Warren Buffett's annual letter to shareholders

Like many others, I look forward to Warren Buffett’s annual letter to Berkshire Hathaway shareholders, and like many others, I read his annual letter closely, looking for any investment insights I can glean as well for Buffett’s now-famous homespun brand of wisdom and humor. Although Buffett latest letter to Berkshire shareholders – which was published Saturday morning – does offer readers a little under each of these headings, I think many reading Buffet’s latest letter might have come away a little disappointed, as I discuss further below. Buffett’s 2019 letter to Berkshire shareholders, published on February 22, 2020, can be found here. (Full disclosure: I own BRK.B shares, although not as many as I wish I did.)
Continue Reading A Closer Look at Warren Buffett’s Annual Letter to Berkshire Shareholders

The publication of the annual letter of Warren Buffett, Berkshire Hathaway’s legendary Chairman, to the company’s shareholders is a much-anticipated event. Investors and observers value the letter for its comments about investing, the economy, and Buffet’s own outlook for the future, as well as for his occasional doses of humor and worldly wisdom. The 2017 letter, published on the company’s website on Saturday morning, does not disappoint. This year’s version has much to justify a full reading. The letter also has a long real-life parable for the benefit of ordinary investors hoping to maximize their investment gains. The February 24, 2018 letter can be found here. Full disclosure: I own BRK-B shares, although not nearly as many as I wish I did.
Continue Reading A Closer Look at Warren Buffett’s Latest Letter to Berkshire Shareholders

buffA highly anticipated event in the financial world each year is the release of legendary investor and Berkshire Hathaway Chairman Warren Buffett’s annual letter to the company’s shareholders. Market watchers and other observers value Buffett’s annual letter for its valuable insights about the financial marketplace, as well as for Buffett’s homespun humor and his wise insights about the economy and the world. In this year’s letter (here), which the company released on Saturday morning, Buffett had quite a bit to say about the current prospects of the American economy. Many of Buffett’s remarks about the U.S. economy were expressly intended to counter the relentlessly negative tone of the current U.S. Presidential election campaign. The letter also contains an interesting commentary about both the beneficial and disruptive effects resulting from gains in productivity; the commentary includes a cautionary note about the need to assist those disadvantaged by the rapid changes that often accompany technical innovations. The letter also contains a rather sobering assessment of the risks the world currently faces. (Full disclosure: I own BRK.B shares, though not nearly as many as I wish I did.)
Continue Reading A Closer Look at Buffett’s Annual Letter to Berkshire Shareholders

cunningham buffett 4e coverWarren Buffett’s annual letters to Berkshire shareholders are prized alike by the company’s shareholders and by those who have no connection to the company other than an interest in what Buffett may have to say. Anyone who has followed Buffett’s letters over the years knows that the Berkshire chairman has certain themes to which he returns over and over again. Anyone who wants to assemble a comprehensive view on one of these recurring themes can of course sort through all of the shareholder letters that Buffett has written over the year, from the collection of the letters on the Berkshire website. However, the fact is that sorting through 38 years of letters would be a daunting and difficult task.

Fortunately for anyone interesting in Buffett’s writings and views, there is an excellent resource that organizes essays from over the years into a single volume organized by topic and accompanied by a detailed index. In his book, “The Essays of Warren Buffett: Lessons for Corporate America,” George Washington University Law Professor Lawrence A. Cunningham has done a truly commendable job distilling and organizing the essence of Buffett’s letter to Berkshire shareholders. In conjunction with the 50th anniversary of Berkshire Hathaway under Buffett’s leadership, Cunningham has released an updated Fourth Edition of the book (here), which incorporates selections from Buffett’s most recent shareholder letters into the anthology.
Continue Reading Book Review: Buffett’s Lessons for Corporate America

buffOne of the most highly anticipated events in the annual business cycle is the March release of Warren Buffett’s letter to the shareholders of Berkshire Hathaway. Many investors and observers look forward to the letter for the business and investment insights that Berkshire’s Chairman provides, as well as for his plain-spoken style and homespun humor.

On February 26, 2011, Berkshire Hathaway issued Chairman Warren Buffett’s much-anticipated annual letter to the company’s shareholders (here). Although aficionados of Buffett’s letters will not be disappointed, this year’s letter is largely focused on Berkshire’s performance and has fewer excursions into larger topics than in past years. (Full disclosure: I own BRK.B shares

The much-anticipated annual letter to Berkshire Hathaway shareholders of its Chairman Warren Buffett has long been valued for its business insights and occasionally humorous tone. The 2009 version, which was released on Saturday February 27, 2010, and which can be accessed here, is no exception, though the expanding size of Berkshire’s business portfolio has