tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-56655818233802218392024-09-05T05:39:46.348+07:00Danielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02901678973251321027noreply@blogger.comBlogger111125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5665581823380221839.post-26559609076480474872012-08-22T15:43:00.002+07:002012-09-21T18:16:16.966+07:00

Has it been a while since I've posted here? It has. It has. But I've been busy and as you can see not with this site. What I've been working on is a site that's focused in large part on collecting quotes from or writing reviews of books by great writers such as Nevil Shute and Joseph Mitchell. Fear not, however. I came back to share a couple of links that I know readers of this

Danielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02901678973251321027noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5665581823380221839.post-47401258970301123962012-07-18T10:03:00.000+07:002012-07-18T10:03:06.629+07:00

So, according to this report from Morningstar, David Resnick will be joining Morningstar in September 2012. Who is David Resnick? Resnick "made his name as an advisor on bankruptcies and restructurings for many years and who in fact had worked with fund-family founder Marty Whitman on Public Service of New Hampshire's restructuring in the late 1980s." What does his hire mean for fundholders?

Danielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02901678973251321027noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5665581823380221839.post-21468848959196446702012-07-17T09:18:00.000+07:002012-07-17T09:18:00.150+07:00

So, Ken Heebner hasn't been getting the best of returns of late. In fact, as this article points out, he's been getting rather bad returns--and for a while. Nevertheless, as these three quotes show, Heebner hasn't changed his general strategy: 1. "“Most people think this is the worst time in the world to be optimistic, but my portfolio is positioned for strength in the U.S. . . I am

Danielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02901678973251321027noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5665581823380221839.post-39653950605096362762012-07-14T08:59:00.000+07:002012-07-14T09:02:36.152+07:00

In some circles, David Einhorn is admired as much (or even more) for his poker abilities than his investing skills. But as Einhorn himself points out in this article his strategy with both is similar.  Einhorn has said his approach to poker resembles his approach to investing: He doesn’t play a lot of hands. When “the situation feels right, I put in a big, aggressive raise with a

Danielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02901678973251321027noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5665581823380221839.post-31399844991615848242012-05-19T12:28:00.002+07:002012-07-14T09:04:00.575+07:00

At one of my new blogs, which both focuses on how to read a book the 80/20 way and helps you to do so, I share a quote from The Dhandho Investor on how Buffett achieved his billions: ...Minimizing downside risk while maximizing the upside is a powerful concept. It is the reason Mr. Buffett has a net worth of over $40 billion. He got there by taking minimal risk while always maximizing

Danielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02901678973251321027noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5665581823380221839.post-76237410271699294822012-05-13T17:11:00.000+07:002012-07-14T09:03:48.515+07:00

So let's review. This week, David Einhorn: made a lot of money when Herbalife and Green Mountain crashed took down the Fed in an article that used the Simpsons as examples, and... won a poker tournament for Hillel. I don't know if any Jewish mom can top that for naches this year, but I doubt it.

Danielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02901678973251321027noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5665581823380221839.post-75836168466326818242012-05-13T14:23:00.002+07:002012-07-14T09:04:21.853+07:00

In a recent report by Third Avenue Value, Ian Lapey discussed the philosophy which has led to Third Avenue's investing success. Here are eight tips from that report, that you might find helpful: "Focus on the balance sheet and readily ascertainable net asset value." "Only invest in common stocks issued by companies with strong financial positions." "Focus on the long term." "Worry about

Danielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02901678973251321027noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5665581823380221839.post-87419399586599849512012-05-13T14:01:00.002+07:002012-05-13T17:33:49.352+07:00

Morninstar recently interviewed Ian Lapey about a trip he made to Asia investigating the strength or weakness of Third Avenue's (real estate) investments. In general, Lapey expressed being pleased with what he saw. In particular, however, he repeatedly noted the discount to NAV that the fund's Hong Kong investments are selling at, the speed at which they're compounding NAV, and the strength of

Danielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02901678973251321027noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5665581823380221839.post-6264049746459289752012-05-07T20:39:00.003+07:002012-07-14T09:04:35.576+07:00

Although we're sure to hear more details of his macro thoughts, and soon, in the recent conference call discussing Greenlight Capital Re's Q1 2012 results, Einhorn noted being concerned of... the structural debt problems in Europe and Japan the slowing Chinese economy high oil prices, and general inflation connected to the Fed's 0% interest rate policy. What is he doing about it? Again,

Danielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02901678973251321027noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5665581823380221839.post-35906038555297238512012-04-24T16:08:00.000+07:002012-04-24T16:08:18.143+07:00

A post by Chuck Carnevale showed up in my news feed today because it contained quotes from both Warren Buffett and Marty Whitman (among others). It's a good post, and one that that readers of this blog may enjoy reading in full. As an example of its value, here's the quote by Marty Whitman: "I remain impressed with how much easier it is for us, and everybody else who has modicum of training, to

Danielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02901678973251321027noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5665581823380221839.post-52782664082997908002012-03-12T15:49:00.003+07:002012-03-12T15:55:05.631+07:00

Chuck Jaffe generously praises Marty Whitman in this short piece on his decision to step down from managing the Third Avenue Value Fund.While I disagree with parts of it, Jaffe accurately identifies Whitman's admirable long-term track record--and the three words that Whitman's style boils down to: "safe and cheap."The whole thing's worth a read, even for those of us who have been following the

Danielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02901678973251321027noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5665581823380221839.post-45819776191897516842012-03-10T23:41:00.002+07:002012-03-10T23:45:39.462+07:00

I have no inside information on this, but I'd be willing to bet that the following headline made David Einhorn smile:Starbucks To Sell Single-Cup Brewer Verismo, Green Mountain TanksI saw this in my Facebook news feed, prefaced by my friend saying, "This looks promising." Indeed it does--but especially for those short Green Mountain shares.

Danielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02901678973251321027noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5665581823380221839.post-21994759401781439962012-02-29T17:45:00.004+07:002012-02-29T17:52:43.092+07:00

Seeking Alpha has a post going over some of Heebner's current top picks. Worth checking out, even if (like me) you think investing in financials like Citigroup is madness.

Danielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02901678973251321027noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5665581823380221839.post-58701190941813722082012-02-29T17:26:00.003+07:002012-02-29T17:37:54.195+07:00

As the recently released transcript of David Einhorn talking to the CEO of Punch makes clear, David Einhorn was right to sell out of the company. Here's an excerpt of the phone call:PUNCH CEO: Well, I -- I think -- I -- I think the market sort of dictates this. I don’t think it’s a matter for the market to dictate that. We -- our view is simple, that is, that, you know, we have to make sure

Danielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02901678973251321027noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5665581823380221839.post-52786239655968547282012-01-19T10:34:00.006+07:002012-01-19T22:29:01.370+07:00

Third Avenue's latest shareholder letter is a great read. At its start, Marty Whitman basically provides a condensed view of his book, Value Investing: A Balanced Approach--which serves as either a nice teaser for those who haven't read the book or a nice refresher for those who have.Throughout the letter, a number of one-liners are made. Whitman points out, for example, that "analysts really

Danielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02901678973251321027noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5665581823380221839.post-8528023660779900842011-03-08T10:04:00.000+07:002011-03-08T10:04:00.585+07:00

SFGate recently reported on the management philosophy of David Sokol, one of Buffett's highly-praised business managers. While noting that details can be found in Sokol's book, Pleased but Not Satisfied, the article itself summarizes a few of the lessons. Regarding minimizing mistakes, for example, it says:In Sokol's mind, operational excellence consists of paying attention to detail and

Danielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02901678973251321027noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5665581823380221839.post-2098170614157064142011-03-05T21:33:00.003+07:002011-03-05T21:51:22.915+07:00

Business Insider recently linked to an interview with David Einhorn in which he lays out how he short stocks--or at least how he did it in this past financial crisis. Here's the relevant section:Interviewer: Okay. I guess I want you to continue to sort of chronologically in August of ’07, as you said you see BNP Paribas freeze redemptions and that gives concern and you’re talking to the rating

Danielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02901678973251321027noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5665581823380221839.post-71798932336563089702011-01-28T18:27:00.003+07:002011-01-28T18:36:21.590+07:00

In the latest annual report for Third Avenue Value, Amit Wadhwaney discusses his fund's investment in Leucadia. Here is the relevant excerpt:Leucadia National Corp. (“Leucadia”) is a NYSE-listed holding company. Run by Ian Cumming and Joe Steinberg since its founding in the late seventies, Leucadia has compounded the NAV of its portfolio by about 18.5% per annum, on average, over the last 30

Danielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02901678973251321027noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5665581823380221839.post-78977953411077117012010-12-04T21:00:00.005+07:002010-12-04T21:11:15.397+07:00

In a speech arguing that the efficient market theory is bogus, Warren Buffett identified 9 fund managers who he said would beat the market.He claimed he didn’t pick these people because they already had an outstanding track record. He said he selected these people years ago based upon their framework for investment decision-making. Of course finance professors didn’t believe him, and many

Danielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02901678973251321027noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5665581823380221839.post-73151122249804370222010-11-26T14:43:00.004+07:002010-11-26T14:48:22.249+07:00

A bit over a year ago I pointed to my review of David Einhorn's book Fooling Some of the People All the Time, saying that you could read the opening paragraphs online. Since that time, Einhorn has linked to that review from the book's website and the editor of The Objective Standard has allowed the review to be read in full online. Enjoy!

Danielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02901678973251321027noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5665581823380221839.post-2186577355566587572009-06-30T21:20:00.004+07:002009-06-30T21:34:37.518+07:00

It's always amazing to me how much people pay for lunch with Buffett given that he is very transparent about the causes of past investment failures and successes.Yet, perhaps due to tax write-offs, really liking the work Glide is doing in the community, or advertising for one's own fund (in a way that is sure to at least have some tangible result), people continue to pay millions for a lunch with

Danielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02901678973251321027noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5665581823380221839.post-10941872741745037332009-06-22T10:58:00.000+07:002009-06-22T10:58:00.556+07:00

In preparation for writing a review of Fooling Some of the People All the Time, I read all 16 reviews (from mostly major publications) listed at its site, and others besides.With a few exceptions, most did not actually review the book--showing what it said and why what it says is important. I set out to write a review that did do these things. And I did. You can read the opening paragraphs of it

Danielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02901678973251321027noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5665581823380221839.post-84450312438484017532009-06-09T17:15:00.003+07:002009-06-09T17:28:39.347+07:00

Leading up to the Morninstar Investor Conference I had this to say about it:As fund managers trying to cope with redemptions, there is likely to be a lot of people talking their book and a bit less candor than usual can probably be expected from each manager too. That said, the other managers are likely to be less polite about their differences--in both style and positions--and that could lead to

Danielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02901678973251321027noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5665581823380221839.post-80132889188305992292009-06-04T05:07:00.003+07:002009-06-04T05:16:40.145+07:00

I previously posted the somewhat complicated history behind Leucadia's name. For the curious, the history of how Greenlight Capital got it's name is pretty simple. It was given by Einhorn's wife.As he explains it in Fooling Some of the People All The Time:"In early 1996 ... Cheryl named the firm, giving me the green light. When you leave a good job to go off on your own and don't expect to make

Danielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02901678973251321027noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5665581823380221839.post-86277439441021372222009-06-03T10:47:00.001+07:002009-06-03T10:47:26.231+07:00

Bloomberg does a good recap here of what David Sokol-- of MidAmerican Energy Holdings--and David Einhorn--of Greenlight Capital--had to say at the most recent Ira Sohn Research Conference.Sokol said, talking about the economy, that "we are not seeing any green sprouts" and that the "shadow backlog" of home foreclosures will last until 2011. Einhorn said that the Obama administration is just like

Danielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02901678973251321027noreply@blogger.com0