No. of Recommendations: 1
"The stock is roughly even with the index over the past 20 years with a 9.8% annualized return. That is despite dramatic growth in the company’s operating profits and Buffett’s coup in buying Apple stock, which is showing a nearly $150 billion gain for Berkshire.
Berkshire stock’s lagging performance shows how difficult it is for even an investor of Buffett’s stature to beat an index driven by powerful megacap tech stocks, especially given Berkshire’s huge size. Its asset base is about $1 trillion.
It isn’t clear why the stock is lagging behind the market lately. The company is finishing what likely will be a record year for profits. After-tax operating earnings could rise more than 25% to nearly $40 billion in 2023. "
"The Class A shares have lagged behind the S&P 500 by about nine percentage points during the current quarter and now are up about 16% in 2023. That compares with a roughly 26% total return for the index. "
https://www.barrons.com/articles/berkshire-hathawa...
No. of Recommendations: 22
Berkshire stock’s lagging performance shows how difficult it is for even an investor of Buffett’s stature to beat an index driven by powerful megacap tech stocks, especially given Berkshire’s huge size.
Anybody remember 1999?
Admittedly most of the giant tech firms are very profitable these days, so the parallel is inexact.
Yet Berkshire keeps on truckin', obliviously.
10 Buy a firm with lots of profits and a relatively predictable future, but don't overpay.
20 Wait till the profits pile up.
30 GOTO 10
Jim
No. of Recommendations: 4
“ Anybody remember 1999?”
Yep. I worked for a large tech company so was prohibited from owning any other tech stock. Kept plowing money into Berkshire as it came down all the way to low $40k an A share. Those were the days!!
No. of Recommendations: 2
“Yet Berkshire keeps on truckin', obliviously.
10 Buy a firm with lots of profits and a relatively predictable future, but don't overpay.
20 Wait till the profits pile up.
30 GOTO 10”
And that’s basic-ally it…
No. of Recommendations: 1
I wonder how many of the younger crowd will get the basic reference. Classic
No. of Recommendations: 9
<<Anybody remember 1999?>>
When I attended the BRK meeting in the Spring of 2000 I opened my
hotel room door at the Omaha Regency Circle Marriott and found a
"free" copy of the Omaha World Herald with many articles that caught
my eye. One article titled "Berkshire Hathaway Stockholders Still Bullish
on Warren Buffett" really spoke to the intelligence and loyalty of BRK
Shareholders.
"Don't ask me to support your story line," wrote Omahan Mark Shaw, a
software developer in an e-mail response to the Buffett question. "In
fact, I sold most of my tech portfolio and bought Berkshire Class B shares
while they were travelling down into the $1,400s."
.....George Morgan, a vice president with Kirkpatrick Pettis Investments
in Omaha said "When the stock was down to $41,000, that was not Mr. Buffett's
fault. It was the market's fault, which can vastly overprice or underprice a
stock. What has changed in the four weeks in terms of Mr. Buffett's activity?
Nothing.
The performance of Berkshire's operating companies, such as General Re and Geico Corp.
will drive Berkshire's stock, Morgan said. And he expects the drive upward to
continue.
And finally, there were the comments of shareholder Carrie Finlayson of Greenwich, Conn.
who said Berkshire's disappointing 1999 results strengthened her faith in Buffett
because the company was not 'swayed by Market Momentum. He will not spend my money to
buy stock at ridiculous prices because everyone else is doing so" she said.
"He hasn't lost it. Rather, he acted as the supremely rational person that he is."
Talk about comments that have withstood the test of time!
George Morgan cited Gen Re and Geico he could not cite BNSF, Johns Manville, Forest River,
Berkshire Hathaway Energy, Clayton Homes, Marmon, Precision Castparts, Iscar,
Allegheny, etc, etc. because none of those companies had been acquired yet.
Jim, I could really Dig your Keep on Truckin comment and for me
Berkshire will always be FAR OUT!!!
