Buy Hold Sell, by Livewire Markets

If you’ve ever watched a race, there’s usually someone trailing well behind the pack. The limelight belongs to the winners, of course, but there’s always a mix of second-hand embarrassment and sympathy for the poor sod trying and failing to catch up.

Growth investing can feel much the same. Miss the starting gun, and you may have already missed the early and most powerful part of the rally. 

In this episode, Anna Milne from Wilson Asset Management and Blake Henricks from Firetrail Investments explain how they identify early-stage growth opportunities and more importantly, how they distinguish early-stage businesses with long growth runways from those that are simply cheap. 

A key insight they agree on is that successful early growth investing starts with a deep understanding of the business itself, built through direct engagement with the company, not just financial metrics. 

They each share two under-the-radar growth stocks they rate as buys, along with the investment thesis behind them. This is an all-buys episode, so keep your watchlist handy.

Please note this episode was filmed Wednesday 28th January, 2026.

To paraphrase Gordon Gecko, growth is good.

But not all growth opportunities are created equal (just ask ASX tech investors right now), and after a year in which some growth stocks soared while others stalled, what's the outlook for growth this year, and how do you take advantage?

To answer those questions and more, we welcomed Anna Milne from Wilson Asset Management and Blake Henricks of Firetrail Investments to cover off all things growth stocks.

They reveal how they're handling the current market rotation, what they actually look for in growth-oriented companies and the thinking that goes into deciding when to sell.

They also each share their top pick for an ASX growth stock in 2026.

Please note this episode was filmed Wednesday 28th January, 2026.

Welcome back to a new year of Buy Hold Sell.

At the end of last year, we asked you, our Livewire readers, to tell us what your most-tipped growth stock will be for 2026. It was our 10th year running the survey, with nearly 5,000 responses, and we crunched the numbers to see which names emerged as clear favourites.

So for our first episode of the year, we asked our guests, Anna Milne from Wilson Asset Management and Blake Henricks of Firetrail Investments, to run the ruler over five of your most popular stocks from the results.

We also asked our guests to bring the stocks they think should have made the list and you should most certainly add to your watchlist.

Despite the noise, 2025 has quietly thrown up plenty of opportunities for investors.

Anyone switched on enough to play the Resources rebound, the generational gold trade, the small cap surge or even the CBA rally (before things cooled off) has probably done pretty well for themselves this year. 

While many investors sat on their hands over AI and bubble fears, or licked their wounds following the Liberation Day correction, others took the chance to act and reaped the benefits. 

Fortune favours the bold, or at least those willing to think outside the box. So as we prepare for the clocks to tick over to 2026, what are the big opportunities out there for investors looking to outperform over the next 12 months? 

As part of our 2026 Outlook Series, we asked nine leading fund managers to share the biggest investment opportunity they've identified for next year.

Markets love a good story. And for most of 2025, it’s been the same story everywhere.

A handful of mega-cap stocks have driven the majority of equity market returns in the US, and a similar pattern has been evident here in Australia, where blue-chip heavyweights have dominated the spotlight.  

In both jurisdictions, hundreds of profitable companies have been ignored, and that’s how overlooked stocks are born. These are not broken businesses, just forgotten ones.

Later in the year, investors started to move down the market-cap spectrum - particularly in Australia, where small-caps have caught a bid. 

As leadership continues to broaden and fundamentals regain the spotlight, those ignored names can re-rate fast.

With 2026 now underway, we asked 10 leading fund managers to look beyond the obvious and share the overlooked stock they believe could surprise on the upside.

These interviews were filmed on Tuesday, 9 December 2025.