WEB:The Oracle of Omaha- Warren Buffett

» KLR - Re: $250,000 for a "Buffet" Lunch ---

On Friday morning, it appeared that one EBay bidder was selling one of the seven "friend" seats at the table for a minimum of $25,000.

That auction was predicated on the seller winning the Buffett lunch in the first place. Apparently, the seller didn't win. By 10 a.m. Eastern, the auction to resell one seat at the lunch was taken down.

Damn, we coulda had that lunch for $32K each but I didn't hear one word from you high-rollers!

-- posted by KLR

» Kirk - Buffett wins battle for Clayton Homes

By David Wells in New York

Warren Buffett (news - web sites)'s Berkshire Hathaway won a protracted four-month battle to buy mobile-home maker Clayton Homes for $1.7bn.

Voters representing about 52.4 per cent of Clayton's shares outstanding were in favor of the sale, according to a preliminary total taken at a special meeting held on Wednesday outside Knoxville, Tennessee.

Chief Executive Kevin Clayton, whose family controls 28 per cent of the shares, said in a statement that the company appreciated "the intense loyalty that our stockholders have exhibited over the past two decades as a public company-and especially over the last four months."

Mr Buffett extended his $12.50 a share offer to buy Clayton Homes, which has had trouble raising the $1bn a year it needs to finance operations, on April 1. His interest in the company stemmed from a reading of the founder's autobiography.

Shareholder opposition was sparked almost immediately. Investors complained the company was worth far more and that the restrictions on the bid were too stringent. The opposition was led by Orbis Investment Management, which owned about 5 per cent of shares.

Shares traded above the offer price from June until yesterday as investors bet the transaction would be killed or another suitor would offer a superior bid. While an investor group led by Cerberus Capital Management expressed interest in the company and the original shareholder meeting was adjourned for two weeks so potential bidders could do due diligence, no competing offer ever materialized.

William Gray, president of Orbis, said opposing shareholders had done all they could, but he was still disappointed with the process. In a statement he said: "Warren Buffett has a great eye for value. Clayton Homes is a prize acquisition. What is disappointing is that while championing the rights of independent shareholders and improved corporate governance, when in his interest he set terms for this merger agreement which encouraged management to adopt a process which falls well short of the standards he advocates."

A spokesman for Mr Buffett did not return a call for comment.

The merger is slated for completion in the next several days. Clayton Homes will become a wholly owned subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway.

-- posted by Kirk

» Kirk - Buffett out of Treasury Bonds in Q2-'03

Treasuries Sag as Recovery Hopes Bubble

Mon August 11, 2003 03:52 PM ET
http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml...

By Pedro Nicolaci da Costa

NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. Treasury prices staggered lower on Monday as bond investors feared positive words on the economy from the Federal Reserve could deal yet another blow to a battered government debt market.

Slated to meet on Tuesday, the central bank is expected to leave official rates unchanged at their lowest levels in half a century. More importantly for bonds, officials may note that more clear signs of a recovery have emerged since the Fed's last meeting in June.

That could lift yields, which move opposite to price and are already near a one-year high, even further.

"The whole issue really is how much they emphasize whether or not growth is picking up; that will be the key for the market," said Gregg Cohen, a trader at CIBC World Markets.

Recent data on manufacturing and economic growth are showing tentative signs of a comeback after a prolonged period of economic sluggishness, and could warrant greater optimism from the Fed.

A growing conviction on Wall Street that an economic rebound is imminent was given credence on Tuesday by the closely watched Blue Chip Economic Indicators' poll, which showed economists have nudged up forecasts for U.S. economic growth.

Estimates called for third-quarter U.S. gross domestic product to grow at an annual rate of 3.7 percent, up from 3.6 percent predicted in July and from 2.4 percent in the second quarter.

News that billionaire investor Warren Buffett essentially bailed out of the bond market in the second quarter certainly did not help bonds. Buffett's holding company, Berkshire Hathaway, said late Friday it reaped more than $600 million in after-tax gains on the sale of U.S. Treasuries.

Two regional Fed surveys did show manufacturing still is not firing on all cylinders, which ordinarily might have given prices some support. But the surveys were too backward-looking to be of any assistance to beleaguered bonds.

The Chicago Federal Reserve's Midwest manufacturing index, which covers a five-state region, dipped for a third straight month to 97.0 in June from 97.2, hurt by lower steel and auto production. Earlier, the Kansas City Fed's July manufacturing index fell to 8 from 15 in June.

Factory indexes for August -- starting with the New York Fed's "Empire State" survey on Friday -- will provide more up-to-data readings on the sector, dealers said. Once the Fed's meeting is out of the way, data on retail sales later this week are expected to be the bond market's next focal point.

By mid-afternoon, the benchmark 10-year note US10YT=RR was 1-4/32 lower in price for a yield of 4.38 percent, up from 4.28 percent late Friday. The 30-year bond US30YT=RR slid 31/32 for a yield of 5.30 percent, up from 5.24 percent late on Friday.

Two-year notes US2YT=RR fell 5/32, with their yield at 1.78 percent, and five-year notes US5YT=RR were down 18/32 at a yield of 3.27 percent.

At the Chicago Board of Trade, Sept. 30-year bond futures continued a technically-driven sell-off that started after a failure to push above the 20-year moving average on Friday. Next support is seen at 105 17/32, equivalent to a 5.38 percent cash yield.

-- posted by Kirk

» Kirk - Buffett to Serve as Arnold's Sr. Economic Advisor!

Go Arnold!

-- posted by Kirk

» SteveT - Re: Buffett to Serve as Arnold's Sr. Economic Advisor!

I thought it was a joke but it is not.

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=st...
Elections - AP Gubernatorial
Buffett to Be Aide in Schwarzenegger Race

LOS ANGELES - Arnold Schwarzenegger has hired Warren Buffett (news - web sites) as his senior financial and economic adviser in his bid to replace Gray Davis if the governor loses the recall vote, the Republican actor's campaign announced Wednesday.

Buffett, chairman of Berkshire Hathaway, is a billionaire investor legendary for his financial prowess. He is also a Democrat.

"What he will be doing is assembling other prominent business leaders and economists and setting up a team to address the issues facing California," said Schwarzenegger spokesman Sean Walsh.

Buffett said in a statement: "I have known Arnold for years and know he'll be a great governor. It is critical to the rest of the nation that California's economic crisis be solved, and I think Arnold will get that job done."

By buying at low prices into well-known, solid companies, Buffett built Omaha, Neb.-based Berkshire Hathaway into a huge conglomerate. In his investments, he generally avoids high-tech companies, arguing he cannot tell which will be usurped by advances in technology.

Schwarzenegger is among scores of candidates vying to replace Davis if the governor loses an Oct. 7 special recall election.

-- posted by SteveT

» Kirk - Schwarzenegger Taps Buffett as Economic Advisor

By Glenn R. Simpson, Staff Reporter of The Wall Street Journal

WASHINGTON -- Actor Arnold Schwarzenegger, the leading Republican candidate for governor of California, has signed up investing legend Warren Buffett (news - web sites) as an economic advisor.

Mr. Schwarzenegger signed up Mr. Buffett, a longtime friend, after a round of personal wooing in recent days, two people familiar close to the Schwarzenegger campaign said. Both Mr. Buffett, the billionaire chief executive of Berkshire- Hathaway Inc. (BRKA, BRKB), and the Schwarzenegger campaign had no immediate comment. The campaign says it is planning an announcement of interest to the financial community.

The backing of Mr. Buffett the billionaire could be a major boost to the credibility of Mr. Schwarzenegger the action-film star, who thus far hasn't taken many positions and whose capacity to govern the huge state has been ridiculed.

"If Warren Buffett thinks Arnold Schwarzenegger has the chops to run the world's sixth-largest economy, I would take that as quite an endorsement," said political analyst Bill Whalen of Stanford University's Hoover Institution.

Mr. Buffett is often identified with Democratic causes -- he contributed to the campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (news - web sites) -- but is believed to be politically middle of the road.

-By Glenn R. Simpson; The Wall Street Journal; 202-862-9227

-- posted by Kirk

» KLR - Re: Schwarzenegger Taps Buffett as Economic Advisor

Schwarzenegger is a fractional owner of a NetJet plane, and once said he would "mutilate himself" before going back to owning his own plane.

A source who spoke directly to Buffett said Schwarzenegger first called to get Buffett's support a few days ago and then called back yesterday for another favor.

Our source says Buffett quipped, "I assumed Arnold was calling to ask me to be his personal trainer, but instead I was asked to be an economic adviser."

Maybe after the recall, Warren.

-- posted by KLR

» Q_out - Still Number 2

1. Bill Gates $46.0 Billion

2. Warren Buffett $36.0 Billion

3. Paul Allen $22.0 Billion

4. Helen Walton $20.5 Billion

5. S. Robson Walton $20.5 Billion

6. John Walton $20.5 Billion

7. Jim Walton $20.5 Billion

8. Alice Walton $20.5 Billion

9. Larry Ellison $18.0 Billion

10. Michael Dell $13.0 Billion

<img src="/files/mysites/qout/bhoestarts.gif" width=53 height=34 align="left">
Q_out

-- posted by Q_out

» Kirk - Price for a cherry consensus

Here is an interesting article that makes a good case for ONLY adding new money to the stock market AFTER it has had a 15% pullback. It reminds me of how I first started to buy individual stocks... after they want on "sale."

http://biz.yahoo.com/ms/031015/97720_1.h...

So the "buy low and hold" strategy has, over the past 63 years, produced long-term stock market returns far superior to the "buy high and hold" strategy. There's nothing too controversial in that; everyone agrees that buying low is better than buying high if you're planning to hold onto your stocks for a long time.

This reminds me of what Buffett does... looks for securites he thinks have great value AND are out of favor. THEN he buys them. The article talks about the whole market while Buffett does it for market sectors he likes and understands. Those that subscribe to my newsletter know I do much the same with the stocks and sectors I buy. I enhance my returns by selling "some" of my position when the market likes my stocks or sector ETFs and I buy back or "add to my position" when the market doesn't like my stocks. Rather than holding, this has me selling as the market rises and buying AFTER it corrects. What is intersting is my strategy would enhance the returns this article speaks of. My method of telling me when to sell is "asset allocation."

  Date       Kirk    S&P500   Delta
2003 YTD    +58.4%   20.7%    37.7%  as of 10/14/2003 
 

                                Kirk   S&P500+  NASDAQ 
4.75+ Yrs 12/31/98 to 10/10/03 141.0%  ( 9.2%) (11.8%)
Annualized Annual Return        20.2%  ( 2.0%) ( 2.6%) 
 

9/30/98 Inception Value:   $100,000
9/30/03 5 yrs later value: $345,395 up 245.4%
S&P500 between 9/30/98 and 9/30/03: up   4.6%
With dividends reinvested. All Numbers unaudited. 
Click for a free issue of my newsletter .

-- posted by Kirk

» Kirk - Buffett Sees Little to Invest In

Reuters
Buffett Sees Little to Invest In
Sunday October 26, 4:32 pm ET
http://biz.yahoo.com/rb/031026/financial...

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Warren Buffett (News) sees very few attractive investments at the moment, and is sitting tight on a $24 billion war chest.

The billionaire investor and chief executive of Berkshire Hathaway said in an interview with Barron's that he is not impressed with the current opportunities in stocks, Treasury bonds or junk debt.

"We've got more cash than ideas. The question is whether that will prevail for an unduly long time," he told Barron's.

In fact, Berkshire sold $9 billion of long-term Treasury bonds this year, and Buffett said buying at current levels is not a wise move, according to the report, which appeared in the Oct. 27 edition of the newspaper.

Buffett expressed regret about not selling shares of big companies like Coca-Cola Co. and Gillette Co. when those stocks crested in the late 1990s.

He added that such sales would have been complicated by the fact that he sat on both companies' boards at the time, raising possible red flags about insider trading.

He said he erred in not buying shares of Wal-Mart Stores Inc. years ago, because he viewed the stock as overvalued. That miscalculation cost Berkshire $8 billion, he told Barron's.

Buffett was upbeat about the insurance businesses that make up the most important part of his company. Those units include auto insurer Geico and global reinsurer General Re Corp.

He also complimented rival car insurers Progressive Corp. and Mercury General Corp., praising Progressive's strong systems and Mercury's CEO George Joseph, according to Barron's.

-- posted by Kirk