Investment Philosophy

We believe non-investment grade, small to mid-market capitalization companies exist in an inefficient area of the market sector often overlooked by market participants. Such companies present to DDJ Capital Management a fertile source of investment opportunities.

Successfully uncovering these opportunities requires financial and credit expertise, extensive portfolio management experience and keen legal skills. DDJ calls on all of these strengths in employing a bottom-up, fundamental-oriented investment approach.

By adhering to our investment philosophy, we believe we are well-positioned to deliver attractive, risk-adjusted rates of return throughout various market cycles.

Research Process

The DDJ research process is designed to generate superior risk/return investment ideas, both within our market and in line with our investment strategies. Our goal is to identify companies that have a solid core business and a "reason to exist," but may be encountering financial and/or other difficulties.

Before choosing to invest in a company, our analysts first perform extensive due diligence by seeking out information from various sources, including company filings as well as interviews with company management, customers, competitors and suppliers. We also:

  • Perform periodic industry reviews to help us recognize the relative value of companies and their competition.
  • Evaluate the company's capital structure along with the trading price and relative value of each obligation.
  • Analyze key financial considerations such as:
    • Liquidity: A company's ability to service debt and other obligations over the short term
    • Free cash flow: A company's ability to service obligations over the long term
    • Asset coverage: Overall asset value relative to liabilities, a critical measurement in gauging downside protection

Through our exhaustive research process, we are able to assess both management's capabilities and the company's future prospects. We leverage our network and experience to constructively and creatively work with management and other constituencies of portfolio companies to address liquidity and other challenges.