The curated database of hedge funds that publish investor letters. Research by geography, strategy, and schools of thought.
| # | Fund | Strategy | Style | Geography | AUM | Latest Letter |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
New West Capital analyzes whether the Magnificent Seven's trillion-dollar AI infrastructure spending spree is creating or destroying shareholder value by measuring each company's return on invested capital against its cost of capital. The analysis reveals three distinct groups. Nvidia and Apple represent the winners: Nvidia as the AI buildout's primary supplier has seen returns multiply to 84% while Apple has chosen a capital-light approach, with both avoiding the economics squeeze. Microsoft, Meta, and Alphabet form the middle tier as archetypal builders whose returns have compressed from the low forties to mid-twenties, yet still earn 2.5 to 3 times their cost of capital, shifting from extraordinary to merely excellent. Amazon and Tesla represent the strugglers, with Amazon barely above its hurdle rate and Tesla now destroying value with returns below its cost of capital. The analysis also examines share count management, finding that the five companies clearing their hurdle with room to spare have all shrunk share counts, while the two strugglers have allowed significant dilution. The conclusion: capex spending itself is not the risk, but rather spending that fails to earn above the cost of capital.
The trillion-dollar AI capital expenditure wave across the Magnificent Seven is not a uniform story of value creation or destruction, but rather three distinct narratives based on returns on invested capital versus cost of capital: suppliers like Nvidia and capital-light players like Apple are thriving, builders like Microsoft, Meta, and Alphabet are compressing but still excellent, while Amazon and Tesla struggle at or below their hurdle rates.
The analysis concludes that the dispersion within the Magnificent Seven is widening as AI spending continues, creating opportunities for long-term investors to distinguish between companies buying growth versus those merely buying capacity. The returns on invested capital and share count management separate durable compounders from capital destroyers, with most of the group remaining among the most productive deployers of capital even at the peak of the AI build cycle.
As of Aug 31, 2026
Kyle Joseph Tushaus, CFA, serves as Managing General Partner and founder of New West Capital, bringing extensive experience in engineering and acquisitions for family offices. He holds academic credentials in Mechanical Engineering and Finance from the University of Kansas and is a CFA charterholder. His professional background includes leadership roles at Schlesinger Companies as VP of Acquisitions and Asset Management, Norcap as VP of Acquisitions, and General Electric as Manager. Tushaus passed the Series 65 examination and maintains clean regulatory records with no disclosure events. He manages investments modeled after the original Buffett Partnership structure with a focus on long-term quality investing.
New West Capital embraces a Quality Investing philosophy focused on investing in companies with superior business characteristics, combining financial strength and qualitative factors like management capabilities. They integrate Value Investing principles by targeting Quality businesses priced below intrinsic value, aiming for attractive companies at great prices. Their investment approach emphasizes lifelong learning over static methodologies, underpinned by productive capital allocation derived from Austrian Economics. They reject the notion of perfectly efficient markets, viewing price volatility discrepancies as evidence of behavioral influence and considering this a constant arbitrage opportunity. The firm positions temperament as a competitive advantage in their investment process.
Lead Portfolio Manager
Neutral / Balanced
Market Conviction
This is a research piece analyzing the Magnificent Seven's capital allocation, not a fund letter with disclosed positions. The analysis demonstrates strong conviction in the analytical framework (return on invested capital versus cost of capital) and clear differentiation among the seven companies, with specific data points and named positions. However, there is no disclosure of New West Capital's actual portfolio holdings, position sizes, or whether they own any of these companies. The conviction expressed is in the analytical methodology and the conclusions drawn, not in specific investment positions. The explanation is thorough and data-driven, but the absence of any stated portfolio positions or sizing caps the score below 0.54 per the hard rule.
Growth Outlook
Market outlook remains moderate conviction: New West Partners posted a stellar 41.38% YTD return by leveraging mispriced volatility and a highly successful asymmetric bet on ad-tech firm Magnite following Google's antitrust ...
Risk Appetite
Risk appetite posture is high conviction: New West Partners posted a stellar 41.38% YTD return by leveraging mispriced volatility and a highly successful asymmetric bet on ad-tech firm Magnite following Google's antitrust ...
Capital Deployment
This document analyzes the capital deployment decisions of the Magnificent Seven companies; it does not disclose New West Capital's own capital deployment activity. There is no information about the firm's cash levels, whether they are adding or reducing positions, or any changes in net exposure. The analysis is purely observational, examining other companies' behavior rather than describing the firm's own portfolio actions. Without any data on New West's deployment activity, a neutral score of 0.00 is appropriate.
Forward Guidance
Forward guidance signal: New West Partners posted a stellar 41.38% YTD return by leveraging mispriced volatility and a highly successful asymmetric bet on ad-tech firm Magnite following Google's antitrust ...
Language Signal
The language is predominantly analytical and neutral, focused on measurement and classification rather than directional advocacy. Positive language appears in descriptions of companies that 'clear their hurdle with room to spare,' 'thriving,' and creating 'opportunity' from dispersion. Negative language includes 'deteriorating' in the title, 'cautionary tale,' 'consuming value,' and 'destroying' capital. The balance tilts mildly positive because the conclusion emphasizes opportunity for long-term owners and notes that most of the group remains 'among the most productive deployers of capital anywhere.' However, the dominant tone is factual assessment rather than bullish or bearish advocacy.
Perceived Risk
Perceived risk level is evaluated as moderate conviction. New West Partners posted a stellar 41.38% YTD return by leveraging mispriced volatility and a highly successful asymmetric bet on ad-tech firm Magnite following Google's antitrust ...
Opportunity Density
The letter concludes that 'the dispersion inside [the Magnificent Seven] is wider than the label admits, and it is still widening,' explicitly framing this as opportunity rather than constraint. The statement 'for a long-term owner, that dispersion isn't a warning, it's the opportunity' directly signals a selective but meaningful opportunity set. The analysis identifies clear winners (Nvidia, Apple), a middle tier with compressed but still excellent returns (Microsoft, Meta, Alphabet), and strugglers (Amazon, Tesla), suggesting multiple investable ideas with distinct risk-reward profiles. This represents selective opportunities in defined areas rather than a broad, rich opportunity set, placing it in the 0.55-0.79 range.
Time Horizon
The letter explicitly addresses 'long-term owners' multiple times and frames the analysis around durable economics rather than near-term catalysts. The discussion of whether Nvidia's returns can 'persist past the initial AI wave' and the focus on multi-year capital base growth (four-year analysis period) indicate a multi-year investment horizon. The conclusion states 'for a long-term owner, that dispersion isn't a warning, it's the opportunity,' reinforcing the extended time frame. However, there is no discussion of permanent capital, decade-plus holding periods, or explicit statements about indefinite ownership. The horizon appears to be multi-year (2-5 years) with no near-term catalyst dependency, fitting the 0.65-0.84 range.
Top Conviction Themes
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