John Hjorth

In short, noone, Jeff. - - - o 0 o - - - CoBF is just a truly great place.

Personally, I have tried to do my very best to do exactly that - in this topic, recently. - Now I think I'll just let it go from here. [some days, I think about if there are major flaws in my English communication here on CoBF ... ]

What has the above with your stock picking to do?

Here, I'm sorry for double posting. Basically, this is set up by Orchard as an *OR* in the current environment. Now, how about the alternative *AND* [by doing both: - Saving AND investing]. Personally, I think it depends a lot about who you are and where you live, and what you're willing to do long term at the expense of short term sacrifices, [in the meaning : Under which local circumstances with regard to taxes etc.].

There is still the option - if one starts with a lump sum - basically no matter what size [however size of that lump sum naturally matters for the whole entry to stock picking] - to average in. It creates - over time - a shock absorber - both directions - in the beginning fairly much, later in the process less, - naturally on both your gains and your losses, and if you have made it realistic based on actual and personal circumstances with regard to duration, and do it with mathematical coherence, & determined as a "rule to get in" - you will eventually get invested by your stock picks, - over time. In short, you may end up by starting to buy the index to get stuck/"hung" eternally there, because the index becomes a "sleeping pillow" for you, in that case in your "socalled stock picking endavour". Personally, back then for me - now about 6½ years from now - I personally did that - starting averaging in. I haven't regretted it for one moment. Basically it is about what Mr. Taleb and others call "skin in the game" - personally - to me - it translates to: "If you don't actually practice, you'll never get better at it than you are right now". [<- In the extreme situation of starting with buying the index, you have absolutely no knowledge about if you're good, bad, or even personally a fit for stock picking.]

cherzeca, In short, I agree on the first emphasized part of your post above, ref. my earlier original post. I'm reluctant at elaborating further here - because of fear of participating in or triggering to derail this topic about the Brexit. This also applies for the second part of your last post emphasized by me above, ... but just even more.

cherzeca, Wikipedia : List of currencies in Europe. This article is actually a bit confusing because of its level of detail, but anyway, reading the first paragraph of the article fairly states the overall picture. So my personal answer to your direct question would be : "Non integral". But the Euro is by far the dominating currency in Europe. However that does not in general put constraints on intra-European trade [at least not here in Denmark, where I live]. Here, hedging your currency positions and currency cash flow, is a part of ordinary course of business in any company of decent size with a finance department with respect of itself. - - - o 0 o - - - In a broader sense, there is also a cultural and emotional dimension of Brexit, I think. Nations Online - Interactive Map of European States. - - - o 0 o - - - The whole thing is more about how much gravel will be thrown into a well functioning & existing European trading system & structure. - - - o 0 o - - - Thank you for being open minded, cherzeca.

There exists an investment universe outside the S&P 500 companies. [ : - ) ]

rolling, Just to get a better understanding of your last post here and its backdrop: If I remember correctly from your prior posts here on CoBF, you are a Portuguese citizen. Is my recollection correct? -Thank you. [ : - ) ]

Castanza, A very belated welcome to you from me here on CoBF! [ : - ) ] - - - o 0 o - - - This whole topic is to me somehow void. CoBF isen't a "democracy" in its ordinary sense, ref. the poll attached to this topic [which I'll not take]. CoBF is a privately held, run, moderated & managed board for value investors, run & operated by Sanjeev Parsad. Me, stating that CoBF is not a "democracy" does not imply, that CoBF is the direct inversion of a democracy. This is about the personal properties of the guy keeping the whole place alive, up running & kicking. - - - o 0 o - - - - If one reads the board carefully - a decision was made approx. August 2017, based on ongoing discussion here on CoBF, to split "politics". I haven't read one complaint here on CoBF about this. - - - o 0 o - - - So in short, Castanza - I'm sorry to say - you need to do a lot more of reading here on CoBF to get a feeling how things work around CoBF.

Your post reads to me perfectly up to your usual standard of quality in posts here on CoBF, gfp, And I personally agree with what gfp posted - sincerely, - - - o 0 o - - - Off topic: Best wishes for a speedy recovery, gfp. - - - o 0 o - - - Now back to topic.

I kindly ask all contributers to and readers of this topic to go back and revisit gfp's post #363 of February 25th 2019 in this topic, quoted below : Please do yourself the favor of reviewing the video with the interview of Mr. Buffett with Ms. Quick. Please ask yourself about your personal experience during the clip - especially with regard to Mr. Buffett's behavior and appearance in the clip. To me, he has never been lingering and/or circling any question before he moves straight to question at hand. To me, it has always been "directly head on", and to me it still is. Not even somehow controversial questions I recall have had the ability to bring him out of personal balance [politics etc.]. Now what do you experience here with regard to Mr. Buffett's body language and general appearance? He did not get upset in any way, but anyway? Normally he's "firing back" like a machine gun [friendly meant] immediately - no ping- & lead-time, & totally calme while replying. Here: A bit of unrest appears to take place - he's moving around a bit on the chair - even pausing a bit in his answers some places [absolutely not the normal], and Ms. Quick actually handles it the right way [she is Mr. Buffett's favorite interviewer, and is very good at "reading him" - she - so to say "clicks with him"] by asking him a totally open question in the end of this particular part of the total interview, that gives him the opportunity to leave the subject with a comment that calls for a smile, - and Ms. Quick actually lets it go from there. Personally, I interpret this as Mr. Buffett being quite annoyed/disappointed, not by the question asked [knowing it would be asked], but from that the not specified deal did not work out, and Ms. Quick gently lets him off the hook here. - - - o 0 o - - - Elephants [at least these kind of potential elephants...] aren't really suitable for data driven analysis by us, -and certainly not related to Berkshire buybacks. [ ; - ) ]

Cigarbutt, Somehow I'll argue, that the bullet #1 in the Youtube video : - "Slight nose up attitude" - certainly has merit in the current investment environment, -but not exactly meant the way mentioned in the video ... - more conceptually meant with reference to Icarus, Hubris & Nemesis. [ ; - ) ] - - - o 0 o - - - Today, I've been bear hugging my NVO dividends just received. - - - o 0 o - - - On a more serious note: In short, I share Spekulatius' view, expressed above. Likely rough times ahead for us. Personally, I just hope that we this year get at least some satisfactory clarity on the situation going forward with regard to Brexit & ongoing trade disputes. This may however still be too much to ask or hope for.

Yes.

Thank you for sharing, Charlie, It's much appreciated. Somehow, over the last few years [since I got aware Mr. Rochon, his doings and his writings], reading stuff written by Mr. Rochon has been growing on me - quite a lot. There is however one paragraph in the client letter that I'm a bit puzzled about: How do you perceive it? -Personally, I read it as if Mr. Rochon has bought more big US Banks since after the "as per" date of the last 13-F/HR filing for Giverny Capital [in 2019, as per EOP 2018Q4]. - Please note the word "big" in the paragraph header. In the last Giverny Capital 13-F/HR I only see JPM as one of the "big ones".

writser, I haven't had time to dig into this yet, but I will. It reads - ar-hmm - "juicy"! - A giant battle between Vincent Bolloré and Paul Singer?

Added to TOP.CPH & TRYG.CPH.

Just an ultra-short and compressed elaboration here for you, Spekulatius, Yes, it's been a buying frenzy the last few days, however a tiny one. The frenzy continues Monday with small additions to two dull, but very well run Danish P&C insurers, after which it's back to trading sloth for me. It's about my oldest brother's [in Danish] LD-konto [in English, in daily-day speaking : "LD-Account"]. Website. Website : Background. Danish Wikipedia : Lønmodtagernes Dyrtidsfond. English Wikipedia : Employees' Capital Pension Fund. So, in short, DKK 4,368 "frozen" in the years 1977 - 1979, that has accumulated to approx. tDKK 120, subject to taxation since 1984. Not worth my time for an average in. ["Just buy those damn shares".] My brother agreed on that. - - - o 0 o - - - Not everything is strict logic from an investment angle, when you're managing family money. We disagreed [dearly] on adding to his NVO position. He insisted. The "price" he had to "pay" to me was "to set me free" with regard to reinvesting NVO dividends in NVO. There are trackers of ORSTED.CPH scattered all over the place here in the "system" - up ~ 82 percent since August 2016. I said to him the current price is just plain wrong. He insisted. Here, it's a tracker, and it's his money, so I yielded. My brother is a registered shareholder on all his Scandinavian stocks. I know for a fact, that he's reading all the financials that is incoming in his physical mailbox. To me, it's more important to keep him turned on and interested, eager to discuss when we meet or talk. - - - o 0 o - - - I'm not married to the Lady of the House. I most likely never will. I consider it a privilege to wake up every morning to see her asleep next to me, knowing she is there next to me, not because she has to, but because she wants to. She is - compared to me - a bit of a spender, I'm only expensive on books, I think. What she's spending is her own money, not ours [here, there are no such money], nor mine. - - - o 0 o - - - Yes, shopping is contagious ... A courier was here yesterday with a package from a company called Parfumerie Akzente GmbH, Postfach 74629 Pfedelbach [near Stuttgart?]. Perfumes. - Something to me, too! - I don't know in details what else is actually going on right now ...

Spekulatius, Back in November 2018 - here - Jeff contributed in the ACA topic with a post, based on his personal & actual situation : So much for the US Health Care System. If you are a healthy person in good mental shape, alone maneuvering this system may eventually put you on medication.

Further minor additions today during the morning hours here in Scandinavia and the US, respectively: INVE A.STO [investor AB, ser. A] [Website], INDU C.STO [industrivärden AB, ser. C] [Website], LUND B.STO [L.E. Lundbergföretagen AB, ser. B] [Website], JDAN.CPH [Jeudan A/S] [[Website - unfortunately website - and financials - only available in Danish], ORSTED.CPH [Ørsted A/S] [Website], JPM, BAC & C.

An old post - posted a bit more than four years ago - by Kraven - has come to my mind related to this topic:

Dynamic, Thank you for sharing your hard & cumbersome work with all the CoBF members, to the benefit of us all. - - - o 0 o - - - For SU [suncore Energy] you have the number of shares held by Berkshire at 300,901, while the Berkshire 13-F/HR EOP 2018Q4 signals number of shares at 10,758,000. [You have typed in your file the value of the position instead of the number of shares.] NEAM SU position EOP 2018Q4 I read to zero shares in the NEAM 13-F/HR. - - - o 0 o - - - It does not matter much for the whole picture, however I've chosen to report it to you here, now that I've got aware of it. - - - o 0 o - - - Again, thank you very much for sharing your work, - for my part, it's really, really appreciated.

Added to LVMUY today. [LVMH - Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton SE - bought on its primary marketplace in Paris - ticker MC.PA]

Added to BRK.B, BAM, NVO [NOVO B.CPH], & SCHO.CPH today. - - - o 0 o - - - Had a bit more capital coming in today. [What a hazzle and a walk in the desert - this has been a work in progress since June 2018.]

aws, It' still beyond my comprehension how you since July 17th 2018 still have your bullet #3 in your considerations, latest based on the following in the 2018 Berkshire Shareholder Letter, p. 12: I'll let it go from here onwards.