Zeke Ashton

Centaur Capital Partners

Last Update: 2013-05-15

Number of Stocks: 24
Number of New Stocks: 5

Total Value: $51 Mil
Q/Q Turnover: 35%

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Zeke Ashton Watch

Zeke Ashton Presentation - May 6, 2013 Value Investing Congress
by Canadian Value - May 09, 2013
Ashton ValueInvestingCongress 050713 by ValueWalk.com

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Zeke Ashton on the High-Quality Piece of Advice He Received from Michael Burry
by CanadianValue - Dec 27, 2012
An interview with value investor Zeke Ashton discussing concentration when managing a portfolio.

Ashton calls Burry a "homerun investor" in that Burry can handle a huge amount of volatility while he waits for an investment to play out. Continue Reading »
Zeke Ashton Discusses Managing a Portfolio and Position Size
by Dheeraj Grover - Nov 25, 2012
Rare video of value Guru Zeke Ashton of Centaur Capital Partners discusses value investing, portfolio management and how to think about position sizing.

Here is the video: Continue Reading »
Rare interview with Value Investor Zeke Ashton
by Dheeraj Grover - Jul 02, 2012
Zeke Ashton is the founder of Dallas, Texas based Centaur Capital Partners. The firm specializes in value-oriented investing strategies with an emphasis on achieving excellent risk-adjusted returns. The Centaur Value Fund, a long / short, long-biased private investment partnership launched in August 2002, has been compounding at 16% per annum. Centaur Capital is also the sub-advisor to a retail mutual fund, the Tilson Dividend Fund (TILDX), launched in 2005 in partnership with Whitney Tilson and Glenn Tongue of T2 Partners. Morningstar has assigned five stars to the fund, which also ranks as #1 over 3 and 5 years in Morningstar's "Mid Cap Blend" category. In this interview, Zeke talks about: * Centaur Capital's investment strategy: The importance of finding a distinct niche * Outperforming with "neglected, hated and feared" stocks

Here is the video: Continue Reading »
Highest Quality Stocks from Zeke Ashton
by Mara Kohn - Feb 13, 2012
Ashton is the managing partner of Centaur Capital Partners and manages the investments for the Centaur Value Fund. He also manages the Tilson Dividend Fund (TILDX). Ashton has held several positions before Centaur. He served as investment analyst for The Motley Fool (TMF), as senior analyst and project manager in the Zurich, Switzerland office of Infinity Systems and in Wall Street Systems, a New York-based treasury and risk management software company. At TMF he developed and carried out investing seminars, subscription investing newsletters and stock research reports. He wrote online investing articles as well. At Infinity Systems he provided financial system consulting to Swiss regional and private banks and when he worked for Wall Street Systems he was in charge of rendering consulting services to various clients in German, Italy and the UK.

Ashton has an investment strategy which is based on value principles. He goes for stocks that are available at compelling prices and basis his decision on the business’ true value, cash flow generation, management quality, and the competitive advantages of the underlying businesses. In 2010, the Tilson Dividend Fund returned 20.64% versus the S&P 500’s 15.1%. In 2009, the fund returned 43.98% versus the S&P 500’s 26.5%. Continue Reading »
Zeke Ashton thinks you should buy DO: His main Thesis
by Federico Flom - Feb 04, 2012
Zeke Ashton manages Centaur Capital Partners and is also in charge of the investments for Centaur Value Fund. Before becoming managing partner he served as general partner and portfolio manager for Centaur Investments LP, a predecessor to the Fund and a private investment partnership.

Before entering the sphere of Centaur Capital, Mr. Ashton worked as investment analyst and writer for The Motley Fool. This company specializes in investments and personal finance. Continue Reading »
The Portfolio of Mr. Zeke Ashton Analyzed - Buffett Ratio Guru Portfolio Analysis
by Mycroft Psaras - Jan 13, 2012
The following is an analysis of the most current portfolio of Mr. Zeke Ashton. The analysis will use a system that I designed that is based on the ratio that Mr. Warren Buffet released to the public in 1986, which he coined “Owner Earnings.” For those new to this type of analysis, I would recommend reading an introduction to my system by clicking here. My goal is ultimately to analyze the portfolios of each Guru highlighted here on Guru Focus, and then to subsequently re-analyze them every quarter when possible as changes are made. My purpose in writing these articles is to show the power of Mr. Buffett’s ratio in analyzing stocks, ETF’s, Mutual Funds and individual portfolios. If one can fill their portfolios with companies that score high using my system and avoid those which fail, one should be able to increase the probability of becoming a successful investor in my opinion. Profile of Mr. Ashton:

Mr. Ashton is the managing partner of Centaur Capital Partners and manages the investments for the Centaur Value Fund. He is also manager of the Tilson Dividend Fund (TILDX), which is ranked 5 stars by Morningstar. Previously Mr. Ashton was employed as an investment analyst for The Motley Fool (TMF). While at TMF, Mr. Ashton developed and produced investing seminars, subscription investing newsletters, and stock research reports in addition to writing online investing articles. Mr. Ashton also wrote investment columns with an emphasis on value investing for TMF on a free-lance basis. Prior to his work at TMF, Mr. Ashton was employed as a senior analyst and project manager in the Zurich, Switzerland office of Infinity Systems, where he provided financial system consulting to Swiss regional and private banks. From 1995 to 1999, Mr. Ashton was employed as a senior analyst and project manager for Wall Street Systems, a New York-based treasury and risk management software company. In this role Mr. Ashton provided consulting services to various clients in Germany, Italy, and the United Kingdom. Mr. Ashton graduated from Austin College in Sherman, Texas in 1995 with degrees in Economics and German. Continue Reading »
Hedge Fund Centaur Capital Reports Second Quarter Portfolio
by gurufocus - Aug 18, 2011
Zeke Ashton is the managing partner of Centaur Capital Partners. He also manages investments for the Centaur Value Fund and the Tilson Divident Fund. In 2010, the Tilson Dividend Fund returned 20.64% versus the S&P 500’s 15.1%. In 2009, the fund returned 43.98% versus the S&P 500’s 26.5%. He invests according to a philosophy based on value principles. He chooses stocks based on the business’ true value, cash flow generation, management quality, and the competitive advantages of the underlying businesses when such stocks are available at compelling prices.

The founder of Centaur Capital Partners, Zeke Ashton is a Texas-based value investor who has capably realized annualized returns of 16% since the inception of his hedge fund in 2002. He started Centaur with less than $1 million as capital which he has converted into over $110 million in matter of a decade. He outperformed the market during the financial turmoil of 2008 and was among the few hedge fund managers to beat the market by a wide margin in 2009. Continue Reading »
Zeke Ashton: The Unknown Value Guru
by Jacob Wolinsky - Aug 15, 2011
I was inspired by a recent article about Francis Chou, described as the “great unknown Guru,” to write one about another relatively unknown Guru, Zeke Ashton.

The founder of Centaur Capital Partners, Zeke Ashton is a Texas-based value investor who has capably realized annualized returns of 16% since the inception of his hedge fund in 2002. He started Centaur with less than $1 million as capital which he has converted into over $110 million in matter of a decade. He outperformed the market during the financial turmoil of 2008 and was among the few hedge fund managers to beat the market by a wide margin in 2009. Continue Reading »
Zeke Ashton Centaur Fund's June 2011 Report
by Holly LaFon - Jul 15, 2011
Dear Partners,

The Centaur Value Fund produced a return of -1.6% net to partners in June. The S&P500 returned -1.7% and the NASDAQ returned -2.2% for the month. Our usual performance table is shown below: Continue Reading »
Portfolio Concentration: Big Bets Vs. Small Bets
by Bill Smith - May 24, 2011
In my weekend reading, I came across a 2007 presentation titled, “How Concentrated Should You Be?” by Zeke Ashton of Centaur Capital Partners.

In it, he discusses the concept of portfolio concentration, but with a twist. He believes super-concentrated portfolios require a blend of manager and capital attributes that only a few investors have. Therefore, some small positions are worth having as long as they add a unique element that contributes something to the payoff profile of the portfolio as a whole. He discusses how combining large concentrations of his best ideas with a number of smaller positions improves both returns and reliability of returns. Continue Reading »
Zeke Ashton Q1 Top Five Picks: CSTR, WDC, DELL, TTT, CLMS
by Holly LaFon - May 12, 2011
Zeke Ashton is the managing partner of Centaur Capital Partners. He also manages investments for the Centaur Value Fund and the Tilson Divident Fund. In 2010, the Tilson Dividend Fund returned 20.64% versus the S&P 500’s 15.1%. In 2009, the fund returned 43.98% versus the S&P 500’s 26.5%. He invests according to a philosophy based on value principles. He chooses stocks based on the business’ true value, cash flow generation, management quality, and the competitive advantages of the underlying businesses when such stocks are available at compelling prices. His top five largest holdings for the quarter ended March 31, 2011, are: Coinstar Inc. (CSTR), Western Digital Corp. (WDC), Dell Inc. (DELL), Terra Nova Royalty Corp. (TTT) and Calamos Asset Management Inc. (CLMS).

Coinstar Inc. (CSTR) Continue Reading »
Hedge Fund Centaur Capital Buys CSTR, WDC, DELL, AHL, DO, CSCO, Sells NOC, VOD, BH, LH, EMC
by - May 06, 2011
Hedge fund manager Zeke Ashton of Centaur Capital Partners just reported his first quarter portfolio. As of 03/31/2011, he owns 33 stocks with a total value of $103 million. These are the details of the buys and sells.

Zeke Ashton is the managing partner of Centaur Capital Partners and manages the investments for the Centaur Value Fund. He is also manager of Tilson Dividend Fund. Centaur Capital Partners follows an investment philosophy based upon value principles, and selects stock investments based upon true business value as reflected by asset value, cash flow generation, management quality, and the competitive advantages of the underlying businesses when such stocks are available at compelling prices. Continue Reading »
Guru Zeke Ashton: Q&A Answers
by gurufocus - Apr 11, 2011
Thanks for the questions and the interest in Centaur Capital Partners. Please note that opinions expressed were valid as of the date of the interview, but our investing positions and opinions are subject to change.

This is the response from Zeke Ashton to users' questions. Continue Reading »
Announcement: Q&A with Newest Guru Zeke Ashton
by gurufocus - Mar 28, 2011
GuruFocus is pleased to announce that our latest guru, Zeke Ashton, will be answering reader questions this week. Ashton is the founder and managing partner of Centaur Capital Partners, a Dallas-based asset management company, where he manages approximately $110 million. Centaur Capital Partners is also the general partner and investment advisor to the Centaur Value Fund, a long-biased, value-oriented private investment partnership.

Centaur Capital’s risk management strategy has resulted in it decreasing only 6.9% in 2008, compared to the 37-40% declines of the S&P and NASDAQ composite indexes. The Centaur Value Fund had gained 134 percent by the end of IQ09, while the NASDAQ composite returned 15 percent and the S&P 500 index -0.3 percent. Continue Reading »