How Long Have you been a Continuous Shareholder of Fairfax Financial?

[Buffett_Groupie]

1 hour ago, Mystery Guest said:

We have talked about market timing at the AGM, in reality you have it correct, time in the market is what actually works. However in 2020 I oversized my position thinking this was probably the right time to take that risk. In my calculation the only real risk was another period of lateral price action. the real challenge now is to grow the rest of my portfolio to catch up to Fairfax so I am not forced to sell any! ...working on that  

 

Too many smart investors on this message board who are able to capture the same gain in 4 years as I did in 27 years (1998 - 2025), which is truly humbling. Congratulations to all of you!

[Viking]

12 minutes ago, Buffett_Groupie said:

 

Too many smart investors on this message board who are able to capture the same gain in 4 years as I did in 27 years (1998 - 2025), which is truly humbling. Congratulations to all of you!

@Buffett_Groupie, I just wanted to say… I really appreciated you asking the question you did at the AGM last April. That took a lot of guts. And you handled it with class. Fairfax needs to hear from shareholders like you - so they don’t get complacent. Especially now that they are on a hot streak. I look forward to chatting with you again at this year’s AGM!

Edited February 9 by Viking

[Xerxes]

First bought in 2016 as a tracker position at $653 CAD. Leaned-in in the past 5 years. Three-quarters of shares were bought post-2020. Nothing has been sold.

 

Based on my archives, my average cost bottomed at $494 CAD in January 2021, then average cost has been going up. Today's average cost is at $660 CAD.

 

 

 

[MungerWunger]

Started nibbling around a year ago in the 1200s CAD when the short report from muddy waters was published.

[zippy1]

March 2007.  I was wondering who has CDS bets.  

[John Hjorth]

My household and I have been continuous shareholders of FFH.TO since 30^th April 2013.

[djokovic1]

I am the newest addition to the Fairfax shareholder list, as of this month. Yes, stupid and late I know  But better late than never!

I posted this on the Fairfax2025 thread but adding here for posterity:

 

@Viking Firstly, I have to say thanks so much for your 550 page compendium. It is such an amazing piece of work. I love it. I have gone through it in detail. 

 

Me + 1 run a long only fund from the UK. I looked at Fairfax early 2023 and like an idiot didn't spend time on it because of the 2010 to 2018 period. Could I trust their capital allocation, this idiot said.

 

Well I think it's not too late to correct that mistake. I have fallen in love with Fairfax over the last 2 months and you have helped a lot. So thank you! We now (finally) have a position in this beautiful company.

As you and others on this forum allude to, even with the stock run up I think the risk reward on Fairfax right now is unmatched. I look forward to participating in this forum albeit, I wish I was smart enough to have found it at least a few years ago.

[Viking]

18 minutes ago, djokovic1 said:

I am the newest addition to the Fairfax shareholder list, as of this month. Yes, stupid and late I know  But better late than never!

I posted this on the Fairfax2025 thread but adding here for posterity:

 

 

@Viking Firstly, I have to say thanks so much for your 550 page compendium. It is such an amazing piece of work. I love it. I have gone through it in detail. 

 

Me + 1 run a long only fund from the UK. I looked at Fairfax early 2023 and like an idiot didn't spend time on it because of the 2010 to 2018 period. Could I trust their capital allocation, this idiot said.

 

Well I think it's not too late to correct that mistake. I have fallen in love with Fairfax over the last 2 months and you have helped a lot. So thank you! We now (finally) have a position in this beautiful company.

As you and others on this forum allude to, even with the stock run up I think the risk reward on Fairfax right now is unmatched. I look forward to participating in this forum albeit, I wish I was smart enough to have found it at least a few years ago.

 

@djokovic1, welcome to the dark side   We all look forward to your input/contributions. We all have lots to learn and the more people who get involved/comment the better. 

[Crip1]

3 hours ago, djokovic1 said:

I am the newest addition to the Fairfax shareholder list, as of this month. Yes, stupid and late I know  But better late than never!

I posted this on the Fairfax2025 thread but adding here for posterity:

 

 

@Viking Firstly, I have to say thanks so much for your 550 page compendium. It is such an amazing piece of work. I love it. I have gone through it in detail. 

 

Me + 1 run a long only fund from the UK. I looked at Fairfax early 2023 and like an idiot didn't spend time on it because of the 2010 to 2018 period. Could I trust their capital allocation, this idiot said.

 

Well I think it's not too late to correct that mistake. I have fallen in love with Fairfax over the last 2 months and you have helped a lot. So thank you! We now (finally) have a position in this beautiful company.

As you and others on this forum allude to, even with the stock run up I think the risk reward on Fairfax right now is unmatched. I look forward to participating in this forum albeit, I wish I was smart enough to have found it at least a few years ago.

 

Welcome to Fairfax-land.

 

Your note compelled me to think and subsequently comment about a non-finance thing, not necessarily directed at you, but really for the whole group. Now, it’s fully understood that much of your note was tongue-in-cheek, but it is not good for us to refer to ourselves as being an “idiot”. It’s a psychological thing. If we keep calling ourselves “stupid”, “idiot”, etc. we start to believe it, and that’s not good for anyone long-term. Self-accountability is paramount in life, and it’s very applicable to investing. “I screwed up” or “I did not see this or that” are examples of self-accountability that are not degrading to one’s self. “Idiot” is permanent, “screwed up” is temporary…and if we’re doing something bad, it’s better for our minds to realize that it’s temporary.

 

The opposite is true in reverse for diet and exercise. “I’m on a diet” or “I’m trying to get in shape” are temporary things. “I’m eating healthy” and “I’m staying active” are more permanent.

 

OK, dismounting the soapbox. Welcome, there’s a ton to learn on this site, enjoy the ride.

 

-Crip

[Xerxes]

On 2/9/2025 at 3:51 PM, Buffett_Groupie said:

 

Too many smart investors on this message board who are able to capture the same gain in 4 years as I did in 27 years (1998 - 2025), which is truly humbling. Congratulations to all of you!

Not exactly. Your knowledge related to FFH and investment in general have been compounding since 1998 by holding FFH since. 
 

Surely that unique knowledge and viewpoint cannot be squeezed into four years for those that ticked high CAGR by buying four years ago for the same overall financial return. 

[djokovic1]

@Crip1 I hear you. Everyone makes mistakes in investing (and life), just have to learn from them.

 

The mistake of overlooking FFH in 2023 (which was the first time I came across it), was regrettable because it has all the elements I look for. Great capital allocation, 10/10 culture and a strong financial engine. And I was just lazy to not dig deeper at the time / too quick to say no.

 

Well that’s been corrected. On the FFH train now.

[mananainvesting]

@djokovic1: Welcome aboard the $FFH train!

[Buffett_Groupie]

14 hours ago, Xerxes said:

Not exactly. Your knowledge related to FFH and investment in general have been compounding since 1998 by holding FFH since. 
 

Surely that unique knowledge and viewpoint cannot be squeezed into four years for those that ticked high CAGR by buying four years ago for the same overall financial return. 

It's the envy that is difficult to overcome and how I wish I can time the purchase as impeccably as the smart folks. Hence, I keep reading Munger's quote multiple times a day as a reminder LOL:

 

"Someone will always be getting richer faster than you. This is not a tragedy."

 

 

[Mystery Guest]

On 2/12/2025 at 12:33 PM, Buffett_Groupie said:

It's the envy that is difficult to overcome and how I wish I can time the purchase as impeccably as the smart folks. Hence, I keep reading Munger's quote multiple times a day as a reminder LOL:

 

"Someone will always be getting richer faster than you. This is not a tragedy."

 

 

I suspect you will do fine ... your long term buy and hold strategy will have you holding gains long after others have dipped back out or reduced their position size.  If you have not read it, the book 100 baggers by Christopher Mayer is worth a review.  Its a good reassuring bedtime story for those of us who have been long for many many years. 

[Buffett_Groupie]

13 hours ago, Mystery Guest said:

I suspect you will do fine ... your long term buy and hold strategy will have you holding gains long after others have dipped back out or reduced their position size.  If you have not read it, the book 100 baggers by Christopher Mayer is worth a review.  Its a good reassuring bedtime story for those of us who have been long for many many years. 

1) The smart investor is able to purchase FFH in March 2020.

2) The smarter investor is able to do so in scale in March 2020.

3) The smartest investor is able to do 2) and continue to double up each month for the rest of 2020.

 

That's the ultimate short-cut to instant financial independence without pain and suffering  LOL

[Viking]

1 hour ago, Buffett_Groupie said:

1) The smart investor is able to purchase FFH in March 2020.

2) The smarter investor is able to do so in scale in March 2020.

3) The smartest investor is able to do 2) and continue to double up each month for the rest of 2020.

 

That's the ultimate short-cut to instant financial independence without pain and suffering  LOL

 

@Buffett_Groupie , one of the interesting things with Fairfax in 2020 was an investor did not have to buy stock during the viscous Covid sell off that hit all stocks in March. Everything was on sale then.

 

The general stock market did not stay down for long... it was back to new highs by August 2020. 

 

 

But Fairfax? Fairfax never recovered. In October the S&P500 was hitting new all time highs and Fairfax was still trading 40% below its pre-Covid price. Fairfax's stock portfolio was recovering (a big reason for the initial sell off)...  so the stock price in October 2020 made no rational sense. 

 

Fortunately, a few posters on this board were pounding the table (I remember Sanjeev's posts.. but there were others). It was only in October that I got back on the Fairfax train. And I aggressively sized my position up in November when the vaccine news came out. With hindsight, I was extremely lucky (that Fairfax remained so cheap for so long). 

 

Fairfax is a great example of just how much time investors sometimes have to get comfortable with an investment and to get their positioned sized right. In Fairfax's case, an investor had 8 months.

 

And that was if you wanted to bottom tick the opportunity. As we now know, 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024 were also wonderful times to buy shares in Fairfax. Yes, that is a little nuts.

 

 

Edited 2 hours ago by Viking

[Hektor]

2 hours ago, Buffett_Groupie said:

1) The smart investor is able to purchase FFH in March 2020.

2) The smarter investor is able to do so in scale in March 2020.

3) The smartest investor is able to do 2) and continue to double up each month for the rest of 2020.

 

That's the ultimate short-cut to instant financial independence without pain and suffering  LOL

True, only with the benefit of hindsight. Let's go back to 2019 for a moment. There is no way of telling that these opportunities will materialize.

[Mystery Guest]

1 hour ago, Viking said:

 

@Buffett_Groupie , one of the interesting things with Fairfax in 2020 was an investor did not have to buy stock during the viscous Covid sell off that hit all stocks in March. Everything was on sale then.

 

The general stock market did not stay down for long... it was back to new highs by August 2020. 

 

 

But Fairfax? Fairfax never recovered. In October the S&P500 was hitting new all time highs and Fairfax was still trading 40% below its pre-Covid price. Fairfax's stock portfolio was recovering (a big reason for the initial sell off)...  so the stock price in October 2020 made no rational sense. 

 

Fortunately, a few posters on this board were pounding the table (I remember Sanjeev's posts.. but there were others). It was only in October that I got back on the Fairfax train. And I aggressively sized my position up in November when the vaccine news came out. With hindsight, I was extremely lucky (that Fairfax remained so cheap for so long). 

 

Fairfax is a great example of just how much time investors sometimes have to get comfortable with an investment and to get their positioned sized right. In Fairfax's case, an investor had 8 months.

 

And that was if you wanted to bottom tick the opportunity. As we now know, 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024 were also wonderful times to buy shares in Fairfax. Yes, that is a little nuts.

 

 

@Buffett_Groupie  gave me a hard time at the AGM for having sold some shares over the years. In 2020 when the pandemic was tanking all stock, prices I made a defensive decision to sell 30% of all of my holdings and go to cash ...   I started rebuying my holdings too early, my goal was to re acquire my holdings at a discount and sit tight for an eventual recovery.  At the time it looked like I had played it badly ... however the key goal with any trade/transaction is to continuously increase my share count and let the business do the work. I have experienced a few small 5 and 10 baggers over the years and try not to sell anything unless the fundamental thesis falls apart, or the stock is taken out in a take private/tender offer ... the goal is to not miss out on the ultimate gift of compounding...   sitting still is still difficult 

Edited 1 hour ago by Mystery Guest
typos

[Mystery Guest]

34 minutes ago, Hektor said:

True, only with the benefit of hindsight. Let's go back to 2019 for a moment. There is no way of telling that these opportunities will materialize.

I would argue that we are here, because we are looking to identify those opportunities. The pandemic was justsuch an opportunity, Mr Market ... over reacted and universally devalued all healthy businesses because of a universal headwind. While there would be short term revenue challenges for all businesses the strong would emerge with an opportunity to grow market share in the recovery.  Like the AMEX salad oil scandal, or the Wendy's human finger in the bowl of chilli, the crisis had little to do with the underlying value of the business.  When WENDY's tanked because of the finger I bought as many shares as I could. A year or so later they spun off Tim Hortens, the real object of my desire ...the result my first multi bagger!  I still have a small chunk of RBI shares with a tiny cost basis so I just collect the dividend and wait for the next artificial crisis to decide if I need to actually do something. 

Edited 55 minutes ago by Mystery Guest