Digging Deeper into Small- and Micro-Cap Companies

General Investing >> Money Manager Interviews >> December 30, 2016

John C. Carraux is Managing Partner and Portfolio Manager of Punch & Associates Investment Management, Inc. He is intimately involved in all aspects of the research and investment process at Punch & Associates, and works closely with Howard, Rob, Bob and Steve to manage the investment strategies on a daily basis. Mr. Carraux joined the firm shortly after its inception in 2002 and cut his investment teeth doing the basic work of a research analyst: sifting through financial statements, talking to management teams and developing an eye for value. Today, as then, he still gets excited over the details of investing, and enjoys reading footnotes, listening to old conference calls and stacking up well-worn annual reports in his office at home. Mr. Carraux is a CFA charterholder and is happy that his years of studying for it are behind him. He lives in Chaska, Minnesota, with his wife, Anne, and four children. Mr. Carraux graduated magna cum laude and with Delta Epsilon Sigma honors from the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, Minnesota, and enjoys reading, tennis and skiing with his family. Profile

Howard D. Punch Jr. is President and Chief Investment Officer of Punch & Associates Investment Management, Inc. He directs all research and investment initiatives at Punch & Associates. Mr. Punch honed his investment management skills the old-fashioned way: by making a lot of mistakes. Starting his career in the early 1980s at Merrill Lynch in NYC and then as a retail guy in Minneapolis, it was normal practice to call clients with one stock at a time, state the case for owning it and hope for the best. Win, lose or draw, each pick would have to be revisited with each client — talk about transparency! The end result was a deep respect for risk, a large dose of humility and a risk-averse investment approach that anticipates what could go wrong before fantasizing about what could go right. After spending nearly 19 years at Merrill Lynch, Mr. Punch started Punch & Associates in 2002. A hopeless research addict and devout student of behavioral finance, Mr. Punch actively researches market anomalies and inefficiencies. Mr. Punch resides in Eagan, Minnesota, with his wife, Julie, and three teenage kids. He is a magna cum laude graduate of Carleton College, enjoys hockey and golf, and believes the Vikings will have the opportunity to lose their fifth Super Bowl before he dies. Profile

TWST: So I thought, to begin, maybe you can tell me a little bit about the background of the firm, and then we can move into what differentiates you and your investment philosophy, your

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