THE TAPE READER LLC

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Our Investment Philosophy

“I have nothing to offer but blood, toil, tears and sweat.” – Winston Churchill

I always loved that Churchill quote.  I think it’s an accurate description of our investment philosophy at The Tape Reader.  As an intermediate-term trend following CTA we offer a solid rate of return and a great diversifier to traditional investments such as equities, treasuries, precious metals and real estate as well as having a low correlation to long-term trend following traders.

That stated, if you are looking for an investment that offers quick realized gains, a high percentage of winning trades and an outsized Sharpe ratio, we are not a match, nor will we ever be a match.  Most of the trades we enter will be exited for small losses within a week or two.  Many of our trades will have decent unrealized gains that fizzle and end up as small realized gains and typically we will have a couple of huge unrealized gains that last for several months and make up around eighty to ninety percent of our profits each year.

I imagine that this feels uncomfortable to you.  It definitely feels uncomfortable to us and we developed the trading model.  But comfort has nothing to do with successful trading.  In fact, behavioral finance has proven that humans are psychologically wired for comfort and in trading comfort results in small winners and large losses, or to restate it, that which feels comfortable doesn’t work in the investment world.

If after reading this you are interested in learning more about our uncomfortable investment strategy, we have an enviable real-time track record that we’d enjoy discussing with you and your team. 

 

Best Regards,

 

Richard Weissman, Principal, CRO and Head of System Development

The Tape Reader LLC

RISK DISCLAIMER

Any document downloaded or provided here do not constitute an offer to sell, or a solicitation of an offer to buy, a partnership interest in any investment described herein. No such offer or solicitation will be made prior to the delivery of the applicable offering memorandum and other materials relating to the matters referenced herein. The information herein reflects the views of The Tape Reader LLC. No representation or warrant is made by any entity or any other person (including any of its agents or representatives) as to the accuracy or completeness of the information contained herein. There is no guarantee that any forecast or opinions in this material will be realized. The views expressed herein may change at any time subsequent to the date of issue hereof. Only those particular representations and warranties which may be made in the definitive agreements relating to the CTA when, and as if executed, and subject to such limitations and restrictions may be specified in such definitive agreements, shall have any legal effect. This document is provided on a confidential basis. Accordingly, this document may not be reproduced in whole or in part, and may not be delivered to any person without the prior written consent of the author. The strategies described in this presentation are non-traditional approaches to investing and may contain a great deal of risk.

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