I'm reading Anthony Bolton's "Investing Against The Tide" and liked this quote:
The $20b takeover by KKR of Alliance Boots probably marked the top of the cycle...I don't suppose we'll see another like that for a very long time.

$88b of SPACs in q1 2021: Hold my beer!

This quote from Bill Miller was unfortunately timed. It was used in '09, within months of his fund blowing up.

Contrary to Buffett wisdom, Bolton considered turnarounds as his prime hunting ground:
"The heart of my approach has been buying recovery or turnaround stocks on attractive valuations".

Also against the value grain, Bolton was a big fan of technical analysis and would regularly consult chartists within and external to Fidelity.

Thought I would bookend this thread with Anthony Bolton's 12 attributes of a good portfolio manager.
I enjoyed the book and it reminded me a lot of John Neff's, spanning a similar time period:

1. "The Seeing Eye"- essentially second-level and lateral thinking.

2. Temperament- self explanatory and much more important than IQ.

3. Organisation- Bolton was fanatical about routine and note-taking.

4. Hunger for analysis (and knowledge).

5. A generalist- life would just be depressing as the railroad analyst at a big fund!

6. Desire to win- No shortage of competitiveness and ego in this game.

7. Flexible Conviction- similar to the phrase "strong opinions, loosely held".

8. Happy to go against the crowd.

9. Knows themselves and their approach.

10. Experienced- enough to know they don't know everything and have seen tough times.

11. Integrity- essential in Bolton's mind and fair enough.

12. Common sense- use of first principles.

Investing Against the Tide is a short read, with the foreword by Peter Lynch, so well worth the time imo.