So, it's Thursday night and I'm just a few days away from the big event -- March 31st with Warren Buffett. I've been so busy with school, recruiting, and a recently exceptional personal life, to not really have noticed the time fly by. However, here we are, just a few days away. So that I don't completely drop the ball on the organizational aspect of things, I called the bus company today and made sure that everything was set for Monday morning. My contact there, Jolene, picked up the phone in as chipper a mood as ever and assured me that everything would go off without a hitch. Based on that confirmation, I'd say that there's little else I can do except show up and enjoy the day.
To make sure that I won't make a complete arse of myself in front of Mr. Buffett, I'll be reading on the flight down and on Sunday, from a selection of books and articles that I think would be interesting to draw some questions from, here and there. I wish I could prepare more, but like I said at the start of this posting, things have been extremely busy. More importantly, the real value will be in listening as much as possible to Mr. Buffett speak. I do have one thing up my sleeve though, that came to mind recently, and hopefully I'll have the chance to ask about it, if the brief opportunity presents itself.
Lastly, among my classmates there remains some uncertainty as to how exclusive a visit this will actually be, and I have no insight into that, other than what Professor Athanassakos told me himself, which was that March 31st was our day, Ivey's day alone, to learn from Mr. Buffett, without having to share it with any other schools. We'll see if that's true, when we get there...
Thursday, March 27, 2008
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
Steady as she goes
Further to my last post and the gap in time between this and that one, everything's pretty much set in motion for the trip to visit Warren Buffett on March 31st. Some recent news has made this trip a bit more special, in that The Oracle of Omaha is now the richest man in the world, according to the just-released annual list. Not that Mr. Buffett would be fazed by such an honour, but I wonder how he's reacting to the spotlight, from his small home in the centre of the United States?
As we all know, with the good come the bad. Yesterday, my BRK.B shares traded down below my purchase price for the first time since buying them many weeks ago. Of course, the last thing I am is worried about them. Instead, I'm excited to be a shareholder and to receive my copy of the Annual Report, which I intend to take with me and have signed on the 31st, instead of the Intelligent Investor or Mr. Buffett's book of essays. I figure that would be a more appropriate marker in time.
Lastly, I just came back from a week by the pool in the Dominican Republic, during which I read the "Value Investing" text for my course, as well as the first half of "The Intelligent Investor", aside from catching up on a swack of podcasts. I'm glad I read the VI book first, given that I know am inclined to look up some of the other famous value investors written about in the back half of the book. Also, I now better appreciate the balance-sheet based method of valuation than I did before, since it puts less emphasis on growth opportunities than other methods heralded and taught today. As we get more and more clarity on the possibility of a recession, I sense that some good, old-fashioned value plays will be ripe for the picking, especially as companies with a strong franchise like lululemon trade into lower and lower territories.
As we all know, with the good come the bad. Yesterday, my BRK.B shares traded down below my purchase price for the first time since buying them many weeks ago. Of course, the last thing I am is worried about them. Instead, I'm excited to be a shareholder and to receive my copy of the Annual Report, which I intend to take with me and have signed on the 31st, instead of the Intelligent Investor or Mr. Buffett's book of essays. I figure that would be a more appropriate marker in time.
Lastly, I just came back from a week by the pool in the Dominican Republic, during which I read the "Value Investing" text for my course, as well as the first half of "The Intelligent Investor", aside from catching up on a swack of podcasts. I'm glad I read the VI book first, given that I know am inclined to look up some of the other famous value investors written about in the back half of the book. Also, I now better appreciate the balance-sheet based method of valuation than I did before, since it puts less emphasis on growth opportunities than other methods heralded and taught today. As we get more and more clarity on the possibility of a recession, I sense that some good, old-fashioned value plays will be ripe for the picking, especially as companies with a strong franchise like lululemon trade into lower and lower territories.
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