Category: Warren Buffett & Berkshire Hathaway

Think Like an Owner Podcast Interview

At Greybull, we love situations where our co-owners managing our investments think like owners — because they are owners. It is a wonderful situation. I recently had an enjoyable conversation with Alex Bridgeman who has a podcast titled “Think Like an Owner” — it is… Continue reading

Investing Errors Come From Psychology, Not Information — Charlie Munger (2 of 2)

“A latticework of mental models” describes ways that Charlie Munger sees intelligence and wisdom. Mental models describe more than simple IQ, or Intelligence Quotient. Munger Avoids Investing Errors by Many Mental Models Munger believes a wise person is best served by 80 to 90 mental… Continue reading

Investing Errors Come From Psychology, Not Information — Howard Marks (1 of 2)

When two giants of investing, Charlie Munger and Howard Marks, emphasize a similar theme, it pays to take note.  It is interesting to me that they, and many other investors, eventually move well beyond the quantitative analysis of business to the “second level” of psychology,… Continue reading

Dodging Bullets Keys Investment Success

Great investors have skills to seize opportunities and get into good situations.  Equally as important can be the skill at “scrambling out of bad situations,” as Charlie Munger would say, or “dodging bullets” as it sometimes feels when helping companies solve challenges.  At the Berkshire meeting… Continue reading

Rational Investing vs Irrational Entrepreneurship (Admirable Idealism)

When asked at this year’s meeting, “What matters most at Berkshire Hathaway?”  Charlie Munger and Warren Buffett quickly agreed: “Seeing things the way they are.” Rational As Opposed to Smart Warren and Charlie then went to one of their favorite topics about how the success of… Continue reading

Podcast Interview about Competitive Advantage, Berkshire Hathaway, & Recurring Revenue

I recently enjoyed being interviewed for a podcast with Jock Purtle of Digital Exits where we discuss what Warren Buffett and Charlie Munger would invest in today — if they were young. Hint: competitive advantages, recurring revenue. What would Buffett and Munger invest in if… Continue reading

Portfolio Churn — Enemy of Investment Returns

Churn destroys investment return.  Strangely, traditional private equity builds itself to churn.  Churn reduces investment returns for several reasons such as transaction costs, business disruption, and the difference in tax rates between ordinary income and capital gains.  This last difference is the easiest to quantify as… Continue reading

Private Equity Trending Toward Longer Term Models Like Greybull Stewardship

Momentum is growing toward private equity structures with longer term time horizons and movement toward more “permanent capital” — structures that are more similar to Berkshire Hathaway and Greybull Stewardship (my private equity fund focused on companies with $1-3 million in profit). Blackstone private equity… Continue reading

2014 Berkshire Hathaway Annual Letter – Buffett and Munger Observations From 50 Years

Saturday, Feb. 28, 2015, Berkshire Hathaway posted their 2014 Berkshire Hathaway annual letter. As this is the 50th anniversary of Warren Buffett taking control of Berkshire, this letter included two extra sections. Both Buffett and Vice Chairman Charlie Munger wrote about their observations about the first fifty… Continue reading

Super Investor, Seth Klarman, on Lessons Learned from Buffett

Seth Klarman has a legendary hedge fund that you may not know, the Baupost Group.  His returns in that fund have been Buffett-like. He is a value investor . . . truly, not just someone who likes to say that word.  His insights are treasured,… Continue reading