The Lowdown I Bet You Didn’t Know …Ed Mendel

What makes Ed Mendel tick?

Ed Mendel is the co-founder of the Ned Davis Research Group, an institutional investment research firm he began in 1980 and sold in 2011 to the UK-based company Euromoney.

Prior to starting NDR, Mendel worked with many of the philanthropic leaders in the Atlanta community when he was a stockbroker at J.C. Bradford. He has served on the boards of many leading civic organizations and nonprofits in the Atlanta area, including B’nai B’rith Youth Organization (BBYO). He is currently a Life Trustee at the Marcus Jewish Community Center of Atlanta and Pace Academy, and has been philanthropically involved in other Atlanta charities such as The William Breman Jewish Home, Jewish Family & Career Services, and the Marcus Jewish Community Center.

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Mendel is a minority owner of the Atlanta Falcons and serves on its board. He has been married to Barbara Mendel for 47 years, has three children, and five grandchildren.

What was your biggest financial mistake?
In 1974, I shorted Walmart. In 1992, I shorted Berkshire Hathaway. I learned the hard way — never short a cult stock. If you do, always have a stop-loss, so a little mistake never becomes a disastrous mistake.

Advice you would give a 21-year-old Eddie?
Don’t give money away to make people happy. Give money to people who are in real need.

Growing up in Arkansas made me …
Appreciate my Jewish heritage and community.

If I had one more talent …
I wish I could’ve been a professional football player, but being short, slow, and having bricks for hands and a Jewish mother was a detriment to my career.

I’m currently reading …
“Everybody Lies: Big Data, New Data, and What the Internet can Tell Us About Who We Really Are” by Seth Stephens-Davidowitz.

My children would say I’m too …
I made the mistake of asking my children. When I get out of therapy, I will try to answer.

How would you describe your political views?
Apolitical. Neither party has a grown-up in the room. The definition of an honest politician is one who stays bought.

My guilty pleasure is …
Chips Ahoy! The most perfect junk food.

My biggest anxiety is …
The state of the nation. Budget and trade deficits are out of control, which usually leads to a much weaker dollar. Inflation is soaring, which usually leads to higher interest rates. Neither one of these things are happening yet. In a world where everything is being manipulated by central banks, this will lead to a tipping point and a very unhappy ending in a couple of years.