Parsad

Sorry guys, I went back and looked at the original post and noticed there was a graph there showing Paulson's performance. I actually used that graph and recalculated his numbers from 1994-2006, before he enjoyed the huge gains from his macro-bet. His annualized return over 12 years was around 15%, while the S&P500 would have been about 10% during the same period. So yes, his numbers before his macro-bet were significantly lower and on par with many other excellent managers. I still would like more details on Brookdale. Unfortunately, I think making these types of lists are hardly ever an apples to apples comparison. Short-term events, leverage, etc often are the reason. Long-term, I think the actual disparity and margins between the best managers is far narrower than most investors think, especially when you equate the types of holdings, regionality, cash, concentration and such. Cheers!

Hi Ben, that's what I originally thought, but Paulson must have done better than 3 times the market cumulative since 1994. Bruce Berkowitz at Fairholme has done 4 times better since 2000, so there's no way Paulson has only done 3 times better since 1994, unless he had very low returns previous to the last few years. Cheers!

Hi Mpauls, Can you clarify? Paulson did 17% and the markets did 8.8%...isn't that 2 times better, not 3? Also, what are Brookdales numbers like and how do they operate their fund? Cheers!

Galleon has two funds on that list. The founder has been charged with insider trading, along with five other people. Buyer beware! Cheers!

Fairfax files amendment to original filing on lawsuit, and gives more detail about the judgment against Capgrowth. Cheers! http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/915191/000095012309050993/o57491sctovtza.htm

Excellent point! We should ask David Letterman the same question. ;D Cheers!

Fairfax's 3rd Q results come out after market close on October 29th, with a conference call to follow the morning of the 30th. Cheers! http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Fairfax-Announces-Conference-iw-4280660897.html?x=0&.v=1

The injunction asked for by Capgrowth Partners regarding the ORH/FFH merger has been denied by the judge. Cheers!

And the list keeps rolling... Insider trading charges against Galleon founder: http://www.cnbc.com/id/33343625 Cheers!

Another long-running Ponzi scheme...this one in San Francisco. http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/10/15/BARS1A6AMQ.DTL Last Friday, some company called "Cirplus Futures" was shut down eight floors below us. I believe it is also another fraud or embezzlement. Crazy! When the tide goes out...Cheers!

although they are very senior and its unlikely that I will ever meet them Anyone can meet Prem briefly at the Fairfax AGM each year in Toronto, and all you have to do is look for the big, tall Indian guy in Omaha each year to find Mohnish. Ajit Jain is a bit harder, but you can usually find him in Omaha as well. Cheers!

Successful or not...I think BYD may very well be another venture that Berkshire is stepping into that contradicts what they've said in the past...airplanes, technology, derivatives, etc. Capital-intensive, few moats, weapons of mass destruction, etc. Cheers!

They seem to have a track record long enough to show that they can perform in good times and in bad. You're correct, but it only takes one mistake to wipe out a string of successes...especially utilizing leverage. Cheers!

On the side note - Does anyone know, which IIT Prem went for his undergraduate? Prem went to IIT - Madras. Interestingly enough, Ajit Jain went to IIT - Kharagpur. Neither knew each other during their university days, but got to know each other through the insurance industry. Funny, how one single-handedly made more money for Berkshire than anyone except Buffett, and the other did the same at his own company. Both are true gentlemen as well. Cheers!

You should ask yourselves how much leverage (if any) was used, and were there outliers? Claire Barnes is a terrific manager, but some of that result is from being in the hottest market over the last decade. Paulson almost certainly uses some leverage and had the outlier of making a killer return the last two years betting on the demise of the credit bubble. Cheers!

This is hilarious. Anyone who has read Black Swan knows Taleb's opinion, that the nobel prize is a joke and should be considered an insult if won. Taleb's generalizing. I'm pretty sure Woodrow Wilson deserved one for creating the precursor to the United Nations, as did Martin Luther King and Mother Theresa. If anyone's visited Poland lately, Lech Walesa probably deserved one as well. Cheers!

There was a time when winning a Noble Peace Prize was a reward for a lifetime of dedication and work for the betterment of humanity. Now its been reduced to a political prize awarded on the basis of ideology. Its significance is insignficant. I agree, but let's not completely disregard the significance of Obama's selection. The sheer magnitude of how the world views the U.S. between this administration and the previous administration is like night and day. While a hammer fist works some of the time, I believe goodwill usually leads to greater long-term alliances. Cheers!

I'm sure Bill Clinton is just pissed as hell today! This guy won in one year, what Clinton has sought for so many. I'm sure Bono is about to make a call asking for money. My brother and I were talking the other day about Bono. We believe if Bono from the 80's (that made the Joshua Tree) were able to travel time to the future and meet Bono from today, he would kick his ass and tell him what a sell-out he's become. Even more so, why is U2 allowed to shelter their money offshore, but ask international governments for theirs for humanitarian aid? At least Oprah gives away millions and millions while asking for other people's money. Anyway, that was my rant on Bono. ;D Cheers!

I believe no sitting U.S. President has won the Nobel Peace Prize while still in office since 1919 when Woodrow Wilson won and previously President Theodore Roosevelt won in 1906. Cheers!

Simons is retiring, but he will leave his investments intact within the fund. Cheers! http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=apValkFCAG9w

Is this some small-time fund manager or an attack by disgruntled shorts. Anyway, Capgrowth Partners (which I can't find anywhere) has filed a class-action lawsuit against Fairfax regarding the ORH offer. Cheers! http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/915191/000095012309049298/o57399exv99wxayx5yxiy.htm

Dual, how about you do the analysis yourself and report back to the board. Would that not add substance to my PR-like heading?

You mentioned all his funds were up > 3% when compared to S&P 500. Is the 3% annualized or total? Also, how many years are his funds in business? Thanks in advance for your comments. Yes, even with the huge loss last year, and then the subsequent rise, all of his funds have at least a 3% annualized margin above the S&P500 TR since inception. So if you invested from day one, you would have grown at a minimum of 3% better than the S&P500 TR when annualized. In fact, I believe PIF2 has something like a 18% annualized differential since day one. Can't one roughly granulate through 13Fs filings? Yes, you can but I'm not about to do the work for anyone. Cheers!

He didn't mention how many positions he has at this point. Only his partners will know at year-end when they receive audited information and his annual letter. Cheers!

PIF 2 - +112.5% YTD PIF 3 - +118.6% YTD PIF 4 - +113.0% YTD All three funds are now beating the S&P500 TR by 3% or better since inception. PIF 2 is beating it by over 17% annualized for the last ten years! He's still below his high watermarks, but at least he's moved enormously in the right direction. Assets under management are now back up to $460M, and Mohnish's stake is back up to $37M. The 2010 AGM's have switched places: California will be on September 11th, and Chicago will on September 25th next year. Cheers!