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Berkshire Annual Meeting Highlights

Tyler Durden's picture




 

While Charlie Munger has so far to comment on the 24K content of made in the basement tribalware, he and his partner have made quite a few other statements on items ranging far and wide, during the annual Berkshire Omaha convention, which year after year represents the annual pilgrimage for thousands to a crony capitalist Mecca, and which with the passage of time, has become increasingly more irrelevant. Why? Because with a $58 billion bet (on $37.8 billion in cash and equivalents) that asset prices will go higher, it is rather clear on what side of the 'bail out' argument, and its 'all in' fallback: central planning, Warren Buffett sits. 

From the just released 10-Q:

To anyone who has sat through one or more of these spectacles in the past, the "less than dynamic duo" will not tell anything they don't already know, and even on the recently sensitive topic of 'succession' expect virtually no additioanl clarity.

Below is a summary of some of the key soundbites so far.

From Reuters:

ON Q1 EARNINGS

"In general, all of our companies, with the exception of the ones in the residential construction business which was the case last year and the case this year ... all of the companies except that area have shown good earnings."

"Everything good happened at Geico in the first quarter."

"Overall, we feel good about the first quarter, we feel good about the year."

ON RISK AND SUCCESSION

"I do believe that the CEO of any large, particularly financial .... company should be the chief risk officer."

"We would not select anyone for that job that we did not think had that ability."

"We're not going to have an arts major in charge of Berkshire."

ON THE POWER TO MAKE DEAL'S IN BUFFETT'S ABSENCE

"Berkshire will possess that subsequent to my departure. I don't think that every deal that I made would necessarily be makeable by a successor, but they'll bring other talents as well."

ON SWISS RE

"There is ability to reprice that business as we go along, but the degree to which we and Swiss Re might want to reprice that may be a point of controversy"

ON SHARE BUYBACKS

"If we could have our way we'd have the stock trade once a year and Charlie (vice chairman) and I would try to come up with an intrinsic business value."

"The 1.1 (times book value) is a figure we feel very comfortable with, we would probably feel comfortable with a figure somewhat higher than that."

ON ENERGY COSTS

"If you told Charlie or me five years ago that you'd have a 50-to-1 ratio between oil and natural gas I think we would have asked you what you were drinking."

Vice Chairman Charlie Munger on U.S. natural gas reserves: "(The) most precious thing we could leave our descendants."

ON GEICO MOVING INTO TELEMATICS LIKE PEERS

"I don't see in this new experiment anything that threatens Geico in any way."

"Our marketing is working extremely well and our risk selection is working extremely well."

ON BUSINESS SCHOOL EDUCATIONS:

"I think they've taught students a lot of nonsense about investments."

Munger: "I think business school education is improving."

Buffett: "Is the implication from a low base?"

Munger: "Yes."

ON THE 'BUFFETT RULE' TAX PROPOSAL

"It was more fun to attack something I hadn't said than to try and attack something I had said."

ON INSURANCE AND ASIA

"We have written in the last few months far more business in Asia -- and by that I mean New Zealand, Australia, Japan and Thailand -- we have written a lot more business than we wrote a year ago, two years ago, three years ago."

ON HAVING POLITICAL VIEWS WHILE RUNNING A PUBLIC COMPANY

"I don't think that any employee of Berkshire, I don't think that any of the CEOs of the companies we own stock in, should in any way have their citizenship restricted. When Charlie and I took this job we did not decide to put our citizenship in a blind trust."

On a shareholder's father who does not like Buffett's public advocacy on tax policy: "It sounds to me like he ought to own Fox."

ON A MAJOR ACQUISITION OF MORE THAN $20 BILLION

"We considered one here just a month or two ago which I wish we could have made it."

"It could happen, I don't think it will happen."

"We would have done it if we could have made the deal."

....

And those depserately fawning over every word uttered in CenturyLink center can find a real time live chat over at Motley Fool.

 

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Sat, 05/05/2012 - 12:20 | 2399394 Aziz
Aziz's picture

I am not civilized enough to attend, because I love gold.

Sat, 05/05/2012 - 12:25 | 2399401 SilverTree
Sat, 05/05/2012 - 12:54 | 2399442 HoofHearted
HoofHearted's picture

I'm still shaking my head at the headline from another site that says "Buffett believes US baks are in better shape now than 4 years ago."

I guess I could believe it because they have Timmay and Obama in their back pockets. And maybe that bearded guy who isn't as smart as my plumber is in their vest pocket too....

Sat, 05/05/2012 - 13:03 | 2399454 Central Bankster
Central Bankster's picture

Without money printing, insider info, and bailouts I doubt Uncle Warren could make any nominal returns.

Sat, 05/05/2012 - 13:16 | 2399478 Atlas_shrugging
Atlas_shrugging's picture

ON THE BUFFETT RULE:

"Thanks to David Sokol, I am pleased to serve as President Obama's hand-puppet, gladly ignoring the obvious double taxation of dividends in exchange for preserving my legacy while watching countless productive people flee the country in the name of economic freedom".

Sat, 05/05/2012 - 16:01 | 2399749 Caviar Emptor
Caviar Emptor's picture

Little Miss Buffett is a throwback to 19th century America. Without collusion from insiders in government, Wall Street and the corporate world he'd be playing shuffle board in Florida

Sat, 05/05/2012 - 19:43 | 2400091 Larry Dallas
Larry Dallas's picture

I love seeing Becky Quick and Liz Claman constantly at his side. Do you think they whisper "fuck off, he's mine" to each other.

Would pay $$ to see Becky tear off Liz' top in a cat-fight though.

Ah, the info-babe wars...

Sat, 05/05/2012 - 12:29 | 2399402 Beam Me Up Scotty
Beam Me Up Scotty's picture

"We're not going to have an arts major in charge of Berkshire."

Got it all you Liberal Arts morons?  Get a real education.  I'm sick of hearing whiney college kids with massive student loan debt with a BA in BS degree.

Sat, 05/05/2012 - 22:14 | 2400241 Bicycle Repairman
Bicycle Repairman's picture

Yet apparently MBAs lack value as well.  What should I do?  Be born to a congressman?

Sat, 05/05/2012 - 12:35 | 2399411 carbonmutant
carbonmutant's picture

There are a lot of uncivilized banks...

Sat, 05/05/2012 - 12:57 | 2399427 Monedas
Monedas's picture

Lawarrence Of Omeccaha  !  Uh....Lawarrence of Omaha....that's the ticket !  I'm a grain of sand from the same desert....except, after executing Hassim on the outskirts of Aqaba, I would have gotten the same glow I get when I take a dog to the pound !    Monedas   1929    Comedy Jihad Becky Quickie Consort Candydate

Sat, 05/05/2012 - 12:48 | 2399430 Bay of Pigs
Bay of Pigs's picture

I'm still shaking my head in disbefief on Mungers gold comment yesterday.

Seriously, what kind of an idiot would say such a thing? He gives stupid a bad name.

Sat, 05/05/2012 - 15:45 | 2399727 Waterfallsparkles
Waterfallsparkles's picture

Anyone remember when people were complaining about the economy and he said just suck it up.

Sat, 05/05/2012 - 23:02 | 2400287 Ned Zeppelin
Ned Zeppelin's picture

Uh, he's a sick, demented rich old fuque? That's my guess.

Sat, 05/05/2012 - 22:55 | 2400279 LasVegasDave
LasVegasDave's picture

Thats what they call a "tell" in Vegas

 

Sat, 05/05/2012 - 12:54 | 2399443 Central Bankster
Central Bankster's picture

Keep selling those out of the money puts and CDS contracts... "pennies in front of a steamroller" as they say.

Sat, 05/05/2012 - 13:00 | 2399452 Jim B
Jim B's picture

If I could front run the Federal Reserve Bailouts, I could make lots of $$$ too!  It's good to be the president's crony!

 

Genius my ass!

Sat, 05/05/2012 - 13:05 | 2399461 Jack Sheet
Jack Sheet's picture

Suckers holding on to BH shares in Bunger's "producing businesses" should read Rickards' piece on the plummeting value of BH shares since 2001 measured in gold ounces.

Sat, 05/05/2012 - 13:18 | 2399480 duncecap rack
duncecap rack's picture

On a shareholder's father who does not like Buffett's public advocacy on tax policy: "It sounds to me like he ought to own Fox."

 

To me that is really funny. Just sayin.

Sat, 05/05/2012 - 19:19 | 2400066 Freddie
Freddie's picture

Only f***king retards think any of the TV networks or TV are any different.  Keep watching TV sheep because you enable and enpower your overlords.

Only retards would invest in Berkshire when Buffett has not beaten the S&P 500 over the past 5, 10 and 15 years.  These crony capitalist shareholders are morons who probably watch LOTS of TV.

Sat, 05/05/2012 - 13:20 | 2399484 junkyardjack
junkyardjack's picture

These guys didn't sit around on twitter talking about it, they made it happen.  The results speak for themselves.  He who hath more money cast the first stone

Sat, 05/05/2012 - 13:52 | 2399533 Catullus
Catullus's picture

"If we could have our way we'd have the stock trade once a year and Charlie (vice chairman) and I would try to come up with an intrinsic business value."

And thus why they push for transactions taxes or Tobin Taxes. These types of investors want to tax their competitors out of business. Same with Soros.

Sat, 05/05/2012 - 15:20 | 2399692 Xibalba
Xibalba's picture

If ever there was an appropriate target for our al-Shabazz friends....

Sat, 05/05/2012 - 15:40 | 2399722 orangegeek
orangegeek's picture

When this bear market resumes, big stockholders of Berkshire, Microsoft, Google and the rest of uber wealthy still in the market are going to be on rough ride.

 

When the market reaches bottom this time around, we won't be seeing a 3 year bull (March 2009 to April 2012) like we did after the first collapse.

 

http://bullandbearmash.com/index/sp-500/weekly/

Sat, 05/05/2012 - 15:41 | 2399723 l1b3rty
l1b3rty's picture

Perhaps the banks are civilized? The banksters too

http://silvervigilante.com

Sat, 05/05/2012 - 15:48 | 2399728 Waterfallsparkles
Waterfallsparkles's picture

Buffet collects tons of dividends on the Companies he ownes.  He also collects tons of interest from the likes of GS, BAC, and GE.

Yet, he will not pay his shareholders a dividend.  Just greedy.

Sat, 05/05/2012 - 20:05 | 2400120 Smokey1
Smokey1's picture

Buffett's derivatives will kill Berkshire. Berkshire was junk rated in 2009, and they'll be there again in 2-3 years right before they go under.

Maybe Munger and Buffett can team up to rob a liquor store or dumpster dive when Berkshire Hathaway is valued at about the same net worth as a small cup of warm rat piss.

The absolute best possible allocation of capital for Berkshire Hathaway today would be for Buffett to pay Kyle Bass to spend a week with him (Buffett) and Munger and teach them about the economy.

Unfortunately, Kyle falls into the "uncivilized" category since he likes gold.

Sat, 05/05/2012 - 23:02 | 2400286 Ned Zeppelin
Ned Zeppelin's picture

Good grief - who gives a flying fuque what these soon -to-be deceased rich pricks have to say?

Sat, 05/05/2012 - 23:44 | 2400312 Chuck Walla
Chuck Walla's picture

So, he doesn't like Fox because they pointed out how Warren set up his taxes to take advantage of cap gains rates vs. the secretary and her $360,000 earned income rate.  Or that Warren could change his compensation and tax rates with a few simple calls.  And that Warren has a tax battle with the IRS for $1 billion he doesn't want to pay despite the infrastructure making his success possible. Oh, and that the take from the Buffet rule couldn't hardly keep the Obama's in great vacations.

 

Oh, Warren, you are the billionaire that the Lefties can love.  You Capitalist, you. You won't be giving up any of what you have for the little shits, you're keeping it.  Nope, you just want to fuck any potential competitors out of their chance with the help of the Central Planners.   That's one thing government does well, it forecloses a lot of avenues and hopes unless you can pay off or deliver votes.  Ergo, exhaibit 1 the current cast of clowns fronting for the last cast of Bozos.

Sun, 05/06/2012 - 02:30 | 2400401 zebrasquid
zebrasquid's picture

Arthritic relics

Sun, 05/06/2012 - 12:10 | 2400744 Will To Live
Will To Live's picture

New moniker: The Orchiectomy of Omaha.

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Sun, 05/13/2012 - 23:33 | 2422715 qiongqiong
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