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"I think Berkshire would love to own this company for ever. " Berkshire owns their main competitor through Mitek. http://www.uspconnectors.com

http://www.cnbc.com/id/102052785 - initial CNBC report http://www.berkshirehathaway.com/news/OCT0214.pdf - Berkshire / Van Tuyl group joint press release No information on price so far, but it looks around the same size as Sonic Automotive.

If sites like Yahoo can't even get simple things like share counts / market caps correct (and they virtually never do), they certainly aren't much use for anything more involved than that. Most of those websites, Bloomberg excepted, don't even attempt a Market Cap any more. It was too advanced for them...

I would start by doing some research on the company and its industry. You would want to use the internet, the telephone and your eyes depending on the industry. Sometimes suppliers can be harder to track down - check the filings for risk factors on supplier concentration to see if they disclose any names or percentages. Otherwise it's gonna take scuttlebutt. (if this word means nothing to you, read a bit of Philip Fisher and maybe some Peter Lynch)

That was only in Canada. The Costco American Express TrueEarnings card is very popular in the United States and Amex is the only credit card accepted at US Costco locations. I thought they ended that or was that only in Costco Canada?

looks like last year

We probably won't know until they make a filing. I would guess that it has his usual redemption premium (~10%) and it is possible that it is a compounding security that earns 9% on accrued dividends (ie, doesn't pay cash dividends) Plus something? Sweeteners?

BRK's $3 Billion preferred shares will accrue a 9% coupon

Man, when is this Buffett guy going to start working on behalf of all shareholders? Enough is enough

here are some basics of the bond: http://finra-markets.morningstar.com/BondCenter/BondDetail.jsp?ticker=C513237&symbol=MLET3677468 Then you can find the prospectus on the SEC Edgar website, although it may take a while to find. It will be under Harrah's / Ceasars / or whatever they are calling the broken off bits these days.

it happened, fwiw

Businessweek has a rare long form article on Byron Trott that's worth a read: http://www.businessweek.com/news/2014-08-08/trott-once-goldman-buffett-whisperer-adds-kochs-to-wealthy-ties

They are rumored to be among the bidders for crop insurer ProAg, although there are quite a few firms looking at it. http://www.proag.com/

You'll probably have an easier time finding the flight you want into LAX. Bob Hope is also nearby, but fewer flights. If flying by NetJets, use Van Nuys! Not sure what Glendale airport you are referring to. I always fly into LAX because from New Orleans that is where the great early direct flight goes.

With that level of in-depth analysis, what stopped you from writing "Company worth $1.8 Billion without revenue" yesterday?

I believe TNP was Texas National Petroleum - a merger arbitrage position. EDIT: yes, here is some more color on this arb: http://books.google.com/books?id=hOmE143gjMIC&pg=PA93&lpg=PA93&dq=Buffett+Partnership+TNP&source=bl&ots=3GLf55TsfX&sig=aINU_95iYCgqFbO2JlxHg47nIdM&hl=en&sa=X&ei=5Mi1U87KD4-VyAS8moLIBg&ved=0CCsQ6AEwAg#v=onepage&q=Buffett%20Partnership%20TNP&f=false

Hey Libs - I've used insider buying as an idea generating tool for a decade at least. If you look at it every day you can quickly filter out the less meaningful buys and recognize the entities that are always accumulating a certain company. There are many good sites for checking the daily filings nowadays but I still use one I started with years ago. Also barrons lists the top buys of the week (for free) in their weekend magazine posted online. http://www.insider-monitor.com/insider_stock_purchases.html Also dataroma's home page has a nice insider purchase summary: http://www.dataroma.com (scroll down for significant insider purchases - you'll see Michael Larsen / Bill Gates has been adding daily to RSG this week for instance)

Man, only Charlie could pull this off and see the stock rise - http://www.businessweek.com/news/2014-06-26/munger-s-daily-journal-dismisses-ernst-and-young-after-dispute

Alice Schroeder had this advice in her reddit chat recently: "Contacting Warren Buffett. He prefers to be contacted in writing and likes handwritten or typed letters more than email. Write him a letter at Kiewit Plaza. As a side note, a lot of people write him with essentially the following message: Dear Mr. Buffett, you are wonderful, will you please do the following for me (a) hire me (b) give me money © speak at my event (d) donate to my charity (e) be my mentor (f) help me get out of prison (g) help me market my invention. He gets thousands of these letters -- no kidding! Be original and you're more likely to get his attention." source:

That's great - thanks!

One risk to consider is your ability to obtain title insurance on the property if you become the owner (or a buyer's ability to get title insurance when you try to sell). Some of my friends have experienced huge issues obtaining clear title and title insurance when a previous owner accuses the municipality of doing something wrong in their process, which can keep you from selling a property you acquired this way (even after you have borrowed money to completely renovate the property). A friend of mine was stuck with a New Orleans property for over a year longer than he expected while a previous owner fought and sued him. The city was the one that allegedly messed up - but you basically can't sue the City of New Orleans in this situation according to virtually every lawyer in town. Nobody will even try. Add in potential lapses in mail service / required notifications due to Hurricanes and lost or damaged records and you've got a potential mess. I've heard Louisiana is one of the least attractive states to do these types of deals, but it could still be worthwhile. I've heard that Florida is more investor friendly. edit: One strategy that my wife has used several times successfully is to purchase blighted property from an individual or family that is about to lose their property to the 3 yr tax sale process. Faced with a choice of losing the property for no net proceeds or selling to my wife for some amount more than the back taxes plus all interest and fees - many prefer to redeem their property and sell it just before the tax sale guy would take over ownership.

Thanks for the link - that is some seriously good reporting work

There is a detailed investor presentation for MidAmerican (BRK Energy) at this link. There is a slide that shows ROE of each of the energy subsidiaries and some discussion of capital expenditures vs cash flows. You can also see MidAmerican's tax rate declining to 7% or so from closer to 20% earlier as the tax credits come online. I think there is a substantial lag between investments and the resulting cash flows. They are also earning below the allowed ROEs at all the subs (obviously not over). A lot of the behavior is to show the regulators what a great owner BRK energy is for regulated assets so they will be able to buy whatever they want going forward. http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1081316/000108131614000014/ic2014.htm (side note - I tried to find some Topaz Solar Farms LLC bonds to see the yields since they are BBB, but could not find any available. Anyone know the yields on those?)

Gates Foundation is required to sell BRK shares by law - excess business holdings of a foundation or something like that - they have to steadily sell shares regardless of the dividend under current law. Same reason Pabst Brewing had to be sold.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/2013-Berkshire-Hathaway-Annual-Meeting-Ticket-Credential-Lanyard-Warren-Buffett-/121131175608?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item1c33fb0eb8