ragnarisapirate

Bronco, where is your money at on this one? I presently don't, and don't plan on having a dog in this fight, but, Sketchers looks a lot cheaper despite DECK being a "better" company. BTW, congrats on AAPL's earnings.

One can only hope.

Did he comment on equity puts or anything of the sort?

This is what I picked up on the most out of that... How did you get your family to buy into your decision, to give away 99 percent of your wealth? "They haven’t talked to me for quite a while. My family is going to be in the upper quarter of 1 percent or something like that of humanity in terms of the funds that they have at their disposal. My goal originally was to leave my children enough so that they could do anything, but not enough so that they could do nothing." (the italics are mine.)

I am with Packer on this one... I only have one issue though. As we have seen, even cheap companies go down with a lowering tide, but, you hate to not own them... It is pretty frustrating. The best example of this was SNS a few years ago at 9, then 7, 6, 5, 4, and finally, 3 bucks a share... There is no doubt that it was undervalued the whole time, but, it just kept going down. Their debt concerns probably caused a lot of it, but, I can't help but think there was some forced selling a few months before the march lows. Hell, even ITEX got hammered! Personally, I am scared for the dow, but, in my own portfolio feel safe, despite realizing that it will probably get beaten down in the coming year or 2. What's a guy to do? forgo a 30-50 cent dollar to try to get one for 15 cents!? (and I am not asking this rhetorically)

The guys at CCLR are not only members of the board, but have an impressive track record with their funds. With the new acquisition, the stock may prove to be a nice investment, as they are small enough that they have a ton of room to grow (there is also no indication that they are trying to pyramid their holdings, as well). There are a bunch of others which, at the right price would do fine. Itex may prove to become a holding company at some point as well, but, that is one of the more hotly contested contests out there. Honestly, I am kinda surprised that more board members have yet to jump on the bandwagon and vote with Parsad and his cronies... :)

I just saw it, and the movie was great. can't wait for parts 2 and 3. At times, the dialog was off, but, nothing major. I can easily give it 7 out of 10, but, think a higher rating is warranted.

I too, am excited... :D

Yeah, but that's job related. It's the scuttlebutt that Phil Fisher talked about... right?

I know that I am probably beating a dead horse here, but, I am buying SYMS every chance I get.

Interesting results. Some of us don't drink because we're nerds and others of us drink because we are! ;) It would be interesting to see about other lifestyle habits of the board. I wonder if we all eat as much like a kid as Warren... I am guessing Charlie would be a bit more distinguished in his diet. Hell, it'd even be interesting to see if there were any of the investment banker style coke heads on here!

Even me, who has generally given Biglari the benefit of the doubt (but always decreased my intrinsic value of the company every time he does something like this) is getting a little sick of this stuff. I used to say that shares would need to be cut in half for me to want to buy much. Now, I probably wouldn't buy the new A shares (all things equal) unless the company were trading under tangible book. It really is a shame that I am not gonna be at the annual meeting this year to take and post notes... I am sure that it would have been a doosey.

*Bump* Curious to see the thoughts of people now that the SEC is investigating and such.

Well put.

You guys think that they are in as tight of a spot as the US?

The rich (or rather, producers) fulfilled their obligation to the mindless masses (or, society) once the transaction that they had was completed. For example, Bill Gates owes me nothing after I give him my money and he in turn, gives me the latest version of Windows. This is sheerly from an ethics point of view on my part... If you want for a stable society, a high wealth gap probably isn't the way to keep it. People, as behavioral economics indicates, are far to animal to accept what is perceived as mass failure- even if it is the failing parties fault. I will qualify my mindless masses label as simply, society, which, I think is generally pretty mindless (and, I for one, am not exempt!).

I'm with college investor on this one... Besides, if the descendants of the wealth generators are the screw ups that they are often portrayed as, they will piss the money away eventually, and it will get allocated in an efficient manner. Even if it just sits in a bank, that is good for people that want to take out a loan. If it sits in dividend paying stock, that is good for the shareholders, who have less of a float. If they live lavishly off of dividends, then, maids have work, airlines sell tickets, mercedes sells cars, and russia sells some expensive vodka. Regardless, I am always shocked at peoples willingness to tell other people what they should do with their money, which is essentially what an estate tax is; the mindless masses telling the rich how their capital should be distributed after their demise...

Claphands and ValueCFA both have exceptional points. I will only add this: If any of us were forced to analyze as many stocks as they have to, we could end up making some pretty bad calls... If we analyze a really small basket, and only invest in a smaller basket (for me, generally my favorite 5 of so ideas), we potentially have much less to worry about. PLUS, we get the advantage of selecting what we do best, rather than being forced to do it as a job- speaking for those of us that invest on our own, or are managers without a higher up to answer to. :)

Here is a pic of the circular I got. http://ragnarisapirate.blogspot.com/2011/03/new-promotions-at-steak-n-shake.html

I also thought that when it was SNS that it would never get below $3/share... but it did in late 2008. I am not saying that it will get there, or that is even the discount that Biglari deserves (in my mind, it isn't). It's just that there are other ideas out there that are cheaper than BH @ $300, even $250!

International Baler. AND, it's of the size that many on the board could actually buy it. The problem with me, is that the stuff that I, and many people would love to take private, are generally majority controlled!

All things equal, it would have to be cheaper than that for me to be interested... get it to 1/2 of what it's trading at, and I would prolly buy a bunch.

Anyone gonna go to the meeting and ask the question?

Well, if the rumor is true, then, good for Sardar and friends. If it isn't, then, good for shareholders. It almost seems like Biglari is going to end up ruling the world, or have a massive implosion, with there being little room for any other option. Either will be a site to see. I can't wait to see what happens.

I for one, don't care a bit about this. After the compensation agreement, I held on to a single share to get an annual report and coupons in the mail- this is a way for me to get rid of my overvalued share (that I have been itching to get rid of) without having to pay $10 in commissions. :) There will be a share repurchase effect with this split. I do kinda wonder if the company will eventually be traded on the pink sheets; after this split, surely there won't be many Class A shareholders left. Does anyone know if the Class B shares contribute to the 300 threshold for being a reporting company? I want to add in that this is a genius way for him to solidify power over the company, especially when combined with the second class of shares. I know that it isn't pleasing to the palate of many (including me) but, we do need to give credit where it is due; Biglari ain't stupid. I will continue to watch everything the company does with great interest. However, as of right now, the price would basically need to be cut in half for me to want to buy shares. With the info that is out there right now, BH ain't cheap by any means that I can see.