Hey there, community ✌️

Today I’d like to introduce you to another candidate from my watchlist. Yesterday, $LGND (-0,73 %) it was the royalty sector’s turn; today we’re focusing on medical technology! 🩺

For that, we’re turning our attention to Japan 🇯🇵 today, and I’ll be introducing you to the “mastermind” behind the medtech sector.

At the request of @PikaPika0105 , I put this presentation together on the fly and will try to sell this stock to him—and maybe one or two of you—today. 😏😂

Let’s go! 🚀

🧬 Asahi Intecc $7747 (+0,47 %) : The invisible mastermind behind global surgery

Asahi Intecc $7747 (+0,47 %) is not a conventional medical technology company that markets directly to patients. It is the global technological monopolist in the field of ultra-fine wire technology. While other companies sell catheters or stents under their own brand names, Asahi supplies the critical, irreplaceable “inner workings” for these products. Its proprietary manufacturing process allows it to bend wires as thin as a human hair while enabling absolute control (torque transmission)—this is the “high-fidelity connection” between the surgeon and the surgical site.

1. The Business Model: The Triad of Wire Dominance 🔬⚙️📈

Asahi controls the entire process of minimally invasive surgery through three pillars:

Core Technology (Only-One Manufacturing): Asahi masters the integration of metal and polymer technologies at the microscopic level. They don’t just produce wire; they engineer precision of movement. In cardiology, their guidewires are the global gold standard—when a surgeon clears a complicated blockage, they reach for Asahi almost without hesitation.

The OEM software layer (partnerships): The largest medtech giants (Boston Scientific $BSX (+0,33 %) , Medtronic $MDT (+0,22 %) , Edwards Lifesciences $EW (+0,05 %) are not competitors, but paying partners. They rely on Asahi’s precision components to make their own catheter systems marketable in the first place. Asahi $7747 (+0,47 %) is thus “embedded” in every major medtech ecosystem.

Global Expansion & Vertical Integration: Asahi $7747 (+0,47 %) is aggressively expanding into its own end products (complete catheter systems) to capture the margins previously held by intermediaries. By focusing on robotic surgery and neurovascular procedures, the company is securing access to the fastest-growing fields in medicine.

2. Key Figures (Q3 2026 / FY2026) 📊

Market Capitalization: approx. 890–900 billion JPY (listed on the TSE Prime Market).

Revenue growth: Structural organic growth of 11–14% p.a. (in local currency), driven by demographic changes and the global shift from open surgery to minimally invasive procedures.

Gross margin:
Strong at ~67–70%. A phenomenal figure for a hardware manufacturer, underscoring its extreme pricing power due to its “only-one” technology.

Operating profitability: The operating margin remains consistently in the range of 22–25%. Asahi continues to consistently reinvest significant funds in R&D and capacity expansion (e.g., plants in Thailand and Vietnam) to keep imitators at bay.

Balance Sheet Strength: A flawless net-cash company (net debt/EBITDA ~ -0.4x). No significant debt risks, massive liquidity buffers. Growth is financed organically from operating cash flow.

3. Why is the stock exciting?

🚀1. Its “hidden champion” status: The market often underestimates the fact that Asahi is not just a standard supplier, but a systemically critical partner to the entire global surgical industry. Every minimally invasive surgery is a potential source of revenue for Asahi.

🚀2. Scaling & Capacity Expansion: The new production facilities in Thailand and Vietnam are increasingly coming online. Economies of scale are supporting the gross margin despite global cost pressures.

🚀3. Robotics as a Future Technology: Asahi is gearing up for robot-assisted surgery. As robots replace the surgeon’s hand, the demand for even more precise, sensor-equipped wire technology will rise—precisely Asahi’s area of expertise.

🚀4. Demographics as an Irrefutable Tailwind: The world’s aging population requires more cardiological, vascular, and neurovascular procedures. This is secular growth that remains virtually unaffected by recessions.

4. Risks ⚠️

❗️Currency risks (JPY): As a Japanese exporter (>70% of revenue generated abroad), currency fluctuations (particularly EUR/JPY and USD/JPY) cause apparent fluctuations in the figures upon conversion.

❗️Valuation at current levels: At exchange rates around ~3,689 JPY (P/E ratio ~32x), short-term growth is already largely priced in. The margin of safety relative to the base-case fair value (~2,850 JPY) has narrowed.

❗️Regulation: Delays in approval processes for new medical devices worldwide (FDA/MDR) can occasionally extend the time-to-market for new innovations.

🎯 EARNINGS PREP: ASAHI INTECC $7747 (+0,47 %)

Date: Thursday, August 13 / Friday, August 14, 2026 (Official IR slot: 3:30 p.m. Tokyo local time)

Reporting Period: Q4 & Full Year FY2026 (Fiscal year-end: June 30, 2026)

since the stock price is at ~3,689 JPY is trading near its all-time high and the bar is set high.

1. 📊 EXPECTATIONS

Since these are the full-year results (FY2026) including the new guidance for FY2027, the market is scrutinizing them extremely closely:

Consensus revenue (Q4): ~34.7 billion JPY

Consensus EPS (Q4): ~17.3 JPY

Full-Year Revenue FY2026: Target is ~136–138 billion JPY (~14–15% YoY growth)

FY2027 Guidance: Crucial for the stock’s performance. The market expects further double-digit earnings growth (>12%) for FY2027.

My personal conclusion & Reaper Bonus 🧐

Asahi Intecc $7747 (+0,47 %) is, in my view, one of the most exciting examples of how a company can build a real moat in a small niche often overlooked by the general public. Not a speculative tech stock, but a highly profitable medtech powerhouse with tremendous technological expertise.

Earnings are due next week, and I’m firmly convinced that $7747 (+0,47 %) it will once again deliver strong results and blow expectations out of the water. 🔥

💀Jack’s Verdict:

“Forget short-term hype. Asahi Intecc is the kind of stock you hold in your portfolio and watch mature over the years. They provide the tools without which modern cardiology would simply grind to a halt—regardless of whether Medtronic, Boston Scientific, or Edwards ultimately comes out on top. The balance sheet is rock-solid. The only downside right now: The market has rediscovered the stock’s quality and driven the price up to nearly ¥3,700. No reason for panic for existing investors, but anyone looking to buy now should wait patiently for market noise toward the ¥2,850 to ¥3,000range.”

Reaper Rating: 🟡 HOLD / ACCUMULATE ON DIPs

DIP-BUYING RANGE: ¥2,800–¥3,000

Reaper Score:
7.5 / 10
(Quality remains at 9/10; the score is temporarily capped at ~3,689 JPY due to the valuation).

@Get_Rich_or_Die_Tryin
@Tenbagger2024
@PikaPika0105
@Multibagger
@Raketentoni And of course, everyone else ✌️

Have a great weekend, everyone 🫶

Hey there, dear community✌️

Today I’m back with another company spotlight! This company has been on my watchlist for a while now, and I was actually supposed to feature it a few months ago, but due to a lack of time, I kept putting it off.

Today, it’s all about the pharmaceutical sector—more specifically, a potential replacement for my $NOVO B (+0,11 %) position.

Let’s go🚀

It’s Ligand Pharma $LGND (-0,73 %)

🧬 Ligand Pharmaceuticals $LGND (-0,73 %) : The License to Make Money in the Biotech World

Ligand $LGND (-0,73 %) is not a traditional pharmaceutical company that pours billions into its own risky clinical trials. It’s the industry’s “royalty machine.” While other biotech firms put all their eggs in one basket, Ligand operates purely as a royalty aggregator, holding the rights to technologies and contracts that make hundreds of drugs possible in the first place.

1. The Business Model: The “Toll Booth” of Drug Discovery 🛣️

Ligand $LGND (-0,73 %) acts as a financier and license aggregator for the entire pharmaceutical industry.

The Mechanism: Ligand $LGND (-0,73 %) offers platforms such as Captisol (a technology that makes drugs soluble and thus stable) as well as targeted capital funding for biotech companies. In return, Ligand receives milestone payments and—even more importantly—ongoing revenue shares (royalties).

The ingenious part: Ligand $LGND (-0,73 %) does not bear the costs of clinical trials, regulatory approval, or marketing. The partners handle that. Ligand $LGND (-0,73 %) simply collects a percentage of gross revenue once the drug is on the market.

Growth driver: “Royalty Aggregation Pipeline”: Through targeted M&A transactions (such as the acquisition of APEIRON or the takeover of the XOMA royalty portfolio), Ligand $LGND (-0,73 %) access to over 100 ongoing partner projects. Instead of betting on a single drug, the company benefits from broad exposure across the entire sector.

2. Key Figures 📊

Market capitalization: approx. $5.8–6.0 billion (an established, highly profitable mid-cap).

Gross margin: Nearly 100% in the pure royalty segment (total gross margin ~88.5%, including Captisol material sales). Since there are virtually no direct manufacturing costs, the majority of licensing revenue flows directly into profit.

Diversification & Growth Drivers: Revenue comes from established blockbusters such as Kyprolis (Amgen $AMGN (+0,36 %) ) as well as new growth stars such as Filspari (Travere) and Ohtuvayre (Verona Pharma / Merck ecosystem).

Balance Sheet Strength: Massive net cash cushion. With over $1.3 billion in cash and cash equivalents and investments, Ligand $LGND (-0,73 %) uses this capital strategically for share buybacks or to acquire new royalty rights from smaller biotech companies.

Lean Management & Profitability: An extremely lean workforce structure with an ROIC of >24% and FCF margins exceeding 40%, as partners handle the operational work (clinical trials/sales).

3. Why is this stock exciting? 🚀

🚀1. Risk Asymmetry: If a partner’s drug fails in Phase 3, the impact on Ligand $LGND (-0,73 %) only minimally, as they have over 100 other irons in the fire. In the event of success, they benefit directly from global sales.

🚀2. Beneficiary of Interest Rate Cuts: Biotech companies need capital. In an environment of falling interest rates, partners’ pipelines flourish, while cash-strapped developers are more willing to assign future royalty rights to Ligand in exchange for an upfront payment.

🚀3. Captisol Moat: Captisol technology is an industry standard. Without this excipient, many life-saving drugs could not be absorbed by the body at all—this creates high switching costs for partners.

🚀4. Operating Leverage: Since the lean holding company’s fixed costs remain virtually constant, every new approval of a partner drug leads to a disproportionately large increase in profits (operating leverage).

Additional Insider Facts (The “Deep Dive” Bonus) 💡

The Portfolio Principle: Ligand $LGND (-0,73 %) operates similarly to a royalty-based pharmaceutical ETF or a specialized, publicly traded licensing fund.

Strategic Focus (Pure Play): Following the spin-off of OmniAb (2022), Ligand $LGND (-0,73 %) has consistently transformed itself into a pure-play royalty aggregator. This makes the balance sheet more transparent and focused.

Approval Pipeline: Numerous FDA decisions and Phase 3 data from the partner network are expected over the next 12 to 24 months—each positive approval acts like a “free lottery ticket” for shareholders.

5. Risks ⚠️

❗️Patent Expiration: When patents for key technologies or older flagship drugs expire, new royalty rights must fill the gap.

❗️Concentration risk in the top segment: A significant portion of current revenue depends on just a few major drugs. Setbacks with these anchor drugs are felt by Ligand $LGND (-0,73 %) in its top line.

❗️M&A misallocation: Ligand $LGND (-0,73 %) is growing rapidly through acquisitions (such as the XOMA portfolio). If too much capital is paid for overvalued royalty rights, the overall return (ROIC) suffers.

My personal conclusion & Reaper Bonus🧐

In my search for a suitable, high-quality alternative to Novo Nordisk $NOVO B (+0,11 %) , Ligand Pharmaceuticals has currently emerged as my absolute top candidate. Novo Nordisk $NOVO B (+0,11 %) remains, without a doubt, an exceptional quality company in my view. I’m still holding the position for the next few quarters; after that, I’ll decide what to do with it. Ligand, $LGND (-0,73 %) , on the other hand, offers the perfect counterpart here: a lean, high-margin, asset-light model, a well-stocked cash cushion, and a broad range of growth drivers that scale completely independently of the performance of any single blockbuster.

💀Jack’s Verdict:

Ligand is like the landlord of a casino. Ligand doesn’t care whether the player at the table wins or loses—they get their rent. While the biotech bros burn through their money in companies hoping for a miracle, Ligand sits back on a $1.3 billion cash mountain and lets Pfizer, Amgen, and Merck do the heavy lifting. It might not be the sexy story for the headlines, but it’s the story that reliably pays the bills in the end. If you hate the volatility of individual biotech stocks but love the sector’s margins, this is the place for you."

Rating: 🟡 WAIT AND SEE / TAKE ADVANTAGE OF DIPs

BUY-ON-DIP RANGE: $230–$240

Score: 9.0/10

@Get_Rich_or_Die_Tryin
@Tenbagger2024
@Raketentoni
@Stocktective
@Multibagger
@Dividendenopi
@SAUgut777
@PikaPika0105
@NichtRelevant and, of course, everyone else!

Hey, GQ crew ✌️

My first post since I got kicked out about 4 weeks ago—who would’ve thought that showing solidarity with one of the members (@Klein-Anleger ) would lead to a ban so quickly? But getquin’s generosity was so BIG (and, most importantly, “on a trial basis”) that they graciously let me back into the holy grail of the GQ community 😉

So guys, learn from my mistakes: The leniency here isn’t an “infinite money” glitch! Save your solidarity for later, keep your support for other members at zero, and most importantly 🚨: No sneaky advertising for alternative financial platforms like “Cisdord” 😉😂.

Sorry, that little dig after four weeks away was a must 🤝

But joking aside…

⏳The first three months of 2026 have passed. Time for a brief interim assessment of the current status of my portfolio rebuild.

Before I started rebuilding my portfolio, I naturally thought about what strategy I wanted to pursue in the coming months and years—especially with regard to stock selection and weighting.

To be honest, my original plan was to maintain a portfolio with a maximum of 20 stocks. As things progressed, however, I realized that it probably wouldn’t stay at 20—the number is more likely to rise to around 30 positions (+/-)—

♟️My Focus & Strategy:

To put it simply: The clear focus is on growth 🚀. Dividends play a rather secondary role here. Here, I’ll show you my shopping list—or rather, what my portfolio should look like in the future. The stocks I’ve already bought are marked with a green checkmark; those without a checkmark are ones I’m still waiting on ⏳

🤖TECH:

• AMAZON $AMZN (-0,2 %) ✅
• MICROSOFT $MSFT (+0,21 %) ✅
• CROWDSTRIKE $CRWD (-0,38 %) ✅
• SYNOPSYS $SNPS (-0,56 %) ✅
• INTUIT $INTU (+0,5 %) ✅
• CONSTELLATION SOFTWARE $CSU (-5,41 %) ✅
• SERVICENOW $NOW (+0,62 %) ✅
• ALPHABET $GOOGL (+0,25 %)
• NVIDIA $NVDA (-5,82 %)
• ASML $ASML (+0,97 %)
• MONOLITHIC POWER SYSTEMS $MPWR (-3,11 %)
• ARISTA NETWORKS $ANET (-1,97 %)
• KEYENCE $6861 (+3,05 %) ✅
• TSMC $TSM (-0,96 %)
• MARUWA $5344 (+0,87 %)
• LASERTEC CORP $6920 (-1,35 %)
• NETCOMPANY $NETC (+1,55 %) ✅
• CELLEBRITE DI $CLBT (+0,11 %) ✅

🏦💸FINANCE:

• SOFI TECHNOLOGIES $SOFI (-0,43 %) ✅
• S&P GLOBAL $SPGI (+0,25 %) ✅
• VISA $V (+0,38 %) ✅
• MUNICH RE $MUV2 (-0,25 %) ✅
• GERMAN STOCK EXCHANGE $DB1 (-0,44 %) ✅
• PARTNERS GROUP $PGHN (+0,03 %) ✅
• BROOKFIELD CORP $BN (+0,4 %) ✅
• HOULIHAN LOKEY $HLI (+0,19 %) ✅
• BROADRIDGE $BR (+0,35 %) ✅
• CBOE GLOBAL MARKETS $CBOE (+1,1 %)

🏥🩻HEALTHCARE:

• NOVO NORDISK $NOVO B (+0,11 %) ✅
• INTUITIVE SURGICAL $ISRG (+0,55 %)
• STRYKER $SYK (+0,55 %)
• BOSTON $BSX (+0,33 %)
• CATALYST PHARM $CPRX

🏭🏗️INDUSTRY & OTHER:

• WASTE MANAGEMENT $WM (+0,8 %) ✅
• GRAB HOLDINGS $GRAB (-0,85 %) ✅
• CINTAS $CTAS (+0,16 %) ✅
• MonotaRO $3064 ✅
• ITOCHU $8001 (+3,79 %) ✅
• HERMES $RMS (-1,38 %) ✅
• MERCADOLIBRE $MELI (-0,2 %) ✅

————————————————————————

Here is my expanded watchlist:

IN THE TECH SECTOR:

RAMBUS $RMBS (-3,95 %) , QNITY ELECTRONICS $Q (+0 %) ,

INNODATA $INOD (-1,88 %) , NETFLIX $NFLX (+0,13 %) ,

VERTIV $VRT (-2,4 %) , PALANTIR $PLTR (-0,6 %) , VAT GROUP $VACN (-1,05 %) , BROADCOM $AVGO (-0,98 %) , AMADEUS IT $AMS (+0,8 %) , DISCO CORP $6146 (+0,84 %) , A10 NETWORKS $ATEN (+1,6 %) , RORZE $6323 , CAMTEK $CAMT (-0,4 %)

FINANCE:

APOLLO GLOBAL $APO (-0,14 %) / BLACKSTONE $BX (+0,26 %) , ALLIANZ $ALV (+0,49 %) , FIRSTCASH $FCFS (+0,08 %) , BLACKROCK $BLK (+0,64 %) SKYWARD SPECIALTY INSURANCE $SKWD , VERISK ANALYTICS $VRSK (-0,27 %) PRIMERICA $PRI (+0,77 %) , ERIE INDEMNITY $ERIE (+0 %) , MAREX GROUP $MRX , BGC GROUP $BGC (+0,53 %)

HEALTHCARE:

MERIT MEDICAL SYSTEMS $MMSI (-0,32 %) , REGENERON PHARM $REGN (+0,51 %) , UFP TECHNOLOGIES $UFPT (+0,26 %) , COLLEGIUM PHARM $COLL (+0,92 %) , LIGAND PHARM $LGND (-0,73 %) , HOYA CORP $7741 (+1,35 %) , SHIONOGI $4507 (+2,63 %) , IRADIMED $IRMD (+0 %)

REST:

MISUMI GROUP $9962 (+4,72 %) , KANEMATSU $8020 (+1,59 %) , APPLIED INDUSTRIAL TECH $AIT (-0,39 %) , BADGER METER $BMI (+0,32 %) , CEMENT ROADSTONE HOLDING $CRH (+0,55 %) , KADANT $KAI (-0,38 %) , INTERTEK GROUP $ITRK (-0,11 %) , IDEX CORP $IEX (-0,15 %) , ORLA MINING $OLA , NEWMARKET CORP $NEU (+1,61 %) , ROTORK $ROR (+0,42 %) , POWER INTEGRATION $POWI (+0,18 %) , LINDE $LIN (+1,14 %) , GAZTRANSPORT & TECHNIGAZ $GTT (+0,86 %)

This isn’t my final stock selection or watchlist yet. Of course, changes can always happen—for example, if the @Tenbagger2024 continues to introduce such hidden gems 🙏🏽🧐

————————————————————————

What should the sector/country allocation look like?

Let’s start with the “desired”

🌍country allocation:

🇺🇸🇨🇦USA ~60%

🇪🇺EUROPE ~20%

🇯🇵 JAPAN/ASIA ~15%

Remaining ~5%

Sector weightings should be as follows:

💻 TECHNOLOGY: ~30–35%

💸FINANCE: ~20–25%

🏥HEALTHCARE: ~10–15%

🏭INDUSTRY: ~10–15%

REMAINING: ~5–10%

So, what’s happened since the start of the year?

Of course, there were no sales 😬

There were a few purchases where I had a hand in the decision.

JANUARY PURCHASES

$INTU (+0,5 %)
$GRAB (-0,85 %)
$NOW (+0,62 %)
$MSFT (+0,21 %)

FEBRUARY PURCHASES

$NOW (+0,62 %)
$INTU (+0,5 %)
$SPGI (+0,25 %)
$SNPS (-0,56 %)
$CSU (-5,41 %)
$SOFI (-0,43 %)
$CRWD (-0,38 %)

MARCH PURCHASES

$MUV2 (-0,25 %)
$3064
$8001 (+3,79 %)
$6861 (+3,05 %)
$DB1 (-0,44 %)
$V (+0,38 %)
$HLI (+0,19 %)
$MSFT (+0,21 %)
$CTAS (+0,16 %)
$MELI (-0,2 %)
$BN (+0,4 %)
$PGHN (+0,03 %)
$BR (+0,35 %)

Given the global political situation—especially because of that 🍊 in the White House, whose tweets cause more tsunamis 🌊than actual natural disasters—and the current drawdown in the S&P 500 (which is actually working out great for me right now and bringing me a lot of joy 🤩), I’m consequently in the red on some of my purchases so far 💦🫧.

But hey, we’re investing for the long term, after all, right? So, taking it easy, keeping it chill 🥱 I’ll most likely hold off on making any more purchases for the time being over the next few days or weeks, park my cash elsewhere or put it in a money market account, and wait to see where the market settles or wait for it to stabilize.

What do you guys have on your watchlist?

Are you sitting on the sidelines right now, or how are you handling the current situation?

@Get_Rich_or_Die_Tryin
@Tenbagger2024
@Max095 And, of course, all the other members

Okay, that’s enough for now 😂

That’s all from me for now ✌️

Your Stock Master