes less is more.
"The more information you give someone, the more hypotheses they will formulate along the way, and the worse off they will be. They see more random noise and mistake it for information." The Black Swan
Sometimes less is more.
Can you explain how this company makes money?
If you can't answer clearly, you're speculating, not investing. Move on to something you understand.
If you can't answer clearly, you're speculating, not investing. Move on to something you understand.
January 13, 2026 at 11:01 AM
Can you explain how this company makes money?
If you can't answer clearly, you're speculating, not investing. Move on to something you understand.
If you can't answer clearly, you're speculating, not investing. Move on to something you understand.
"There is no point in improving return on equity by a few percentage points if it compromises long-term survival. The COVID-19 crisis demonstrated clearly that the companies caught with their pants down were the ones with substantial leverage."
— What I Learned About Investing From Darwin
— What I Learned About Investing From Darwin
January 12, 2026 at 10:26 PM
"There is no point in improving return on equity by a few percentage points if it compromises long-term survival. The COVID-19 crisis demonstrated clearly that the companies caught with their pants down were the ones with substantial leverage."
— What I Learned About Investing From Darwin
— What I Learned About Investing From Darwin
When a company can't reinvest at high returns, it should give the cash back.
Dividends. Buybacks.
Good capital allocators return what they can't deploy. Bad ones empire-build.
Dividends. Buybacks.
Good capital allocators return what they can't deploy. Bad ones empire-build.
January 12, 2026 at 11:02 AM
When a company can't reinvest at high returns, it should give the cash back.
Dividends. Buybacks.
Good capital allocators return what they can't deploy. Bad ones empire-build.
Dividends. Buybacks.
Good capital allocators return what they can't deploy. Bad ones empire-build.
MELI has delivered 27 straight quarters of 30%+ revenue growth.
No company at this scale has matched that consistency.
But Shopee is doubling down in Brazil. Amazon is expanding. Competition is heating up.
Can they keep the streak alive?
Part 3: steadycompounding.com/investing/m...
No company at this scale has matched that consistency.
But Shopee is doubling down in Brazil. Amazon is expanding. Competition is heating up.
Can they keep the streak alive?
Part 3: steadycompounding.com/investing/m...
January 8, 2026 at 10:30 PM
MELI has delivered 27 straight quarters of 30%+ revenue growth.
No company at this scale has matched that consistency.
But Shopee is doubling down in Brazil. Amazon is expanding. Competition is heating up.
Can they keep the streak alive?
Part 3: steadycompounding.com/investing/m...
No company at this scale has matched that consistency.
But Shopee is doubling down in Brazil. Amazon is expanding. Competition is heating up.
Can they keep the streak alive?
Part 3: steadycompounding.com/investing/m...
Be careful what you consume:
"A reliable way to make people believe in falsehoods is frequent repetition, because familiarity is not easily distinguished from truth."
Thinking, Fast and Slow
"A reliable way to make people believe in falsehoods is frequent repetition, because familiarity is not easily distinguished from truth."
Thinking, Fast and Slow
January 8, 2026 at 10:58 AM
Be careful what you consume:
"A reliable way to make people believe in falsehoods is frequent repetition, because familiarity is not easily distinguished from truth."
Thinking, Fast and Slow
"A reliable way to make people believe in falsehoods is frequent repetition, because familiarity is not easily distinguished from truth."
Thinking, Fast and Slow
"Stockpicking is both an art and a science, but too much of either is a dangerous thing. A person infatuated with measurement, who has his head stuck in the sand of the balance sheets, is not likely to succeed." — Peter Lynch
January 7, 2026 at 10:30 PM
"Stockpicking is both an art and a science, but too much of either is a dangerous thing. A person infatuated with measurement, who has his head stuck in the sand of the balance sheets, is not likely to succeed." — Peter Lynch
Every cycle in one sentence by Howard Marks:
"Prosperity brings expanded lending, which leads to unwise lending, which produces large losses, which makes lenders stop lending, which ends prosperity, and on and on."
"Prosperity brings expanded lending, which leads to unwise lending, which produces large losses, which makes lenders stop lending, which ends prosperity, and on and on."
January 7, 2026 at 10:57 AM
Every cycle in one sentence by Howard Marks:
"Prosperity brings expanded lending, which leads to unwise lending, which produces large losses, which makes lenders stop lending, which ends prosperity, and on and on."
"Prosperity brings expanded lending, which leads to unwise lending, which produces large losses, which makes lenders stop lending, which ends prosperity, and on and on."
"High-quality businesses seem to undergo many changes when measured over days or weeks or months but are much more stable when the period of measurement is years or decades."
Pulak Prasad, What I Learned About Investing From Darwin
Pulak Prasad, What I Learned About Investing From Darwin
January 6, 2026 at 10:34 PM
"High-quality businesses seem to undergo many changes when measured over days or weeks or months but are much more stable when the period of measurement is years or decades."
Pulak Prasad, What I Learned About Investing From Darwin
Pulak Prasad, What I Learned About Investing From Darwin
Wealth building has two inputs:
"A decent sum of money can be made only with two factors: invested capital and time. Focus on your personal development to enhance the former, and focus on your health to enhance the latter." — The Making of a Value Investor
"A decent sum of money can be made only with two factors: invested capital and time. Focus on your personal development to enhance the former, and focus on your health to enhance the latter." — The Making of a Value Investor
January 6, 2026 at 11:04 AM
Wealth building has two inputs:
"A decent sum of money can be made only with two factors: invested capital and time. Focus on your personal development to enhance the former, and focus on your health to enhance the latter." — The Making of a Value Investor
"A decent sum of money can be made only with two factors: invested capital and time. Focus on your personal development to enhance the former, and focus on your health to enhance the latter." — The Making of a Value Investor
Why people hold losing stocks too long:
"Sunk costs—anchoring decisions to past efforts that can't be refunded—are a devil in a world where people change over time. They make our future selves prisoners to our past, different, selves."
—The Psychology of Money
"Sunk costs—anchoring decisions to past efforts that can't be refunded—are a devil in a world where people change over time. They make our future selves prisoners to our past, different, selves."
—The Psychology of Money
January 5, 2026 at 10:33 PM
Why people hold losing stocks too long:
"Sunk costs—anchoring decisions to past efforts that can't be refunded—are a devil in a world where people change over time. They make our future selves prisoners to our past, different, selves."
—The Psychology of Money
"Sunk costs—anchoring decisions to past efforts that can't be refunded—are a devil in a world where people change over time. They make our future selves prisoners to our past, different, selves."
—The Psychology of Money
"I prefer to invest in a low-growth industry like plastic knives and forks, but only if I can't find a no-growth industry like funerals. That's where the biggest winners are developed." — Peter Lynch, One Up On Wall Street
Less competition, better returns.
Less competition, better returns.
January 5, 2026 at 11:03 AM
"I prefer to invest in a low-growth industry like plastic knives and forks, but only if I can't find a no-growth industry like funerals. That's where the biggest winners are developed." — Peter Lynch, One Up On Wall Street
Less competition, better returns.
Less competition, better returns.
The hardest word in investing is "no."
Your time and capital are limited. Saying yes to everything means mediocre allocation of both.
The best investors are ruthless editors.
Your time and capital are limited. Saying yes to everything means mediocre allocation of both.
The best investors are ruthless editors.
January 4, 2026 at 10:26 PM
The hardest word in investing is "no."
Your time and capital are limited. Saying yes to everything means mediocre allocation of both.
The best investors are ruthless editors.
Your time and capital are limited. Saying yes to everything means mediocre allocation of both.
The best investors are ruthless editors.
In 2009, MercadoLibre's CEO moved his desk next to the CTO's office. What followed was a three-year rebuild, a margin collapse, and the bet that built a moat no competitor could replicate.
Part 2 of my deep dive: steadycompounding.com/investing/m...
Part 2 of my deep dive: steadycompounding.com/investing/m...
MercadoLibre Part 2: The Flywheel
This is Part 2 of a three-part series on MercadoLibre. Part 1 covered the founding story and early survival. Betting
steadycompounding.com
January 2, 2026 at 3:21 AM
In 2009, MercadoLibre's CEO moved his desk next to the CTO's office. What followed was a three-year rebuild, a margin collapse, and the bet that built a moat no competitor could replicate.
Part 2 of my deep dive: steadycompounding.com/investing/m...
Part 2 of my deep dive: steadycompounding.com/investing/m...
"If we all threw our troubles into a big pile and we saw everyone else's problems we would immediately grab ours back." - Kevin Kelly
December 31, 2025 at 11:00 AM
"If we all threw our troubles into a big pile and we saw everyone else's problems we would immediately grab ours back." - Kevin Kelly
Philip Fisher: "Correctly judging the long-range sales curve of a company is of extreme importance to the investor."
Translated: Can this company keep growing for the long-run?
Translated: Can this company keep growing for the long-run?
December 29, 2025 at 10:26 PM
Philip Fisher: "Correctly judging the long-range sales curve of a company is of extreme importance to the investor."
Translated: Can this company keep growing for the long-run?
Translated: Can this company keep growing for the long-run?
Investing boils down to two questions.
Buffett: "One is how much you're going to get back, and the other is when."
Buffett: "One is how much you're going to get back, and the other is when."
December 29, 2025 at 11:04 AM
Investing boils down to two questions.
Buffett: "One is how much you're going to get back, and the other is when."
Buffett: "One is how much you're going to get back, and the other is when."
Peter Lynch on market timing:
"The person who never bothers to think about the economy, blithely ignores the condition of the market, and invests on a regular schedule is better off than the person who studies and tries to time his investments."
The best timing strategy is no timing at all.
"The person who never bothers to think about the economy, blithely ignores the condition of the market, and invests on a regular schedule is better off than the person who studies and tries to time his investments."
The best timing strategy is no timing at all.
December 28, 2025 at 10:28 PM
Peter Lynch on market timing:
"The person who never bothers to think about the economy, blithely ignores the condition of the market, and invests on a regular schedule is better off than the person who studies and tries to time his investments."
The best timing strategy is no timing at all.
"The person who never bothers to think about the economy, blithely ignores the condition of the market, and invests on a regular schedule is better off than the person who studies and tries to time his investments."
The best timing strategy is no timing at all.
Stocks go up and down every day. Companies change over quarters and years.
If you focus on daily price movements, you'll make bad decisions.
If you focus on business fundamentals, you'll make better ones.
Same investment. Different lens. Different outcomes.
If you focus on daily price movements, you'll make bad decisions.
If you focus on business fundamentals, you'll make better ones.
Same investment. Different lens. Different outcomes.
December 28, 2025 at 10:57 AM
Stocks go up and down every day. Companies change over quarters and years.
If you focus on daily price movements, you'll make bad decisions.
If you focus on business fundamentals, you'll make better ones.
Same investment. Different lens. Different outcomes.
If you focus on daily price movements, you'll make bad decisions.
If you focus on business fundamentals, you'll make better ones.
Same investment. Different lens. Different outcomes.
Sound investing in one sentence:
"Avoiding mistakes, resisting market fads, and focusing on allocating capital into ideas that are highly likely to produce satisfactory returns and that offer a margin of safety against permanent capital loss."
— The Art of Value Investing
"Avoiding mistakes, resisting market fads, and focusing on allocating capital into ideas that are highly likely to produce satisfactory returns and that offer a margin of safety against permanent capital loss."
— The Art of Value Investing
December 27, 2025 at 10:32 PM
Sound investing in one sentence:
"Avoiding mistakes, resisting market fads, and focusing on allocating capital into ideas that are highly likely to produce satisfactory returns and that offer a margin of safety against permanent capital loss."
— The Art of Value Investing
"Avoiding mistakes, resisting market fads, and focusing on allocating capital into ideas that are highly likely to produce satisfactory returns and that offer a margin of safety against permanent capital loss."
— The Art of Value Investing
A tree that reaches the sky must first grow deep roots. The higher you want to rise, the more grounded you need to be.
December 27, 2025 at 11:04 AM
A tree that reaches the sky must first grow deep roots. The higher you want to rise, the more grounded you need to be.
Next on my reading list:
1. Breakneck by Dan Wang
2. 1929 by Andrew Sorkins
I've heard lots of good things about these books. Thanks to those who recommended them!
1. Breakneck by Dan Wang
2. 1929 by Andrew Sorkins
I've heard lots of good things about these books. Thanks to those who recommended them!
December 27, 2025 at 4:15 AM
Next on my reading list:
1. Breakneck by Dan Wang
2. 1929 by Andrew Sorkins
I've heard lots of good things about these books. Thanks to those who recommended them!
1. Breakneck by Dan Wang
2. 1929 by Andrew Sorkins
I've heard lots of good things about these books. Thanks to those who recommended them!