John Hjorth

Yes, Blake [ @Blake Hampton ], But isen't it also about 'those americans' also 'all' [<- not all, but generally speaking] are chasing the same stocks and thereby driving them up, leaving places and spaces, - somewhere - , where there is still something to do for people like us?

To understand your line of posting in this topic, I hope you woulden't mind to share a little about what's in your backpack by your history and where you live today. It's pretty darn impossible to relate to your postings in this topic without this information. The above hereby posted based on that I've personally never felt that I've lost any part of my privacy by posting here on CoBF, that I'm a Dane, living in Denmark. Thank you, no matter how you may prefer to reply. It is - after all - just about clarity.

Well, wasen't that my line, - not yours, @UK?

Both Putin and the good professor on SkyNews have misunderstood - What is going on in Kursk is 'just' an Ukrainian Special Military Operation. <Sorry, I coulden't help it>

Damn! [in a positive way, -not kidding!], I personally appreciate very much all the input I get almost every day in this topic about this calamity, and how to at least try to think about it, and about how to bring the warfare activities to an end. For my personal part, it actually occupies quite a bit of my mind on a daily basis these days, likely because I live relatively close by. This also includes keeping the ongoing dialogue and discussion civil on an ongoing basis. [I'm by the way pretty sure this topic would suffer the death with a sudden [and silent] *poof* if it was not so - it is like the topic is and exist here on 'tolerated stay', like some most wanted terrorist on a real vacation somewhere, without getting recognized. - - - o 0 o - - - Thank you.

Thank you, @gfp ! I'll buy that explanation about the drop in the trading volume of the A share at par! Nice story, by the way.

Luke [ @Luke ], Are you posting the above from the Mearshiemer substack because it represents your own personal view?, - and in that case, to which degree does it that?

Based on the interesting discussion above about what's been going on in the market with regard Berkshire B shares and A shares I did a lookup today on the NYSE website to get an overall perception of daily trading volumes within the last few months. For the A shares, there appear to be an abrupt change in trading volumes between June 6th and June 7th - trading volumes appear reduced - give or take - on June 7th with about five sixth or so - in one huge one-time drop [<-!, ?]. Please see NYSE website, page for BRK.A, volume column - scroll down to June 2024 data rows . Does anybody here on CoBF have any idea, guess or personal speculation about what this may be about?

This is imperative to understand about Berkshire structure : Annual report 2023, p. K-92, note 15, top of page paragraph [there is no avaiable information about it on quarterly basis in the 10-Qs]: So the sale of some securities in the insurance subsidiaries may generate some cash [in the insurance subsidiaries, that is], but that cash may still 'be on the hook' [and thereby restricted for dividend purposes], based on claims from ongoing or finished litigation etc., taking the actual dividend restrictions into consideration. That said, the above stated is in a way quite academic and hypothetical, because Berkshire and it's insurance subsidiaries will pay according to rulings and verdicts against them, at latest when there is no further possible alternative of appeal or trial. I would personally be shocked to see a Berkshire insurance subsidiary go bankrupt, by Berkshire leaving its own subsidiary on its own, to swim in its own pond with whatever problems it may have. - - - o 0 o - - - So the whole premis and basis for your line of thinking as basis for your question, @Hektor , is void. Berkshire will honor such claims untill the day it any longer can't, or untill the sun in its process of burning up has swollen so much that it has had the Earth for lunch, unless something else has hapened before that.

@Eldad, True, in the meaning he said at an AGM that 'he couldn't sit here in front of the shareholders with 150 B of cash on the balance sheet and at the same time consider himself a success'. But : Focus on studying what he does in stead of what he says. [This also includes that I personally think that about every person can be 'caught' in inconsistencies over time spans of several years.] Another way of expressing it could also be that his investment style over time still evolves.

Thanks, @adventurer , Your post actually made me turn on CNBC in the morning. No luck so far, - it's around 4:30 PM local time here now, and I'm switching back to Bloomberg TV, as the usual channel, when I'm at my usual spot during the day. I checked Becky Quick's account on X also, no news about something like that upcoming there either. Maybe later today ...

This. This is absolutely worth to keep in mind when reminded about it, and to really appreciate.

And it's all speculative, and just that : speculative. None of us actually know what papers - and about what - are laying on Mr. Buffetts office desk and what may have his attention by now - today -, and what he might be messing around with, - or any day, for that sake.

@Xerxes, It's more like number 8 now, 7 to go. [I think we never talk about Aramco here on CoBF, which we perhaps should].

This is a report by the consultancy company McKinsey & Company, as a collaborative effort among five authors, representing the views of McKinsey’s Private Equity & Principal Investor’s Practice and its Family-Owned Business Special Initiative. So it's actually intended, directed and adressed at the companys clients in those two departments. I think there for us as DIY investors and stock pickers as members of CoBF there is a lot of useful stuff touched in this piece, that I think many of us may find interesting and worth the readers time to study. Based on the report It's possible - as a DIY investor to deduct which criteria to assess and dive into when looking at such family controlled groups / companies, that appear from a rear viewing perspective appear to be long term successful. I think the sample analysed and the underlying dataset may be of interest, but likely access to that is based on McKinsey client relation. I really can't define or for my self explain how it is for my personal part, I can just conclude, that I after now more than a decade in investing have ended up buying a lot of such family controlled and well diversified stuff, and as years have passed, involved as long-only, long-term buy-and-hold, I have seen those positions have been pleasant experiences in most cases, with satisfactory returns, and very rare disapointments or negative surprises along the way, in short : how I like it most. In many my cases, such stuff has been conglomerates, and thereby by their nature quite complicated, which I like, so there is always something interesting to study further, as the basic pro-business person I am, deep down in my roots. So I would like to share the report here and discuss it with those interested, who may want to discuss it. Link to report, and attached. Mc Kinsey Co. - The-secrets-of-outperforming-family-owned-businesses-how-they-create-value-and-how-you-can-become-one - 20240829.pdf

Yes, @Hektor, - which change?

USD 50 B from an activist to do what, @Hektor ?

Mike [ @cubsfan ], If you're alluding to what will happen to and about the market value of this basket of 'magnificent [now] eight', it will for sure be exciting to follow going forward, I have no idea about what will happen.

Yeah, and I recall quite a few - likely quite young - CoBF members some years back here on CoBF - bashing both Buffett and Berkshire for being a louzy investor and a louzy investment, respectively. The really funny point about it is that none of chose posters do not post about it any more here on CoBF. [Look at all that cash, the man is old, and he has for sure lost it, it's 'old economy', now see what he has been buying of listed companies, the price paid in this acquisition is crazy, etc., etc.], in fact they don't post any more - at all, that is. And despite all that, it has, on average and long term, worked out really well.

@Xerxes, Back in the middle of July, one day I had to recheck my meds [at that moment hooked on morphine], and I also carefully checked the bottle from which I had a glass - nothing wrong with those, so I asked Luke - the new guy around - the same question. It turns out that there were problems with multiple accounts due to some patch to the board so Luca asked Parsad to edit his user name to his nickname : Luke.

Yes, It's actually mind provoking to think about the 1 trillion USD market Cap value af Berkshire. The issue at hand and of importance to us as shareholders, is for management - at all times - to do it's very best.

I still remember @gfp posting in the first place here on CoBF about these - then 'new' [<- ?] Berkshire Yen borrowings tapping into the capital markets at low interest rates, just thinking 'what the h**k is the man up to?'. Well, we got our questions answered. He is indeed a true multi-disciplinary, tool in the tool box chosen and carefully matched to the situation he's investing into.

I have for now more than a decade here on CoBF been thinking that the in general transactional nature of the described investment approach by a large part of the CoBF members posting here [many living in USA and Canada, perhaps UK can be added here], can be directly related to national tax regimes and systems, where realized gains and losses on finished and completed chains of transactions in tax deferred accounts aren't taxed, and nor are similar unrealized gains and losses on unfisnished chains of transactions].

Thanks, @73 Reds, - great observation, - great post. Berkshire Hathaway 2023 Letter, p. 7, top of page paragraph : Thank you for sharing it here.

Yes, combine that with the stongly gender biased [male] crash in the total population within certain age brackets [young , but adult age] caused by the casualties of the ongoing war. On the long perspective, the flee of the youth to a better life elsewhere with better living conditions and opportunities will be Putins absolutely worst adversary long term forward. He is pretty much without any real kind of counter measures, based on what he himself has decided - limited himself to - to keep in his toolbox. It's really depressing to think about.