Subject: Re: Why I sold my entire Berkshire stake
"At what P/B or price would you start buying back BRK in the IRA? Or are you thinking of simply keeping the large position in your brokerage account only going forward?"


Certainly an intriguing question.

My decision was influenced by Warren's dour outlook on Utility rate recovery and litigation AND my personal work experience. He literally stated that he made a mistake not considering this.

As a young man (early 30s) I was the Chief Information Officer at a large regulated utility in NJ. I remember the CEO of one of the Operating Companies boasting "isn't is great we have a business where we have a guaranteed 15% return on our rate base?" I looked him in the eye and said "Yes but what happens if the regulatory environment gets less friendly?" He didn't like that question and by the look on his face I am certain he never considered it. He started as a Lineman in the Utility Company. Being a young and somewhat brash Executive in the Utility business was pretty rare. I used to joke and call it the Futility Industry.


That was 30+ years ago and not only has the regulatory environment changed but now there is a real threat of Federal litigation.

I left shortly thereafter to join a tech company and had a great and prosperous run.

Back to BRK - I just don't know at this point on swinging back in. I don't think it is a straightforward as Price to BV or another metric but certainly that will matter.

I will probably wait until the Annual Meeting to get more color on this and the poor performance of the rail business.