Philip Fisher on Growth vs. Value

Fisher argued that the greatest investment returns come not from buying cheap assets but from owning a small number of genuinely exceptional growth companies for very long periods. His career rested on the observation that a business compounding sales at an above-average rate for decades can make its initial purchase price look almost irrelevant in hindsight, provided the investor picked the right business and held through its inevitable rough patches.

Fisher also made an early investment in Texas Instruments when it was still a young semiconductor company, having concluded through industry interviews that its technical talent gave it a long runway of growth. The position, held through enormous swings, illustrated his willingness to pay a seemingly high price for a business whose sales could compound for decades.