Warren Buffett, Most Hated Man In America, By Millionaires (Huffington Post)
The most hated man in America right now may be Warren Buffett, at least if you measure the hate by the amount of dollars owned by the people doing the hating. That is because Buffett, a champion dollar-owner in his own right, is the primary water-carrier for President Obama’s notion that rich people should have to pay maybe a little more in taxes than they have for the past decade or so. In fact, he likes the idea so much they put his name on it. Obama this morning rolled out what will be a week-long campaign, starting with a speech in swing-state Florida and culminating in what will likely be a failed vote in the Senate next Monday, to tout the “Buffett Rule,” requiring millionaires to pay at least 30 percent in taxes.
Eat Dinner in Warren Buffett’s Childhood Home (WSJ)
Warren Buffett fandom is approaching ‘Bieber Fever.’ Adding yet another level to Buffett-mania, dinner at his childhood home will be auctioned off starting at $6,000. The catch: Warren Buffett won’t actually be there. But he’ll tape a personal video for the dinner party, assuredly complete with plenty of Aw-Shucks memories of growing up in the very home! The guests will also get a personally autographed photo of Buffett in front of the home. The dinner, to be held May 5 during Berkshire Hathaway’s annual meeting, will be auctioned off on eBay to benefit Girls Inc., an Omaha charity where Buffett’s daughter Susie Buffett sits on the board.
Warren Buffett Buys Pru CT Realty (Hartford Business)
Billionaire investor Warren Buffett has added Wallingford’s Prudential Connecticut Realty to his stable of corporate holdings, giving his No. 2 home real estate brokerage unit its first entry into the Northeast. HomeServices of America Inc., a unit of Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc., paid an unspecified sum for Prudential CT and its affiliate, Prudential Rhode Island Realty. Prudential CT Chairman and CEO Peter Hellie announced the deal Wednesday.
Buffett’s Buy-And-Hope-It-Languishes Strategy (Forbes)
How do you become the richest investor in America? By rooting against your stocks–well, sometimes, at least.
That’s what Warren Buffett essentially said in his 2011 year-end letter to Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) shareholders. Buffett, whose $44 billion net worth makes him the world’s third-richest man, was talking in particular about investing in companies that–like Berkshire itself–are engaged in programs to buy back their own shares. “The logic is simple,” he wrote. “If you are going to be a net buyer of stocks in the future, either directly with your own money or indirectly (through your ownership of a company that is repurchasing shares), you are hurt when stocks rise. You benefit when stocks swoon.”
Is Buffett right on tech? (FT Adviser)
Warren Buffett, who reportedly doesn’t even own a mobile phone and spends his business hours at one of the last remaining computer-free desks in civilisation, announced last November that he had quietly accumulated in excess of $10bn (£6.2bn) in IBM stock – enough for a 5 per cent stake in the company. Buffett has traditionally shunned the high-tech sector, instead favouring the more predictable earnings derived from less glamorous industrial companies. His long-standing argument was that he simply didn’t know enough about the technology sector to profit from it. So what does he know about it now? This is probably the question that first sprang to most investors’ minds when the news emerged. After all, Mr Buffett has a remarkable record for second guessing the markets, and his investment decisions are often widely imitated. Should lesser seers now slavishly follow suit?
