DooDiligence Posted January 15 Posted January 15 1 minute ago, gfp said: That's the cloud room bro! They are going for high design. It isn't that old Probably looks better in person. Not hacking at the old guy. I like to squeeze a nickel myself.
gfp Posted January 15 Posted January 15 15 minutes ago, DooDiligence said: Probably looks better in person. Not hacking at the old guy. I like to squeeze a nickel myself. it is a common area for all tenants of the building, not the Berkshire office
John Hjorth Posted January 15 Posted January 15 (edited) Observant Berkshire investors notice everything, nothing skips their attention! ! Btw. I'm here with Jeff [ @DooDiligence ] - that's also to me personally a darn ugly carpet! - - - o 0 o - - - Edit : That story about the young Buffett running him self into the ditch, the ground, burning through 40 dollars hard earned [the equivalent to thousands paper deliveries, one penny each!] on horse race betting, ending up buying himself a meal for the leftovers, then going home broke, switching to stock investing is just awesome! - Even Becky Quick can't maintain composure! Edited January 15 by John Hjorth
DooDiligence Posted January 15 Posted January 15 5 hours ago, John Hjorth said: Observant Berkshire investors notice everything, nothing skips their attention! ! Btw. I'm here with Jeff [ @DooDiligence ] - that's also to me personally a darn ugly carpet! - - - o 0 o - - - Edit : That story about the young Buffett running him self into the ditch, the ground, burning through 40 dollars hard earned [the equivalent to thousands paper deliveries, one penny each!] on horse race betting, ending up buying himself a meal for the leftovers, then going home broke, switching to stock investing is just awesome! - Even Becky Quick can't maintain composure! His feelings regarding kindness are genuine. Next go 'round he'll probably be on the other end of the wealth spectrum and affect as many, or more people, as he has here.
Whensthepaintdry? Posted January 15 Posted January 15 Some things about Ted I haven’t heard and a little about Greg.
gfp Posted January 15 Posted January 15 4 minutes ago, Whensthepaintdry? said: Some things about Ted I haven’t heard and a little about Greg. If you want the summary and don't have time. I had Gemini watch the video and just pull out what was important about Ted and Greg: -------------- The video features an interview with Bob Miles, author of The Warren Buffett CEO, who shares several detailed anecdotes and insights regarding Greg Abel and Ted Weschler. Greg Abel Succession and Culture: The media often mistakenly believes Greg will make dramatic cultural changes. In reality, while he may "tweak" things to fit his own style, he is committed to maintaining the existing Berkshire culture [22:13]. The "Burden" of Cash: Critics often view inheriting Berkshire’s massive cash pile ($380 billion) as a burden. However, Bob Miles points out that Greg inherits a company that can earn approximately $11–12 billion annually just from interest on that cash, which is a massive advantage [23:18]. Wealth and Alignment: Greg’s wealth was created as a business owner, not a professional manager. When Berkshire acquired Mid-American Energy, Greg was eventually given a 1% stake. He later sold this back to Berkshire for $870 million (paying full taxes) and used $50 million of his own money to buy Berkshire stock on the open market at the same price as any other shareholder [25:24]. Operational Role: Greg has effectively been doing the CEO job for eight years, managing 90% of Berkshire’s subsidiaries and employees [26:18]. Coaching Mentality: Ted Weschler describes Greg as an "operator" (whereas Warren is not). Greg has stated he wants to be remembered as a "father and a coach," contrasting with Warren Buffett’s desire to be remembered as a teacher [31:57]. Ted Weschler Investment Performance: Before joining Berkshire, Weschler ran the Peninsula Fund for 12 years (2000–2012), achieving a 22.6% annual return, significantly outperforming the S&P 500's ~5% return during that same period [29:15]. The Power of Inactivity: During a 10-year period managing the QuadC fund, Weschler made only 20 investment decisions. He noted that "the best things I have done is to do nothing" [30:28]. The $264 Million IRA: A rogue IRS agent illegally leaked Weschler's tax returns, revealing that he grew a $70,000 investment in 1984 into $260 million by 2011. Rather than being angry, Weschler used the exposure as a public lesson, stating he didn't do anything an average investor couldn't also achieve through long-term compounding [31:08]. Commitment to Berkshire: Weschler still works out of his original small office above a bookstore in Charlottesville, Virginia [32:04]. He was the primary driver behind Berkshire’s massive investment in Apple [32:34]. Personal Expenses: In a remarkable show of dedication, Weschler flies from Virginia to Omaha every Monday and Tuesday to work with Buffett, paying for his own NetJets flights out of his own pocket rather than charging them to the company [33:24].
DooDiligence Posted January 15 Posted January 15 25 minutes ago, Whensthepaintdry? said: Some things about Ted I haven’t heard and a little about Greg. An effective handholding session. Worth watching if you're worried about the generational leadership change, cultural rot at wholly owned subs or capital allocation (dividends vs buybacks). The chocolate story was just lagniappe.
oscarazocar Posted January 15 Posted January 15 On 12/8/2025 at 5:44 PM, oscarazocar said: What is the source for Combs bringing the Apple investment to Berkshire? I have talked to a few investors who believe that Combs has tried to take credit for the Apple investment (see Graham & Dodd breakfast in 2023 where he implies it) when they think that Weschler is the one who initiated it, and that seems to fit a pattern where Weschler stays quiet on things and avoids taking credit and Combs tries to puff up his importance. Buffett and Weschler have both pointedly refused to acknowledge whose idea it was directly. Make of that what you will. There is a lengthy comment from VIC floating around where someone litigates the case against Combs. Here is a 2016 interview with Weschler where he discusses Apple and Berkshire. https://blog.umd.edu/davidkass/2016/10/23/ted-weschler-explains-berkshire-hathaways-investment-in-apple-to-german-magazine/#:~:text=Warren Buffett's portfolio manager was,disclosed whose position Apple is. Here are the Combs 2023 breakfast notes: https://investmentmanagementinsights.substack.com/p/graham-and-dodd-annual-breakfast Robert Miles says definitively here at 32:35 that Weschler was behind the Apple investment at Berkshire, in recounting his interviews with Weschler.
ZindyLou Posted January 15 Posted January 15 Funny quiz on "How Well Do You Know Warren Buffett and Berkshire Hathaway?" , and not easy at all. A couple of questions surprised me. Worth posting here since it’s Buffett/Berkshire related. WSJ link if anyone wants to try: https://www.wsj.com/finance/investing/how-well-do-you-know-warren-buffett-and-berkshire-hathaway-take-our-quiz-c9c77bad?mod=wsj_FV
UK Posted January 16 Posted January 16 https://archive.is/pRiHv Jamie Dimon says he called Warren Buffett after poaching his protégé
KPO Posted January 21 Posted January 21 https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1637459/000110465926005089/tm263595-1_424b7.htm This is interesting. Greg’s first act as CEO may be disaster remediation.
Masterofnone Posted January 23 Posted January 23 BRK has taken a back seat here to Fairfax, but if it drops another few percent from here I'll begin buying back some of the shares sold last year. I know it's outdated and all, but $445 is roughly 1.3 X current estimated book. I'd think that buybacks would resume in earnest at that level providing some downside support. Anyone else starting to become interested or is Berkshire getting set out on the curb?
Malmqky Posted January 23 Posted January 23 17 minutes ago, Masterofnone said: BRK has taken a back seat here to Fairfax, but if it drops another few percent from here I'll begin buying back some of the shares sold last year. I know it's outdated and all, but $445 is roughly 1.3 X current estimated book. I'd think that buybacks would resume in earnest at that level providing some downside support. Anyone else starting to become interested or is Berkshire getting set out on the curb? I too am anchored to BV despite Buffet telling us not to be. I've always had success buying around book, later 1.2x, and recently 1.3x. I suspect Berkshire outperforms the market for a few years at some point this decade.
DooDiligence Posted January 23 Posted January 23 18 minutes ago, Masterofnone said: BRK has taken a back seat here to Fairfax, but if it drops another few percent from here I'll begin buying back some of the shares sold last year. I know it's outdated and all, but $445 is roughly 1.3 X current estimated book. I'd think that buybacks would resume in earnest at that level providing some downside support. Anyone else starting to become interested or is Berkshire getting set out on the curb? I've had limit orders in for a while now ($480 on down to $450) and the $480 finally hit this morning.
marazul Posted January 23 Posted January 23 Think Berkshire is attractive at this point. Of course it is no slam dunk like it was in 2021 at 1.2x BV, think it even got down below book between 2020 and early 2021. But reality is the market seems quite frothy, and Berkshire at 1.5x BV, lots of cash and a number of productive subsidiaries seems like a good safe bet. It is a similar valuation to where it has traded on average in the post GFC era. Now we have higher rates and a market where all the alternatives seem more expensive, at least compared to prior years. At this valuation, Buffett was a buyer in 2023 and 2024. The best thing that can happen to long term shareholders is for BRK to lag for a while; it would be a good use of capital to repurchase shares. Also, it would reduce pressure on Greg during his first few years. Have been adding once again.
longlake95 Posted January 23 Posted January 23 (edited) I really like the news about Greg off loading Kraft. Tells me, even with Warren as Chairman, Greg is willing to pull levers - pruning and focusing. The Oxychem deal was a nice move. Bought at what may be a cycle bottom. I think BRK does better than most people think over the next few years. Edited January 23 by longlake95
gfp Posted January 23 Posted January 23 I agree but let's not count divesting Kraft as a fait accompli - all they have done is registered (most of) the shares for a possible resale. The press is acting like they filed for a secondary offering and are out
UK Posted January 23 Posted January 23 (edited) 1 hour ago, marazul said: Think Berkshire is attractive at this point. Of course it is no slam dunk like it was in 2021 at 1.2x BV, think it even got down below book between 2020 and early 2021. It was. Since Covid had scared the shit out of me at the time, for a while I had 70+ portfolio in BRK at ~1 BV:). Another one similar time was in 2012 I think. BRK works quite allright <1.1-1.2 BV, plus unavoidable rerating from that level in 2-3 years. Edited January 23 by UK
KPO Posted January 23 Posted January 23 29 minutes ago, gfp said: I agree but let's not count divesting Kraft as a fait accompli - all they have done is registered (most of) the shares for a possible resale. The press is acting like they filed for a secondary offering and are out It may be a shot across the bow in an attempt to get the board to consider alternatives to the split. One could be a partial divestiture to Berkshire in exchange for their equity stake. I’d prefer they sell and move on, but that’s going to be tough to pull off without further cratering the shares. Whatever the case, it’s Greg’s first big public move, so it will get some scrutiny.
Pellom Posted January 23 Posted January 23 33 minutes ago, KPO said: It may be a shot across the bow in an attempt to get the board to consider alternatives to the split. One could be a partial divestiture to Berkshire in exchange for their equity stake. I’d prefer they sell and move on, but that’s going to be tough to pull off without further cratering the shares. Whatever the case, it’s Greg’s first big public move, so it will get some scrutiny. Speaking of this, Warren got really cagey in the recent doc/interview about Greg being able to make "big" deals without the board's approval. The answer he landed on was essentially some version of, "well, if Greg wants to do a deal, then it means I want to do a deal, and the board will go along with it." But, obviously, Warren won't be around much longer. It will be interesting to see the board composition once Warren is gone.
Jaygo Posted January 23 Posted January 23 I'm a never sell of my original BRK.B investment from 2014, that investment moved me away from pure speculation and shit returns to compounder style yearly gains. It taught me that buy and hold can work. I really respect WB and the company as a whole so i'm sticking with them but imo we are in a bull market and there is just too much juice to squeeze elsewhere to have BRK as anything more than a small position.
crs223 Posted January 23 Posted January 23 1 hour ago, Pellom said: Speaking of this, Warren got really cagey ... interesting to see ... What evidence is there that the Berkshire board and management team are not aligned? Can you provide a link, I'd like to see these "really" cagey comments.
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