Gregmal

Added a few shares of CPNG after hours. Still not really a material position and I still think tech has some ways to fall, but after spending a bit of time on it, I also think this is a very promising company and a reasonable proxy for SK growth. At the least its worth keeping an eye on.

The point is that the free markets are pretty awesome and that no one should be dictating to others what they can or cant do with their money. Ultimately, Robinhood was right about GME and right about HTZ. This fundamental issue, at least how I see it, is that the establishment, and elitists, are all fine and dandy with "free markets" their way. But then when they lose control they want to change the rules. Much like a casino operator once people figured out how to count cards. They are holier than thou but its an act because you cant be OK with gambling with asterisks when the asterisks are basically just conditions that allow you to prevent others from winning. "They" thought GME was worthless and then when others thought and wanted to buy it at $100 they said "no way". They "knew" HTZ was worth 0 and say "no"....and in both cases they were massively wrong. There doesnt need to be evidence it was a good or bad investment. Was there "evidence" TDOC was a good investment at $15 half a decade ago? Or Tesla at $40? At the end of the day people should be free to spend their money how they wish. A year ago you had no shortage of people lecturing from a pulpit about how everyone else needed to be doing things and the high majority of it has turned out to either be wrong, or at best, misguided.

There were a number of threads a year ago or so on the subject of Hertz, but I figured its worth revisiting. The main subject matter discussed here on COBF was the ridiculousness of Hertz being able to issue shares to retail investors while in bankruptcy. As was symptomatic of many things going on about a year ago, there was a tremendous arrogance with "the professionals", "the experts", etc. There was also this holier than thou attitude about how "immoral" and "unethical" it was. The underlying arrogance hinged upon a beyond a shadow of a doubt conviction that said preachers "knew" Hertz was worthless and retail investors knew nothing. And now it turns out that perhaps Hertz is going to be worth as much as $8 a share. And its just another reminder of how the experts and professionals dont know any better than the Robinhoods, despite the ruthlessness with which they mock and look down upon them. Arent the markets wonderful?

Covered a bunch of my ARK shorts. Added to APTS and been picking at ALCO last few days.

Trimmed more BRKB. Exited LIT(GB).

Over past week I converted some AYR to NVR+MSGE plus paid down some margin.

Don't feel like starting a separate thread, but nice release here. https://www.alicoinc.com/news/detail/1359/alico-inc-announces-strategic-actions-to-increase So again, not the most exciting setup, but to me its a great quasi cash alternative(or free-2% carry if you've got some balls and some margin tolerance). Similar to FRP Holdings setup. You've seen the stress tested downside last year. Now there's material changes to the upside, and a proven management team. Alico has quietly taken some very positive and pro shareholder steps. The targeted ~40M annual EBITDA in a few years makes this compelling and still gives you a lot of free call options. And yea, there's started to be interest in the land. Which IMO is definitely not the best located land in FL, but FL land nonetheless and the soil they are situation on is ideal for building w/ high sand content. If, as alluded to by management, land sales start coming in(some already under contract), you could get a massive rerating here. Regardless, should see continued balance sheet improvement, cash flow ramp, and dividend increases. Just my 2C. Feel free to short it as well.

You can either have a discretionary buyback, which is subject to blackout restrictions. IE 2 weeks before EOQ-a few days after subsequent ER. Stuff like that. Or you can have a 105b type which allows consistent repurchases within the guidelines of normal trading rules, IE nothing for first 15/30 last 15/30 of daily trading.

Any way you cut it, homebuilders will be very busy, for a very long time. There is no credible bear case for something like NVR, IMO.

added to ALCO

^I actually kind of had the opposite thought yesterday. You are correct that 25% is a big deal...but its also not crazy given the pull ISS and those shops have. Theres no shortage of lazy institutional money that just blindly follow their recommendations. Its also trendy so say you're fighting for those initiatives even though theyre stupid. Separately, I was marveling at how Buffett and Berkshire have basically been cool with every administration Ive been alive for. The guy is, to quote Stuart Scott from his 90s SportsCenter days, "As cool as the other side of the pillow". They have no diversity whatsoever, they're nepotistic, they basically said "fuck ESG" in a very high class way....but its all very polished and gets the job done and I expect that to continue. They are world class operators and that seems to be the overriding theme with everything they do. Its very reassuring.

Cant complain about anything Ive read so far. Hopefully there is a minimum quarterly repurchase allocation that ramps with discretion. If BRK can buy ~5%(or lets say$20B) of its outstanding shares per year minimum, this becomes a big time winner under almost any circumstance if you have a 5-10 year horizon. , My fear would be that at a certain price, they stop altogether. Which I am sure some folks embrace, but also is ruthlessly ignorant of the fact that people have been calling the market wildly overvalued for almost the entirety of the past decade. At the end of the day, nobody knows for sure what characteristics or variables will be the true drivers, and as a result, flexibility in the approach is probably the best way to go. Hoarding cash in the current environment is more dangerous than hoarding Berkshire shares.

Maybe we're just crackheads for info. Going from the compactness of an SEC filing, to what could be compared to a kids picture book in terms of consolidated content, leaves me antsy. I agree to on being respectful about the effort that was put in. But Im sure Sanjeev also values and appreciates the input as to what people liked better.

They loved it at X and now hate it at .15X....how many times have we seen this story before? I love Kuppy but how many times do we need to see these "follow the manager" things not work out?

If you've bought a home in the past half decade why wouldn't you be looking at a cash out refi right now?

Yea the new one takes some getting used to. My only issues, and what Ive heard from a lot of others, is its harder to stay on top of new posts with the layout. I really liked the 20 or so post list of most recent postings at the bottom on the old site. If that could be implemented it would be great. This site IMO ind far more mobile friendly though. Main thing though is seeing if, and then why folks liked the old site better and then seeing if its possible to replicate those things.

I realize Sanjeev put a lot of effort into this, so its appreciated. However theres a lot of folks who have indicated preference for the old format. Curious what the numbers would say.

Trimmed some BRKB, added to ARKG short, PTON puts, and picked up a few MSFT+APTS.

Personally Ive found it much easier, and also much more directly impactful to just be generous/considerate within the course of day to day life. You can find tons of worthy GoFundMe campaigns. You can do simple things like pay for the person behind you at the drive thru, you can tip 30%. Volunteering, especially if you believe time is money, is also a great direct way to contribute to the enrichment of the lives of others. If I sent money off to some third party run venture, I'm not quite sure what would ever come of it. However I can know for sure the people in the above examples feel good about it, and even if just temporary, it makes a positive difference for them.

Im as skeptical of money sucking WS types as any, and more often than not agree with you, but I do sense you are getting a little too into the weeds as far as Pabrai. If people want to pay him, thats there prerogative. Do you think a psychiatrist is worth $300 an hour? I call big time bullshit on that too. Basically psychic /palm reader level BS fortified in terms of marketing by a "degree" from an overpriced university.....but if people want to pay for that... by all means. Capitalism lets folks taker advantage of that. I have no problem there. That said, I do agree with you in regards to there being nothing special about value investors who did well when all value investors did well. I dont know if or how Pabrai fits into that, but a good investor adapts and evolves. Guys like Einhorn arent great investors because they refuse to adapt and their egos/pride are more important to them than making money. If that wasn't the case they wouldnt insist on fighting the tape for half a decade or more.

https://nypost.com/2021/04/27/charles-de-vaulxs-apparent-suicide-rattles-wall-street/ De Vaulx leaves behind a wife and two children. So I guess I'm alone in thinking this is only really sad because of what this leaves/burdens upon his wife and kids/loved ones? Otherwise its pretty selfish and pathetic IMO. Guy had everything and off's himself because his stupid financial firm shut down? I continue to be amazed at the WS/finance crowd and their MO that the only thing important in life is one's money/career. Both are shallow and miss the most important things in life.

Started some TRMT

Eh I don't pick my friends based on their investing performance, do you?

Everyone has an obligation to be responsible for themselves. If you have a talent, you are entitled to monetize it. If you have a need, it is in your interest to satisfy that need. Pabrai, like many others, is simply the bi product of a good salesman realizing that most folks are financially illiterate. Nothing more. Its really not that hard to do either. I find it incredible how easily impressed the common folk is by financial folks whom have "a lot" of money and some self aggrandizing story about how they got it.

Jesus Castanza. You're a jack of all traits. The ideal, pre-2000s male. A white collar blue collar guy. I wish I could do shit like that. I honestly wouldnt make it passed pulling permits though. I have no tolerance for dealing with all that shit and especially little tolerance for municipal clipboard people.