In the 1984 Berkshire Hathaway Shareholder Letter, Warren Buffett describes his and Munger’s suprising strategic plan for finding their big investment ideas, saying: “Using my academic voice, I have told you in the past of the drag that a mushrooming capital base exerts upon rates of return. Unfortunately, my academic voice is … Read More
Warren Buffett: There Is Only Three Ways A Smart Person Can Go Broke
Over the years Warren Buffett has spoken about the absurdity of borrowing money to buy stocks. Here’s a great short video that encapsulates his thoughts. Our favorite quote from the clip is: (1:47) – “My partner Charlie says there is only three ways a smart person can go broke: liquor, … Read More
Warren Buffett: Jack Bogle – Thank You On Behalf Of American Investors
With the sad death of John (Jack) Bogle last week we thought it would be a great time to remember Warren Buffett’s public adulation of Bogle at the 2017 Berkshire Hathaway Shareholder Meeting in which Buffett said: There’s one more person I would like to introduce to you today and … Read More
Warren Buffett: “Berkshire Could Be A Rest Home For Activists”
Here’s a great interview with Warren Buffett at Fortune’s Most Powerful Women Conference in which he discusses why he’s not a fan of activists, and the importance of having good communication with your shareholders in the case of an activist surfacing. Here’s an excerpt from the interview: Buffett: Activism is … Read More
Charlie Munger: Moral Investing – We Could See It Was Like Putting $100 Million In A Bushel Basket And Setting It On Fire As We Walked Away
Here’s a great video with Charles Munger and Warren Buffett at the 2005 Berkshire Hathaway shareholder meeting in which they discuss the moral distinction between buying a stock and a company. Here’s an excerpt from the video: CHARLIE MUNGER: Yeah. I think he’s asking in part, are there some businesses … Read More
Warren Buffett Predicted The Fall Of Eddie Lampert And Sears Over 10 Years Ago
Here’s an article at Yahoo Finance discussing the bankruptcy of Sears and the prediction by Warren Buffett 10 years ago regarding the fall of Eddie Lampert and Sears. Here’s an excerpt from that article: The end for Eddie Lampert, the hedge fund manager in charge of Sears Holding Group, appears … Read More
WSJ: How Did Warren Buffett Respond To Lehman and AIG When They Asked For Help In 2008
Here’s a great video from the WSJ in which Warren Buffett discusses the 2008 financial crisis, how he was approached by both Lehman Brothers and AIG when they asked for help, and why he turned them down. Buffett recalls being contacted by AIG saying: On Friday, preceding the weekend, I got … Read More
Warren Buffett: 35 Books That Every Investor Should Read
We recently started a series called – Superinvestors: Books That Every Investor Should Read. So far we’ve provided book recommendations from: Charles Munger: 32 Books That Every Investor Should Read Seth Klarman: 32 Books That Every Investor Should Read Together with our own recommended reading list of: 50 Of The … Read More
Warren Buffett: In The World Of Mergers And Acquisitions, A Limping Horse Could Be Peddled As Secretariat
While all of the Berkshire Hathaway shareholder letters are a must read for investors, the 1995 letter is notable for two reasons. The first is Buffett’s explanation of Berkshire’s ‘Woody Allen’ approach to investing. The second is Buffett’s commentary on acquisitions saying: “In any case, why potential buyers even look … Read More
Warren Buffett (Age 21): The Security I Like Best (1951)
Here’s a great article written by the 21-year-old Warren Buffett for The Commercial and Financial Chronicle dated Thursday, December 6, 1951. The article is a great illustration of how a young Buffett analysed GEICO for potential investment saying: “At the present price of about eight times the earnings of 1950, … Read More
Warren Buffett: How to Minimize Investment Returns
In their Berkshire Hathaway 2005 shareholder letter Warren Buffett provided a great illustration of how shareholders continually sabotage their investment returns saying: “Long ago, Sir Isaac Newton gave us three laws of motion, which were the work of genius. But Sir Isaac’s talents didn’t extend to investing: He lost a … Read More
Warren Buffett: “Anytime That The Market Takes A Sharp Dive And You Get Tempted To Sell Or Something, Just Pull Out This Book And Reread It!
Here’s a nostalgic video with Bill Gates and Warren Buffett. At 2:13 Buffett says: “This is a book that first came out in 1949, The Intelligent Investor by Ben Graham. When I read this book it changed my life. Anytime that the market takes a sharp dive and you get tempted to … Read More
Warren Buffett’s Three Best Investing Tips — Including ‘Margin of Safety’ — Explained
Here’s a great article at CNBC discussing Warren Buffett’s three best investing tips, including margin of safety: Warren Buffett believes investors should buy stocks within their “circle of competence” and at attractive values to succeed in the stock market. Buffett’s track record is unparalleled. From 1965 to 2017, Berkshire Hathaway’s … Read More
Warren Buffett: The Prototype Of A Dream Business
Warren Buffett has often spoken about the importance of a business moat. In a presentation to the MBA students at the University of Florida Buffett said: “I want a business with a moat around it. I want a very valuable castle in the middle… and then I want the Duke who’s … Read More
Outperformance Means Living Through Periods of Underperformance
In Berkshire Hathaway’s latest annual shareholder letter Warren Buffett provides a great illustration of how price randomness in the short term can obscure longterm growth in value. His following real-life example demonstrates that in order to achieve longterm outperformance investors must suffer through periods of significant underperformance. Here’s an excerpt … Read More
Warren Buffett: Investing Lessons Learnt From ‘That’ Bet
In 2007 Warren Buffett entered into a 10 year bet with Protégé Partners that the S&P 500 would outperform a selection of hedge funds over the following ten years. Last year he won that bet which resulted in the Girls Inc. of Omaha receiving $2,222,279 from his initial outlay of $318,250. In … Read More
Warren Buffett: How To Use Phil Fisher’s Scuttlebutt Method Today
Last year Warren Buffett did a great interview with Becky Quick at CNBC in which he discussed how he uses Phil Fisher’s ‘Scuttlebutt Method’ for finding investments. Phil Fisher wrote a investing classic called, Common Stocks and Uncommon Profits. Scuttlebutt means rumors or gossip about a particular product or company from … Read More
Warren Buffett – “EMT Has Been An Extraordinary Service To Us And Other Followers Of Graham”
Here’s a great passage from Warren Buffet’s 1988 Berkshire Hathaway Shareholder Letter in which he discusses issues surrounding the Efficient Marker Theory (EMT) and how it has been a godsend to Grahamites. In terms of the ‘contest’ between EMT believers and the value investing community Buffett says: “In any sort … Read More
Warren Buffett – “It’s Not What You Look At That Matters; It’s What You See.”
Warren Buffett provides a great lesson for all investors in the book – The Warren Buffet Way, by Robert Hagstrom. The lesson is that investors can spend weeks and years reading and analyzing information on prospective companies, but according to Buffett, “It’s not what you look at that matters; it’s … Read More
Warren Buffett: Why Stocks Beat Gold, Bonds… and Bitcoin
It’s quite incredible to watch the latest euphoria surrounding cryptocurrencies and Bitcoin. Whether or not we’re witnessing a bubble, only time will tell. But at the time of writing there are 1395 cyrptocurrencies with a combined market cap of approximately $730 Billion. Of which Bitcoin has a market cap of … Read More