On this page of StockholderLetter.com we present the latest annual shareholder letter from Associated Capital Group, Inc. — ticker symbol AC. Reading current and past AC letters to shareholders can bring important insights into the investment thesis.
ANN UAL
REPORT
WISDOM. PERFORMANCE. BRIGHT FUTURE. TRUST.
Merger Arbitrage
Year
2023
2022
2021
2020
2019
2018
2017
2016
2015
2014
2013
2012
2011
2010
2009
2008
2007
2006
2005
2004
2003
2002
2001
2000
1999
1998
1997
1996
1995
1994
1993
1992
1991
1990
1989
1988
1987
1986
1985
Percent Return (%)
Gross Return Net Return
5.49
3.56
4.47
2.75
10.81
7.78
9.45
6.70
8.55
5.98
4.35
2.65
4.69
2.92
9.13
6.44
5.33
3.43
3.89
2.29
5.33
3.43
4.32
2.63
4.89
3.07
9.07
6.35
12.40
9.15
0.06
-0.94
6.39
4.26
12.39
8.96
9.40
6.63
5.49
3.69
8.90
6.26
4.56
2.45
7.11
4.56
18.10
13.57
16.61
12.31
10.10
7.21
12.69
9.21
12.14
8.84
14.06
10.27
7.90
5.53
12.29
8.91
7.05
4.78
12.00
8.76
9.43
6.67
23.00
17.55
45.84
35.66
-13.67
-14.54
33.40
26.14
22.64
30.47
Compounded Net Annual Return
7.14
The performance above refers to our longest continuously offered fund in the merger arbitrage strategy (net and gross returns ). Net returns
are net of management and incentive fees. Individual investment returns may differ due to timing of investment and other factors. Past
performance is not indicative of future results.
Dear Partners/Shareholders:
We continue to run a long-distance marathon for our limited partners in our merger arbitrage and our alternative hedge
fund investments. We started investing in arbitrage in the late 1960   s when I was focusing on the subject at my first
institutional firm where I was a sell-side analyst.
We continued our research in arbitrage investments in the late 1970   s when we started our firm and then started Gabelli
Arbitrage Partnership in 1985.
WHAT IS NEXT FOR AC AND THE NEXT DECADE
Interest rates at current levels appear to have become embedded in the financial models of private equity firms. At the
same time owners of businesses appear more willing to harvest gains via the sale of assets at more reasonable valuations
and possible tax changes in 2025. Given the foregoing, combined with the somewhat less hostile regulatory constraints,
we have increasing confidence that deal activity will increase both in the U.S. and globally.
Simply stated, the spreads have widened and are now providing additional incremental returns for arbitrage on a
global basis.
(Y)OUR M&A IN 2024 AND BEYOND
As previously discussed, Gabelli Private Equity Partners was created to launch a private equity business, somewhat akin to
the success our predecessor PE firm had in the 1980s.
We will continue our outreach initiatives with business owners, corporate management, and various financial sponsors. We
are activating our program of buying privately owned, family started businesses, controlled and operated by the founding
family     send us suggestions!
We again echo the criteria from Warren Buffett:
BERKSHIRE HATHAWAY INC ACQUISITION CRITERIA
We are eager to hear from principals or their representatives about businesses that meet all of the following criteria
- Demonstrated consistent earning power (future projections are of no interest to us, nor are    turnaround    situations),
- Businesses earning good returns on equity while employing little or no debt,
- Management in place (we can   t supply it),
- Simple businesses (if there   s lots of technology, we won   t understand it),
- An offering price (we don   t want to waste our time or that of the seller by talking, even preliminarily, about a transaction when price is unknown).
FINANCIAL RESULTS
    Our MERGER ARBITRAGE strategy returned 5.5% gross (3.6% net) for 2023. Since inception in February 1985,
we have compounded net annual returns of 7.1%.
    We paid $4.3 million to shareholders via dividends.
    We repurchased over 450,000 shares, returning $16.2 million to shareholders.
    Book value ended the year at $42.11 per share versus $40.48 at December 31, 2022.
COMMITMENT TO COMMUNITY
In August, (y)our Board approved the continuation of the shareholder designated charitable contribution program for
$4.0 million to registered shareholders, this brings our total contributions to $38 million since our spin-off from GAMCO
in November 2015. Since the inception of this program, there have been over one hundred ninety 501(c)(3) organizations
which received designations from our shareholders.
NEXT
We are privileged to share Associated Capital   s results for 2023.
In 2023 Marc Gabelli was named Vice Chair of (y)our board, his wealth of knowledge and depth of experience will serve
our stakeholders well.
As always, we thank our teammates, our directors, and more importantly, our clients and partners for their confidence in
what we will do in the next quarter century.
Sincerely,
Mario J. Gabelli
Executive Chair
1
Douglas R. Jamieson Chief Executive Officer and President
We ended 2023 with cash and investments of $407 million and $466 million, respectively, including
2.4 million shares of GAMCO stock valued at $46 million. Our net equity was $907 million or $42.11
per share versus $890 million or $40.48 per share at year-end 2022.
Our financial resources underpin our flexibility to pursue strategic objectives that may include
acquisitions, seeding new investment strategies, and co-investing. We consider our primary goal as
using our liquid resources to opportunistically and strategically grow book value and net income.
We will also consider alternatives to return capital to our shareholders, including
share repurchases and dividends. Share repurchase amounts and prices may vary after considering
a variety of factors, including the Company   s financial position, earnings, other alternative uses of
cash, macroeconomic issues, and market conditions.
At Gabelli & Partners, the marketing and business development team continues to maintain and
expand relationships across the globe to provide new investor access points and to streamline
existing channels to invest alongside our partner capital. We onboarded our UCITS fund to the NSCC
framework, allowing for an improved subscription process for global investors within the US nonresident client markets and investors from Latin America. We held our 24th Annual Arbitrage Dinner
on December 12th, our M&A strategy finished 2023 up 5.5% gross; 3.6% net.
A S SE TS U N DER MANAG E M E NT
Assets under management (dollars in millions) ended 2023 at $1,591. The decrease was largely the result of net outflows, offset
partially by market appreciation. These outflows were generally from reallocations to other asset classes as a merger arbitrage
fund   s nominal expected return is partly a function of the risk free rate, which increased from less than 1% at the end of 2021 to over
4% by the end of 2022 and was sustained at or above 5% for the entirety of 2023.
Non-Market Correlated
2
ENGLISH
ITALIAN
CHINESE
JAPANESE
SPANISH
Deals...Deals...and More Deals - Now in    ve languages.
Originally published in 1999 by Gabelli University Press
   There are many advantages to investing in risk arbitrage. Let   s focus on three: risk arbitrage
returns are not closely correlated with those of the stock market; they are less volatile than
returns on the S&P 500; and longer term they are higher than those returns afforded by
traditional investing. While these three factors provide for excellent results in the world of
arbitrage, the real beauty of risk arb investing is that there is rarely a down year. Because risk
arb returns are consistently positive year in and year out, they ful   ll the concept of a compound
return. We proclaim this source of compounded earnings as the eighth wonder of the world.
Compounding is the secret to wealth creation over a period of decades.   
Regina M. Pitaro
(Deals...Deals...and More Deals, 1999)
Regina M. Pitaro
Columbia University,
Graduate School of Business M.B.A., Finance
Loyola University of Chicago M.A., Anthropology
Fordham University B.S., Anthropology
   Give a man a    sh and you feed him
for a day. Teach a man to arbitrage,
and you feed him forever.   
- Warren Buffett
In 1999, we published one of the few books
on merger arbitrage, Deals   Deals   
and More Deals. Our newest publication,
Merger Masters: Tales of Arbitrage,
pro   les leading investors who share our
enthusiasm for merger arbitrage and
have utilized the investment discipline in
various forms over the last half-century. It
also includes the perspective of iconic CEOs
who have used M&A to build value and,
in the process, tangled with the arbitrage
community. Merger Masters is available on
Amazon.com.
M E RG E R AR B ITR AG E
G abelli & Partners is highly specialized, providing clients with products and
customized solutions within the    Private Market Value with a Catalyst      
method of investing, while utilizing the full resources of the broader
organization. The strategies employed within our portfolios strive to achieve
superior risk adjusted returns with an aim to preserve and grow wealth
while maintaining low volatility. Our strategies focus on fundamental, active,
event-driven special situations and merger arbitrage.
We have invested in this way since 1977 and introduced our first dedicated
alternative portfolio in 1985, Gabelli Associates, which focuses on absolute
returns by investing in announced mergers and acquisitions. Beyond merger
investing, we offer several additional portfolios that build on the firm   s
strengths in global event-driven value investing.
(Y)our M&A Portfolio Team
Ralph Rocco
Paolo Vicinelli
Willis Brucker
(Y)our Teammate Since
1993
1999
2004
Rutgers University Columbia University Boston College
B..A., Economics M.B.A., Finance B.S., Finance
We are committed to providing our clients with a high level of services. Our client service and investor relations teams are
continually seeking new ways to array and deliver information more effectively, and are regularly customizing the needs
of our clients and partners, to focus on enhancing relationships and transparency for the long-term. Gabelli & Partners
provides investment solutions through various vehicles and investment structures such as: sub-advised portfolios, custom
share classes, new investment vehicles both domestic and foreign, as well as specialized structures, all coupled with
the corresponding operational needs of the overall mandate. We also continue to forge partnerships and distribution
arrangements to provide either new investor access points or streamlining existing channels to invest alongside our partner
capital. One such development was a yearlong onboarding of our UCITS fund to the NSCC framework, allowing for an
improved subscription process for global investors within the U.S. non-resident client markets and those investors from Latin
America who are serviced in the U.S.
3
 • shareholder letter icon 5/9/2024 Letter Continued (Full PDF)
 • stockholder letter icon 4/28/2023 AC Stockholder Letter
 • stockholder letter icon More "Investment Brokerages" Category Stockholder Letters
 • Benford's Law Stocks icon AC Benford's Law Stock Score = 74


AC Shareholder/Stockholder Letter Transcript:

ANN UAL
REPORT


WISDOM. PERFORMANCE. BRIGHT FUTURE. TRUST.
Merger Arbitrage
Year
2023
2022
2021
2020
2019
2018
2017
2016
2015
2014
2013
2012
2011
2010
2009
2008
2007
2006
2005
2004
2003
2002
2001
2000
1999
1998
1997
1996
1995
1994
1993
1992
1991
1990
1989
1988
1987
1986
1985
Percent Return (%)
Gross Return Net Return
5.49
3.56
4.47
2.75
10.81
7.78
9.45
6.70
8.55
5.98
4.35
2.65
4.69
2.92
9.13
6.44
5.33
3.43
3.89
2.29
5.33
3.43
4.32
2.63
4.89
3.07
9.07
6.35
12.40
9.15
0.06
-0.94
6.39
4.26
12.39
8.96
9.40
6.63
5.49
3.69
8.90
6.26
4.56
2.45
7.11
4.56
18.10
13.57
16.61
12.31
10.10
7.21
12.69
9.21
12.14
8.84
14.06
10.27
7.90
5.53
12.29
8.91
7.05
4.78
12.00
8.76
9.43
6.67
23.00
17.55
45.84
35.66
-13.67
-14.54
33.40
26.14
22.64
30.47
Compounded Net Annual Return
7.14
The performance above refers to our longest continuously offered fund in the merger arbitrage strategy (net and gross returns ). Net returns
are net of management and incentive fees. Individual investment returns may differ due to timing of investment and other factors. Past
performance is not indicative of future results.

Dear Partners/Shareholders:
We continue to run a long-distance marathon for our limited partners in our merger arbitrage and our alternative hedge
fund investments. We started investing in arbitrage in the late 1960   s when I was focusing on the subject at my first
institutional firm where I was a sell-side analyst.
We continued our research in arbitrage investments in the late 1970   s when we started our firm and then started Gabelli
Arbitrage Partnership in 1985.
WHAT IS NEXT FOR AC AND THE NEXT DECADE
Interest rates at current levels appear to have become embedded in the financial models of private equity firms. At the
same time owners of businesses appear more willing to harvest gains via the sale of assets at more reasonable valuations
and possible tax changes in 2025. Given the foregoing, combined with the somewhat less hostile regulatory constraints,
we have increasing confidence that deal activity will increase both in the U.S. and globally.
Simply stated, the spreads have widened and are now providing additional incremental returns for arbitrage on a
global basis.
(Y)OUR M&A IN 2024 AND BEYOND
As previously discussed, Gabelli Private Equity Partners was created to launch a private equity business, somewhat akin to
the success our predecessor PE firm had in the 1980s.
We will continue our outreach initiatives with business owners, corporate management, and various financial sponsors. We
are activating our program of buying privately owned, family started businesses, controlled and operated by the founding
family     send us suggestions!
We again echo the criteria from Warren Buffett:
BERKSHIRE HATHAWAY INC ACQUISITION CRITERIA
We are eager to hear from principals or their representatives about businesses that meet all of the following criteria
- Demonstrated consistent earning power (future projections are of no interest to us, nor are    turnaround    situations),
- Businesses earning good returns on equity while employing little or no debt,
- Management in place (we can   t supply it),
- Simple businesses (if there   s lots of technology, we won   t understand it),
- An offering price (we don   t want to waste our time or that of the seller by talking, even preliminarily, about a transaction when price is unknown).
FINANCIAL RESULTS
    Our MERGER ARBITRAGE strategy returned 5.5% gross (3.6% net) for 2023. Since inception in February 1985,
we have compounded net annual returns of 7.1%.
    We paid $4.3 million to shareholders via dividends.
    We repurchased over 450,000 shares, returning $16.2 million to shareholders.
    Book value ended the year at $42.11 per share versus $40.48 at December 31, 2022.
COMMITMENT TO COMMUNITY
In August, (y)our Board approved the continuation of the shareholder designated charitable contribution program for
$4.0 million to registered shareholders, this brings our total contributions to $38 million since our spin-off from GAMCO
in November 2015. Since the inception of this program, there have been over one hundred ninety 501(c)(3) organizations
which received designations from our shareholders.
NEXT
We are privileged to share Associated Capital   s results for 2023.
In 2023 Marc Gabelli was named Vice Chair of (y)our board, his wealth of knowledge and depth of experience will serve
our stakeholders well.
As always, we thank our teammates, our directors, and more importantly, our clients and partners for their confidence in
what we will do in the next quarter century.
Sincerely,
Mario J. Gabelli
Executive Chair
1

Douglas R. Jamieson Chief Executive Officer and President
We ended 2023 with cash and investments of $407 million and $466 million, respectively, including
2.4 million shares of GAMCO stock valued at $46 million. Our net equity was $907 million or $42.11
per share versus $890 million or $40.48 per share at year-end 2022.
Our financial resources underpin our flexibility to pursue strategic objectives that may include
acquisitions, seeding new investment strategies, and co-investing. We consider our primary goal as
using our liquid resources to opportunistically and strategically grow book value and net income.
We will also consider alternatives to return capital to our shareholders, including
share repurchases and dividends. Share repurchase amounts and prices may vary after considering
a variety of factors, including the Company   s financial position, earnings, other alternative uses of
cash, macroeconomic issues, and market conditions.
At Gabelli & Partners, the marketing and business development team continues to maintain and
expand relationships across the globe to provide new investor access points and to streamline
existing channels to invest alongside our partner capital. We onboarded our UCITS fund to the NSCC
framework, allowing for an improved subscription process for global investors within the US nonresident client markets and investors from Latin America. We held our 24th Annual Arbitrage Dinner
on December 12th, our M&A strategy finished 2023 up 5.5% gross; 3.6% net.
A S SE TS U N DER MANAG E M E NT
Assets under management (dollars in millions) ended 2023 at $1,591. The decrease was largely the result of net outflows, offset
partially by market appreciation. These outflows were generally from reallocations to other asset classes as a merger arbitrage
fund   s nominal expected return is partly a function of the risk free rate, which increased from less than 1% at the end of 2021 to over
4% by the end of 2022 and was sustained at or above 5% for the entirety of 2023.
Non-Market Correlated
2

ENGLISH
ITALIAN
CHINESE
JAPANESE
SPANISH
Deals...Deals...and More Deals - Now in    ve languages.
Originally published in 1999 by Gabelli University Press
   There are many advantages to investing in risk arbitrage. Let   s focus on three: risk arbitrage
returns are not closely correlated with those of the stock market; they are less volatile than
returns on the S&P 500; and longer term they are higher than those returns afforded by
traditional investing. While these three factors provide for excellent results in the world of
arbitrage, the real beauty of risk arb investing is that there is rarely a down year. Because risk
arb returns are consistently positive year in and year out, they ful   ll the concept of a compound
return. We proclaim this source of compounded earnings as the eighth wonder of the world.
Compounding is the secret to wealth creation over a period of decades.   
Regina M. Pitaro
(Deals...Deals...and More Deals, 1999)
Regina M. Pitaro
Columbia University,
Graduate School of Business M.B.A., Finance
Loyola University of Chicago M.A., Anthropology
Fordham University B.S., Anthropology
   Give a man a    sh and you feed him
for a day. Teach a man to arbitrage,
and you feed him forever.   
- Warren Buffett
In 1999, we published one of the few books
on merger arbitrage, Deals   Deals   
and More Deals. Our newest publication,
Merger Masters: Tales of Arbitrage,
pro   les leading investors who share our
enthusiasm for merger arbitrage and
have utilized the investment discipline in
various forms over the last half-century. It
also includes the perspective of iconic CEOs
who have used M&A to build value and,
in the process, tangled with the arbitrage
community. Merger Masters is available on
Amazon.com.
M E RG E R AR B ITR AG E
G abelli & Partners is highly specialized, providing clients with products and
customized solutions within the    Private Market Value with a Catalyst      
method of investing, while utilizing the full resources of the broader
organization. The strategies employed within our portfolios strive to achieve
superior risk adjusted returns with an aim to preserve and grow wealth
while maintaining low volatility. Our strategies focus on fundamental, active,
event-driven special situations and merger arbitrage.
We have invested in this way since 1977 and introduced our first dedicated
alternative portfolio in 1985, Gabelli Associates, which focuses on absolute
returns by investing in announced mergers and acquisitions. Beyond merger
investing, we offer several additional portfolios that build on the firm   s
strengths in global event-driven value investing.
(Y)our M&A Portfolio Team
Ralph Rocco
Paolo Vicinelli
Willis Brucker
(Y)our Teammate Since
1993
1999
2004
Rutgers University Columbia University Boston College
B..A., Economics M.B.A., Finance B.S., Finance
We are committed to providing our clients with a high level of services. Our client service and investor relations teams are
continually seeking new ways to array and deliver information more effectively, and are regularly customizing the needs
of our clients and partners, to focus on enhancing relationships and transparency for the long-term. Gabelli & Partners
provides investment solutions through various vehicles and investment structures such as: sub-advised portfolios, custom
share classes, new investment vehicles both domestic and foreign, as well as specialized structures, all coupled with
the corresponding operational needs of the overall mandate. We also continue to forge partnerships and distribution
arrangements to provide either new investor access points or streamlining existing channels to invest alongside our partner
capital. One such development was a yearlong onboarding of our UCITS fund to the NSCC framework, allowing for an
improved subscription process for global investors within the U.S. non-resident client markets and those investors from Latin
America who are serviced in the U.S.
3



shareholder letter icon 5/9/2024 Letter Continued (Full PDF)
 

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