Oberon was established in 2002 and the firm has been registered with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission since April 2010. Daniel Baldini is our Managing Member. We provide investment advisory services on a discretionary basis to our clients which include individuals, trusts, retirement plans and a pooled investment vehicle - Oberon I, L.P.
In order to meet our objective of long-term growth of capital we primarily invest in what believe to be good, growing companies trading at a discount to our estimate of intrinsic value. We consider a company to be good when it has shareholder-oriented managers, the ability to earn an attractive return on capital, balanced relationships with its customers and suppliers and some protection from intense competition deriving from a sustainable competitive advantage. We generally avoid companies with high leverage.
By purchasing securities of companies that have the potential for growth we seek to generate attractive long-term returns. Without rising corporate worth, time works against potential returns and our analytical efforts have less room for error. By purchasing securities at a discount, we seek to enhance returns through the possible elimination of the discount and incorporate a margin of safety into our investments.
While we normally invest in the equity securities of U.S. listed companies, we occasionally invest in debt securities and the equity and debt securities of companies listed on foreign exchanges. We invest in companies regardless of size, however, many of the companies in which we invest may be considered small in terms of market capitalization. There are a number of reasons for this: first, there are simply a greater number of small companies than large companies; second, there is a greater possibility that small companies will be undervalued from time to time; third, small companies are often associated with higher rates of growth; and, finally, small companies are more frequently acquired.
We invest for the long-term. Good companies at attractive prices are hard to find. It often takes a long time to finally understand a business. Therefore, if we sold every time a stock reached our estimate of fair value it would be difficult to find replacements. There are also transaction costs and taxes associated with trading which we seek to minimize.